Rick Tolley had helped him with the plane ticket to get back home. 2023 Marshall University. The Lord watched over me so that he could save me and put me in the ministry to serve him.". Among the 75 who perished were 36 players. Loria became Marshall's defensive backs coach in 1970. In the teams first home game since the plane crash, Marshall put together one of the most inspiring performances in sports history. Not only that, she happened to be on a flight during 9/11. They arrived shortly before sunrise. Anniversaries are supposed to be happy, Slezak said from his home in New Mexico. That included 37 Marshall football players, 25 team boosters, multiple coaches and team doctors, and Marshalls athletic director. In its second season under head coach Rick Tolley . William Alfred "Red" Dawson, Acting Head Coach, 1971 Young Thundering Herd MU Football team, 1st spring practice, April 1971, b&w. That is certainly what was going to happen.". [1][2], The plane was carrying 37 members of the Marshall University Thundering Herd football team, eight members of the coaching staff, 25 boosters, two pilots, two flight attendants, and a charter coordinator. ", "I just generally felt we lost a great Hokie that day," Beamer said. He has traveled internationally and led huge congregations. They turned around, headed back home and immediately got lost. At that time, I thought I was a pretty bad-ass man.". "It was horrible because it was a non-ending funeral. All were on the travel squad list before the plane crash. It was impossible for the remaining Marshall players to forget about their fallen teammates, but they had to when the 1971 season approached. Griffith died in the 1970 plane crash. Memorial at Spring Hill Cemetery in Huntington, West Virginia to the victims of the 1970 plane crash. It slipped out from underneath him, according to Dawson, and Oliver hit his head. He was a defensive end for Marshall in 1970, and was on the chartered plane when it crashed at Tri-State Airport on November 14, 1970. 75 members, coaches, and fans were killed in November 1970 plane crash. Shops and government offices closed; businesses on the town's main street draped their windows in black bunting," History.com reported. The Ceredo and Kenova fire departments were recognized at the event. Officials sift through wreckage at the Marshall plane crash site, 1970. The team originally planned to cancel the flight, but changed plans and chartered the Southern Airways DC-9. Virginia Tech's coach had a plan for the pregame. Without any particular reason, Carter stayed. var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; "Apparently, it was time God saw fit to call them.". He was well-liked by his teammates not a rah-rah kid, but one who led by example.". "That's something I've never been able to get over because it was so wrong.". Harris' father, Art Sr., was one of the fans on the plane. In the report, the NTSB concluded, "[] the probable cause of this accident was the descent below Minimum Descent Altitude during a nonprecision approach under adverse operating conditions, without visual contact with the runway environment". These are some of their stories, 50 years later. > 75 members, coaches, and fans were killed in November 1970 plane crash. Once again, on Saturday, Dawson will speak at the fountain ceremony. Lyndhurst's Tom Shoebridge, brother of crash victim Ted Shoebridge, and Elmwood Park's Keith Karl, a freshman on the 1970 Marshall team, join the show. Former Marshall cheerleader Lucianne Kautz Call lost her father, Charlie E. Kautz, who was the universitys athletic director. His close friend and neighbor, Art Harris Jr., was one of the Marshall players who died. Although the airport runway has since been lengthened past its original threshold, making historical measurements more difficult, the NTSB official report provides, "the accident occurred during hours of darkness at 38 22' 27" N. latitude and 82 34' 42" W. One John Marshall Drive, "It was just a little school in the hills," Mary Jane said. "I didn't want anybody to see me crying. Printing is not supported at the primary Gallery Thumbnail page. I didn't know what to do. He was 37. (Sholten Singer/The Herald-Dispatch via AP), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. Al Carelli, Jr., Assistant coach, 1970 MU Football team, b&w. Sturmisch lived to be 13. There were 64 children who became orphans after losing one or both parents on the flight. So were the religious