Playbooks. Research. Game film.
Need anything copied or dubbed, just see Kitty down the hall.
Coach, you serious?
Sure. We don't play y'all this year, so, what the heck? Have at it.
Just make sure you put everything back where you found it.
Deal.
You grow them big down in Huntington, I'm telling you.
Oh, guys. You get hungry, there's a lunch spread next door.
Help yourselves.
You hungry, Red? I'm gonna watch some film.
Let me see those things.
I'm you. I'm you.
Well, that's not dumb.
Their quarterback's gotta have ice in his veins...
...but he's gotta still be able to make decisions until the last possible second.
Give me that ball! Give me the ball! He scores! Go, Herd!
Oh, look at that hit. Every time he commits.
He gets the option to get the ball outside. Hey, guys.
Sorry. We're looking for coach.
Not in here today, guys.
Sorry, coach, we just came to watch some film.
You told us to meet with you after practice.
- Next one. - Yes, sir.
Colors clash a bit, don't they?
That's first class, coach.
First class.
You guys take all the time you need.
Your offense, 12. Show me how it's done, now.
Black-18! Set! Hut!
Move! That's it!
That's it, go! Move! Go! Move! Go! Move!
Coach Red Dawson, looks a little something like the Veer, doesn't it?
Little bit. Little bit.
I like it.
One more time. Go to your right side.
They don't look half-bad, coach.
Don't look half-bad left or right, Ernie. Did you see that?
I did. I was playing around with the numbers last night.
You know the average age of a starter in college football these days?
- No idea. Go! - 20 years, 10 months.
Now, you know the average age of your players?
- No. - 18 years, seven months.
That'd be us, Ernie. The Young Thundering Herd. I like it.
Oh, I like that. Do you mind if I use that?
Hell, no. I'm already making T-shirts.
What you think about this?
"The Young Thundering Herd."
I like it, George! Can you get me one of those?
We've practiced.
We have a plan.
And now it's game day.
Nate Ruffin, are you the captain of this team?
Yes, sir, I am, coach!
Well, why don't you take us onto that field?
Everybody up! Come in here!
Now, 60 minutes! We play till the whistle blow! And you know how we do.
- We are? - Marshall!
- Now, let's take it to the field! - Yeah!
And here they come, the Young Thundering Herd of Marshall!
Jack! Jack!
Game day.
Welcome to Morehead, Kentucky, where the Morehead State Eagles...
...take on the Thundering Herd of Marshall University in their 1971 season opener.
The Marshall Thundering Herd was marked by tragedy last season...
...but they are back in the saddle with a new coach, a new team...
...and for the first time in NCAA history, true freshmen in their lineup.
And now, ladies and gentlemen, the Morehead State Eagles are taking the field.
- How you feeling? - Feeling good, coach.
Feeling good.
Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go! Go!
Oh, no.
That's a clip! Where's the clip on that? That's a clip, ref!
It's all right. It's all right.
They hit him low. All right?
I'm all right. I'm all right.
We hope he didn't re-injure his shoulder...
...but I could hear the hit from up here in the press box.
Number 25, Nate Ruffin, got blindsided and...
--could not stop the return man.
And now, with the extra point, Morehead State is leading 29-6.
The Marshall faithful cannot be happy now.
Oliver! Oliver! Strong right!
Switch! Switch!
Forty! Set! Hike!
Damn it.
That's a shame.
Gotta look him off. If you look him off...
And you don't have to throw it. You had 20 yards in front of you.
Hut!
- Ball! Ball! - Get on the ball!
That ain't a pitch, you gotta get me the ball.
- If I make the pitch, catch the ball. - You gotta get it to me.
We gotta shake it up here. We gotta start blitzing our linebacker.
That's a hard hit on number 29. Twenty-nine is down and he's not getting up.
I don't see number 29 on my roster here.
There's just so many new faces on this Marshall University Thundering Herd team.
Can you shake it off or not?
Dawson! Dawson!
