Marshall Thundering Herd Football 2010 Preseason Media Information

Media Relations Contact Information INFORMATION

Randy Burnside, Assistant Athletic Director for Media Relations Location ______Huntington, W.Va. Work: 304-696-4660 Cell: 304-208-0498 Founded ______1837 (as Marshall Academy) E-mail: [email protected] Website: HerdZone.com Enrollment ______13,814 Nickname ______Thundering Herd Bob Pristash, Associate Sports Information Director Colors ______Green (PMS 357) and White Work: 304-696-2418 Cell: 610-393-9974 Stadium ______Joan C. Edwards Stadium Capacity ______38,019 E-mail: [email protected] Year Opened ______1991 (as Marshall University Stadium) Surface ______FieldTurf (installed August 2006) Media Information Conference ______Conference USA (East Division) President ______Dr. Stephen J. Kopp (Notre Dame, 1973) All of Marshall’s practice sessions are open to the media and those Director of Athletics ______Mike Hamrick (Marshall, 1980) wishing to attend need to contact Randy Burnside at least 24 hours in Head Coach ______Doc Holliday (West Virginia, 1979) advance. Record at Marshall ______First Season Career Record ______First Season The Ernie Salvatore Pressbox will be open 15 minutes before each Marshall’s 2009 Record ______7-6 practice session and will remain open until the end of each practice 2009 C-USA Record/Finish ______4-4 (4th, East) for members of the working media only. No live reports, blogging, Last Bowl Appearance ______2009 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl or real-time transmission of information is permitted during football ...defeated Ohio 21-17 practice. Coach Holliday will address members of the media following Off ense ______Multiple each practice session. Defense ______Multiple Off ensive Starters Returning/Lost ______7/4 Members of the media are asked to stay off the fi eld at all times during Defensive Starters Returning/Lost ______6/5 practice. Letterwinners Returning/Lost ______41/16

Media photographers will be allowed to shoot limited portions of MARSHALL FOOTBALL STAFF practice that are approved by the coaching staff in advance. Those interested in doing so must contact Randy Burnside in advance to gain Head Coach ______Doc Holliday (West Virginia, 1979) permission to do so. Ast. H.C./Co-Off ensive Cord./QBs______Tony Petersen (Marshall, 1988 Off ensive Coordinator/Line ______Bill Legg (West Virginia, 1985) Important Dates Defensive Cord./Linebackers ____Chris Rippon (Southern Connecticut St., 1982) Defensive Secondary ______Mike Cassity (Kentucky, 1976) Defensive Line ______Sean Cronin (Georgetown (Ky.), 2003) PLAYERS REPORT: Tuesday, August 3 Tight Ends ______Phil Ratliff (Marshall, 1994) Running Backs/Recruiting Coord. ______JaJuan Seider (West Virginia, 2000) FIRST PRACTICE: Wednesday, August 4: Marshall’s fi rst scheduled Wide Receivers ______Zach Smith (Florida, 2007) practice is set for 9:45 am. The Thundering Herd is Safeties ______Fred Tate (Southern Miss, 1997) scheduled to practice through August 22. For more details on the Assistant AD for Football Ops ______Mark Gale (Oklahoma State, 1981) practice schedule, media members are asked to contact the sports Head Strength and Conditioning ______Frank Piraino (Akron, 2002) information offi ce. Asst. Strength and Conditioning ______Joe Miday (Kent State, 2002) Dir. of High School Relations ______Mike Waugh (Ohio, 2008) FIRST DAY OF CLASSES: Monday, August 23

2009 Marshall Football Results (7-6, 4-4 C-USA) 2010 Marshall Football Schedule Date Opponent (TV) Time Date Opponent (TV) Time Sept. 5 SOUTHERN ILLINOIS W, 31-28 Sept. 2 at Ohio State (Big Ten Network) 7:30 p.m. Sept. 12 at Virginia Tech (ESPN360.com) L, 52-10 Sept. 10 WEST VIRGINIA (ESPN) 7 p.m. Sept. 19 BOWLING GREEN (WSAZ) W, 17-10 Sept. 18 at Bowling Green (TBA) 7 p.m. Sept. 26 at Memphis (CSS) W, 27-16 Sept. 25 OHIO (TBA) 7 p.m. Oct. 3 EAST CAROLINA (CBS C) L, 21-17 Oct. 2 at Southern Miss (CBS C) 8 p.m.

Oct. 10 at Tulane (CSS) W, 31-10 Oct. 13 UCF (ESPN) 8 p.m. Oct. 17 at West Virginia (ESPN Regional) L, 24-7 Oct. 23 at East Carolina (CSS) 4:15 p.m. Oct. 24 UAB (CSS) W, 27-7 Oct. 30 UTEP 3 p.m. Nov. 1 at UCF (ESPN) L, 21-20 Nov. 6 at UAB (CSS) 4:15 p.m. Nov. 14 SOUTHERN MISS L, 27-20 Nov. 13 MEMPHIS 3 p.m. Nov. 21 SMU W, 34-31 Nov. 20 at SMU 3 p.m. Nov. 28 at UTEP (WSAZ) L, 52-21 Nov. 27 TULANE (CBS C) Noon Dec. 26 vs. Ohio (ESPN)* W, 21-17 Bold - Indicates a C-USA game Bold - Indicates a C-USA game Home games in CAPS * - Little Caesars Pizza Bowl All times are Eastern Time Zone and subject to change.

Marshall 2010 Media Information Running Game in Good Hands: Despite the early departure of PRE-SEASON NOTES Darius Marshall to the NFL, Marshall appears to be in good hands at running back with the return of sophomore Martin Ward. Ward saw The Doc is in: Marshall University will enter the 2010 season under considerable action last season when Marshall missed games due to new leadership. Doc Holliday took over as Marshall’s 29th head injury and he responded well. Ward earned MVP honors in the Little football coach on Dec. 17 of 2009. Holliday, a Hurricane W.Va. native, Caesars Pizza Bowl win over Ohio by rushing for 75 yards and two is widely regarded as one of the top recruiters in the nation and he touchdowns, despite sharing carries with Marshall. Ward also rushed brings with him 31 years of collegiate coaching experience to Marshall for 136 yards and a touchdown to lead Marshall to a win over SMU in that includes stops at Florida, N.C. State and West Virginia. his fi rst career start.

The New Coaching Staff : Doc Holliday has put together a very Key Departures: While Marshall returns the vast majority of players impressive coaching staff at Marshall. Holliday has brought in from last year, the Herd did lose several starters from last season to veterans Bill Legg (Off ensive Coordinator) and Tony Petersen (Co- graduation and one early departure to the professional ranks. The Off . Coordinator and Assistant Head Coach) to oversee the off ense Herd’s leading rusher from last season, Darius Marshall, declared for and Chris Rippon (Defensive Coordinator) to oversee the defense. the NFL Draft following his junior season. Marshall also lost tight end Holliday also brought in veteran Fred Tate to coach safeties, while Cody Slate, right guard Jimmy Rogers, right tackle Daniel Baldridge, retaining secondary coach Mike Cassity and tight ends coach Phil defensive end Albert McClellan, defensive tackle James Burkes, Ratliff . The Marshall coaching staff also features several young linebacker Brandon Burns, safety Ashton Hall, longsnapper Sean coaches in Sean Cronin (defensive line), Zach Smith (WRs) and JaJuan McClellan and kicker Craig Ratanamorn to graduation. Seider (Recruiting Coord./RBs). Holliday also brought in strength and conditioning coach Frank Piraino from the University of Florida. New Arrivals: Doc Holliday’s fi rst recruiting class this past February included 25 student-athletes with a large contingent from the state Marshall Triumphant in Post-Season Return: The Thundering Herd of Florida (13). Since February, Marshall has also welcomed into the made its fi rst bowl appearance since the 2004 and came away with a fold Clemson transfer Willy Korn (6-2, 215, junior quarterback) who 21-17 win over Ohio in last year’s Little Caesars Pizza Bowl. Marshall has two years of eligibility remaining. University of Florida signee is now 6-3 all-time in bowl games with six wins in its last seven bowl Travon Van has also joined the Marshall program and is attempting berths. to gain eligibility. Van, a highly touted running back from San Diego was released from his National Letter of Intent with Florida and has A Good Foundation: Marshall welcomes back 45 letterwinners and enrolled at Marshall. 13 starters from last year’s team. The Thundering Herd also returns six players that earned post season recognition from the league coaches. Home Sweet Home: Marshall enjoys the best home fi eld advantage in major . Marshall has an impressive 118-19 overall Marshall’s Returning 2009 All-Conference USA Selections: record at Joan C. Edwards Stadium for a winning percentage of .866. First Team: Mario Harvey (senior LB) No other Division I FBS program can match that. Alabama ranks Honorable Mention: Chad Schofi eld (senior C), Lee Smith (senior TE), second with an .825 winning percentage at Bryant-Denny Stadium. (senior DE), Michael Janac (senior DT) Source: Jim Gumm, The Kickoff All-Freshman: Antavious Wilson (WR) Early Academic Success: If the fi rst semester is any indication, Super Mario: Marshall features one of the nation’s top linebackers in good things are coming under the leadership of Doc Holliday and senior Mario Harvey. The 2009 First-team All-Conference USA selection his staff . The Marshall football team posted a combined 2.63 grade recorded 117 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks last season to point average this spring, up from a combined 2.1 GPA from the fall lead the Thundering Herd defense. Harvey closed out the season with semester of 2009. The combined 2.63 GPA is the highest football team a 12-tackle, two sack performance in Marshall’s 21-17 Little Caesars GPA in any single semester at Marshall in the 20 years that the Buck Pizza Bowl win over Ohio. The preseason All-Conference USA pick is Harless Student Athlete Program has tracked team GPAs. In addition a candidate for the Nagurski Trophy and the Lombardi Award. This to this and for the second consecutive year Marshall will have six summer the standout linebacker turned heads when he recorded the football players suiting up this year that have already earned their second faster 40-yard dash time on the team at 4.35 seconds - very undergraduate degrees. impressive considering Harvey is a six-foot, 247-pound linebacker. AFCA Honorable Mention Academic Award: Marshall was one of Mr. Smith: Marshall features one of the top NFL prospects at tight 41 schools recognized by the Coaches Association end heading into the 2010 season and it is not Cody Slate. Senior in 2009 for graduating 75% or more of its football student-athletes. Lee Smith is an imposing six-foot-six, 267-pound tight end that is This is the second consecutive year that Marshall has earned this well known for not only his tremendous blocking ability, but his pass distinction. Conference USA had six schools that made the list, tying catching skills. Smith has been somewhat overshadowed the last two the Big 10 for the most by any conference. season’s by MU’s all-time pass catching leader at tight end – Cody Slate who completed his career last season as a Mackey Award Semi- We Remember...1970: 2010 marks the 40th anniversary of the tragic fi nalist. Despite this, Smith was still voted by his teammates as a team Marshall Football Plane Crash that took the lives of 75 persons on Nov. captain a year ago and he earned 10 starts. When Slate was lost to an 14, 1970. Each year the MU community conducts a memorial service ACL injury with three games to go, Smith stepped up his role in the on campus and the Memorial Fountain’s water is shut off for the receiving game and proved to be a dangerous pass catching threat winter. as well with 23 catches for 335 receiving yards. He earned honorable mention all-conference honors last season and enters 2010 as the Stadium UpGrades: Marshall’s Joan C. Edwards Stadium will feature C-USA coaches preseason all-conference selection at tight end. He two new state-of-the-art Daktronics video boards in 2010. In addition, was named Marshall’s prestigious Cam Henderson Scholar for 2010 the stadium sound system has been replaced and new ribbon video and has also been nominated for the Allstate Good Works Team for his displays are being installed. The total cost of the new upgrades are community service, academic success and athletic achievement. estimated at $2.4 million.

