MTSU no match for Marshall
MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Keion Davis and
Tyler King each rushed for two touchdowns to help Marshall beat Middle Tennessee State University 38-10 on Friday night. King ran for 129 yards, and Davis added 40 on 10 carries in Marshall’s first game with four rushing scores since Nov. 8, 2014, at Southern Mississippi. Marshall (6-1, 3-0 Conference USA) opened the scoring on the first possession of the game as King ran for a 15-yard touchdown. It was 14-3 after Marshall linebacker Ty Tyler disrupted John Urzua’s pass and Artis Johnson returned an interception 17 yards for a score.
C.J. Windham fumbled on the next offensive play for MTSU (3-5, 1-3), and Marshall scored three plays later as Davis was untouched on a 9-yard run to the end zone. Davis put Marshall up 28-10 on a short run, and the Thundering Herd had a 21-point lead at halftime.
› FLOWERY BRANCH, Ga. — After being limited by injuries in practice earlier this week, Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Mohamed Sanu and defensive end Courtney Upshaw are expected to play in the Super Bowl rematch against the New England Patriots. Sanu missed last week’s loss to Miami with a hamstring injury, while Upshaw has missed three games with ankle/knee injuries. Falcons coach Dan Quinn
said the two will have no limitations in Sunday night’s game in Foxborough, Mass. He said the only player who will be held out due to an injury is backup linebacker Jordan Tripp (concussion).
› NEW YORK — Oakland running back
Marshawn Lynch was suspended for one game without pay by the NFL on Friday for shoving a game official during the Raiders’ 31-30 home win over Kansas City on Thursday night. Lynch was ejected from the game after he shoved line judge Julian Mapp. The scuffle started when Oakland quarterback Derek Carr was hit late on a run by Kansas City’s Marcus Peters midway through the second quarter. Raiders offensive linemen Kelechi Osemele and Donald Penn immediately confronted Peters, and Lynch sprinted onto the field from the bench to join the fray. Mapp tried to break up the fight, but Lynch pushed him and grabbed his shirt, drawing a personal foul.
BASKETBALL
› NASHVILLE — Vanderbilt women’s basketball coach Stephanie White said the fact that the South Carolina Gamecocks are still waiting for an invitation to the White House as the reigning national champions is a “slap in the face.” Texas A&M coach Gary Blair took it a step further: He suggested President Donald Trump call coach Dawn Staley personally and ask her to visit. “She deserves that honor, and her team — but more importantly, the country — needs to see a women’s basketball team in the White House being recognized. That’s something that they’ve earned,” said Blair, who visited the White House after his Aggies won the 2011 national title. Blair and White, who made a similar visit as a national champ with Purdue and later as an WNBA champion with the Indiana Fever, spoke out Thursday at the Southeastern Conference’s media day for women’s basketball. Staley said while her fellow SEC coaches are standing up for what’s right, she is focused on helping the team return to the NCAA tournament.