Marshall University: Ashes to Glory

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Marshall University: Ashes to Glory
Directed byDeborah Novak
Written byDeborah Novak
Joe Witek
Produced byJohn Witek
Music byJay Flippin
Distributed by West Virginia Public Broadcasting
Release date
  • November 18, 2000 (2000-11-18)
Running time
119 minutes
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish

Marshall University: Ashes to Glory is a 2000 documentary film about the November 14, 1970 Marshall University plane crash that killed 75 people (including 37 members of the 1970 Marshall Thundering Herd football team, most of its coaching staff, and a number of school officials and Huntingtonians), and the efforts of new head coach Jack Lengyel and the coaching staff (which included members of the previous staff), to rebuild the team and help heal the city of Huntington, West Virginia.

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Marshall University was given special permission by the NCAA to play incoming freshmen at the varsity level for the 1971 season. This team was dubbed the Young Thundering Herd and led by the few upperclassmen who didn't make the trip. Several players from other Marshall sports programs rounded out the team's roster. In the preseason "Green and White Game" versus the Marshall alumni (coached by new athletics director Joe McMullen), the Young Thundering Herd defeated the alums 26-0.

The Young Thundering Herd went on to upset the Xavier Musketeers on the last play of the game: a 13-yard screen pass from quarterback Reggie Oliver to freshman fullback Terry Gardner, in their home opener. In their homecoming game later in the season, the team defeated the ranked Bowling Green Falcons. These were the only two victories of the year for the Thundering Herd.

The Thundering Herd would lose more games during the 1970s than any other school. However, they had their first winning season in twenty years in 1984. That was the beginning of an era of success which saw them win more games in the 1990s 125 than any other NCAA Division I school, and win NCAA Division I-AA championships in 1992 and 1996, the latter with an unbeaten season.

Ashes to Glory has won an Emmy Award for best sports documentary.[ citation needed ]

The day before the official opening, Thundering Herd head coach Bob Pruett asked the filmmakers to give a private screening for the team on the eve of a 2000 Mid-American Conference game against the Miami University RedHawks. The Herd defeated the RedHawks 51-31 on November 11 and went on to win the conference championship game 19–14 over the Western Michigan Broncos on December 2 at Marshall University Stadium, now Joan C. Edwards Stadium.

We Are Marshall lawsuit

Deborah Novak and John Witek filed a $40 million lawsuit in federal court in California accusing Warner Bros. and others associated with the We Are Marshall film of fraud, copyright infringement and breach of contract. [1] Novak, who directed Marshall University: Ashes to Glory, is a Huntington native and Marshall alumna. In October 2008, a federal judge dismissed the lawsuit in a summary judgment in favor of Warner Bros. [2]

See also

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The 2011 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University in the 2011 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Thundering Herd were led by second-year head coach Doc Holliday and played their home games at Joan C. Edwards Stadium. They are a member of the East Division of Conference USA. They finished the season 7–6, 5–3 in C-USA to finish in second place in the East Division. They were invited to the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl where they defeated FIU 20–10.

The 1995 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1995 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by sixth-year head coach Jim Donnan, the Thundering Herd compiled an overall record of 12–3 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, placing second in the SoCon. Marshall advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Championship playoffs for the fifth straight season, where they defeated Jackson State in the first round, Northern Iowa in the quarterfinals, and McNeese State in the semifinals, before losing to Montana in the NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game. Marshall played home games at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia.

The 1994 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1994 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by fifth-year head coach Jim Donnan, the Thundering Herd compiled an overall record of 12–2 with a mark of 7–1 in conference play, winning the SoCon title. Marshall advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Championship playoffs for the fourth straight season, where they defeated Middle Tennessee in the first round and James Madison in the quarterfinals, before losing to Boise State in the semifinals. Marshall played home games at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia.

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The 1993 Marshall Thundering Herd football team represented Marshall University as a member of the Southern Conference (SoCon) during the 1993 NCAA Division I-AA football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Jim Donnan, the Thundering Herd compiled an overall record of 11–4 with a mark of 6–2 in conference play, placing second behind Georgia Southern. Marshall advanced to the NCAA Division I-AA Championship playoffs, where they defeated Howard in the first round, Delaware in the quarterfinals, and Troy State in the semifinals before falling to Youngstown State in the NCAA Division I-AA Championship Game. Marshall had beaten Youngstown State the year before in the NCAA Division I-AA title game and lost to the Penguins in the 1991 title game. Marshall played home games at Marshall University Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia.

The 1996 NCAA Division I-AA Football Championship Game was a postseason college football game between the Marshall Thundering Herd and the Montana Grizzlies. The game was played on December 21, 1996, and was the last I-AA title game contested at Marshall University Stadium, now known as Joan C. Edwards Stadium, in Huntington, West Virginia. The culminating game of the 1996 NCAA Division I-AA football season, it was a rematch of the prior season's final, and was won by Marshall, 49–29. It was also Marshall's final game in Division I-AA, now known as Division I FCS; the Herd would move to Division I-A the following July, joining the Mid-American Conference.

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