Marshall 2010 Media Information highly-touted high school SEASON OUTLOOK recruit back in 2007, joined the mix following his Marshall University fi rst-year head coach Doc Holliday and his graduation from Clemson. coaching staff enter August with a solid foundation in place following a productive spring and summer. Marshall should benefi t from the competition This spring off ered Holliday and his staff their fi rst extended look at at the quarterback spot the Herd’s 13 returning starters and others who contributed on last and the individual that season’s 7-6 team that downed Ohio, 21-17, in the Little Caesars Pizza emerges as the starter in Bowl. All told, Marshall’s veterans have bought into the new coaching September will have staved staff ’s philosophy and made great strides in preparing for a schedule off considerable challenges that features eight teams that went to bowl games a year ago and from his peers. opens with a Thursday night game at Ohio State. “Competition only makes “It is important that we do not let a day go by as a team that we do you better and that is one not get better in order to meet the challenges ahead of us,” Holliday of the reasons why I came has said of the upcoming schedule that will see Marshall play seven here,” Korn said. “It would straight games against opponents who participated in bowls to start have been easy for me to the year. transfer down to another school where I would Holliday and his staff also signed an impressive recruiting class that have likely started without Martin Ward will report in August and some of those incoming players could push question, but that is not what I wanted.” for playing time immediately. The Herd has also added highly-touted quarterback Willy Korn who graduated from Clemson this summer and Adding to that competition will be Eddie Sullivan, the lone has enrolled at Marshall with two years of eligibility remaining. The quarterback signee in the class of 2010. Sullivan is a 6-2, 195-pound, vast majority of Marshall’s incoming freshmen enrolled this summer to dual threat quarterback out of Boca Raton, Fla., that threw for nearly get a head start on their college careers. 2,700 yards and 24 touchdowns and also rushed for 294 yards and fi ve scores as a prep senior. “Our goal as a staff was to sign a class good enough to win Conference USA. I believe we met our goal and exceeded expectations in terms of The Thundering Herd must replace running back Darius Marshall, the numbers and the quality of student-athletes we have signed,” Holliday team’s leading rusher from a year ago who declared early for the NFL said. “We have high expectations of these young men on the football Draft. Despite the loss of Marshall, who rushed for 1,131 yards in 10 fi eld and in the classroom.” games, the Herd appears to be in good hands with a trio of backs that saw plenty of action last season. THE OFFENSE New off ensive coordinator Leading the way at running back is sophomore Martin Ward who came Bill Legg and co- on strong late last season when injuries forced Darius Marshall out of coordinator Tony Peterson action. will have a solid core group to work with as MU returns Ward rushed for 393 yards and 3 touchdowns on just 82 carries to seven off ensive starters. average a solid 4.8 yards per rush last season. In his fi rst start, Ward rushed for 136 yards and a touchdown to lead MU to a win over SMU. Brian Anderson who He also closed out the season in fi ne fashion, earning MVP honors in started all 13 games, the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl with 75 yards and two touchdowns on in his fi rst full season only 10 carries. He did this, despite the return of Darius Marshall who as the starter, returns received twice as many carries. for his senior season at quarterback. Anderson Another veteran returning in the backfi eld that will push for playing threw for 2,646 yards and time is sophomore Andre Booker. Booker, emerged as a multi-purpose 14 touchdowns against 13 threat last season and has superb speed and quickness (he has been last season in timed with 4.36 second speed in the 40-yard dash) that allowed him leading MU to a 7-6 overall to emerge as a top punt and kick returner last season. Booker rushed record and its fi rst bowl win for 73 yards on just 15 attempts, caught four passes and was MU’s top since 2002. punt returner with nine returns for 184 yards and a touchdown.

Anderson had penty of Marshall enters the season with a deep corps of returnees at receiver. competition this spring The Herd welcomes back the majority of its top play makers, including Brian Anderson with redshirt-freshman All C-USA Freshman selection Antavious Wilson who led the team in A.J. Graham, junior Mark Cann and fellow senior Press Taylor. Graham receiving a year ago with 60 catches for 724 yards and three TDs. redshirted last season after earning Mr. Football honors in the state of Florida as a senior at Tallahassee’s Godby High. Cann started 11 games Joining Wilson are senior Chuck Walker who caught 33 passes for 350 as a freshman in 2008, while Taylor served as the primary back up a yards and three scores a year ago, sophomore Aaron Dobson (the year ago. team’s fastest player who was timed with a 4.33-second 40-yard dash time this year) who exploded late in the season catching 15 passes for Graham put together an impressive spring that has him pushing 362 yards (a 24.1 yards per catch average) and four touchdowns, and Anderson heading into camp. This summer junior Willy Korn, a senior Wayne Bonner. Marshall 2010 Media Information All C-USA honors last season from the league coaches following last season and was the coaches choice for the preseason All-Conference USA team. Smith is also Marshall’s nominee for the Allstate Good Works team. He dedicates a great deal of his time to community service, has a 3.2 grade point average with a double major and balances the rigors of college football and academia with his family life that includes his wife Alisha and their two small children - Brody and Amanda.

Joining Smith at tight end this spring are six-foot-fi ve sophomore Jamie Hatten, who saw considerable playing time late last season and Billy Mitchell. The newcomer at the position is freshman Chris Head from Jackson, Ga.

Upfront Marshall’s off ense returns three starter from last year. Honorable mention All C-USA selection Chad Schofi eld returns for his senior year at center or guard, senior Brandon Campbell returns at left tackle and junior Ryan Tillman is back at guard.

Seniors Landis Provancha and Erik Vint also return along with veteran C.J. Wood who all have seen considerable action up front.

Local product Chris Bowers who started at center in place of the injured Schofi eld in Marshall’s bowl win also returns along with Jordan Jeff ries, John Bruhin, Alex Schooler, Corey Tenney, Colton Griffi s and Jeremiah Taylor. All of who will be competing for playing time along side newcomers Josh Lovell, Randy Richards, A.J. Scott and Garrett Lee Smith Scott.

THE DEFENSE In addition to this, the Herd receiving corps welcomes back senior Chris Rippon’s defensive unit welcomes back six starters from last Courtney Edmonson who entered the 2009 season as MU’s No. 1 season including fi rst-team All C-USA selection Mario Harvey at wideout, but was lost in the season opener to a season-ending injury. linebacker. He has been granted an extra year of eligibility by the NCAA and returns to bolster an already strong group. Likewise, junior Troy Evans who was expected to contribute heavily a year ago missed most of last season to an injury and is back.

Six-foot-six Michael Rhynes and six-foot-two C.J. Crawford both redshirted last season, while senior Tavaris Thompson further reinforces this group.

The incoming recruiting class will also further strengthen this already deep unit and several newcomers could make an immediate contribution on the fi eld. Holliday’s fi rst recruiting class included a strong group of wide receivers that received a great deal of recruiting interest from across the nation, they are - Belle Glade, Fla., standout Demetrius Evans; Gainesville, Fla., product Harold “Gator” Hoskins; Miami (Fla.) Southridge’s Jermaine Kelson and Duncan, S.C., star Isaiah “Jazz” King.

Normally when a team loses one of its top players of all-time at a position one would expect a drop off in production, however that is not the case for Marshall at tight end.

The Herd lost Mackey Award Semi-Finalist and its all-time leading receiving tight end Cody Slate late last season to a knee injury and now to graduation, however the Marshall coaching staff still has a valuable weapon remaining in senior Lee Smith.

Smith is an imposing six-foot-six, 267-pounds and posses incredible strength, speed and good hands. He was voted, along with Slate, as a team captain last season and already has 20 career starts under his belt. Smith is a tremendous blocker and pass catcher who recorded 23 catches for 335 yards a year ago. Most of those catches coming late in the season after the loss of Slate. Smith earned honorable mention Mario Harvey Marshall 2010 Media Information of these juniors have starting experience led by Jones’ 15 career starts. Johnson stands at 6-3, 300, while Jones is 6-5, 301 and Bullock is 6-3, 361.

Look for James Rouse, DeMetrius Thompson, John Youboty, Sakee Bashir and Marques Aiken to push for playing time and bolster the Herd at defensive end.

Marshall’s newcomers along the defensive front are Malcolm Strong from Stone Mountain, Ga.; Brandon Sparrow from Bedford, Va. and Ra’shawde Myers from Cocoa, Fla.

Marshall’s secondary will be a work in progress this August. The Herd was forced to dismiss two cornerbacks with starting experience this past spring and summer in T.J. Drakeford and DeQuan Bembry due to off the fi eld issues. Despite the loss, the Thundering Herd does have experienced players ready to fi ll the void and a strong recruitng class to draw from to fi ll the need.