What do you think? We gotta get three points.
We don't get any points on the board, we'll lose them.
All right, we need our three. It's gonna help out the morale.
Send the kicking team in. Let's go. Gotta end this game with three points.
Yeah. Send them in. Kicking team, let's go.
Dawson. Send them in!
Call it in, Red!
Call it in!
Send them in!
Kick it! Kick it!
Field-goal unit! Let's go!
Let's go!
These kids do have plenty of heart, but just not enough skill or experience...
...to compete at this level. And with this loss...
...next week's first home game against Xavier University won't be any easier.
The Xavier game will be the first home game since the devastating crash...
...that killed 75 players and fans.
After this painful loss, the Marshall faithful must be wondering...
...if they've done the right thing.
Pick it up.
Pick what up? Pick my jersey up?
It ain't your jersey, it's Joe Hood's jersey. Now, pick it up.
- Who's Joe Hood? - You don't know him.
I'm not gonna ask you again. Now, pick it up!
Look, man, I came here to play ball, and I'm gonna be as respectful as I can be...
...but I'm the one playing for this team now. I'm number 33.
That's my jersey. I'll do whatever I want with it!
Hey, break it up! Break it up! Listen to me, break it up right--
Well, Meckstroth's ankle's just a sprain, so he should be better by Saturday.
And Meadows' hamstring, it's okay too.
What about Ruffin's shoulder? What'd the doc say?
Well, it ain't good. I think we better sit him, Jack.
Well, he's not gonna like that.
Well, he ain't gonna like trying to write with the other hand, either...
...and that's what he's looking at if he keeps going.
Okay, well, let's see what he can do in practice. Thank you.
Split right, 434-Z-Slant. Let it develop and trust it.
Trust it. Make the play. Go.
Here he comes, D!
Forty-two! Set, hut!
What's your problem? We're on the same team!
Make them commit. Make it so. Make it so.
Set, hut!
Hey! Break it up! Break it up now!
I can't take that! Man, you want some of me?
Get back there!
Get back in the huddle!
All right, let's go.
Fourteen! Set, hut!
That's it. Walsh, did you see that? That's success!
Ruffin!
Ruffin! What the hell is the matter with you?
Just playing till the whistle blew, coach.
Bullshit!
You think you're the only one who has a right to be pissed off?
You think you're the only one that's had it rough?
Ruffin, get up. Get up, Ruffin. That's enough.
Go water down.
- Oliver, you okay? - Yeah.
Where are you going?
What the hell are we doing out there, Jack?
We're trying to run a Veer. We're trying to get ready for Xavier.
Really?
Feels a lot more like Bloody Knuckles to me.
I mean, it feels like we're just punching walls out there, Jack.
I mean, we're not actually helping them.
We're bringing the worst out in them. Shit, we're bringing the worst out in me.
And for what?
So that we can collect pity applause in front of every college in the conference?
You didn't know Rick Tolley.
I did.
And on the day that he died, he said...
...the only thing that they judge us on, the only thing that counts, is winning.
Nothing else matters.
So, what do we do? How are we honoring their memory?
We put together a team that doesn't win. Can't win.
Not this week, not this season. Hell, maybe not ever.
We're not honoring them, Jack.
We're disgracing them.
I'm done.
Don't bench me, coach.
- Jesus, Nate, have you even slept? - Not now.
Not before our first home game.
Now, look, Nate, your shoulder is in bad shape.
The rest is gonna do it some good.
No. No, it ain't. The rest ain't gonna do it good.
Nate, I'm not questioning your courage or your drive, okay?
- My shoulder's fine. - This shoulder?
It's ready to take the field? It's ready for hits?
- My shoulder's fine. - Yes or no?
- My shoulder's fine. Yeah. - This one?
- Can it take hits like that? - My shoulder's fine.
Gonna be a lot harder than that.
My shoulder's fine.
Talk to me.
Oh, coach.
That was my team.
They left it in my hands.
