Marshall Wins MAC Championship

Chad Pennington wasn't going to let a groin injury keep him from reaching the Motor City Bowl for the second consecutive season.

Pennington threw a 19-yard pass to Nate Poole for the go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter and Marshall beat Toledo 23-17 Friday night for the Mid-American Conference championship.

Marshall (11-1) will play Louisville (7-4) on Dec. 23 in Pontiac, Mich.

"Part of being a quarterback is being a leader at the same time," said Pennington, who hobbled noticeably after sustaining the injury in the second quarter. "I couldn't drop back (to pass), but I tried to hang in there."

Pennington, who was injured on a run in the second quarter, came up limping badly after getting hit on Marshall's first series of the second half. He was replaced on the next series by freshman Byron Leftwich, who threw an interception on his first pass on the Marshall 35.

Pennington returned on the next series and stayed in the rest of the game.

Still, Marshall's 23-game winning streak on its home field seemed in jeopardy. The Herd trailed to start the fourth quarter for just the second time this season and managed just 135 yards in offense in the second half.

But Pennington needed just 45 seconds to put together a 61-yard drive that put Marshall ahead to stay, 13-10.

He hooked up with Jerrald Long for a 42-yard pass play before hitting Poole on a corner pattern with 13:55 left over cornerback Kelly Herndon.

FONT size=2> Marshall's defense put some pressure on Toledo QB Chris Wallace during the Thundering Herd's 23-17 victory Friday night. (AP)

"Each game we try to stay patient, and tonight was another example of that," Pennington said. "Our defense has come to player every game this year. Tonight, the offense fed off of the defense," he said.

Toledo (7-5), which had held a 7-6 lead since the first quarter, quickly fell apart.

Marshall's Daninelle Derricott returned Mike Bilik's fumble 20 yards for a score 2:23 later to increase the lead to 20-10.

On Toledo's next drive, Marshall's Carlos Smith intercepted Chris Wallace's pass at the Rockets' 28, resulting in Billy Malashevich's 32-yard field goal.

"Our mistakes are why we lost this football game, period. It's not rocket science," said Rockets coach Gary Pinkel. "You can't make mistakes like that and win football games."

Wallace, who finished 30 of 54 for 337 yards, hit Bilik with a 1-yard scoring pass with 1:03 left, but Marshall recovered the ensuing onsides kick at the Toledo 44 and ran out the clock.

Pennington finished 23 of 38 for 249 yards. His touchdown pass gave him 63 in just two seasons, tying him with Bowling Green's Brian McClure for the conference career mark. McClure set the record from 1982 to 1985.

"Chad gave us a tremendous effort out there. We played our hearts out and so did they," said Marshall coach Bob Pruett.

Toledo's Wasean Tait scored on a 1-yard run in the first quarter, his first touchdown since the 1995 Las Vegas Bowl. He sat out the 1996 and 1997 seasons recuperating from a knee injury.

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