The Herd has one returning starter at corner in Ahmed Shakoor. Shakoor started 11 games last season and led the team with 11 pass breakups. Senior D.J. Wingate also has starting experience at corner Vinny Curry and will vye for playing time along with redshirt-freshman Monterius Lovett and junior Rashad Jackson. Marshall also has highly regarded Harvey, a senior from Forsyth, Ga., recorded 117 tackles, 8.5 tackles for incoming freshman Darryl Roberts from Lakeland, Fla. to reinforce the loss and seven sacks last season. He also added 10 quarterback hurries position. while terrorizing opposing off enses. The six-foot, 250-pound cog is aptly nicknamed “Thumper” for his hard hitting and he possesses Marshall will be looking to build depth at safety where junior Omar incredible speed (he is the second fastest player on the team with a Brown and senior Kevin Perry return. Brown put together a stellar 40-yard dash time of 4.35 seconds despite his size). He is a preseason season last year earning nine starts following the season-ending injury All-Conference USA selection that is a candidate for both the Bronko to senior John Saunders early in the year. He fi nished third on the team Nagurski Trophy and the Rotary Lombardi Award. in tackles with 73 and added two interceptions and 10 pass breakups as well. Perry saw action in all 13 games as a reserve behind departed Marshall also welcomes back junior Kellen Harris who started all 13 senior Ashton Hall. games last season at middle linebacker and recorded 71 tackles, six tackles for loss and forced a pair of . Look for Donald Brown and senior Pete Culicerto to push for time along with a highly touted group of incoming freshman that includes Other returnees at linebacker include Devin Arrington, Tyson Gale and St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.) standout Brian Robinson, New Smyrna Beach George Carpenter who all have seen considerable playing time and (Fla.) product Joe Johnson, and Virginia Beach’s Zach Dunston. senior Howard King. SPECIAL TEAMS Phil Walker and Matt Pickett are both redshirt-freshmen that will Marshall’s coaching staff placed considerable emphasis on replacing push for playing time at linebacker. Trevor Black, a 2010 signee from Craig Ratanamorn at kicker this spring. Ratanamorn was a semi-fi nalist Hargrave, enrolled early and participated in spring drills. Durham, for last year’s Lou Groza Award and the heir apparent at kicker is junior North Carolina’s T.J. Ross will be the freshman newcomer at linebacker. Tyler Warner. In addition to this, the coaching staff has moved back-up running back Terrell Edwards-Maye to linebacker where he can better utilize his Warner, a Parkersburg native, did not attempt a fi eld goal last season strong 6-foot-2 frame to help the team. as a reserve, however as a freshman he saw signifi cant playing time fi lling in for an injured Ratanamorn. In fact, he was named as the kicker Marshall’s defensive front was among Conference USA’s best last on the All C-USA Freshman team in 2008 after connecting on 3-of-5 season and 2010 promises to be no diff erent as the Herd returns a fi eld goals. solid group of veterans with good size both at tackle and end. Marshall must also replace its long snapper Sean McClellan who Senior Michael Janac has 21 career starts upfront at tackle and served in that role for the past three seasons and capped off his career defensive end. The six-foot-fi ve, 295-pounder from Miami was credited with fi rst-team All C-USA honors as a snapper. That duty appears to with 44 tackles, three tackles for loss and eight quarterback pressures resting with junior linebacker Tyson Gale and freshman James Power. last season as a junior. Junior Kase Whitehead returns for his third spring as Marshall’s punter. Vinny Curry, six-foot-four, 252-pounds, returns for his junior season at Last season, Whitehead recorded 63 punts for 2,469 yards with a long defensive end after starting all 13 games last season opposite of Albert of 57 yards to average 39.2 yards per punt. McClellan. Curry notched 59 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks a year ago. Curry and Janac were both honorable mention All C-USA Joining the specialist is freshman kicker Justin Haig from Delray Beach, selections last season. Fla. Other specialists include walk-on George Brody, transfer Nick Stevens, Cody Ochoa and redshirt freshman Drew Stewart. Delvin Johnson, Johnny Jones and Brandon Bullock provide Marshall with an imposing group of tackles with plenty of experience. All three

Marshall 2010 Media Information 2010 MARSHALL UNIVERSITY FOOTBALL ROSTER (as of August 7) NUMERICAL ROSTER No. Name Pos. Ht. Wt. Elig. Hometown/Previous School 1 A.J. Graham QB 6-4 208 r-Fr. Tallahassee, Fla./Godby 2 Terrell Edwards-Maye LB 6-2 215 Jr. Mobile, Ala./UMS Wright 3 Aaron Dobson WR 6-3 203 So. Dunbar, W.Va./South Charleston 4 Troy Evans WR 5-9 196 Jr. Oakland, Calif. /Hayward (Laney College) 5 Willy Korn QB 6-2 215 Jr. Lyman, S.C./James F. Byrnes (Clemson) 6 Ahmed Shakoor DB 5-11 203 Jr. Stone Mountain, Ga./Stephenson 7 Tyrone Carper DB 5-9 180 Sr. Bluefi eld, Va./Graham 7 Travon Van RB 5-11 200 Fr. San Diego, Calif./Helix (Milford Academy) 8 Eddie Sullivan QB 6-2 195 Fr. Boca Raton, Fla./Boca Raton 10 Mark Cann QB 6-4 237 Jr. Landrum, S.C./Landrum 11 Wayne Bonner WR 6-3 199 Sr. Milledgeville, Ga./Baldwin (East Mississippi C.C.) 12 Brian Anderson QB 6-3 213 Sr. Louisville, Ky./Male 13 Press Taylor QB 6-1 210 Sr. Norman, Okla./Norman (Butler County C.C.) 14 Caleb Wasonga DB 6-0 190 Fr. Point Pleasant, W.Va./Point Pleasant 14 Chris Head TE 6-5 205 Fr. Jackson, Ga./Jackson 15 D.J. Wingate DB 6-2 191 Sr. Daytona Beach, Fla./Mainland 16 Lee Smith TE 6-6 267 Sr. Powell, Tenn./Powell (Tennessee) 17 Chuck Walker WR 5-10 197 Sr. Oakland, Calif./Hayward (Laney College) 18 Donald Brown DB 6-0 182 So. Frostproof, Fla./Frostproof 19 Andre Booker RB 5-10 178 So. Sarasota, Fla. /Riverview 20 Brian Robinson DB 6-0 180 Fr. Ft. Lauderdale, Fla./St. Thomas Aquinas 20 Nick Stevens K 5-8 175 So. Gallipolis, Ohio/Gallia Academy (Muskingum) 21 C.J. Crawford WR 6-2 216 r-Fr. Huntington, W.Va./Huntington 22 Kevin Perry DB 5-10 192 Sr. Madison, Ala./Bob Jones 23 Justin Haig K 5-10 180 Fr. Delray Beach, Fla./American Heritage 23 Derek Mitchell DB 5-11 200 r-Fr. Point Pleasant, W.Va./Point Pleasant 24 Isaiah “Jazz” King WR 5-11 180 Fr. Duncan, S.C./James F. Byrnes 25 Devin Arrington LB 6-2 207 So. Chesapeake, Va./Deep Creek 26 Brandon Grant DB 6-1 196 Fr. Greenbelt, Md./Eleanor Roosevelt 26 Harold “Gator” Hoskins WR 6-2 200 Fr. Gainesville, Fla./Eastside 27 Drew Stewart K 6-1 182 r-Fr. Gastonia, N.C./North Gaston 28 Jermaine Kelson WR 5-8 170 Fr. Miami, Fla./Southridge 29 Martin Ward RB 5-9 201 So. Jonesboro, Ga./Mount Zion 30 Mario Harvey LB 6-0 250 Sr. Forsyth, Ga./Hargrave Military 31 Omar Brown DB 5-11 194 Jr. Moncks Corner, S.C./Berkeley 32 Tron Martinez RB 5-9 186 Fr. Hampton, Va./Hampton 32 Derek Robinson DB 5-10 170 Fr. Davie, Fla./Nova 33 T.J. Ross LB 6-0 215 Fr. Durham, N.C./Southern Durham 34 George Brody K 6-2 205 Fr. Huntington, W.Va./Spring Valley 34 Zach Dunston DB 6-1 188 Fr. Virginia Beach, Va./Green Run 35 Kellen Harris LB 6-3 232 Jr. Sharon, Pa./Sharon 36 Monterius Lovett DB 5-10 166 r-Fr. Tallahassee, Fla. /Rickards 37 Tyler Warner K 6-4 215 Jr. Parkersburg, W.Va./Parkersburg 38 Joe Johnson DB 5-11 173 Fr. New Smyrna Beach, Fla./New Smyrna Beach 39 Darryl Roberts DB 5-11 154 Fr. Lakeland, Fla./Lakeland 40 Ra’Shawde Myers DE 6-4 215 Fr. Cocoa, Fla./Cocoa 41 Kase Whitehead P 5-10 183 Jr. Maryville, Tenn./William Blount 42 Chris Maxwell DB 5-11 167 Jr. Ft. Lauderdale, Fla./American Heritage (Methodist U.) 43 Trevor Black LB 6-2 227 Fr. Charlotte, N.C./West Mecklenburg (Hargrave) 44 Rashad Jackson DB 5-9 178 Jr. Belle Glade, Fla./Glades Central (Joliet C.C.) 45 Matt Pickett LB 6-2 227 r-Fr. Charlotte, N.C./Providence 46 Charles Gilkerson LB 6-0 230 Jr. Huntington, W.Va./Spring Valley 46 Cody Ochoa P 6-1 184 Sr. Bridgewater, Va./Turner Ashby (Fork Union) 47 Tyson Gale LB 6-3 234 Jr. Alva, Okla./Alva 48 George Carpenter LB 5-10 214 Jr. Lancaster, Ohio/Lancaster 49 Pete Culicerto DB 6-1 210 Sr. Charlotte, N.C./Butler 49 Essray Taliaferro RB 5-8 178 r-Fr. Ashburn, Va./Briarwoods 50 Zakee Bashir DE 6-1 240 r-Fr. Blacklick, Ohio/Walnut Ridge 51 A.J. Scott OL 6-5 272 Fr. Staunton, Va./Robert E. Lee 52 Malcolm Strong DE 6-4 230 Fr. Stone Mountain, Ga./Stephenson 53 Alex Bazzie LB 6-1 228 r-Fr. Silver Spring, Md./Northwood (Fork Union) 57 Anthony Fletcher LB 6-3 200 Fr. Amherst, Va./Amherst County 58 Jeremiah Taylor DL 6-4 270 Fr. South Point, Ohio/South Point 58 Zach Wellman LB 6-1 225 Fr. Huntington, W.Va./Spring Valley 59 Colton Griffi s OL 6-4 334 r-Fr. Sunbury, Ohio/Big Walnut Marshall 2010 Media Information 60 Chris Jasperse OL 6-4 270 Fr. Greensboro, N.C./Page 62 James Allen OL 6-2 200 Fr. Bradenton, Fla./St. Stephens Episcopal 63 Chris Bowers OL 6-2 287 So. Ona, W.Va./Cabell Midland 64 John Bruhin OL 6-4 318 Jr. Powell, Tenn./Powell 65 Darrell Martin OL 6-5 298 r-Fr. Lithonia, Ga. /Martin Luther King, Jr. 67 Erik Vint OL 6-4 286 Sr. Ridgeway, Va./Magna Vista 68 Landis Provancha OL 6-5 314 Sr. Salem, Ore./Sprague (Grossmont College) 70 Corey Tenney OL 6-7 295 r-Fr. New Castle, Va. /Craig County 71 Chad Schofi eld OL 6-4 304 Sr. Strongsville, Ohio/Strongville 73 Ryan Tillman OL 6-5 289 Jr. Centreville, Va./Hargrave Military 74 Alex Schooler OL 6-6 290 r-Fr. Wichita, Kan./Collegiate 75 C.J. Wood OL 6-5 305 Jr. Gainesville, Ga./Gainesville 76 Garrett Scott OL 6-4 270 Fr. Douglas, Ga./Coff ee County 77 Jordan Jeff ries OL 6-7 304 r-Fr. Oswego, Ill. /Oswego 77 DeMetrius Thompson DE 6-2 236 Sr. Charleston, W.Va./Capital 78 Brandon Campbell OL 6-5 312 Sr. Fort Washington, Md./Friendly Senior 79 Josh Lovell OL 6-6 266 Fr. Christchurch, Va./Christchurch 80 Courtney Edmonson WR 6-0 190 Sr. Titusville, Fla./Astronaut 82 Antavious Wilson WR 6-0 196 So. Pahokee, Fla./Pahokee 83 Michael Rhynes WR 6-5 221 r-Fr. Charlotte, N.C./ Independence 85 Billy Mitchell TE 6-3 223 r-Fr. Navarre, Fla./Navarre 86 Jamie Hatten TE 6-5 238 So. Hendersonville, N.C./Hendersonville 87 Tavaris Thompson WR 6-2 194 Sr. Lauderdale Lakes, Fla./Boyd Anderson 89 Shane Pack TE 6-1 235 Fr. Louisa, Ky./Lawrence County 90 Michael Janac DE 6-5 294 Sr. Miami, Fla./Pearl Cohn (Nashville, Tenn.) 91 Johnny Jones DT 6-5 301 Sr. Clewiston, Fla./Clewiston 92 James Rouse DE 6-5 231 r-Fr. Harrisonburg, Va./Harrisonburg 93 Brandon Bullock DT 6-3 361 Jr. Egg Harbor City, N.J./Absegami 95 Grady Kerr DL 6-2 260 Fr. New Smyrna Beach, Fla./New Smyrna Beach 95 James Power LS 6-3 225 Fr. Myrtle Beach, S.C./Myrtle Beach 96 Brandon Sparrow DL 6-4 270 Fr. Bedford, Va./Liberty 97 Marques Aiken DL 6-4 248 r-Fr. Lauderhill, Fla./Boyd Anderson 97 James Power LS 6-4 225 Fr. Myrtle Beach, S.C./Myrtle Beach 98 Delvin Johnson DT 6-3 300 Jr. Woodruff , S.C./Woodruff 99 Vinny Curry DE 6-4 252 Jr. Neptune, N.J./Harmony (Ohio) -- Demetrius Evans WR 6-2 180 Fr. Belle Glade, Fla./Glades Central

