Center Dennis Foley (#55) centers ball to Bob Harris (#12) in a scrimmage,1970 MU Football team, b&w. Marshall University honors the 75 lives lost in the 1970 plane crash tragedy during the 48th Annual Memorial Service on Wednesday, Nov. 14, 2018 . College Football Player, Plane Crash Victim. This college football 1970s season article is a stub. But that begs the very human question of why God spared him and not those on the plane? That included 37 Marshall football players, 25 team boosters, multiple coaches and team doctors, and Marshalls athletic director. On a rainy hill side in Wayne County, West Virginia, the lives of 75 people were lost in the worst single air tragedy in NCAA sports history. . Just like winter leads to spring, these bad memories now lead us to, I think, a day of celebration, Woelfel said. Accessibility Statement, Privacy The actual damage was incalculable. "It was not a premonition. "The reason it's survivor's guilt is because so many people changed their mind at the last minute," Call said. The victims included 36 football players and 39 school administrators, coaches, fans, spouses and flight crew. Charlie Kautz had lived long enough to give away Lucianne at her wedding only five months earlier. Dawson eventually became a successful construction company owner. var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; New Bern National Cemetery. Harris' father, Art Sr., was one of the fans on the plane. "Happy" Heath, of Huntington, West Virginia, Elaine Lois Heath, of Huntington, West Virginia, James Jarrell, of Huntington, West Virginia, Cynthia Scott Leslie Jarrell, of Huntington, West Virginia, Kenneth Jones, of Huntington, West Virginia - WHTN-TV sports director, Charles E. Kautz - Athletic director of Marshall University, Eugene J. Morehouse - sports information director, Jeffrey P. Nathan, of Parksburg, West Virginia - sports editor of MU's student newspaper, Dr. Brian R. O'Connor, of Huntington, West Virginia - admissions director of Marshall University, Michael R. Prestera, delegate-elect to the West Virginia Legislature, Dr. Glenn Preston, of Huntington, West Virginia - Local dentist, Phyllis Jean Charles Preston, of Huntington, West Virginia, Dr. Herbert D. Proctor, of Huntington, West Virginia, Courtney Phillips Proctor, of Huntington, West Virginia, Murrill Ralsten, of Huntington, West Virginia - City councilman, Helen Ralsten, of Huntington, West Virginia, Parker Ward, of Huntington, West Virginia, Danny Deese, of Atlanta, Georgia - Charter coordinator, Copyright 2002 Check SixThis page last updated Saturday, August 25, 2018. with questions or comments about this web site. Nobody went anywhere.". He said, 'What the hell is going on with Virginia Tech?' Druid High School football players sign grants-in-aid with Marshall in the spring of 1969. December 11, 2006, Huntington Tri-State Airport/Milton J. Ferguson Field, Marshall University Thundering Herd football team, 38 22' 27" N. latitude and 82 34' 42" W. longitude, 2013 Conference USA Football Championship game, 1970 Marshall Thundering Herd football team, List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft, Wichita State University football team plane crash, "Marshall crash still looms after 36 years", "Plane crash devastates Marshall University", "The story of the 1970 Marshall Plane Crash", "Tragedy litters the sports landscape: Marshall remains the worst sports-related air disaster", "Reporter recalls memories from worst sports- related air tragedy in US history", "NTSB Aircraft Accident Report Southern Airways Inc. DC-9, N97S, Tri-State Airport, Huntington, West Virginia, November 14, 1970", "People have not forgotten Marshall Crash 30 years ago", "Emotions of tragedy drew Lengyel to Marshall", "Marshall football, 50 years after plane crash, carries on, and remembers", "Akron Alum Jack Lengyel to Receive AFCA's McLaughry Award", "Memorial Fountain designed to represent 'upward growth, immortality, eternality', "Marshall Memorial Bronze unveiled to mix of emotions", "Marker placed at site of crash, Dec. 11, 2006", "43 years later, Marshall still honors memory of fallen players", "Marshall Football to Don '75' Helmets for Remainder of Season", "ECU, Marshall game postponed due to pandemic", Aviation history synopsis of Southern Airways Flight 932 (with photographs), List of victims of Southern Airways Flight 932, PlaneCrashInfo.Com Southern Airways Flight 932 entry, Marshall University Forensic Science Graduate Program, Marshall University South Charleston Campus, Arthur Weisberg Family Engineering Laboratories, Robert C. Byrd Biotechnology Science Center, Evergreen International Airlines Flight 17, 1990 Wayne County Airport runway collision, Capitol International Airways Flight C2C3/26, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Southern_Airways_Flight_932&oldid=1142434206, Aviation accidents and incidents in the United States in 1970, Airliner accidents and incidents in West