Oh, Nate. No, no, no, they did not.
No.
They just left.
Then why?
Why, coach?
Why?
I don't know.
The board voted you out this morning.
What? May I ask why?
Come on, Don. You were always a temporary solution.
You said it yourself after Roland resigned.
You were just a Band-Aid, remember?
Is this about the football program, Paul?
The crash just cut too damn deep, Don.
It's not just the team that's bleeding. It's not just the school.
It's the entire town.
Do you have any idea what it's like for Annie right now?
She can't read the paper. She can't watch the news.
She can't even go to work without being reminded of football...
...which reminds her of the crash, which reminds her of my dead son!
Paul.
This isn't about football, is it?
And this isn't about Annie. And this isn't about the town, Paul.
This is about the loss of your son. And I'm sorry.
But until you find the strength to deal with that pain...
...nothing's going to get any better.
No matter how many presidents you fire, Paul.
Just about closed. Sorry.
My wife tells me you've got the best apple pie in Huntington.
Depends on the apple.
Well, do you mind if I try?
Hey, Annie.
- Annie Cantrell? - Yeah.
- Thank you. - You're welcome.
Mr. Griffen?
I don't believe we've been formally introduced yet.
I'm Jack Lengyel.
Thank you.
I understand Don Dedmon lost his job this week.
He's well-qualified, he'll find a place.
You know, if you have a problem with anything that happens on the field...
...blame me, not him. I'm the coach here.
And what happens out there is my responsibility, not his.
You're not from here, you weren't here last November...
...so I don't expect you to understand this.
This is not about what happened on that field.
This is about what happened to this town.
This is not a game.
I'm real sorry about your son, Mr. Griffen.
He was a hell of a running back. I bet you were real proud.
Please don't talk about him like you knew him.
I was proud of him, and I'm still proud of him.
He was right, you know.
- Who was right? - Your boy Tolley.
Winning is everything and nothing else matters.
I mean, I've said that so many times myself...
...I've lost count. You know?
And it doesn't matter in what sport, and it doesn't matter what country...
...any coach who's worth a darn in this business believes those words.
Fact.
And then I came here.
For the first time in my life...
...hell, maybe for the first time in the history of sports...
...suddenly, it's just not true anymore.
At least not here, not now. No.
You see...
...Red, it doesn't matter if we win or if we lose.
It's not even about how we play the game.
What matters is that we play the game.
That we take the field, that we suit up on Saturdays...
...and we keep this program alive.
We play the game, Red, and I'm telling you, one day...
...not today, not tomorrow, not this season...
...probably not next season either, but one day, you and I are gonna wake up...
...and suddenly we're gonna be like every other team in every other sport...
...where winning is everything and nothing else matters.
And when that day comes...
...well, that's when we'll honor them.
We've got a team meeting tomorrow morning, Red.
Got a little field trip planned for the boys...
...and, well, we'd love to see you there, coach.
We'd love to see you there.
Seven on the goal line. Tough on...
Secondary C five through eight.
D can prevent kicking game onside and kickoff.
Game day.
Yes, it is.
I left your ticket on the kitchen counter.
I would appreciate it if you could make it to the game before halftime.
One time. I missed kickoff one time and you'll never let me forget it.
No, no, no, I won't.
Because if I don't see you in the stands, honey...
...I don't know, I get all out of whack, you know?
- I'll be there. - I know you will.
How big a crowd do you think you'll get?
- Well, after last week, I don't know. - Yeah.
- Hey, buddy. - Hey.
I'll race you to the "newpacer."
- The what? - Newspaper.
- When, right now? - Yeah.
I don't know. Maybe!
Get him! Run!
Hey, hey, hey--
Hey, coach!
- Lengyel! - Win, Coach Lengyel!
- What day is it, son? - Game day.
- What day? - Game day!
Time to play until the whistle blows.
- See you on the field. - See you there!
Hi, Mr. Griffen.
Does nobody eat in this town anymore?