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Marshall 2010 Media Information ROSTER BY CAREER STARTS (returning starters in bold)

THUNDERING HERD DEFENSE

DEFENSIVE LINE DEFENSIVE ENDS CORNERBACKS SAFETIES LINEBACKERS Brandon Bullock (1) Vinny Curry (13) Ahmed Shakoor (11) Omar Brown (10) Kellen Harris (13) Delvin Johnson (9) Michael Janac (21) D.J. Wingate (6) Mario Harvey (28) Johnny Jones (15)

THUNDERING HERD OFFENSE

TIGHT ENDS QUARTERBACKS RUNNING BACKS OFFENSIVE LINE WIDE RECEIVERS Jamie Hatten (2) Brian Anderson (15) Terrell Edwards-Maye (1) Chris Bowers (1) Aaron Dobson (2) Lee Smith (20) Mark Cann (11) Martin Ward (2) Brandon Campbell (16) Courtney Edmonson (5) Landis Provancha (3) Troy Evans (1) Chad Schofi eld (18) Chuck Walker (13) Ryan TIllman (22) Antavious Wilson (11) C.J. Wood (14)

THUNDERING HERD SPECIALISTS

LONG SNAPPER KICKER PUNTER HOLDER Tyson Gale -- Tyler Warner (5) Kase Whitehead (25) Kase Whitehead (13)

THUNDERING HERD 2010 RECRUITING CLASS AND NEWCOMER BIOGRAPHICAL CAPSULES Trevor Black/ LB/ 6-2/ 200/ Hargrave Military Academy/ Charlotte, N.C. Enrolled at Marshall in January and will take part in spring practice... ranked as the No. 21 prep school player in the country by Rivals...was a standout performer at West Mecklenburg High in Charlotte before playing at Hargrave Military Academy...rated as a three star recruit by both Rivals and Scout...recorded 143 tackles and two interceptions as a senior at West Mecklenburg en route to being named Queen City Player of the Year...chose Marshall over South Carolina, Virginia Tech and Tennessee among others.

Zach Dunston/ DB/ 6-1/ 188/ Green Run High School/ Virginia Beach, Va. Recorded fi ve interceptions and caught fi ve touchdowns as a senior captain at Green Run...totaled 12 career interceptions in his prep career to go along with 864 receiving yards and seven touchdowns in addition to returning two punts for touchdowns...named fi rst-team All-Beach Dis- trict...rated three stars by Rivals...chose Marshall over off ers from Louisville, Maryland, Temple, Tennessee and Kent State.

Demetrius Evans/ WR/ 6-2/ 180/ Glades Central High School/ Belle Glade, Fla. An off ensive weapon at wide receiver for head coach Jessie Hester at Glades Central...team registered a 13-1 record and a berth to the Florida Class 2A State Championship game...hauled in 23 catches for 434 yards and six touchdowns this past season...also recruited by Central Michigan, Middle Tennessee State and Florida International.

Justin Haig/ K/ 5-10/ 180/ American Heritage High School/ Delray Beach, Fla. Was one of three fi nalists for the Lou Groza Award that honors the top high school kicker in Palm Beach County following his senior year...the All- Palm Beach County selection made 4-of-5 fi eld goal attempts, including a season-long 49-yard attempt...he was 60-of-63 on PATs and tallied 45 touchbacks in 2009...also averaged 36.8 yards per punt...team won the Florida Class 1A State Championship...also recruited by West Virginia.

Chris Head/ TE/ 6-5/ 205/ Jackson High School/ Jackson, Ga. Recorded 43 receptions for 510 yards and fi ve touchdowns as a senior at Jackson en route to earning fi rst-team all-conference honors...also excelled on the basketball court where he earned all-conference accolades as well...Chose Marshall over Toledo among others.

Harold “Gator” Hoskins/ WR/ 6-2/ 200/ Eastside High School/ Gainesville, Fla. A standout athlete that played a variety of roles for head coach Kent Johnson at Eastside High...earned all-area and all-state honors in both 2008 and 2009 and was a 2009 North Florida All-Star...passed for 1,977 yards and 10 touchdowns and carried the ball 114 times for 516 yards and 10 touchdowns as a senior...passed for 2,477 yards and 25 scores in his career, while rushing for more than 1,177 yards and 22 touchdowns...also recruited by Kentucky, South Florida, Middle Tennessee, Tulane, and Ohio among others.

Joe Johnson/ DB/ 5-11/ 173/ New Smyrna Beach High School/ New Smyrna Beach, Fla. A standout performer at New Smyrna Beach High...credited with 85 tackles, six interceptions and 19 pass break-ups during his senior year...rated Marshall 2010 Media Information THUNDERING HERD 2010 RECRUITING CLASS AND NEWCOMER BIOGRAPHICAL CAPSULES (continued) as one of the top safety prospects in the country by several recruiting services...rated three stars by Rivals...also recruited by South Florida and Western Michigan among others.

Jermaine Kelson/ ATH/ 5-8/ 170/ Southridge High School/ Miami, Fla. An explosive athlete that was one of the top dual-threat quarterbacks in the country for head coach Patrick Burrows and Class 6A Southridge... helped his team to a 10-1 record as a senior...also recruited by Central Michigan and Mississippi State among others.

Isaiah “Jazz” King/ WR/ 5-11/ 180/ Byrnes High School/ Duncan, S.C. A standout receiver for head coach Chris Miller at Byrnes...helped Byrnes to a berth in the state title game as a senior...caught 45 passes for 845 yards and 11 touchdowns during his senior campaign en route to earning all-area accolades...participated in the 2010 Max Emfi nger All- American Bowl...recorded nine catches for 156 yards and two touchdowns against No. 1-ranked St. Thomas Aquinas (Fla.) last season...rated three stars by most recruiting services...chose Marshall over Kansas, Ole Miss, and North Carolina.

Josh Lovell/ OL/ 6-6/ 266/ Christchurch High School/ Christchurch, Va. An all-state selection on the off ensive line for head coach Ed Homer at Christchurch...as a senior he caught 10 passes for 241 yards and four scores on the off ensive side and recorded 40 tackles and three sacks with an on defense...in his career he caught 86 passes for 1,246 yards and recorded 122 tackles and 10 sacks...rated three stars by most recruiting services...chose Marshall over East Carolina, Maryland, South Carolina and West Virginia.

Ra’Shawde Myers/ DE/ 6-4/ 215/ Cocoa High School/ Cocoa, Fla. Totaled 58 tackles and 12 sacks as a senior for head coach John Wilkinson at Cocoa High...earned all-district, All-Space Coast Conference, All-Cape Coast Conference and all-state honors...recorded 101 tackles, 15 sacks and three recoveries in his prep career...also recruited by Colorado State, East Carolina and Middle Tennessee among others.

James Power/ LS/ 6-4/ 225/ Myrtle Beach High School/ Myrtle Beach, S.C. A standout long snapper that was off ered a scholarship following his outstanding performance in Marshall’s summer camp...enrolled in January and will take part in spring drills...handled long snapping duties and played both tight end and along the off ensive line during his high school career at Myrtle Beach...his brother Andrew will be a redshirt-freshman tight end at South Carolina this fall...also received recruiting interest from South Carolina, North Carolina and North Carolina State among others.

