The Herd is 2-16 against Southern Mississippi, Central Florida and East Carolina since joining Conference USA. If you can't compete against those three schools, you're playing for fourth in the six-team East Division.

Or worse.

The Herd played those teams consecutively to open its C-USA - a big shout-out to the league office on that point - and has lost all three. The combined score was 113-40.

It's the "40" that is most disturbing. Even more disturbing: Nine points were scored on special teams.

If it continues that anemia, the Herd is headed for a 1-11 season. While I figure that won't be the case, I am fully braced for five more rounds of offensive offense.

But I'm used to it. Marshall, known as a grass-basketball school from 1984-2003, is mired in a "dead ball" era.

Even worse: This is the seventh year.

Wow.

The NCAA stat rankings illustrate this vividly. Starting with 2004, the Herd has fared no better than 81st of 110-plus teams in total offense in four of the last six years, topping 354 yards per game just once. Scoring is worse - the Herd has been no better than 70th in scoring offense five of the six years, and has not hit 26 points per game.

The anomalies came in 2006, with the Herd 49th in yardage (354.3) and 48th in scoring (25.9). That was Ahmad Bradshaw's last year before going pro, in which he rushed for 1,523 yards.

The Herd averaged 412.8 yards in 2007, but scored just 24.8 points, ranking 77th. That was (a) Bernard Morris' senior season and (b) the Herd's toughest year defensively in recent years. Marshall was behind early and often in the 3-9 campaign.

Now we get to this season, in which the new spread attack is faring even worse. After handing ECU's depleted defense its best game of the season, MU's total offense still isn't averaging 300 yards a game. It's at 298.7, ranking 110th of 120 teams.

Points-wise, Marshall has scored 120 over seven games, an average plummeting to 17.1. So far, that's the Herd's lowest in the 2004-current era, and is ranked 107th in the nation.

For contrast, the 2003 Herd was 18th in yardage (440.9) and 39th in points (29.2). And didn't we consider that mildly disappointing?

Sure sounds good about now.

If you had a sense that Saturday's game was over when East Carolina made it 27-10 right after the second-half kickoff, you would be correct. The Herd hasn't rallied from two scores down to win since Sept. 9, 2006, when it fell behind 14-0 to ... Hofstra. Marshall managed to turn that into a 54-31 rout.

Three-score rallies? Definitely not in the "dead ball" era.

The reasons for the Herd's 2010 malaise are comprehensive and will continue to be hashed and rehashed. The most disturbing trends Saturday were the failure to run the ball and Brian Anderson's sixth, seventh and eighth road interceptions.

The former would have been almost excusable against the 2009 Pirates. Considering how well the Herd ran at times against West Virginia and Bowling Green, it indicates that the depth-deprived offensive line is tiring out and/or getting banged up. Further concern: Right guard C.J. Wood walked off slowly Saturday.

I figure the lack of a running game figured into one of Anderson's picks Saturday, the second one. He wasn't happy with the pass on the corner route, but consider this: The free safety who nabbed that pass, Derek Blacknall, didn't exactly have to worry about run support. Comfortably playing center field, he zipped over for a nifty swipe.

Barring A.J. Graham's recovery from his high ankle sprain, Anderson remains the Herd's best option by far at QB, even in the spread. And it's time to admit this: Darius Marshall's ill-advised departure has really hurt. He might not have run for much against UCF, but he often made his blockers look better.

Coach Doc Holliday, coordinator Bill Legg and co-coordinator Tony Petersen have an unenviable task. To succeed, they must pull the Herd out of the "dead-ball" era.

So far, the offense is even deader.

If you missed it, Bowling Green lost 30-6 to Kent State on Saturday to become bowl ineligible.

Yep, you read that right. The Falcons fell to 1-7. Got crushed by Kent State. At home, even.

Since riding the "pick-six express" to that 44-28 win over Marshall, the Falcons have gotten crushed by Michigan, lost to Buffalo, fallen to Ohio by 24, had a near-miss against new MAC bully Temple and racked up minus-10 yards rushing against the 3-4 Golden Flashes.

The MAC has one winless team, a dreadful 0-8 bunch of Akron Zips. The Falcons would be another, if not for the win over ... you know.

Go ahead and tell me the loss to BG was a direct product of a "hangover" from the Herd's overtime loss to West Virginia. Even if it's true, it's unacceptable - when you come off a tough loss, you must take it out on the next team, especially if it's as bad as BG clearly is.

I suspect the Herd's real hangover has come from the loss to BG.  

Reach Doug Smock at 304-348-5130 or dougsm...@wvgazette.com.