On This Date in Sports September 25, 1971: We Are Marshall
In their first game on campus since a plane crash killed most members of the team, Marshall defeats Xavier 15-13 as Reggie Oliver completes a pass to Terry Gardner in the end zone on the game’s final play. The Thundering Heard would win just one more game in their comeback season, posting a record of 2-8. However, after the tragic 1970 season, just taking the field was a victory for Marshall.
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November 14, 1970, was the most tragic day in the history of College sports. The Marshall football team suffered a heartbreaking 17-14 loss on the road to East Carolina. After the loss, the team and its boosters got on a flight back from Greenville, North Carolina, back to their campus in Huntington, West Virginia. The DC9 carrying the team would crash short of the runway, killing all 75 people on board the flight, including 37 players, five members of the coaching staff, the school’s athletic director, 25 boasters, and the entire flight crew.
After canceling the final game of the 1970 season, Marshall was faced with the harsh reality of rebuilding their football program. At first, they considered suspending the football program indefinitely, as they had to replace the entire team and find a new coaching staff and athletic director. Due to the urging of the campus community and, local residents, they decided to field a team in 1971. To field a team, the University had to petition to allow the NCAA to allow true freshmen to play. At the time, the NCAA did not allow freshmen to play varsity sports. Once given the waiver, Marshall could begin building its team, which featured nine players who were not on the flight from East Carolina and players who had been freshmen in 1970. Walk-ons constructed the rest of the team.
The story of Marshall rising from the ashes caught the attention of President Richard M. Nixon, who wrote a letter to the team that Coach Jack Lengyel read to the team. The Thundering Herd started the season with a 29-6 loss to Morehead State before facing Xavier in the home opener. The first half was a defensive struggle, with Marshall holding a 3-0 lead. After Xavier took a 6-3 lead in the third quarter, Reggie Oliver’s bootleg gave Marshall a 9-6 lead in the fourth quarter. However, Xavier regained the lead with 5:18 on a punt return. After trading punts, the Heard had one last chance to win the game. Facing fourth and ten, Oliver kept Marshall’s hopes alive with an 11-yard pass to Jerry Arrasmith. Marshall would drive the ball down to the Xavier 13 as the time was running out. The final play call was a bootleg screen. The play worked to perfection as Reggie Oliver hit Terry Gardner in the end zone for the dramatic 15-13 win.
Wins would not be that common for Marshall as they posted a 2-8 record in 1971. The only other win would be a 12-10 upset of Bowling Green on October 30th, as they were shut out in five of their last six games. The incredible comeback for Marshall would later be dramatized in a 2006 film, “We Are Marshall.”