Darryl Roberts/ DB/ 5-11/ 154/ Lakeland High School/ Lakeland, Fla. Credited with 59 tackles, 44 solo and two interceptions as a senior for head coach Bill Castle’s Lakeland squad...registered 96 tackles, fi ve interceptions, 20 pass break-ups and blocked a fi eld goal in his prep career...earned second-team all-county honors and Lakeland’s best DB Award as a senior...also recruited by Purdue, Texas Tech, Kansas State and North Carolina.

Brian Robinson/ DB/ 6-0/ 180/ St. Thomas Aquinas High School/ Ft. Lauderdale, Fla. A standout defensive back for Florida high school power St. Thomas Aquinas and head coach George Smith...helped the Raiders to a 13-1 record as a senior and a state title as a junior and sophomore...recorded 21 solo tackles with 23 assists and nine tackles for loss while breaking up six passes in nine games...recorded 46 solo stops, 19 assists, 7.5 tackles for loss and eight pass break ups as a junior...earned all-county honors in 2007, 2008 and 2009 and was an honorable mention all-state pick in 2008...rated four stars by Rivals and most recruiting services...Rivals ranks him as the No. 23 safety in the nation...chose Marshall over Miami (Fla.), Ole Miss, South Florida, New Mexico, Rutgers, Tennessee and Wake Forest.

T.J. Ross/ LB/ 6-0/ 215/ Southern Durham High School/ Durham, N.C. An All-Pack 6 selection and defensive back of the year at Class 4A Southern Durham for head coach Adrian Jones...a North Carolina-South Carolina Shrine Bowl All-Star selection...recorded six tackles in the Shrine Bowl All-Star game...also recruited by Duke and Wake Forest among others.

A.J. Scott/ OL/ 6-5/ 272/ Robert E. Lee High School/ Staunton, Va. A fi rst-team all-state (AP and Coaches) and all-region performer for head coach David Tibbs at Robert E. Lee High...graded out at 82% for the season with 42 knockdowns in 12 games...also recorded 22 tackles and two sacks on defense...registered 101 knockdowns in his high school career (36 games)...also earned all-district honors en route to being selected to play in the Northeast Classic...a three-year starter and senior captain...chose Marshall over Connecticut, Maryland and Virginia among others.

Garrett Scott/ OL/ 6-4/ 270/ Coff ee County High School/ Douglas, Ga. A three-year starter on the off ensive line for Coff ee County and head coach Ken Eldridge...graded out at 81% for his career and earned all-region honors as a junior and a senior...a three-sport athlete (football, basketball and track)...also recruited by UAB, Troy, Jacksonville State, Arkansas State and Western Kentucky.

Brandon Sparrow/ DE/ 6-4/ 270/ Liberty High School/ Bedford, Va. A 2009 fi rst-team all-region selection for head coach Chris Watts at Liberty...recorded 71 tackles, 11 for a loss, and fi ve sacks in 2009 en route to fi rst-team all-district and region honors...earned second-team all-region honors in 2008...recorded 151 tackles, 16 sacks and 22 tackles for loss in his high school career...chose Marshall over Ohio and Liberty.

Marshall 2010 Media Information THUNDERING HERD 2010 RECRUITING CLASS AND NEWCOMER BIOGRAPHICAL CAPSULES (continued)

Malcolm Strong/ DE/ 6-4/ 230/ Stephenson High School/ Stone Mountain, Ga. Helped Stephenson High to a 10-1 record as a senior...scored a touchdown on a fumble recovery in the GACA North/South All-Star game...chose Marshall over Illinois, Louisville and Troy among others.

Eddie Sullivan/ QB/ 6-2/ 195/ Boca Raton High School/ Boca Raton, Fla. A standout dual-threat quarterback at Boca Raton High...threw for nearly 2,700 yards and 24 touchdowns and rushed for 294 yards and fi ve scores as a senior...a fi rst-team all-area and all-conference pick...rated three stars by most recruiting services and as one of the top quarterbacks in Florida...named his team’s MVP in the Outback High School All-Star game...chose Marshall over Wake Forest, Iowa State, Kansas State, Southern Miss and Tennessee among others.

Willy Korn/ QB/ 6-2/ 215/ James F. Byrnes High School/Lyman, S.C. (Clemson) Graduated from Clemson University with an undergraduate degree in communications studies in the summer of 2010 and enrolled in graduate school at Marshall...has two years of eligibility remaining and is eligible to play in 2010...suff ered a shoulder injry in his only start of 2008 against Georgia Tech when he was hit throwing a pass...the injury required surgery and he is now fully recovered more than a year later...repeatedly named to the ACC Academic Honor Roll during his time at Clemson...Korn threw 125 touchdown passes in his high school career and that total ranks among the top-10 totals in high school football history...was rated as the #5 dual-threat quarterback in the nation by Rivals.com out of high school and the #25 overall prospect in the nation by Tom Lemming...rated as the #7 quarterback in the nation by SuperPrep and the #5 quarterback in the country by PrepStar...a Parade and SuperPrep All-American as a senior at James F. Byrnes High...Gatorade Player-of-the- Year in South Carolina as a junior and senior...a Shrine Bowl Selection and a U.S. Army All-American that participated in the Army All-American game...S.C. Coaches Association Off ensive Player-of-the-Year as a senior...set many S.C. state records as a junior, including passing touchdowns (53), completions (281), and passing yards (4.164)...was a team captain as a junior and senior and led his team to a 39-3 record and two state titles in 2004 and 2005...was 795-of-1,181 for 10, 716 yards and 125 touchdown passes in his career...his 125 career touchdown passes were the eighth most in high school history and ranks as the #1 total among quarterbacks who started just three years...Chose Clemson over Georgia Tech and South Carolina following his prep career.

Marshall 2010 Media Information THUNDERING HERD RETURNING STARTER BIOGRAPHICAL BRIEFS

12 Brian Anderson QB 6-3 213 Sr. Louisville, Ky./Male Started all 13 games under center for Marshall in 2009 and led the Thundering Herd to a 7-6 record that was capped off with a Little Caesars Pizza Bowl win over long-time MAC rival Ohio...completed 231 of 398 passes for 2,646 yards and 14 touchdowns against 13 interceptions...averaged 203.5 passing yards per game...has seen action in 24 career games and has passed for 3,060 yards and 17 touchdowns...threw for more than 300 yards in a game four times last season and threw for three touchdowns in the win over Southern Illinois and the loss at UTEP...will compete with Clemson transfer Willy Korn and redshirt freshman A.J. Graham for starting duties in 2010.

31 Omar Brown DB 5-11 194 Jr. Moncks Corner, S.C./Berkeley Saw action in all 13 games and started nine at safety in 2010...thrust into a starting role last season when senior John Saunders suff ered a season-ending injury and excelled...fi nished third on the team in tackles with 73 and was credited with 40 solo stops... recorded two interceptions and 10 pass break-ups...recorded a season-high nine tackles against Southern Miss...intercepted a pass and returned it 23 yards in the win over SMU.

78 Brandon Campbell OL 6-5 312 Sr. Fort Washington, Md./Friendly Senior Started 11 games at left tackle in 2009 for the Thundering Herd...enters 2010 with 16 career starts under his belt...helped pave the way for a 1,000-yard rusher in Darius Marshall last season and provides the Thundering Herd with a proven veteran at left tackle.

99 Vinny Curry DE 6-4 252 Jr. Neptune, N.J./Harmony (Ohio) Started all 13 games last season at defensive end and recorded 59 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and 3.5 sacks...named honorable mention All-Conference by the league’s coaches...credited with a season-high 10 tackles against Southern Miss...recorded four tackles and a season-high two sacks in the win over SMU.

3 Aaron Dobson WR 6-3 203 So. Dunbar, W.Va./South Charleston Saw limited action until late in the season when his role expanded...recorded two catches for 75 yards at UCF and followed that with three catch- es for 52 yards and his fi rst career TD against Southern Miss...had four catches for 127 yards and two touchdowns that included a season-long 47-yard catch in the win over SMU...added four catches for 61 yards and a score at UTEP...ran the team’s fastest 40-yard dash this preseason with a 4.33 second time...was a member of the United States Junior National Team that won the fi rst Junior National World Championship following his standout career at South Charleston High.

35 Kellen Harris LB 6-3 232 Jr. Sharon, Pa./Sharon Started all 13 games at middle linebacker in 2009 and was credited with 71 total tackles, six tackles for loss and a half sack...forced two fumbles last season, one each in the wins over Southern Illinois and Tulane...recorded a season-high 10 tackles in the win at Memphis and recorded nine stops at Virginia Tech.

30 Mario Harvey LB 6-0 247 Sr. Forsyth, Ga./Hargrave Military A preseason All-Conference USA selection and All-America candidate that is coming off of a strong 2009 season...a candidate for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and the Lombardi Award...named fi rst-team all-conference after leading the Herd with 117 tackles last season...credited with 8.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks as a junior...enters 2010 with 277 career tackles, 19 career tackles for loss and 12.5 career sacks...nicknamed “Thumper” for his hard hitting, Harvey is also one of the fastest players on the team with an impressive 4.35 40-yard dash time...recorded double-digit tackles in four games and recorded at least seven tackles in 12 games last season...responsible for a career-high 15 tackles in the win over UAB, 11 tackles at UCF, and 10 against Southern Miss...turned in a stellar bowl performance with 12 tackles and two sacks for a loss of 22 yards in the win over Ohio.

90 Michael Janac DE 6-5 294 Sr. Miami, Fla./Pearl Cohn (Nashville, Tenn.) Earned honorable mention All-Conference USA honors last season playing along the defensive line...credited with 44 total tackles and 1.5 sacks, he also forced two fumbles...recorded a career-high 11 tackles in the win over Bowling Green...recorded sacks against SMU and Ohio.

71 Chad Schofi eld OL 6-4 304 Sr. Strongsville, Ohio/Strongville Started 12 games at center in 2009 despite battling nagging injuries late and before suff ering a leg injury that sidelined him for the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl...a 2009 All-Conference USA honorable mention selection...solid all-around athlete and a key component up front that can also play guard...has 18 career starts.

