Marshall’s 2015 season opener against Purdue will be pushed back one day in order to grab a slice of a national television audience. The game previously scheduled for September 5, 2015 will now be played the following day, on September 6, 2015.
It is not all too often when a program from a non-power conference gets a chance to host a program from a power conference. Purdue may be considered a down program out of the Big Ten, but for Marshall it is still a pretty decent game on the home schedule. Last season saw Marshall ultimately lag in the Group of Five conference champion conversation behind programs like Boise State and East Carolina (for a while) due to a non-conference schedule that lacked any decent opposition in the eyes of the College Football Playoff selection committee. A late loss to Western Kentucky essentially eliminated Marshall from consideration with no breathing room due to the overall strength of schedule. Even though it may be “just Purdue,” the Boilermakers representing the Big Ten helps to make the overall body of work look at least a little more credible.
Getting the game on national TV is also a nice little perk for Marshall. The game will be given a mid-afternoon kickoff on the Sunday of Labor Day weekend (TV listing information not yet available, although it would appear something is in the works). For the time being, it is the only game scheduled to be played on that day with the NFL not kicking off until the following weekend. Ohio State and Virginia Tech will be playing the next night on Monday night in Blacksburg, Virginia. Any time a Group of Five program can grab an exclusive time slot is good, but taking advantage of that with an impressive showing is ultimately even more important in the bigger picture of the college football season.
