The Friends of Coal Bowl has returned to Huntington and with the switch in location comes other notable changes.
Tonight marks the first home game for the new members of the Marshall coaching staff, a contest to take place in a revamped stadium featuring a new scoreboard, new sound system and new coat of paint. The team also enters the game with a new sense of confidence.
"They can do something no other team in the history of Marshall football has ever done," said Marshall head football coach Doc Holliday. "I think it's a great game for both schools. We need to win the game at some point. For it to be a rivalry, we need to win that game."
Marshall (0-1) takes on No. 22 West Virginia (1-0) at 7:30 p.m. at Joan C. Edwards Stadium coming off a 45-7 loss to No. 2 Ohio State in Columbus on Sept. 2. The Buckeye defense held the Herd to 44 rushing yards and No. 22 West Virginia (1-0) won't be any easier. The Mountaineers held Coastal Carolina to 186 yards in their 31-0 shutout win over the Chanticleers on Saturday.
"We come from playing probably the best team in the Big Ten conference to playing the best team in the Big East conference," Holliday said. "Noel Devine, Jock Sanders, (and) Tavon Austin are probably the most exciting players in that league."
An added twist to the 2010 rivalry contest is Holliday himself, who was on the West Virginia sidelines in 2008 and 2009 as associate head coach to Bill Stewart. His knowledge of the other NCAA Division I program in the state is an asset, but it doesn't change how the Herd prepares for another week of football.
"Coach Holliday is definitely more familiar with them than he would be anybody else we face this year," said senior tight end Lee Smith. "He's made this football team to be very aggressive. Just because he's been in that locker room (at West Virginia) and been around them doesn't necessarily mean that he knows them any more than he would Ohio State's defense.
"West Virginia's a great football team and we're going to fight them. We're all excited."
The Herd faces athletes Holliday recruited during his time in Morgantown, including quarterback Geno Smith who stepped in after Jarrett Brown was injured in the 2009 Coal Bowl. Smith threw for 216 yards and two touchdowns against Coastal Carolina in his first game as starting quarterback for the Mountaineers.
West Virginia also threatens with their 3-3-5 defense, duo of running backs Devine and Austin and receiver Sanders. Devine, who racked up 111 rushing yards against Coastal Carolina, was held to 26 yards by Marshall in the 2009 Coal Bowl. The Herd defensive line agrees that containing Devine is once again an important element this year.
"The capability he has of making plays…we have to swarm him as a defense to bring him down," said junior defensive back Omar Brown. "There's no one guy who can bring him down."
Marshall is familiar with the speed and strength of the Mountaineer offensive line, which returns four starters in 2010. West Virginia accumulated a total of 400 yards in the win over Coastal Carolina.
"If they get their hands on you, it's over," said junior defensive end Vinny Curry. "They just have their way with you. That's a great team and a fast team. They're one of the fastest teams in college football. You have to respect that."
Second half struggles are another stigma from the past on the minds of Marshall players. The arrival of new coaches brought a new football culture. The first home game provides an opportunity to demonstrate what the Herd is capable of.
"This has not been a very good second half football team since I've been here," Smith said. "The other day (at Ohio State), it looked like the same football team that's been here the last five years. We're very excited and ready to go prove just how much the culture has changed."
Part of demonstrating the changed culture is putting the past away. With Ohio State behind them, the members of the Herd roster jumped right back into practice ready to correct mistakes and execute better in preparation for West Virginia.
"Looking back at that film (from OSU), we shot ourselves in the foot a lot of times," Curry said. "Not to take anything away from Ohio State. They're a great team, the No. 2 team in the nation. We've got to stay hungry. We're just going to go and play our hearts out."
Marlowe Hereford can be contacted at hereford4@marshall.edu.
Notes:
♦ Junior linebacker Kellen Harris, who missed the season opener at Ohio State because of a hamstring injury, has returned to the lineup.
♦ The 7:30 p.m. contest is one of two 2010 Marshall games to be televised on ESPN.
♦ Marshall and West Virginia have met nine times previously. The Mountaineers hold a 9-0 lead.
♦ This is the third time Marshall has hosted West Virginia, the two previous contests in 1915 and 2007.
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