6 Ahmed Shakoor DB 5-11 203 Jr. Stone Mountain, Ga./Stephenson Started 10 games last season at cornerback and saw action in all 13...recorded 36 total tackles and was credited with a team- high 11 pass break-ups...recorded season-high six tackles in the win over Southern Illinois and the win at Tulane...credited with a season-high three pass breakups in the win at Memphis. Marshall 2010 Media Information THUNDERING HERD RETURNING STARTER BIOGRAPHICAL BRIEFS

16 Lee Smith TE 6-6 267 Sr. Powell, Tenn./Powell (Tennessee) A pre-season All-Conference USA selection at tight end...nominated for the Allstate Good Works Team and a candidate for national honors in 2010...named honorable mention All C-USA last season dispite playing along-side Mackey Award Semi-Finalist Cody Slate who is now with the Kansas City Chiefs...team captain who is a tremendous blocker and receiver...Smith fi nished 2010 with 23 catches for 335 yards with most of those totals coming after Slate suff ered a season ending injury against Southern Miss... received the Cam Henderson Scholarship in 2010 and has a 3.2 grade point average with a double major in psychology and criminal justice...he and his wife, Alisha, have two small children - Brody and Amanda.

73 Ryan Tillman OL 6-5 289 Jr. Centreville, Va./Hargrave Military Started nine games last season at left guard before injuries limited him...has 22 career starts along the off ensive line and is a key component to a unit that helped pave the way for Darius Marshall and Martin Ward last season.

84 Chuck Walker WR 5-10 197 Sr. Oakland, Calif./Hayward (Laney College) Started all 13 games last season and recorded 33 catches for 350 yards and three touchdowns...had 10 catches for 119 yards in the win over Southern Illinois...recorded fi ve catches for 108 yards and a season-long 42-yard TD reception in the win over UAB...

82 Antavious Wilson WR 6-0 196 So. Pahokee, Fla./Pahokee Earned Conference USA All-Freshman honors last season...led the Herd in receiving with 60 catches for 724 yards and three touchdowns...averaged 12.1 yards per reception and averaged 55.7 receiving yards per game...had at least one reception in all 13 games last season...caught a season-long 60-yard pass at Virginia Tech...caught 13 passes for 153 yards against Southern Miss...had nine catches for 153 yards and a touchdown at UTEP.

29 Martin Ward RB 5-9 201 So. Jonesboro, Ga./Mount Zion Saw limited action for most of the season and earned two starts late last season when Darius Marshall was out with an injury and made the most of that opportunity...rushed for 393 yards and three touchdowns on the year while averaging 4.8 yards per carry... in his fi rst collegiate start he carried the ball 25 times for 136 yards (teaming with fellow running back Terrell Edwards-Maye to both go over 100 yards in the same game) and a touchdown in the win over SMU...despite sharing time with Darius Marshall, Ward earned MVP honors in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl win over Ohio by rushing for 75 yards and two touchdowns on only 10 carries.

41 Kase Whitehead P 5-10 183 Jr. Maryville, Tenn./William Blount Entering his third season as Marshall’s primary punter... recorded 63 punts last season for 2,469 yards for a 39.2 yards per punt average...recorded a long of 57 yards...has a two-year average of 38.9 yards per punt...had 14 punts of more than 50 yards last season and had 14 punts fair caught and 15 downed inside the 20-yardline.

Marshall 2010 Media Information The Marshall Football Coaching Staff Doc Holliday Head Coach - First Season

Marshall University Director of Athletics Mike Hamrick introduced Doc Holliday as the Thundering Herd’s 29th head football coach on December 17, 2009.

Holliday, a Hurricane W.Va. native, is widely regarded as one of the top recruiters in the nation and he brings with him 31 years of collegiate coaching experience to Marshall that includes stops at Florida, N.C. State and West Virginia.

“This was an extensive search. I looked at a lot of head coaches, coordinators and others and I could not convince myself of anyone that was better for this job than Doc Holliday,” Hamrick said. “He is a state native that understands and has a passion for this state and I am excited to have him as our head football coach.”

During his coaching career, Holliday has coached in 20 bowl games, three national championship games and coached 11 players that have gone on to the National Football League. He has also coached four All-Americans and 16 student-athletes that have earned all-conference or All-East honors.

“My ultimate goal has always been to be a Division I head football coach at a major university and to have this opportunity at Marshall, a school rich in tradition and full of potential, is a dream come true,” Holliday said.

Holliday comes to Marshall after serving as associate head coach at West Virginia for the past two seasons where he also served as the director of recruiting while coaching tight ends and fullbacks for the Mountaineers. Rivals.com has named him one of the Top 25 recruiters in the nation and he helped WVU amass a 2009 recruiting class that was nationally ranked No. 22 by Scout.com and No. 27 by Rivals.com.

Prior to that, he worked as the associate head coach and safeties coach at the University of Florida from 2005 to 2007 and as the associate head coach and wide receivers coach at North Carolina State University from 2000-04. During his tenure at Florida, the Gators won the 2006 National Championship and the UF secondary led the SEC in interceptions in both 2005 and 2006. He also coached two All-SEC standouts Reggie Nelson and Major Wright. At N.C. State, he coached three of the top eight receivers in Wolfpack history (Koren Robinson, Bryan Peterson and Jerricho Cotchery) and the 2003 N.C. State team set six diff erent school-records for passing including yards, yards per game, passing touchdowns and completion percentage.

He started his coaching career as a graduate assistant in 1979 and went on to serve in a variety of coaching positions at his alma mater that included serving as the wide receivers coach from 1983-1989 and again from 1993-1999, the inside linebackers coach from 1990-92 and as the assistant head coach from 1995-99.

Holliday was a three-year letter-winner at linebacker at West Virginia (1976-78) and has earned both a bachelor’s degree (1979) and a master’s degree (1981) from WVU. He and his wife Diana have four children - Meghan, Cade, Chase and Cody.

Marshall 2010 Media Information Mike Cassity

Mike Cassity came to Marshall as the Thundering Herd’s defensive secondary coach in January of 2010.

In his fi rst season at Marshall, he coached a secondary that featured honorable mention All-Conference USA selections DeQuan Bembry and Ashton Hall for the 7-5 Thundering Herd that defeated Ohio in the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl.

Cassity, a native of Fort Campbell, Ky., has 34 years of coaching experience and seven as a coordinator at the NCAA Division I level. He has coached a total of 34 players who have gone on to the National Football League. He most recently served as defensive coordinator at the University of Louisville from 2004 to 2007. During his tenure in Louisville, the Cardinals’ defense ranked among the Top 40 in the nation in total defense each season.

During the Cardinals’ 2006 Orange Bowl winning season, the Cardinals fi nished second in the nation in sacks with 17 diff erent players recording sacks and ranked 17th in the country in scoring defense. Louis- ville’s defense had two fi rst-team All-BIG EAST selections that year in defensive tackle Amobi Okoye and cornerback William Gay. Louisville held six opponents to 13 or fewer points including a shutout at Temple.

In 2005, the Cardinals fi nished 21st in the country in rushing defense and 23rd in scoring defense. U of L held four opponents to less than 20 points in a game. Behind Elvis Dumervil’s school and BIG EAST record 20 sacks, the Cardinals tied for second in the nation with Rutgers with 44 sacks.

Off the fi eld in 2005, Cassity was recognized by Rivals.com as one of the nation’s top 25 recruiters. He inherited a defense which ranked 93rd in the nation in total defense and 72nd in scoring defense in 2003, the Cardinals improved to 15th in total defense and 24th in scoring defense in 2004. In 2004, Cassity’s unit recorded 17 interceptions -- the most at Louisville since the 2001 season.

He came to Louisville after serving three seasons as defensive coordinator with the Fighting Illini, the 2001 Big Ten Champions who played in the 2002 Sugar Bowl. With an experienced defensive mind, Cassity’s aggressive style really took shape at Oklahoma State in 1999 co-coordinating with Coach Rob Ryan, son of the legendary Buddy Ryan. Prior to his two-year stint at OSU, Cassity served 1997-98 as the assistant head coach and defensive coordinator at Baylor.

Cassity coached the secondary at Wisconsin in 1995-96. He has been a defensive coordinator at Cincinnati (1994), Georgia Tech (1992-93), East Carolina (1990-91), Northeast Louisiana (1989) and Western Kentucky (1983-88). Again with the secondary, he coached at Morehead State (1982), Kentucky (1979-81), Paducah Tilghman High School in Paducah, Ky., (1976-78) and as a student coach at Kentucky (1975).

As a two-sport athlete at Kentucky, Cassity lettered three times. In football, he played safety, winning the prestigious Kiwanis 110% Award. As member of the Wildcat wrestling team, he was the SEC second runner-up at 190 pounds. He graduated in 1976 with a degree in physical educa- tion.

Cassity has four children: Brooke, Hunter, Skyler and Braden.

Zach Smith

Zach Smith joined the Marshall Coaching Staff in January of 2010 and serves as the wide receivers coach.

He came to Marshall after spending the last fi ve years at the University of Florida. Smith served as an off en- sive and special teams graduate assistant for the Gators from 2007 to 2009. He also worked as an off ensive and special teams quality control assistant and in recruiting evaluation for UF from 2006 to 2007.

“Zach is an outstanding young football coach who has a tremendous background and a bright future,” Coach Doc Holliday said. “He has spent the last fi ve years working closely with Urban Meyer and has been heavily involved with their special teams and their success.”

During his time in Gainesville, Florida won two national championships (2006 and 2008) and produced some of the most prolifi c off enses in not only the Southeastern Conference, but the nation in terms of scoring off ense, yardage per game, and passing effi ciency. The Gators also produced some of the top punt team and punt return units in the nation over this period. Florida also has blocked an impressive 22 kicks since 2006 - the most in college football over that span.

Smith’s duties at Florida included game planning and all opponent breakdowns and tendencies, working with wide receivers (2007-08) and quarterbacks (2008-09), assisting with special teams game plan input and all breakdowns (2005-07), evaluating prospective student-athletes, creating and designing a recruiting action plan, in addition to game prep tests and quality control.

Smith, a native of Dublin, Ohio, earned a B.S. in sports management from Florida in 2007. He is the grandson of College Football Hall of Fame coach Earle Bruce. He is married to the former Courtney Carano.

Marshall 2010 Media Information Tony Petersen

Tony Petersen returned to his alma-mater as the assistant head coach, co-off ensive coordinator and quar- terbacks coach in January of 2010.

Petersen spent the 2009 season as the assistant head coach and wide receivers coach at the University of South Dakota. He spent the previous two seasons as quarterbacks coach at Iowa State University.

“He was a great player here at Marshall and he played a big role in the tremendous success of the 1990’s,” Coach Doc Holliday said. “He is a Marshall graduate and he brings a wealth of experience. He has been a coordinator here and had the opportunity to coach some great players like . I have known him for 20 years by way of recruiting in south Florida and he is a great recruiter, because he is very thorough and has great rapport with kids.”

