2020 Conference USA Football Championship Game

College football game

2020 Ryan Conference USA Football Championship Game

Conference Championship
| UAB Blazers | Marshall Thundering Herd

|

(5–3) | (7–1)
22 | 13
Head coach:
Bill Clark | Head coach:
Doc Holliday
|  | 1| 2| 3| 4 | Total

|
|
|
|
|

UAB | 3| 6| 0| 13 | 22
Marshall | 0| 0| 7| 6 | 13
Date| December 18, 2020
Season| 2020
Stadium| Joan C. Edwards Stadium
Location| Huntington, West Virginia
MVP| Spencer Brown (RB, UAB)
Favorite| Marshall by 4.5
Referee| Jon Noli
Attendance| 8,324
United States TV coverage
Network| CBSSN
Announcers| Rich Waltz (play-by-play), Aaron Taylor (analyst) and Jenny Dell (sideline)
|  Conference USA Football Championship Game

< 2019 |  2021 >
2020 Conference USA football standings

* v
* t
* e

| Conf. |  |  | Overall

|
|
|
|

Team |  | W |  | L |  |  |  |  | W |  | L |
East Division
Marshall xy  |  | 4  | - | 1  |  |  |  |  | 7  | - | 3  |
Florida Atlantic |  | 4  | - | 2  |  |  |  |  | 5  | - | 4  |
Western Kentucky |  | 4  | - | 3  |  |  |  |  | 5  | - | 7  |
Charlotte |  | 2  | - | 2  |  |  |  |  | 2  | - | 4  |
Middle Tennessee |  | 2  | - | 4  |  |  |  |  | 3  | - | 6  |
FIU |  | 0  | - | 3  |  |  |  |  | 0  | - | 5  |
West Division
UAB xy$  |  | 3  | - | 1  |  |  |  |  | 6  | - | 3  |
UTSA |  | 5  | - | 2  |  |  |  |  | 7  | - | 5  |
Louisiana Tech |  | 4  | - | 2  |  |  |  |  | 5  | - | 5  |
North Texas |  | 3  | - | 4  |  |  |  |  | 4  | - | 6  |
Rice |  | 2  | - | 3  |  |  |  |  | 2  | - | 3  |
Southern Miss |  | 2  | - | 4  |  |  |  |  | 3  | - | 7  |
UTEP |  | 0  | - | 4  |  |  |  |  | 3  | - | 5  |
Championship: UAB 22, Marshall 13

* $ - Conference champion
* x - Division champion/co-champions
* y - Championship game participant
* Note: Due to COVID-19, Old Dominion opted out of the season.

The 2020 Conference USA Football Championship Game was a college football game played on Friday, December 18, 2020, to determine the 2020 champion of Conference USA (C–USA).[1] The game featured the East division champions Marshall Thundering Herd and the West division champions UAB Blazers in the conference's 16th championship game. Sponsored by tax services and consulting firm Ryan LLC, the game was officially known as the Ryan Conference USA Football Championship Game.

## Previous season

[edit]

The 2019 Conference USA Football Championship Game featured the East Division champion Florida Atlantic against the West Division champion UAB. The Owls defeated the Blazers by a score of 49–6.[2]

## Teams

[edit]

The 2020 Conference USA Football Championship Game was contested by the Marshall Thundering Herd, East Division champions, and the UAB Blazers, West Division champions. The teams had met 10 times previously, with the Thundering Herd holding a 8–2 edge in the series. The teams' last meeting was played in 2014; Marshall won, 23–18.[3] The game was the teams' first meeting between the two in the Conference USA Football Championship Game.

### Marshall

[edit]

Main article: 2020 Marshall Thundering Herd football team

Marshall clinched its spot in the championship game on December 9 following the cancelation, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, of their final scheduled game against Charlotte.[4] The cancelation of the game prevented Marshall from winning the division outright on the field; however, according to Conference USA's special tie-breaking criteria for the season, Marshall would win the title even if Florida Atlantic won their final game and had a higher winning percentage in conference games.[4][5] The need for a tie-breaker was rendered moot when Florida Atlantic lost their final game to Southern Miss on December 10, confirming the Thundering Herd's position in the title game.[6] This was the Thundering Herd's third appearance in the conference title game and first since 2014.