Not today, anyway.
You should go.
Oh, no, my shift ends in a few hours. It's no big deal.
That's not what I meant.
Come on.
Let's take a walk.
I don't think your customers will mind.
Do you know I was baptized right here in the Ohio?
Swam in it all the time when I was a kid.
When I was away at the war...
...I'd fall asleep at night to the sound of this water.
When my wife died, I'd lay awake to the same sound.
Whenever I see this river, I know I'm home.
This is my home, Annie.
You were going to California with my son.
- How long have you known? - I'm his father, I've always known.
You should go, Annie.
Things have changed now.
I mean, I have responsibilities, I have a job.
And you.
- You're all alone. I can't-- - Oh, stop, stop. You can't put that on me.
You've gotta go out there and live your life.
If you don't leave now, you never will.
You're all out of excuses, Annie.
You can't stay for me and you can't stay for your job.
Why not?
Because when I tell your boss you left that restaurant unattended...
...he's gonna have to fire you.
Grief is messy, Annie.
Makes you do things you regret, sometimes things you'll always regret.
I don't. I don't regret it.
- I don't. - I'm not talking about you.
Go, Annie. Go.
For those of you who may not know...
...this is the final resting place for six members...
...of the 1970 Thundering Herd.
The plane crash that took their lives was so severe, so absolute...
...that their bodies were unable to be identified.
So they were buried here, together.
Six players...
...six teammates...
...six sons of Marshall.
This is our past, gentlemen.
This is where we have been. This is how we got here.
This is who we are...
...today.
I wanna talk about our opponent this afternoon.
They're bigger, faster, stronger, more experienced...
...and on paper, they're just better.
And they know it, too.
But I wanna tell you something that they don't know.
They don't know your heart.
I do. I've seen it. You have shown it to me.
You have shown this coaching staff, your teammates.
You have shown yourselves just exactly who you are in here.
Now, when you take that field today...
...you've gotta lay that heart on the line, men.
From the soles of your feet, with every ounce of blood you've got in your body...
...lay it on the line until the final whistle blows.
And if you do that...
...if you do that...
...we cannot lose.
We may be behind on the scoreboard at the end of the game...
...but if you play like that, we cannot be defeated.
Now, we came here today to remember...
...six young men...
...and 69 others...
...who will not be on the field with you today.
But they will be watching.
And you can bet your ass...
...that they'll be gritting their teeth with every snap of that football.
You understand me? How you play today...
...from this moment on, is how you...
...will be remembered.
This is your opportunity to rise from these ashes...
...and grab glory.
- We are-- - Marshall!
The funerals end today.
Marshall! Marshall! Marshall!
Today, the Big Green is finally back in Huntington...
...in front of a capacity crowd here at Fairfield Stadium.
Number 19, Jake Crawford, Xavier's all-American tailback...
...fields the ball and takes off downfield.
Crawford still untouched at the 30, the 35. This kid's got speed, doesn't he?
He sure does. Just one man to beat.
- It looks like Morehead State all over again. - Oh, gosh.
- They come with a huge hit. - That's how you hit somebody!
Nice looping!
All right. All right, tighten up, D, tighten up.
Good job, good job!
Nice lick. Nice save.
Sophomore Reggie Oliver takes the field...
...and leads the offense on their first possession.
Set, hut!
Hut!
Punt! Punt. Punt team.
Come on, cover it!
Just the punter to beat.
- The shoestring tackle by Bill Shalhoop! - That's playing till the whistle blows.
You kick it and you play defense. Good job, Shalhoop.
All right, let's go. Let's get a stop.
Crawford gets a step on Ruffin.
And makes another catch for another first down.
Boy, I'll tell you what, that hurt shoulder sure looks like it's affecting Ruffin.
- That kid knows he can't go to his right. - He's playing to it. Keep an eye on that.
- Split six, cover one. Ready? Break! - Break!
We've got a scoreless game, and Xavier has great field position...
