Who will play in the Independence Bowl after Marshall opted out? 2024 predictions and more

Ten days ago, the Marshall Thundering Herd stomped on the Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns 31-3 to convincingly win the Sun Belt Conference championship and complete a 10-3 season. On Saturday, the Thundering Herd announced they were pulling out of their Independence Bowl clash against the Army Black Knights.

Independence Bowl director Missy Setters released a statement addressing the change of opponent for the Black Knights to the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.

"It is unfortunate that Marshall determined they won't be able to compete in the bowl in a couple of weeks," Missy Setters said. "Our goal was to create the best matchup possible for our local fans and college football fans throughout the country, and we think we did that with two conference champions.

"Moving forward we are very excited to host Louisiana Tech and are thrilled we found an opponent for Army."

Why is Marshall not playing Independence Bowl 2024?

On Dec. 9, a day after their Sun Belt Conference championship game triumph, coach Charles Huff left his post as coach of the Marshall Thundering Herd to take a position as coach of the Southern Miss Golden Eagles.

After his departure and the subsequent hiring of former NC State Wolfpack defensive coordinator Tony Gibson as Huff's replacement, several Thundering Herd players entered the transfer portal, leading the school to opt out of the Independence Bowl.

The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs finished the season 5-7 and haven't been to a bowl game since 2020. The Bulldogs were chosen to replace Marshall due to their proximity to Ruston, where the bowl game will be played in Shreveport.

After the switch was made, Louisiana Tech athletic director Ryan Ivey released a statement stating his program's excitement at replacing the Thundering Herd against such an illustrious opponent as the Black Knights.

"We are excited to accept the opportunity to play in the Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl against a fantastic and storied program as Army," Ivey said. "I believe our football program is moving toward positive structure and the opportunity to play in this bowl adds to that momentum. We are looking forward to being in Shreveport for this matchup."

According to ESPN, the Marshall Thundering Herd have 36 players in the transfer portal, including 17 players who played in the Sun Belt championship game. The trio of quarterbacks that played for Charles Huff has also entered the portal, including QB1 Braylon Braxton, who was named the conference's Newcomer of the Year.

According to BetMGM, Army is favored to win against Louisiana Tech by 16.5 points after completing an 11-2 season.