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SPORTS
Snyder hired at South Florida
Marshall football coach Mark Snyder.
Purchase this photoHUNTINGTON -- For five seasons, Mark Snyder served as head football coach at his alma mater. Now he's working with a long-time friend.
Snyder, Marshall University's head coach from 2005 to 2009, was hired as a University of South Florida assistant coach Monday. Skip Holtz, recently hired at USF from East Carolina, announced the hiring of Snyder and four additional assistants Monday.
Snyder and Holtz, similar in age and personality, spoke often as Conference USA coaching rivals. Now they're coaching teammates in the Big East.
"Mark Snyder is a high-energy, emotional and passionate coach," Holtz said in a statement.
Snyder, who arrived in Tampa, Fla., on Monday, largely has been low-profile since his Marshall resignation following the 2009 season. He received several coaching offers and finalized a family decision with his wife, Beth, during the weekend.
Following four consecutive losing seasons, Snyder's squad finished 7-6 in 2009, capped by a 21-17 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl victory over Ohio University. Rick Minter coached the bowl game on an interim basis when Snyder resigned after the regular season.
John "Doc" Holliday replaced Snyder as Marshall's permanent head coach last month.
Snyder, a South Point, Ohio, native was an all-state selection at Ironton High School before transitioning from quarterback to safety at Marshall.
In 1987, Snyder led the Southern Conference with 10 interceptions, was second on the team with 124 tackles his senior year at Marshall and helped lead the Herd to a landmark come-from-behind win at Louisville and a berth in Marshall's first-ever national championship game.
He captured honorable mention All-America honors and first-team All-Southern Conference honors that season as the Thundering Herd posted a 10-5 overall record and finished as national runners-up to Northeast Louisiana (43-42) in the 1987 Division 1-AA National Championship game. Snyder's 10 interceptions in 1987 still stand as the Marshall and Southern Conference single-season record.
