FACTS & STATS: Site: Milan Puskar Stadium (60,000) -- Morgantown, West Virginia. Television: Big East Network. Home Record: Marshall 2-1, WVU 3-0. Away Record: Marshall 2-1, WVU 1-1. Neutral Record: Marshall 0-0, WVU 0-0. Conference Record: Marshall 2-1, WVU 1-0. Series Record: West Virginia leads, 8-0.

GAME NOTES: The West Virginia Mountaineers shoot for their third straight win when they welcome the Marshall Thundering Herd to Morgantown for a non- conference showdown between state rivals.

Marshall is coming off a 31-10 win on the road against Tulane last weekend. The Thundering Herd have won back-to-back road games for the first time since 2004. Overall, they've won three of their last four and are 2-1 in Conference USA play.

West Virginia has also won three of its last four games. Last weekend, the Mountaineers notched a 34-13 triumph at Syracuse. Having scored at least 30 points in every game this season, they'll look to keep their offense on track this weekend against a gritty Marshall squad.

WVU has won all eight prior meetings in the head-to-head series with Marshall, including a 27-3 decision over the Herd last season.

Darius Marshall was held to a season-low 98 rushing yards on 20 carries (4.9 ypc) last week in the Herd's win at Tulane. While plenty of backs would be happy to post those kinds of rushing totals, Marshall has set the bar pretty high for himself. He did, however, score twice in the victory to push his conference-leading touchdown total to nine on the season. He is averaging 6.6 ypc and 147.4 rushing ypg. Brian Anderson completed his first seven pass attempts and finished the day an efficient 18-of-22 for 207 yards. Redshirt freshman Antavious Wilson had six catches for 65 yards. Leading receiver Cody Slate (28 rec, 322 yds, two TDs) had a rather quiet day, finishing with two catches for 33 yards. One ball thrown Slate's way slipped through his fingers and wound up being intercepted.

Tulane was able to accumulate 404 yards of total offense against Marshall. But the Herd defense managed to swing the momentum in their favor by forcing four turnovers (two interceptions, two fumble recoveries). Ashton Hall gave Marshall the lead for good late in the first quarter, when he scooped up a fumble and returned it 29 yards for a touchdown. Hall finished with six tackles, including one for loss. Mario Harvey led the way with eight stops (six solo), while Vinny Curry finished with seven. On the season, Harvey leads the defense with 46 tackles in addition to his 2.5 sacks. This is a unit that continues to make strides each week. After allowing 80 points in their first two games, the Herd have limited their last four opponents to an average of 14.25 points. However, West Virginia represents one of their stiffer challenges this season.

The Mountaineers rank 16th in the nation in total offense (449.2 ypg) and are putting up 33.4 ppg. What makes the Mountaineers so difficult to defend is their balance between the run and pass, as they rank in the top-30 in the nation in both categories. They were able to achieve that balance once again last Saturday against Syracuse. Quarterback Jarrett Brown made the most of his opportunities in the passing game, completing 22-of-30 passes for 244 yards and a touchdown. Meanwhile, four different running backs found the end zone, including Noel Devine, who finished with a team-high 91 rushing yards on 22 carries. Devine has been a handful for opposing defenses all season, averaging 126.2 rushing ypg to go along with his eight total touchdowns. Brown is throwing for 238 ypg, while top wideout Jock Sanders has already amassed 41 catches through five games.

Teams haven't found much running room against the WVU defense, which is allowing just 84.6 rushing ypg. That ranks 10th in the nation and second in the conference. Last week, Syracuse managed just 72 yards on the ground and was held to 3.0 ypc. Both Orange touchdowns came in the passing game, although they totaled just 150 yards through the air. WVU also held Syracuse to 0-of-11 on third downs, which yielded a mere 20:58 in possession time for the game. On the season, J.T. Thomas leads the Mountaineer defense with 32 tackles to go along with an interception. Brandon Hogan is next in line with 29 stops in addition to his team-best five pass breakups. However, they haven't forced a ton of turnovers, as they rank 113th in the nation in turnover margin (minus-1.4).

The Thundering Herd can expect a heavy dose of Devine, while MU figures to counter with a heavy dose of its star running back, Marshall. That said, the edge still goes to the Mountaineers, who are the more balanced team, have a better run defense, and will be playing at home.

Sports Network Predicted Outcome: West Virginia 31, Marshall 17

Saturday, October 17th, 3:30 p.m. (et).