HUNTINGTON -- Marshall football coach Mark Snyder took a break from his team's practice at Joan C. Edwards Stadium on Wednesday morning and let someone else call the plays.
In stepped U.S. Sen. John McCain wearing a green Marshall hat. With Snyder and offensive coordinator John Shannon at his side, the presumed Republican presidential candidate called for a passing play. Result: Touchdown to tight end Cody Slate.
Liking what he saw, McCain called for another passing play. Touchdown again, this time to wide receiver Darius Passmore.
"OK, it's 3rd and 1," Shannon yelled out. "What are you going to do?"
McCain went back to his bread and butter, which resulted in another passing touchdown to Slate.
"I'm all out of plays now," the senator said.
Taking over the head coaching duties of the Thundering Herd might have been the highlight of McCain's day, but his presence on the field may end up being one of the most memorable moments of the team's 2008 season.
"Any time our young student-athletes have a chance to meet a national figure, especially with the background he has, it's pretty special," Snyder said.
McCain spent about 20 minutes on the field with the Herd during practice, which was closed to the public. After chatting with a few players, the team formed a circle around the Arizona senator at the 50-yard line as he talked about his experience at the Naval Academy and as a prisoner of war in Vietnam.
"I didn't do well when I was at the Naval Academy. I finished fifth from the bottom of my class," he said. "In fact, a lot of people did not predict that I would ever be a candidate for president of the United States.
"But I had the opportunity to serve this country and put my country above myself."
McCain's plane was shot down On Oct. 26, 1967, by a surface-to-air missile during a combat mission over the city of Hanoi. He was captured and spent five-and-a-half years in captivity. Two of those years were in solitary confinement.
"We would tap on the walls of our cells in order to communicate with each other, because we were a team," McCain told the players. "When we didn't act as a team, they broke us down and we became much weaker."
McCain recalled another POW named Mike Christian, who made an American flag out of cloth and sewed it to the inside of his prison shirt. The American POWs would hang the shirt on the wall of their cell and recite the Pledge of Allegiance before every meal, he said.
McCain's captors eventually found the flag and beat Christian severely for making it. Just a few hours after his beating, McCain said he saw Christian making another American flag.
"It wasn't that it was so important to him," McCain said. "He knew how important it was for us to pledge our allegiance to our flag and our country."
McCain finished his speech to the players by telling them that they should be proud to attend a university that has overcome tragedy and adversity and achieved greatness on and off the field.
"I will be watching you this season, and millions and millions of people will be watching, including our soldiers and sailors and Marines and airmen in Iraq," he said. "They are going to be proud of you and they will know that this is a special institution, because we are Marshall."
Marshall President Stephen Kopp, who escorted McCain onto the field, said the senator told him has seen the film "We Are Marshall" several times and draws a lot of similarities between the movie and his life.
"I think he can see a lot of himself in a university that's overcome tremendous adversity and has picked up the pieces to perform at very high levels," Kopp said. "He understands that."
Junior kicker Craig Ratanamorn got to chat with McCain for a couple minutes before his speech. Ratanamorn said he was flattered when he found out McCain would be taking time out of an exhausting campaign schedule to spend time with the team.
"It really lifts our spirits knowing that someone with so much authority can come down to the little guys and spend time with them," Ratanamorn said. "You've got to respect a man that has been in a war and has enough courage to live through all that and come back here and be able to help the U.S. out."
McCain also traveled to Jackson, Ohio, on Wednesday to take a tour of Merillat Industries, a kitchen cabinet manufacturer. As his bus left Joan C. Edwards stadium, it drove by about 25 Barack Obama supporters who had gathered along 3rd Avenue. Some of them held signs that read "Invest in America, Not War in Iraq."
Matt Sowards, president of the Cabell County Young Democrats, said he wanted the rally to send a message to McCain that West Virginians have been let down by the current Republican administration for the past eight years.
Sowards said he's backing Obama because the Illinois senator brings hope to young West Virginians and has a plan to make college more affordable.
"When you come in and give the students of West Virginia hope to go to college and better themselves, that's what speaks to me," he said. "That's what speaks to college-age students who are trying to get out and make a living."
Victor Wilson of Huntington said he is backing Obama because of his plan to free the U.S. from dependence on Middle Eastern and Venezuelan oil within 10 years.
"With Sen. McCain, I think you have to look at a man's track record if you're going to talk about accountability," Wilson said. "He's tied to the status quo and to the oil companies, and it's the oil industry that has brought us to the brink of crisis."
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