types who were too numerous for their messages to get through. Tottenham Hotspur players observe a minutes silence for the victims of the plane crash involving the Brazilian club Chapecoense prior to the Premier. It's called survivor's guilt, the feeling of unfairly surviving an incident when others did not. The Druid Four did and were all killed in the crash. Sort By. But football quickly drained from him after the crash. "I can remember the hurt in my stomach like it was yesterday," Beamer said. But I already knew. I couldn't go to all of them. MU plane crash historical marker, Wayne County, W.Va. Southern Airways DC-9, similiar to plane that crashed with MU football team, Dedication of Memorial Fountain to MU plane crash victims, Nov. 12, 1972, William Alfred "Red" Dawson, Asst. Seventy children had at least one parent die in the crash, with 18 of them left orphaned. Slezak originally agreedbut said it would mean breaking a date. All 75 passengers on the team plane were killed in the crash, including 37 members of the Marshall University football team, eight football coaches, including head coach Rick Tolley, athletic director Charlie Kautz, 25 boosters and five flight crew members. Private. Art Shannon, #34, 1970 MU Football team, b&w. Inscription. var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); Near Huntington, West Virginia. (Bettmann/Bettmann Archive), "'We Are Marshall' just stuck," Smith said. "Al" Saylor, #88,1970 MU Football team, b&w. As a memorial to the 75 victims, the Marshall players wore the number 75 on their helmets. It has taken her more than a year. Nobody went anywhere.". Kenova native and Grammy-award winner Michael W. Smith opened the ceremony by singing Amazing Grace. He told the audience that he was 13 when the plane crashed eight minutes from his house. With 37 players gone due to the horrific tragedy, the NCAA allowed Marshalls freshmen players to suit up the next season. Marshall's Plane Crash Happened 52 Years Ago, But the Memory Still Remains. And then, after the game, if Slezak had been there, would that have deterred Art Sr. from getting on the plane? Rick, he ran them off. On November 14, Southern Airways Flight 932, which was chartered by the school to fly the Thundering Herd football team, coaches, and fans to Kinston, North Carolina for a game against the East Carolina Pirates and back to Huntington, crashed on approach to Tri-State Airport after clipping trees just west of the runway and impacting nose-first into a hollow. The following offseason, Dawson went to a national coaching convention. It is based upon ideas by John and Ann Krieger of Huntington. This is believed to be a duplicate of the plane that crashed Nov. 14, 1970 carrying MU football team. _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-16729709-1']); Charles Kautz, MU A/D and coaches, 1970 MU football team, b&w. There was no playbook, and nobody had been in that position before.". Varsity Aces Live: Marshall Football Plane Crash 50th Anniversary. It signified the teams unity as not just a football team, but one family. Officials at the site of the Nov. 14, 1970, Marshall University plane crash at Tri-State Airport in Kenova, W.Va., secure a charred engine for removal to an airport hangar. On November 14, 1970, the team was flying back from a game against East Carolina. He was taken away way too soon.". "In my case, it became clear four years later. The rebuilding was the subject of the 2006 movie We are Marshall starring Matthew McConaughey as Lengyel. Allen Gene Skeens, #59, 1970 MU Football team, b&w. The return became the subject of the film, "We Are Marshall". Beamer was at his wife-to-be's home that November night. [8], The board made three recommendations as a result of this accident, including recommendations for heads-up displays, ground proximity warning devices, and surveillance and inspection of flight operations. Memorial Fountain on the Marshall University campus, dedicated in 1972. "There are a ton of people out there still hurting and still in pain and still every day of their lives, as soon as their eyes open in the morning, that's the first thing they think about because their 18 year-old son was killed," Smith said. A fireman on Nov. 15, 1970, looks over the wreckage of a DC-9 jet that crashed the day before on approach near a mountaintop airport a few miles from Huntington, W.Va. Bobby East, driver of the #21 Ford during the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, died