Braxton, Marshall beat Louisiana-Lafayette 31-3, win Sun Belt Conference title

LAFAYETTE, La. -- , Braylon Braxton threw two touchdown passes and Jordan Houston had 117 yards rushing, including a 9-yard TD, on 17 carries to help Marshall beat Louisiana-Lafayette 31-3 on Saturday night and win the Thundering Herd's first Sun Belt Conference Championship. Marshall (10-3), which joined the Sun Belt in 2022 after 17 seasons in Conference USA, has won seven games in a row in the same season for the first time since 2020 and has double-digit wins for the first time since the 2015 campaign. Kenneth Almendares kicked a 40-yard field goal for Louisiana (10-3) to open the scoring with 6:42 left in the first quarter. The Thundering Herd immediately answered with a seven-play, 75-yard drive to take the lead for good when Braxton hit a wide-open Tychaun Chapman in the end zone for a 37-yard touchdown.