### UAB

[edit]

Main article: 2020 UAB Blazers football team

UAB clinched its spot to represent the west division in the championship game on December 12, after defeating Rice, 21–16.[7][8] The Blazers won their third straight division title and became the first team in the conference to play in three consecutive conference championship games.[7][8]

## Game summary

[edit]

2020 Conference USA Football Championship Game

Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3| 4| Total

|
|
|
|
|

UAB | 3 | 6 | 0| 13| 22
Marshall | 0 | 0 | 7| 6| 13

at Joan C. Edwards Stadium, Huntington, West Virginia

* Date: Friday, December 18, 2020
* Game time: 7:00 p.m. EST
* Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 35 °F (2 °C) • Wind: E 2 mph
* Referee: Jon Noli
* TV announcers (CBSSN): Rich Waltz (play-by-play), Aaron Taylor (analyst) and Jenny Dell (sideline)

Game information

First quarter

* (1:45) UAB – Matt Quinn 30 yard field goal (Drive: 11 plays, 64 yards, 6:10; UAB 3–0)

Second quarter

* (11:55) UAB – Hayden Pittman 19 yard pass from Tyler Johnston III, kick failed (Drive: 6 plays, 80 yards, 2:54; UAB 9–0)

Third quarter

* (6:17) MRSH – Artie Henry 7 yard pass from Grant Wells, Shane Ciucci kick (Drive: 6 plays, 49 yards, 2:06; UAB 9–7)

Fourth quarter

* (14:55) UAB – Matt Quinn 42 yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 50 yards, 6:22; UAB 12–7)
* (4:55) UAB – Matt Quinn 48 yard field goal (Drive: 12 plays, 40 yards, 6:47; UAB 15–7)
* (4:38) MRSH – Xavier Gaines 70 yard pass from Grant Wells, 2-pt. failed (Drive: 1 play, 70 yards, 0:17; UAB 15–13)
* (4:02) UAB – Trea Shropshire 71 yard pass from Tyler Johnston III, Matt Quinn kick (Drive: 3 plays, 75 yards, 1:36; UAB 22–13)

### Statistics

[edit]

Statistics  | UAB  | MRSH

|
|

First downs | 21 | 10
Plays–yards | 74–468 | 51–268
Rushes–yards | 52–216 | 27–130
Passing yards | 252 | 138
Passing: comp–att–int | 12–22–0 | 8–24–1
Time of possession | 41:26 | 18:34
Team | Category | Player | Statistics

|
|
|

UAB  | Passing | Tyler Johnston III | 12/22, 252 yards, 2 TD
Rushing | Spencer Brown | 30 carries, 149 yards
Receiving | Trea Shropshire | 5 receptions, 180 yards, 1 TD
Marshall  | Passing | Grant Wells | 8/23, 138 yards, 2 TD
Rushing | Brenden Knox | 17 carries, 67 yards,
Receiving | Xavier Gaines | 1 reception, 70 yards, 1 TD

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "FB: 2019 Schedule Released". Conference USA. January 10, 2019. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
2. ^ Price, Khobi. "FAU defeats UAB 49-6 to win second Conference USA title in three years". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
3. ^ "Winsipedia - Marshall Thundering Herd vs. UAB Blazers football series history". Winsipedia. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
4. ^ a b Traylor, Grant (December 9, 2020). "Marshall-Charlotte game canceled; Herd wins East Division title". The Herald-Dispatch. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
5. ^ Furlow, Reese. "FAU football prepares for regular-season finale stripped of drama after Marshall cancellation". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
6. ^ "Lowe, Harrell help Southern Miss beat Florida Atlantic 45-31". USA Today. Retrieved December 10, 2020.
7. ^ a b Chambers, Christina (December 12, 2020). "UAB wins third straight CUSA West Division title after 21-16 win over Rice". WBRC. Retrieved December 13, 2020.
8. ^ a b "UAB beats Rice 21-16, wins C-USA West Division for 3rd year in a row". WVTM-TV. December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 13, 2020.