Wednesday, July 13, 2022, after being fatally stabbed at a gas station in Westminster, Calif. [20], On December 11, 2006, a memorial plaque was dedicated at the plane crash site. "[7] The airliner left Stallings Field at Kinston, North Carolina, and the flight proceeded to Huntington without incident. Holliday wants to make a date to come out and hunt turkeys on Dawson's 400 acres outside of town. "Kenova to dedicate crash memorial Monday." He played Defensive end. 75 members, coaches, and fans were killed in November 1970 plane crash. A mass funeral was held at the field house and many of the dead were buried at the Spring Hill Cemetery, some together because bodies were not identifiable. Home Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. "We'd always rode buses.". He will speak at the annual memorial on Saturday like he has now for years. "He was a tremendous athlete who could do it all. New Bern, Craven County, North Carolina, USA . New Bern National Cemetery. His body could not be identified, and with five other players, they were all buried. Captain Frank H. Abbott, Jr. , aged 47, was employed by Southern Airways, Inc.. Marshall University Football Team Players: James Michael Adams, of Mansfield, Ohio - Guard, Mark Raeburn Andrews, of Cincinnati, Ohio - Offensive Guard, Mike Francis Blake, of Huntington, West Virginia - Linebacker, Dennis Michael Blevins, of Bluefield, West Virginia - Wide Receiver, Willie Bluford Jr., of Greenwood, South Carolina - Wide receiver, Larry Brown, of Atlanta, Georgia - Defensive Guard, Thomas Wayne Brown, of Richmond, Virginia - Defensive Guard, Roger Keith Childers, of St. Albana, West Virginia, Stuart Spence Cottrell, of Eustis, Florida - Defensive Back, Richard Lee Dardinger, of Mount Vernon, Ohio - Center, David Grant DeBord, of Quincy, Florida - Offensive Tackle, Kevin Francis Gilmore, of Harrison, New Jersey - Halfback, David Dearing Griffith, Jr, of Clarksville, Virginia - Defensive End, Arthur W. Harris, of Passaic, New Jersey - Halfback, Robert Anthony Harris, of Cincinnati, Ohio - Quarterback, Bob Wayne Hill, of Dallas, Texas - Defensive Back, Joe Lee Hood, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama - Halfback, James Thomas Howard Jr., of Milton, West Virginia - Offensive Guard, Marcelo H. Lajterman, of Lyndhurst, New Jersey - Kicking Specialist, Richard Adam Lech, of Columbus, Ohio - Defensive Back, Barry Winston Nash, of Accoville, West Virginia - Tight End, Patrick Jay Norrell, of Hartsdale, New York - Offensive Guard, James Robert Patterson, of Louisburg, North Carolina - Offensive Tackle, Scottie Lee Reese, of Waco, Texas - Defensive End, John Anton Repasy Jr., of Cincinnati, Ohio - Wide Reciever, Larry Sanders, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama - Defensive Back, Charles Alan "Al" Saylor, of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio - Defensive End, Arthur Kirk Shannon, of Greensboro, North Carolina - Linebacker, Lionel Ted Shoebridge, of Lyndhurst, New Jersey - Quarterback, Allen Gene Skeens, of Ravenswood, West Virginia - Center, Jerry Dodson Stainback, of Newport News, Virginia - Linebacker, Donald Tackett, Jr., of Paden City, West Virginia, Robert James Van Horn, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama - Tackle, Roger Arnie Vanover, of Russell, Kentucky - Defensive End, Freddie Clay Wilson, of Tuscaloosa, Alabama - Tackle, John Patton Young, of Buckhannon, West Virginia - Tight End, Thomas Jonathan Zborill, of Richmond, Virginia - Defensive End, Charles Arnold, of Huntington, West Virginia, Rachel Lynette Arnold, of Huntington, West Virginia, Dr. Joseph Chambers, of Huntington, West Virginia - Local physician, Margaret Chambers, of Huntington, West Virginia, Dr. Ray Hagley, of Huntington, West Virginia - Local physician, Shirley Ann Hagley, of Huntington, West Virginia, Arthur L. Harris, of Passaic, New Jersey - Father of player Art Harris, E.O. Scott would call up and say, 'Any time you want to call, you call me night or day. In 2006, Hollywood turned that inspiring slogan into one of the greatest sports movies ever made. Not surprisingly, Call will be the keynote speaker at Saturday's memorial. "I asked her many, many times [why she urged him to stay] before she passed," Carter said. "God is your pilot. Accessibility Statement, Privacy 75 members, coaches, and fans were killed in November 1970 plane crash. "Anniversaries are supposed to be happy," Slezak said . It