Once upon a time in the fall of 2000, Marshall had a struggling quarterback.

He was 6-foot-4, 240 pounds.

He had a rocket-launcher for an arm.

He had the potential to be an outstanding quarterback.

Yet, after six games the Herd was 2-4 and almost everybody had doubts about the young, first-year quarterback.

Except for the head coach.

He realized the mistake he and his coaching staff were making with the young quarterback. Instead of helping him, they actually were causing him to struggle.

That’s because they were asking him to win games.

He wasn’t ready for that. It was too much to expect.

So, after a humiliating 42-0 loss at Toledo, the Marshall coach assembled his staff and brain-stormed a new concept for their struggling quarterback.

Rather than expecting him to win games, they merely would ask him not to lose games.

The coaching staff dialed back the offensive package to include only the things the young quarterback could do proficiently.

They put him back in his comfort zone. And kept him there.

Timing routes. Quick outs. Deep balls always down the sideline and never down the middle, so over-throws would be incompletions, not interceptions.

They made it easier for the young quarterback to find success.

And as the pressure on the first-year QB diminished, the winning suddenly increased.

After the embarrassing loss at Toledo, Marshall went on an amazing four-game winning streak and won six of its last seven, including a bowl victory.

The young quarterback? He looked and played like a new man. And nobody doubted him anymore.

Does any of this sound familiar?

More to the point, does any of this sound applicable at the same six-game junction of Marshall’s 2008 season?

I certainly believe it does.

Talk about Deja MU.

The circumstances are nearly identical.

When this season started the mind-set was not to ask 6-4, 240-pound, big-armed, first-year quarterback Mark Cann to win games, just not to lose them.

But after Cann played so well in an impressive 34-27 win over Southern Miss, the concept seemed to get side-tracked.

He’s a coach’s son, everyone said. He’s precocious enough to handle more of the offensive package, everyone said.

And, suddenly, everyone began expecting Cann to win games, instead of just not lose them.
That was a mistake.

The evidence is in Marshall’s last two games. During a 27-3 loss to West Virginia University and a 33-10 defeat against the University of Cincinnati on Friday night, Cann struggled mightily.

The young left-hander completed only 32 of 72 passes (44.4 percent) for just 297 yards with four interceptions and only one touchdown.

His passing efficiency rating has fallen to 103.74, which doesn’t even rank Cann among the nation’s top 100 quarterbacks.

And, now, everyone is doubting him. Just like they did that other young Marshall quarterback eight seasons ago.

That’s why I believe it’s time for this Marshall coaching staff to put their own time-stamp on the philosophical change which worked so well in 2000.

This is the perfect week to make it happen. With an open date preceding a road game at UAB on Oct. 18, the Herd has an entire week of practice to get Cann back into his comfort zone.

It worked in 2000. And it will work again now.

By the way, that young QB in 2000? His name was Byron Leftwich.

You might have heard of him.

Chuck Landon is a sports columnist for The Herald-Dispatch. Call him at 526-2827. E-mail him at clandon@herald-dispatch.com.

 

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