...but they're in a race against the clock with only 25 seconds till halftime.
Hut!
- Right side! - Make the hit!
Ruffin with a giant hit.
- Ball! Ball! Ball! - The ball is loose!
Go, go, go!
- Nice hit. Nice ball. - Nate, you all right?
- Can you get up, Nate? - Hold on, 25.
I'm sitting him the second half, no matter what.
- Let me tell him. Let me tell him. - You got it, you got it.
Mickey Jackson!
Good. All right.
There's enough time on the clock for one last play before the half.
Need a 37-yard field goal.
Marshall's kicking game was spotty at best last week against Morehead.
Blake, come on!
Let's see what Lengyel decides to do here.
We're kicking it. Let's go, we're kicking it.
This is an awfully long kick for sophomore Blake Smith...
...a walk-on from Marshall's soccer team.
The kick is good!
Hey!
- That's groovy, baby! - That's groovy, baby.
I don't believe it. The Young Thundering Herd...
...has a 3-0 lead as they take it into halftime.
Hot damn, he's liable to make that from 50.
Good call.
Stick around. We've got a dogfight on our hands...
...as Xavier is certainly a second-half team.
- We are-- - Marshall!
Damn it, coach, I said I'm all right.
Nate, you're sitting.
You can't do that, coach. I gotta cover 19.
Nineteen's got six catches for 95 yards, Nate...
...and it's because he knows you can't go to your right.
- We got two more quarters of football. - Yes, we do. Yes, we do, Nate.
But you've done enough.
Coach, I've been going to my right all day--
You see what's going on out there?
Nate, that's all because you never stopped pushing.
- We got two more quarters of football. - You've done enough, Nate.
You've done enough.
Are we gonna be all right, coach?
Yeah. We're gonna be all right.
Yeah, we're gonna be all right.
Thanks for joining us back at halftime, folks.
You know what's hard to fathom? It's hard to believe this is even possible...
...but Jack Lengyel has the Marshall Young Thundering Herd...
...a team of freshmen, of transfer students, of walk-ons...
...a team of nobodies and no ones...
...somehow are beating the Xavier Pirates after 30 minutes of football.
Well, that is true, but I gotta believe that, at some point...
...speed, size and experience will prevail.
Come on, Booth!
That's the way to start the second half!
This Young Thundering Herd looks like they're ready to play.
- 44-X-Punch. Let's go. - Break!
Nineteen, set, hut!
- Big hit on Oliver... - Ball!
...who loses the ball. Xavier scoops it up.
Let's go!
He's on the 30...
...the 20...
...touchdown, Xavier!
And just like that, Xavier takes the lead, 6-3.
It's okay! Come on!
- You're still the captain of this team. - Yes, sir.
I'm gonna need you to be that captain from the sideline.
Set, hut!
- Yeah, baby, let's go! - Come on, let's go!
- Great call. - All right?
Twenty-two!
All right. Yeah.
It's your team now.
Set, hut!
Nice flag route by Bill James.
He's got one foot inbounds. That's good for a first down.
- Yeah! Come on! - Thought you were a basketball player.
If he doesn't pass, give it to Wooch. If he does, tuck it.
- Tuck it and go. - It's up to you. Go.
Oliver in with the play. They're close, folks, very, very close.
Just four yards from a Thundering Herd score.
Come on, Reggie.
Touchdown, Reggie Oliver!
And Marshall grabs the lead right back, 9-6...
...with eight seconds remaining in the third quarter.
Let's go!
That's what it looks like on paper right there, doesn't it?
If Marshall can hold on for a little while longer, folks--
But there's a complete pass to Crawford!
Go, go, go!
He breaks free.
And he's in the end zone. Touchdown, Xavier.
Oh, my. What a dagger to the heart of this Marshall team.
And with the extra point, Xavier has taken the lead back from Marshall...
...13-9 with one minute left to play.
- We are-- - Let's go, Marshall! Come on!
Marshall has time for one last-ditch effort...