Virginia, Airliner accidents and incidents involving controlled flight into terrain, Accidents and incidents involving the McDonnell Douglas DC-9, November 1970 events in the United States, Aviation accidents and incidents involving sports teams, Articles with dead external links from May 2018, Articles with permanently dead external links, Short description is different from Wikidata, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 2 March 2023, at 10:15. [4] The controllers advised the crew that "rain, fog, smoke and a ragged ceiling" were at the airport, making landing more difficult, but possible. ", "I just generally felt we lost a great Hokie that day," Beamer said. [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. Dawson noticed him wiping his eyes. The Tolleys were ingrained in the community. I knew as soon as I saw the police car. The bill establishes that Nov. 14 will become a special memorial day in remembrance of the crash. If her husband was too hard-nosed or too tough, those notions were dispelled in the days after her world was turned upside down. He never did try to preach to me. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. "I didn't want anybody to see me crying. "It was losing faith in these ministers. [12] Lengyel was named to take Tolley's place on March 12, 1971, after Dick Bestwick, the first choice for the job, backed out after just one week and returned to Georgia Tech. 2004-2023 CBS Interactive. "God has a time for each one of us," Carter said. From there, he could see them talk, cry, even reminisce about the largest air disaster in United States sports history. (AP Photo/John Raby, File), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news, left behind six children who were being babysat. Huntington, West Virginia: The four remaining starters from the 1970 first string team of Marshall University take time out to pause at flower arrangement placed at Marshall Field following the devastating plane crash that killed all 75 aboard. Things were going swimmingly two weeks before the East Carolina game. But the town came back.. Among those who were not on the Marshall plane were Red Dawson, an assistant coach who was driving on a recruiting trip and was heading home when he learned about the crash. Rick Tolley is behind him. As part of an annual rite, the . So why would anyone living with all that baggage intentionally go up in the air? Fifty-two years ago, Huntington, West Virginia, was home to what has been called the worst disaster in United States sports history. "Shoulda, coulda, woulda.". Ferrum won the national junior college championship his first year there in 1965. This plaza and this fountain are the heart of Marshall University, university President Jerome Gilbert said. (JACK BURNETT/AP) [4], At the time, Marshall's athletic teams rarely traveled by plane, since most away games were within easy driving distance of the campus. | That day nine years ago, "Frank Beamer became a very special person in my mind," Hamrick said. The 6500 lb, 13 ft-high (2900 kg, 4 m-high) sculpture was completed within a year and a half. [10], The crash of Flight 932 so devastated the local community that it almost led to the discontinuation of Marshall's football program. Dawson and Parker were buying boiled peanuts at a country store in rural Virginia when they heard the news over the radio. This event taught me how to celebrate someones life. Charles Kautz, MU A/D and coaches, 1970 MU football team, b&w. As a memorial to the 75 victims, the Marshall players wore the number 75 on their helmets. All 75 people on board died. Roy Slezak refuses to call it an anniversary. Marshall football plane crash was 50 years ago, but victim's friend can't forget that day. " Carter said. The controller gave them clearance to land. 75 members, coaches, and fans were killed in November 1970 plane crash. He wanted them to learn about the Frank Loria he admired so much. It signified the teams unity as not just a football team, but one family. A week later, he died at age 66 as a result of the injury. Yolanda Shoebridge, the mother ofTed Shoebridge, called the Harris home on Linden Street. 2023 Marshall University. I never wanted to miss a chance to see Art play.. He was the Athletic Director for MU. [16] The sculpture's designer, Harry Bertoia, created the $25,000 memorial that incorporated bronze, copper tubing, and welding rods. He returned to find a city, a university and a program in despair. He was also the offensive line coach. Memorial at Spring Hill Cemetery in Huntington, West Virginia to the victims of the 1970 plane crash. During the 1970 college football season, Marshall suffered a devastating loss to East Carolina in week 9 to drop the Thundering Herd to 3-6 on the year. He was like a sounding board.". One John Marshall Drive,