Petersen, a record-setting quarterback at Marshall, returns to his alma-mater with impressive coaching credentials, including 19 years of coaching experience at the NCAA Division I level.

Under Petersen, Iowa State quarterback Bret Meyer fi nished his Cyclone career in 2007 with school record totals for passing yards and total of- fense.

Prior to coaching at Iowa State, Petersen coached at the University of Minnesota. Petersen served as co-off ensive coordinator, quarterbacks coach and eventually the passing coordinator at Minnesota. Quarterback Bryan Cupito set the new all-time leading passing mark under Pe- tersen. In 2006, the Gophers had a 2,000-yard passer for a fi fth straight year, a school record. Petersen also played a crucial role in the progress of Asad Abdul-Khaliq at Minnesota as the quarterback rewrote the Gophers’ record books.

During Petersen’s eight seasons at Marshall, the Thundering Herd qualifi ed for the postseason eight straight times, winning national champion- ships in 1992 and 1996 and Mid-American Conference titles in both 1997 and 1998. Peterson served as wide receivers coach in 1992 and helped in the development of future three-time Champion . Peterson served as quarterbacks coach for fi ve of his previous eight years at MU and worked as the off ensive coordinator in 1998. In that capacity, he coached future NFL quarterbacks Chad Pennington and .

As a player at Marshall, Petersen was named the 1988 Athlete of the Year and the Southern Conference Off ensive Player of the Year in 1987. A free agent signee of the Minnesota Vikings in 1989, Petersen set 16 Southern Conference single-season and career records in passing and total off ense, to go along with six Marshall single-season school marks. He threw a record 35 touchdown passes in 1987. Petersen also set NCAA records for most passes in a game without an interception (68) and for most regular season games (11) with more than 200 yards passing. Petersen also played for the Thundering Herd baseball program.

Petersen went to Marshall after a stellar career at Delta Community College in Stockton, Calif. He was drafted by the Kansas City Royals after his fi rst season at Delta C.C.

Phil Ratliff

Former Thundering Herd All-American Phil Ratliff returned to his alma-mater as tight ends coach in May of 2006.

During his time at MU, Ratliff has coached and helped to develop all-conference standout and Mackey Award semi-fi nalist Cody Slate at tight end. Under his tutelage, Slate has led Marshall in receiving for two consecutive years and has fi nished the season among the top pass-catching tight ends in the nation.

Ratliff was a two-time All-American selection as an off ensive lineman at Marshall from 1989 to 1992 and was captain of the Thundering Herd’s 1992 NCAA Division I-AA National Championship team. Ratliff won the Jacobs Blocking Trophy, which is presented annually to the Southern Conference Lineman of the Year, in 1992. He returns to Marshall following a two-year stint as tight ends coach at James Madison University.

During his two seasons at JMU, Ratliff helped the Dukes post a 20-6 overall record and win the 2004 NCAA Division I-AA National Championship. He also coached all-conference tight ends Casime Harris (2005) and Tom Ridley (2004).

Prior to his tenure at JMU, Ratliff was the head football coach at Spring Valley High School from 2000- 2003. He led the Timberwolves to the West Virginia Class AAA state playoff s in 2001, 2002, and 2003 and was named the Mountain State Athletic Conference’s Coach of the Year in 2001.

Ratliff was a student assistant at Marshall in 1993 following his collegiate career. He went on to serve as defensive coordinator at Lawrence County (Ky.) High School from 1994 to 1999. The native of Louisa, Ky., received his bachelor’s degree in elementary education with a specializa- tion in special education from Marshall in 1994. He and his wife, Jenni, have two children - a daughter, Haley, and a son, Dylan.

Marshall 2010 Media Information Bill Legg

Bill Legg returned to Marshall as the off ensive coordinator and off ensive line coach in January of 2010.

He served as the off ensive coordinator at Florida International since 2008. During Legg’s tenure, FIU showed tremendous off ensive improvement in almost every category. Under his direction, the Golden Panthers off ense improved nearly 68-yards per game in passing off ense and recorded a 10-point improve- ment in per-game scoring.

“Bill is not only a great football coach, but a state native who has a tremendous track record of produc- ing good off enses every where he has been,” Coach Doc Holliday said. “He is an experienced coach and recruiter and I am excited to have him as our off ensive coordinator.”

Legg coached the previous fi ve seasons at Purdue University and was the co-off ensive coordinator for the last two. Calling most of the off ensive plays, the 2006 Boilermakers led the Big Ten in passing off ense (291.6 yards per game) and total off ense (415.7), ranking sixth and 13th nationally. In 2007, Purdue again led the Big Ten in total off ense (435.92) and scoring off ense (34.31) and ranked 12th nationally in passing off ense (307.15).

Legg coached the Purdue off ensive line from 2003 to 2005, but concentrated solely on the centers and guards over the last two seasons. Four of his Boilermaker players went on to the National Football League: center Nick Hardwick (third round of 2004 by the San Diego Chargers), tackle Kelly Butler (sixth round of 2004 to the Detroit Lions), guard Uche Nwaneri (fi fth round of 2007 to Jacksonville Jaguars) and tackle Mike Otto (seventh round of 2007 to Tennessee Titans).

Prior to his time at Purdue, Legg coached under at Marshall as the Thundering Herd tight ends coach and recruiting coordinator in 2001-02. Marshall ranked third nationally in total off ense both years, averaging 505 and 495 yards per game, while compiling a 21-4 record and winning two bowl games. During this time he coached 2001 First-Team All-MAC selection Greg Kellett.

From 1995 to 2000, Legg worked at West Virginia as the interior off ensive line coach and was off ensive coordinator his fi nal season. The Moun- taineers played in four bowl games in his six years on the staff .

Legg’s other experience includes one season as off ensive line coach at Virginia Military Institute (1994), fi ve years as off ensive line coach at East- ern Illinois (1989-93) and one season as off ensive coordinator at West Virginia Tech (1988). He was a graduate assistant at West Virginia in 1986 and 1987, working with the tight ends and special teams.

A native of Poca, W.Va., Legg earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1985 and a master’s in education in 1987, both from West Virginia where he was a four-year starter at center for Hall of Fame Coach Don Nehlen. He and his wife, Kelly, have a daughter, Sarah.

JaJuan Seider

JaJuan Seider joined the Marshall Coaching Staff in January of 2010 and serves as running backs coach and recruiting coordinator.

Seider came to Marshall from West Virginia where he has served as a graduate assistant since 2008. Se- ider’s responsibilities included coordinating position drills with quarterbacks, breaking down game fi lm and assisting in the recruiting process.

“JaJuan is a great young coach who will be an asset to our staff ,” Coach Doc Holliday said. “I recruited JaJuan back in 1995 and I have known him and his family for a long time. He has great ties to South Florida and he is going to be a tremendous recruiter.”

Seider, a native of Belleglade, Fla. and a former standout quarterback at Galdes Central High, has a great deal of high school coaching experience in his home state of Florida. He served as the quarterbacks coach at Lake Worth High School from 2006-08 where he coached US Elite 11 and U.S. Army All-American game selection quarterback Star Jackson (2007). He was the off ensive coordinator at Palm Beach Lakes High School from 2003-05 where he helped the team to the 6A regional fi nals in both 2003 and 2004 while coaching three players that earned fi rst-team all-state honors. He was also a member of the coaching staff at Glades Central High School from 2001-02 where he worked with running backs.

Seider earned All-America honors and won the Doug Williams Award for National Off ensive Player of the Year and the Jake Gaither Award (considered the Heisman Trophy of black colleges) following a spectacular senior year at Florida A&M where he passed for 2,512 yards and 27 touchdowns. He was also named the MEAC Off ensive Player of the Year and went on to be selected in the sixth round of the 2000 NFL Draft by the San Diego Chargers.

He began his collegiate career at West Virginia and earned a B.S. in physical education in 2000 and a master’s degree in athletic coaching in 2010. Seider is married to Brandi Smith and the couple has three children - Jaden, Ava and Brennley.

Marshall 2010 Media Information Chris Rippon

Marshall University Head Football Coach Doc Holliday named Chris Rippon defensive coordinator and linebackers coach in February of 2010.

“Chris is a great football coach that brings a wealth of experience as a defensive coordinator and as a special teams coordinator to our program,” Holliday said. “He is a great motivator that coaches with a great deal of energy. He also shares my philosophy in regards to relationship building and being involved with your student-athletes lives. Chris and his family will be a great addition to our coaching staff and the Huntington community.”

Rippon served as special teams coordinator at Rutgers in 2008 and helped the Scarlet Knights to a win in the PapaJohns.com Bowl. He has 16 years of NCAA FBS coaching experience that includes fi ve years as defensive coordinator at Syracuse University and a total of nine years as a special teams coordinator with stops at Syracuse, Ole Miss and Rutgers.

Rippon served as special teams coordinator and defensive backs coach at Ole Miss from 2005-2008 after spending the previous 12 seasons under Paul Pasqualoni at Syracuse. During his time with the Orange, he served as defensive coordinator (1999-2003) before taking on the title of assistant head coach and special teams coordinator in 2004. He came to SU as a linebackers coach in 1993 and moved to coaching defensive ends in 1994. He served as the special teams coordinator from 1995 to 1999 while also coaching linebackers.

During Rippon’s tenure at Syracuse, the Orange produced many record setting performances on defense and special teams that translated into one of the top eras in Syracuse history. His 1999 defensive unit was one of the nation’s top-15 defenses throughout the season and the following year Syracuse ranked in the Top 25 nationally in multiple defensive categories. The 2001 SU defense accumulated an impressive 40 quarterback sacks, the second most in school history, and forced 30 turnovers, the most takeaways during Paul Pasqualoni’s coaching tenure at SU. His spe- cial teams units produced three All-American return specialists in Marvin Harrison, Quinton Spotwood and Kevin Johnson.

While coaching at Syracuse, Rippon was on the coaching staff of teams that won or shared the 1996, 1997, 1998 and 2004 BIG EAST Champion- ships and participated in the 1996 Gator, 1997 Liberty, 1998 Fiesta, 1999 Orange, 1999 Music City, 2001 Insight.com and 2004 Champs Sports Bowl. He also coached in the 2002 Blue-Gray Senior Classic.

Over the course of his career Rippon has coached 22 players that have been drafted into the National Football League, including fi ve fi rst-round draft picks.