...but they'll have to march all the way downfield into the end zone.
- A field goal will not be enough. - Thirteen! Set, hut!
Oliver breaks loose. He's in the open field!
Go, go, go!
Something's happening here for the Thundering Herd.
Down, down, down! On the ball!
We got one time-out, coach.
- I-13! I-13! - Run your offense. Run your offense.
Set, hut!
Oliver holds the ball, rolls out, and is sacked.
That's gonna be costly as the clock keeps tick--
No, wait, he got rid of it! He got rid of it!
A huge gain for the Herd!
Marshall marches upfield, but with less than 30 seconds left...
- ...time is running out for the boys in green. - Time-out. Time-out.
Marshall calls their last time-out.
Come on, Marshall!
Zero time-outs. We need a touchdown to win. Here's the play:
Fire left, 422-Z-Rocket, all right? Martin, Johnson or Linden.
After you catch the football, if you cannot score, get out of bounds.
If you do not get out of bounds, everybody get to the line...
...Coach Red Dawson's got the winning play coming in, all right?
There is no huddle from here out.
- Do you believe? - Yes, sir!
- We are-- - Marshall!
This is it, folks.
Okay.
Gotta get out of bounds to stop the clock.
- Get out of bounds! - Get out, get out, get out!
Clock is still ticking. He didn't make it! He's still inbounds.
- Clock's running, clock's running. - Call it in. Take us home, Red. Call it in.
Gardner, Gardner! All right.
Split right, 213 Bootleg Screen. Bootleg Screen!
- Get it off! - Snap it.
Snap the ball.
Snap it. Snap it.
It's good! Gardner catches the ball! Touchdown! Touchdown!
I can't believe it! I can't believe it! Marshall has won!
The Young Thundering Herd has won! They have done the unthinkable!
- We scored? - Marshall has beaten Xavier!
This is an exciting day, folks! Incredible!
The skies parted and Marshall took command!
They proved that they were men today, that they were a team!
- We did it! We did it! - Marshall wins!
Marshall wins in a barnburner, folks!
They're gonna remember this one for decades!
Lengyel! We did it!
We did it! We did it! We did it! We did it!
- Oh, gosh. - Little tradition.
At the end of a game, we always give the ball to the most valuable player.
That's for you.
Jack, I'm not one of the players.
I know, Don.
We're Marshall. We'll take anybody.
Thank you. Thank you, Don.
The following week, Marshall lost to Miami of Ohio, 66 to 6.
They would only win one more game in 1971.
Jack Lengyel resigned as head coach in 1974 with a record of 9 and 33.
He went on to become athletic director at the Naval Academy.
He's now in the Hall of Fame.
Donald Dedmon accepted the presidency at Radford University...
...where he remained until he retired in 1994.
Gene Morehouse's son, Keith, followed in his father's footsteps...
...and became a broadcaster for Marshall football...
...where he still remains today.
Reggie Oliver started every game at quarterback for the Thundering Herd...
...until he graduated.
He eventually returned to Marshall as an assistant coach...
...and now lives in Ohio.
Nate Ruffin moved away from Huntington after graduation...
...got married and started a family.
In 2001, after a prolonged illness...
...Nate passed away at his home in Arlington, Virginia.
But he would return to Huntington one last time...
...for a final reunion with his old teammates.
Red Dawson kept his word and left the team at the end of the year.
He never returned to football.
Well, congratulations, Coach Dawson.
Well, thank you, Jimmy.
Congratulations to you too.
I didn't mean to keep you waiting. I just...
Red, you didn't keep me waiting.
Come here.
Nobody here wants to go home either.
Marshall lost more football games in the '70s...
...than any other program in the nation.
But yet, football remained.
In 1984, the Herd had their first winning record in 20 years.
They followed it with eight conference titles...
...five straight bowl wins and two national championships.
From the ashes, we rose.
- We are-- - Marshall!
Marshall! Marshall! Marshall!