was a funeral that never stopped. When it came time to return, Carter's mother Sarah urged him to stay at home. Hill died in the 1970 plane crash. That game did not occur due to the COVID-19 pandemic. > (aka "The Marshall University Football Team Crash") November 14th, 1970. On Saturday, 75 candles surrounded the fountain. The Marshall football team tragedy remains one of the saddest sports stories of all time. The Mid-American Conference also expelled the team for similar offenses. When he passed, Loria's wife was pregnant with Frank Loria Jr. Beamer guided the buses to the memorial. Insurance agents were annoying. [1] The team played its home games at Fairfield Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia. That day nine years ago, "Frank Beamer became a very special person in my mind," Hamrick said. Lucianne Call hasn't lost much of her cheerleading enthusiasm. 2004-2023 CBS Interactive. Hewlett gave Carter a pamphlet titled, "Steps To Peace With God." "We stayed friends forever," Dawson said proudly. "Shoulda, coulda, woulda.". The event marked a boundary by which an entire community would forever measure time before or after The Crash. The Hokies were in town to play the Herd. HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) Marshall University commemorated the 50th anniversary of one of the worst sports disasters in U.S. history Saturday, a plane crash that killed most of the football team. Charles Kautz, 1970 MU Athletic Director, b&w. [5] The accident is the deadliest tragedy to have affected any sports team in U.S. Carter read his own obituary the next day in the local newspaper. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. They had met in Roanoke, Virginia, where she taught. "That had taken a toll on my football coaching, a lot of bad things. Its an inspiring tribute to those fallen lives and the devoted men who led Marshall back to glory. 1970 Marshall Thundering Herd football team, 1970 NCAA University Division independents football records, 1970 NCAA University Division football season, "Memories of Marshall; ex-player says shock of crash never ends", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=1970_Marshall_Thundering_Herd_football_team&oldid=1109112752, 1970 NCAA University Division independents football season, Marshall Thundering Herd football seasons, Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States, Short description is different from Wikidata, Pages using CFB schedule with named parameters, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 8 September 2022, at 01:19. The report also noted that the craft approached the Catlettsburg Refinery in the final 30 seconds before impact, which "could haveaffecteda visual illusion produced by the difference in the elevation of the refinery and the airport," which was nearly 300ft (91m) higher than the refinery, with hills in between. Marshall's defensive coordinator did not return home with the team. The airliner's crew was Captain Frank Abbot (47), First Officer Jerry Smith (28), plus two flight attendants. The NCAA made an exception for the Thundering Herd. Rick Tolley is behind him. "It was something the Lord gave her to tell me," Carter said. Marshall University. Fifty-two years ago, Huntington, West Virginia, was home to what has been called the worst disaster in United States sports history. His life was spared that night a half century ago. Plymale said 64 children lost one or both of their parents in the crash. Marshall fans and residents of Huntington, W.V. I don't think I believed it.. "The reason it's survivor's guilt is because so many people changed their mind at the last minute," Call said. Rosanna Blake Library of Confederate History, Jim "Shorty" Moss (Offensive Coordinator), Ed Starling (Assistant Director of Athletics), Mark J. Smaha (Assistant Athletic Trainer), Louis A. Peake (Assistant Athletic Trainer), James H. Wilson (Assistant Athletic Trainer), Mervin G. Black (Assistant Equipment Manager), Eugene Jones (Assistant Football Manager), Gerald Sieber (Assistant Football Manager), David W. Byrd (Student Equipment Manager), Special Collections, Morrow Library, There is already a plot there for one more. On November 12, 1972, the Memorial Fountain was dedicated at the entrance of the Memorial Student Center. "Couldn't keep the tears out of my eyes. DeBord died in the 1970 plane crash. One year later, the unthinkable happened. He was the offensive tackle. The victims included 36 Marshall University football players, 9 coaches and administrators, 25 fans and crew of 5. 