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SPORTS
Chuck Landon: Test of love for Herd fans to run all season
Most Marshall fans are air-heads.
Now that I have your attention, I'll explain.
Since the Herd faithful is in love with passing, that naturally makes them air-heads.
And that's easy to understand. Just look at the tradition of Marshall's program.
When you name names, it's such quarterbacks as Chad Pennington, Byron Leftwich, Todd Donnan, Michael Payton, John Gregory, Tony Petersen and Carl Fodor. And it's such receivers as Randy Moss, Troy Brown, Mike Barber, Sean Doctor, Mike Bartrum, Darius Watts, Josh Davis, Denero Marriott, James Williams and Nate Poole.
For years, the Herd was a passing fancy. As a result, MU fans grew to fancy Marshall's passing.
But that was then and this is now.
And, now, Marshall's best chance to win games this season is to run, run, run the ball with its bevy of running backs.
That is simply something Herd fans will have to accept and get comfortable with.
"Right," said quarterback Mark Cann. "We're definitely going to establish the run. I think that's important, as does everybody.
"That's something we're looking forward to. ... to open up the pass."
That was very obvious in Marshall's scrimmage Saturday. Five running backs -- Chubb Small, Darius Marshall, Terrell Edwards, Martin Ward and Jordan Taylor -- combined for 40 carries and seven pass receptions.
Which meant MU gave the ball to the running back on exactly half of the 94 plays. By comparison, the wide receivers combined for 14 catches.
That's a prime indication of what a major role the running backs will play in Marshall's offense this season.
"I think our whole offense is based on running the ball," said Marshall, who had five carries for 58 yards including a 49-yard touchdown jaunt in the scrimmage.
"Running the ball is the central part of our offense. Terrell can do stuff that I can't do. Chubb can do stuff that I can't do. I can do stuff that neither one of them can do."
That's why Marshall's running backs complement each other so well.
"Hopefully, we can combine that in games this year," said Marshall, a sophomore. "We have a lot of great talent in the running back room."
Just ask Cann.
"Everyone saw Darius and Chubb and Terrell in the first half," said the quarterback. "And, then, the young guys in the second half. ... they ran the ball well. We ran it good across the board with the running backs."
Say hello to Marshall's '08 offense.
Although that might not thrill pass-happy fans, the commitment to the rushing game certainly does excite MU's running back corps.
"That's why right now we're trying to be the leaders of the offense," said Marshall. "We look forward to contributing to the team any way we can as running backs."
What Marshall really hopes to contribute to is a championship season.
"Being a champion is something I ain't never been. ... all my life," said Marshall. "I just want to win that one time because I think it would be special.
"With the group of guys we have and the running backs that we have this year, I think we can get it done."
If that happens, Marshall fans won't care if the Herd passes or not.
You can bet on that.
Or my name's not "Ground Chuck."
Chuck Landon is a sports columnist for The Herald-Dispatch. Call him at 526-2827. E-mail him at clandon@herald-dispatch.com.
