The schedule helps Marshall. The South Alabama game was a midweek game on October 20, so the Herd get 11 days before this kickoff. Old Dominion gets the standard week after flying home from Ruston. Neither team plays again before this one, so what's on the page now is what shows up in Norfolk.
Gardner-Webb36-35
There's a common opponent, and it didn't go well for either side. Marshall lost 45-17 at James Madison. Old Dominion lost 46-20 to the Dukes at home a week earlier. JMU beat both of them by about 4 touchdowns, which says these two are closer in class than ODU's 2-6 record suggests.
Old Dominion's best result in this stretch looks a lot like what it will need on Saturday: a 10-3 road win at App State, decided by defense. The Monarchs can play that kind of game. They've had trouble playing any other kind lately. They gave up 46 to JMU and 42 at Georgia State, and when the offense can't stay on the field, the defense breaks down.
Marshall is far from a sure thing. The Herd needed a 36-35 escape against Gardner-Webb and lost 27-21 at home to Coastal Carolina. They've topped 30 only twice in this 5-game window. The early forecast for Norfolk is 60 degrees, light drizzle and wind around 16 mph. If that holds, it favors the team that can run it and pin teams deep with field position. Marshall just won a game that way.