10:00 am ET. [4] By the time the plane came to a stop, it was 4,219ft (1,286m) short of the runway and 275ft (84m) south of the middle marker. He wanted them to learn about the Frank Loria he admired so much. The bill establishes that Nov. 14 will become a special memorial day in remembrance of the crash. The 1970 Marshall Thundering Herd football team was an American football team that represented Marshall University as an independent during the 1970 NCAA University Division football season. Carter wants everyone to know God chose him to survive for that purpose. The opponent was scheduled to be East Carolinathe same team that defeated Marshall before the disaster took place. The Tolleys loved their German Shepherd. The pair were listening to country music when the bulletin came across that a plane had crashed in Huntington. On Saturday, it will be Middle Tennessee State. Joe Hood, Larry Sanders, Robert Van Horn and Freddy Wilson had come from Druid High School. Sketch titled "America Weeps, Saturday Nov. 14, 1970." [4], The NTSB investigated the accident and its final report was issued on April 14, 1972. Among the losses were nearly the entire Marshall University football team, coaches, flight crew, numerous fans, and supporters. William Alfred "Red" Dawson was one of the best players Bobby Bowden ever saw. No one could have imagined how deep a downward spiral Marshall University's football program would face in the late 1960's. While Wichita State ended its football program in 1986, Marshall carried on. It's more than that, of course. | He said, 'What the hell is going on with Virginia Tech?' Marshall decided to continue the football program. Mary Jane was the perfect coach's wife. To this day, she isn't satisfied. This time, they decided if all couldn't go, none of them could go. Couldn't keep my voice straight. [21] The ceremony featured guest speakers Dawson and Hardin. White roses are placed along the edge of the Memorial Fountain to honor the 75 lives lost in the 1970 plane crash during the 50th Annual Memorial Fountain Service Saturday, Nov. 14, 2020, at the Memorial Student Center in Huntington, W.Va. Marshall commemorated the 50th anniversary of the worst disaster in U.S. sports history, when 75 people, including most of the football team, were killed in a Nov. 14, 1970, plane crash. The solemn ceremony was held around a fountain dedicated to the crash victims on Marshall's Huntington campus. He hid behind that sycamore each Nov. 14 for 20 years or so afterward because it hid him from the speeches, the families, the orphans, maybe his own remorse. Home He was the center. [12] Lengyel led the Thundering Herd to a 933 record during his tenure, which ended after the 1974 season. After the crash, Carter took a bus back to West Virginia. Bobby East, driver of the #21 Ford during the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, died Wednesday, July 13, 2022, after being fatally stabbed at a gas station in Westminster, Calif. Does FSU or any ACC power actually have options? She never could explain it other than saying God had spoken to her. "We got her when she was 6 weeks old. That's why, when a vet recommended Mary Jane stay home that weekend of Nov. 14 because a tumor had developed in Sturmisch's toe, there was no hesitation. Caption on back reads: "Saturday Nov. 14, 1970. On the way down, he realized -- only by the light of a fire -- that the log was actually a body. New coach Jack Lengyel, Marshall University students, and Thundering Herd football fans convinced acting Marshall president, Donald N. Dedmon, to reconsider cancelling the program in late 1970. Im glad that were going to honor them for each year in this way from here on out.. A memorial fountain will be turned off the same time it is every year only to be turned back on in the spring. "He said: 'Your husband is in the plane, too.' I realized I had been wrong about that.". "[7] The remains of six passengers were never identified. In the transcript of their cockpit communications in the final minutes, the pilots briefly debated that their autopilot had "captured" for a glide slope descent, although the airport was only equipped with a localizer. At the time of the crash, Harris Jr. led Marshall in rushing and kick returns. Libraries Prior to the state Senate's unanimous vote Wednesday, the chamber held a moment of silence for the crash victims at .