Rippon is a 1982 graduate of Southern Connecticut State, where he played football and earned a degree in physical education. He received his master’s degree in agency counseling from Western Connecticut State in 1985. After graduating from Southern Connecticut, Rippon served as a graduate assistant at Western Connecticut State under Pasqualoni. He was promoted to defensive coordinator and assistant director of athlet- ics in 1984 before being promoted to head coach when Pasqualoni left to join the Syracuse staff in 1987. After three seasons as head coach he moved on to Boston University where he spent three years as defensive coordinator.

Rippon and his wife, the former Lisa Miano of Turnbull, Ct., have four children: sons Christopher and Matthew, and twin daughters Jillian and Samantha.

Fred Tate

Marshall University Head Football Coach Doc Holliday announced the hiring of Fred Tate as safeties coach in January of 2010.

Tate came to Marshall having served as the defensive line coach for the previous two seasons at the University of Tennessee-Chattanooga. Prior to UTC, Tate served as an assistant coach under Jeff Bower at Southern Miss where he coached defensive tackles and outside linebackers.

“Fred has great ties to Mississippi, Texas, Alabama and Georgia and he is an excellent defensive coach that has experience coaching both the line and linebackers,” Holliday said. “He has served in the Army Airborne and he will be a great role model for our team.”

One of his Golden Eagle defenders, Tom Johnson, earned All-Conference USA honors in 2005. USM fi n- ished 7-5 in 2005 and 9-5 in 2006. The 2005 squad was Champions with a 31-19 victory over Arkansas State. The 2006 Eagles claimed the Conference USA East Division title, played Houston in the C-USA Championship Game and defeated Ohio University 28-7 in the GMAC Bowl.

“I am excited about being able to come to a program that is so rich and tradition,” Tate said. “It is great to be back in Conference USA where I played and coached for several years. I can’t thank Doc Holliday and the Marshall Administration enough for this opportunity and the chance to be a part of this University.”

Marshall 2010 Media Information Tate’s coaching career began in 1997 at East Central Community College in Mississippi where he coached tight ends and receivers. He moved to Jacksonville State in 1998 and served as the defensive line and special teams coach for two years. While with the Gamecocks, he mentored Mark Word who played in the National Football League for the Kansas City Chiefs and the Cleveland Browns.

The 2000 season saw him return to the junior college level, coaching the defensive line, punting and kicking teams at East Mississippi Commu- nity College. He served as the defensive line coach at Southwest Texas State in 2001 and at Middle Tennessee in 2002. At Southwest Texas, he guided Clenton Ballard to All-America status.

Ballard went on to play in the NFL for the Jacksonville Jaguars and the San Diego Chargers.

Tate joined former Southern Mississippi defensive coordinator John Thompson at East Carolina in 2003. He coached the Pirates’ outside lineback- ers for two years and assisted with special teams.

A native of Hattiesburg, Miss., Tate enlisted in the United States Army upon high school graduation. He served fi ve years as a combat engineer in the U.S. Army Airborne.

Following his service, Tate attended East Central Community College in Decatur, Miss., where he was a JC Gridwire All-America selection as a sophomore and was voted the Most Valuable Off ensive Player of the National Junior College All-Star Game.

His playing career continued at Southern Mississippi, playing defensive end and tackle in 1995 and 1996 for Coach Bower. The Golden Eagles were charter members of Conference USA in 1996 and won the league’s fi rst football championship that season with a 4-1 mark. The 8-3 overall record included a victory over Georgia and a seven-game winning streak.

Tate earned his bachelor’s degree from Southern Miss in 1997.

Mark Gale

Mark Gale is entering his fi fth season as Marshall’s Assistant Athletic Director for Football Operations. He is the longest serving member of the Marshall coaching staff having been on staff at MU since 1990. Gale has coached 158 wins at Marshall against only 44 losses, making him the winningest assistant coach in Marshall history.

His career record as an assistant is 216-56-1, and he has been to 12 bowls (in 14 seasons at the Div.-1A level). Gale has also been a part of three NCAA National Championships (1985, 1992 and 1996).

As tight ends coach in 1990-91, Gale tutored Eric Ihnat, who was named All-American by the Walter Camp Football Foundation, Kodak and AP while catching a league leading 55 passes, and NFL veteran .

He coached B.J. Cohen, who, as a freshman in 1994, was the Southern Conference co-leader in sacks with 12. Cohen, the school’s all-time sack leader (51), was an All-American in 1996 as he led the Herd with nine sacks and was rated as the 11th best defensive end in the country by Street & Smith in 1997. Cohen currently is one of the top defensive players in the Arena Football League and is their all-time sack leader.

In 1999, Gale guided Paul Toviessi and Ron Puggi to All-Conference accolades. Toviessi followed up with a second straight All-Conference nod in 2000 before going in the third round of the NFL draft to the Denver Broncos.

Gale moved to coach the Herd’s inside linebackers in 2001, helping guide Max Yates to All-MAC and MAC Defensive Player of the Year honors. He also coached Duran Smith to a runner-up for MAC Defensive Player of the Year in 2002, and in 2003 he coached a talented crop of linebackers, led by the team’s leading tackler Kevin Atkins, that helped Marshall’s defense rank No. 1 in conference total defense (329.8 yards per game).

Gale was named one of three fi nalists for the American Football Coaches Association’s 2003 Division 1-A Assistant Coach of the Year Award in December. He was also one of only 500 high school and college assistant coaches out of more than 350,000 nominees from across the nation to be named an AFLAC National Assistant Coach of the Year Award in 2003, and was one of only 20 ethnic minority football coaches selected by the NCAA to participate in the fi rst NCAA Advanced Coaching Program in Orlando in January 2004. Gale was also one of 12 coaches selected to participate in the fi rst NCAA Expert Coaching Program in Indianapolis in June 2004.

In six seasons at the University of Oklahoma, Gale helped coach teams that went 58-12-1. Those teams captured four Big Eight Conference titles and made four appearances in the Orange Bowl and one in the Florida Citrus Bowl. The 1985 Sooners captured the national title.

Gale was born on August 27, 1959, in Ada, Okla., and grew up in Purcell, Okla. (located 30 miles south of Oklahoma City). He graduated from Purcell High School in 1977 and Oklahoma State University in 1981. Following his graduation from OSU, Gale was a high school football coach. He was hired in 1984 at the University of Oklahoma. Gale began his Master’s work at Northwestern Oklahoma State University and continued that while at Oklahoma.

Gale is married to the former Carol Lutz of Ironton, Ohio, and the couple has two daughters, Caitlin and Chelsea. Marshall 2010 Media Information Sean Cronin

Marshall University Head Football Coach Doc Holliday announced the hiring of Sean Cronin as the defen- sive line coach in December of 2009.

Cronin joined the Marshall staff after spending the 2009 season as the defensive line coach at The Citadel. Prior to coming to The Citadel, Cronin spent three years as a graduate assistant defensive coach at the University of Florida.

“Sean was with me at Florida for a few years and he is a relentless worker and he will be a relentless recruiter,” Holliday said. “Sean did a great job of being involved with our players and getting to know them on and off the fi eld. He is a super young coach with a bright future.”

Cronin has played on or coached for four national championship teams. He won two national titles as a player at Georgetown (Ky.) and helped the University of Florida to national championships in his fi rst and third seasons as a graduate assistant in Gainesville. Cronin went to UF after spending the 2005 season at Marshall, where he served as the off ensive and special teams quality control assistant. In that role, Cronin performed multiple duties, including fi lm break down and statistical analysis.

Prior to Marshall, Cronin spent two seasons as the linebackers coach at Division II Clarion University.

Cronin went to Moeller High School in Cincinnati and attended the University of Cincinnati, where he was a defensive end before transferring to Georgetown College (Ky.), where he played defensive end his fi rst season and defensive tackle during his fi nal two years. As a player, Cronin was part of three teams that played for the national championship and two that won the title. In 2002, he was an All-American and All-Conference selection. Upon graduation from Georgetown (Ky.) College, Cronin spent the spring semester of his senior year interning at his alma mater assist- ing with the defensive line and in strength and conditioning eff orts.

In 2003, Cronin earned his B.A. in history and a minor in coaching from Georgetown (Ky.). In 2005, he completed work for a master’s in rehabilita- tive science at Clarion University.

Cronin is married to the former Emily Heater.

Frank Piraino

Marshall University Head Football Coach Doc Holliday announced the hiring of Frank Piraino as the head strength and conditioning coach for football in January of 2010.

Piraino came to Marshall from the University of Florida where he served on the strength and conditioning staff for fi ve years.

“This is the most important guy you have on your coaching staff , because he is with your players all of the time,” Holliday said. “One of the biggest reasons for Florida’s success in recent years is UF’s strength and conditioning program and I am tickled to death to have a guy with his pedigree running our program. Frank is an outstanding strength and conditioning coach and he has a background that includes Michigan State, Notre Dame and a pair of national championships at Florida.”

Piraino served as the strength and conditioning coordinator for UF baseball in 2008. In addition to working with UF’s baseball program, Piraino assisted in all aspects of the Gator football strength and conditioning program from January 2005 to January 2010. During his tenure, the Orange and Blue captured a pair of National Championships and Southeast- ern Conference titles in both 2006 and 2008 under the direction of head coach Urban Meyer.

“I am excited to have this opportunity to work with Coach Holliday who runs a tough and disciplined program that puts emphasis on strength and conditioning,” Piraino said. “It is great to be here at Marshall and I look forward to helping this program win championships and bowl games.”

Piraino also was the director of the University of Florida’s Speed and Agility Camp and its annual Strength and Conditioning Coaches’ Clinic. He provided outreach education to high school and small college coaches and was responsible for hands-on training of all injured student-athletes.

He is offi cially certifi ed through the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) as a Strength and Conditioning Specialist and is recognized by USA Weightlifting as a Club Coach. Piraino is a member of the Collegiate Strength and Conditioning Coaches association (CSCCa) and has passed the Strength and Conditioning Coach Certifi ed (SCCC) certifi cation examination.

The SCCC is the most comprehensive certifi cation of its kind and tests the candidates’ scientifi c knowledge, as well as their ability to apply this knowledge in a live working, practical environment. Those candidates preparing to take this certifi cation examination must undergo an eight-to- nine month internship under the supervision of a CSCCa approved mentor. This mentor’s responsibility is to guide the candidate and help him develop the skills necessary to become a successful strength and conditioning coach. In addition, Piraino has completed American Red Cross CPR training and earned his Automated External Defi brillator (AED) certifi cation. Marshall 2010 Media Information