The Ceredo and Kenova fire departments were recognized at the event. That game did not occur due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Among them were Dr. Ray Hagley, who was a Marshall team physician, and his wife. He and the sycamore have aged well. Cemetery Visibility: Public. It really sort of shapes the fiber in you, of what you are.. var s = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; s.parentNode.insertBefore(ga, s); The plane descended below the Minimum Descent Altitude, striking trees on a hillside about one mile from the runway. That begins to describe some of that enduring guilt. What good is it going to do anybody?' The rest were pilots, crew, coaches, administrators, boosters and business leaders. We Are Marshall was the rallying cry for the Thundering Herds football program in 1970. December 10, 2006 Herald-Dispatch [Huntington]. [7], The airliner continued on final approach to Tri-State Airport when it collided with the tops of trees on a hillside 5,543ft (1,690m) west of runway 11 (now runway 12). About "It was just a little school in the hills," Mary Jane said. The House of Delegates passed the bill last month. The rebuilding of the football program was the subject of the 2006 movie We are Marshall starting Matthew McConaughey. It has taken her more than a year. _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-16729709-1']); They met once a year, Red Dawson and the sycamore tree he picked out that was large enough to hide behind. Two-and-a-half months ago, Dawson remarried. Sturmisch lived to be 13. Mary Jane was the perfect coach's wife. It has been so long that the tragedy has been memorialized that Marshall athletic director Mike Hamrick has calculated that the date falls on a Saturday every seven years. "Lord, the first time they asked me to speak at the anniversary, I was a mess," Dawson said. It was impossible for the remaining Marshall players to forget about their fallen teammates, but they had to when the 1971 season approached. The solemn ceremony was held around a fountain dedicated to the crash victims on Marshall's Huntington campus. This is believed to be a duplicate of the plane that crashed Nov. 14, 1970 carrying MU football team. "We stayed friends forever," Dawson said proudly. "At 21, you haven't been familiar with death. That is certainly what was going to happen.". Wichita Falls is 1,100 miles from Huntington. Nepal's army and volunteers carry the body of a victim who died in a Yeti Airlines plane crash in Pokhara on January 17, 2023. On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. The NCAA made an exception for the Thundering Herd. When he passed, Loria's wife was pregnant with Frank Loria Jr. Beamer guided the buses to the memorial. Every one of the 75 people on board died in the crash. Plymale said 64 children lost one or both of their parents in the crash. [7]:37, On November 15, 1970, a memorial service was held at the indoor, 8,500-seat Veterans Memorial Fieldhouse with moments of silence, remembrances, and prayers. "That's something I've never been able to get over because it was so wrong.". He will speak at the annual memorial on Saturday like he has now for years. I realized I had been wrong about that.". They did care a lot about him. [4] The following Saturday, another memorial service was held at the outdoor, 18,000-seat Fairfield Stadium. [25], The events of the crash are documented in an episode of Aircrash Confidential titled "Disastrous Descents".[27]. Artwork by Eugene Payne, Staff Artist, The Charlotte Observer, Charlotte, N.C. He was the offensive tackle. Among the 75 who perished were 36 players. One of Dawson's greatest contributions may have been the recruiting of four African-American athletes out of Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Shortly thereafter, he surrendered his life to Christ. All six players would later be put to rest underground at the Spring Hill Cemetery just near Marshall University. "It was horrible because it was a non-ending funeral. 00:00 / 00:00. Her recollections of the crash's aftermath are split. Marshall captured Division I-AA national championships in 1992 and 1996 and amassed the most wins of any team in the nation in the 1990s, many of them during a step up to Division I-A, now known as the Football Bowl Subdivision. Art could have played professional baseball or professional football.. Beamer was at his wife-to-be's home that November night. Eventually, Rick won over their hearts and minds. In its second season under head coach Rick Tolley, the team compiled a 36 record and was outscored by a total of 202 to 138. It is based upon ideas by John and Ann Krieger of Huntington. Parker flew to the game, but did not fly back, having switched places with Deke Brackett, another coach. CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- A bill has won final legislative approval in West Virginia that would establish an annual day of recognition for the worst sports disaster in U.S . Mom and her intuition won. His jersey hangs in Passaic High School. When it came time to return, Carter's mother Sarah urged him to stay at home. In fact, it was stronger than that. He said, No, you keep your commitment, that is what you do, there will be other games, Slezak said. MU plane crash historical marker, Wayne County, W.Va., col. (low-res digital image only). (aka "The Marshall University Football Team Crash") November 14th, 1970. "Nobody did anything. 