## External links

[edit]

* Game statistics at statbroadcast.com

* v
* t
* e

2020 NCAA football conference championship games

Division I FBS|

* ACC
* American
* Big 12
* Big Ten
* Conference USA
* MAC
* Mountain West
* Pac-12
* SEC
* Sun Belt

Division I FCS|

* NEC
* Patriot
* SWAC

* v
* t
* e

Conference USA Football Championship Game

Years|

* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024

Venues|

* Citrus Bowl (2005)
* Robertson Stadium (2006, 2011)
* Bright House Networks Stadium (2007, 2010)
* Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium (2008, 2012)
* Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium (2009)
* Rice Stadium (2013)
* Joan C. Edwards Stadium (2014, 2020)
* Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium (2015, 2016)
* Flagler Credit Union Stadium (2017, 2019)
* Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium (2018)
* Alamodome (2021, 2022)
* Williams Stadium (2023)
* AmFirst Stadium (2024)

Broadcasters

* v
* t
* e

Marshall Thundering Herd football

Venues|

* Central Field (1895–1927)
* Fairfield Stadium (1928–1990)
* Joan C. Edwards Stadium (1991–present)

Bowls & rivalries|

* Bowl games
* Appalachian State
* East Carolina
* Ohio: Battle for the Bell
* West Virginia: Friends of Coal Bowl

Culture & lore|

* Marco the Bison
* "Sons of Marshall"
* Marching Thunder
* Plane crash
* Marshall University: Ashes to Glory
* We Are Marshall

People|

* Head coaches
* NFL draftees
* Statistical leaders

Seasons|

* 1895
* 1896
* 1897
* 1898
* 1899
* 1900
* 1901
* 1902
* 1903
* 1904
* 1905
* 1906
* 1907
* 1908
* 1909
* 1910
* 1911
* 1912
* 1913
* 1914
* 1915
* 1916
* 1917
* 1918
* 1919
* 1920
* 1921
* 1922
* 1923
* 1924
* 1925
* 1926
* 1927
* 1928
* 1929
* 1930
* 1931
* 1932
* 1933
* 1934
* 1935
* 1936
* 1937
* 1938
* 1939
* 1940
* 1941
* 1942
* 1943–1945
* 1946
* 1947
* 1948
* 1949
* 1950
* 1951
* 1952
* 1953
* 1954
* 1955
* 1956
* 1957
* 1958
* 1959
* 1960
* 1961
* 1962
* 1963
* 1964
* 1965
* 1966
* 1967
* 1968
* 1969
* 1970
* 1971
* 1972
* 1973
* 1974
* 1975
* 1976
* 1977
* 1978
* 1979
* 1980
* 1981
* 1982
* 1983
* 1984
* 1985
* 1986
* 1987
* 1988
* 1989
* 1990
* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015
* 2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

National championship seasons in bold

* v
* t
* e

UAB Blazers football

Venues|

* Legion Field (1991–2014, 2017–2020)
* Protective Stadium (2021–present)

Bowls & rivalries|

* Bowl games
* Memphis: Battle for the Bones

Culture & lore|

* Blaze

People|

* Head coaches
* NFL draftees
* Statistical leaders

Seasons|

* 1991
* 1992
* 1993
* 1994
* 1995
* 1996
* 1997
* 1998
* 1999
* 2000
* 2001
* 2002
* 2003
* 2004
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* 2009
* 2010
* 2011
* 2012
* 2013
* 2014
* 2015–2016
* 2017
* 2018
* 2019
* 2020
* 2021
* 2022
* 2023
* 2024
* 2025

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[Conf.]: Conference record
*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[comp]: Completions
*[att]: Attempts
*[int]: Interceptions