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. history". "It was something the Lord gave her to tell me," Carter said. Pure chance, some cases. Harris Sr. told Slezak he had to keep his promises. W.Va. State historical marker 75 members, coaches, and fans were killed in November 1970 plane crash. He had to rent a car to get to the game,then asked if there were seats on the plane to get back to Marshall. After the plane crash, she became the only thing that I had.". While in the air, the plane struck a tree on a tall hill and crashed to the ground. "He didn't tell anyone what he was going to do until the last minute," Hamrick said. He was 37. Back then, Bowden was the wide receivers coach. (Sholten Singer/The Herald-Dispatch via AP), Connect with the definitive source for global and local news. "The teammates liked the Tuscaloosa boys unbelievably," Dawson said, "especially when Reggie got there.". "[7]:36 At least one source says that water that had seeped into the plane's altimeter could have thrown off its height readings, leading the pilots to believe the plane was higher than was actually the case. Southern Airways Flight 932 was a chartered Southern Airways Douglas DC-9 domestic United States commercial jet flight from Stallings Field (ISO) in Kinston, North Carolina, to Huntington Tri-State Airport/Milton J. Ferguson Field (HTS) near Kenova and Ceredo, West Virginia. His football will didn't come back quickly, but something has changed over the years. "I kept thinking he [Arthur Sr.] would drive up in the car," said Maja Harris, Art Jr.s mother and Art Sr.s wife. David Debord, #76, 1970 MU Football team, b&w. [20], On December 11, 2006, a memorial plaque was dedicated at the plane crash site. The two played in the same defensive backfield for Virginia Tech in the late 1960s. Holliday wants to make a date to come out and hunt turkeys on Dawson's 400 acres outside of town. As a 21-year-old newlywed senior cheerleader at Marshall, she read the news of the crash on the crawl at the bottom of a television screen. Of course, she misses her husband. I made a promise to Mrs. Harris that he would never be forgotten.. It was a rainy night. 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. Woelfel, who had a speaking part in the movie, said it brought a lot of people back together to deal with the loss and they did it collectively. 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. "As I listened to the scriptures," Carter said, "the Lord has purpose for each one of our lives.". They couldn't take the tough routine. What they witnessed was dystopian. 'https://ssl' : 'http://www') + '.google-analytics.com/ga.js'; Near Huntington, West Virginia. After a year as Wake Forest's defensive line coach, Tolley was hired at Marshall in 1969. They further stated, "The Board has been unable to determine the reason for this [greater] descent, although the two most likely explanations are (a) improper use of cockpit instrumentation data, or (b) an altimetry system error. "Bobby got this corona[virus] thing and beat it.". 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. [21], November 14, 2013, marked the first time that Marshall had played a road game on an anniversary of the disaster. Marshall coach Doc Holliday invited him to speak to the team. [23] The tribute was repeated for the rest of the season, including when Marshall met Rice in the 2013 Conference USA Football Championship game. She has all of them, including an image of offensive guard John "Jimo" Adams, whose daughter Patricia was born the day her father was buried. 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. "I took the phone, but Mrs. Shoebridge was crying hysterically. [1] The team played its home games at Fairfield Stadium in Huntington, West Virginia. "'The phrase is about respect, and it makes you realize you can't take anything for granted. Dennis Foley was not on the plane, Bob Harris was killed in the plane crash. On a rainy hill side in Wayne County, West Virginia, the lives of 75 people were lost in the worst single air tragedy in NCAA sports history. On the way down, he realized -- only by the light of a fire -- that the log was actually a body. (function() { A memorial fountain will be turned off the same time it is every year only to be turned back on in the spring. There's no evidence any of those left behind were ever formally diagnosed with survivor's guilt, but you can hear it directly or indirectly when the incident is spoken about. Vast amounts of funerals took place in the weeks and months following the tragedy, which had to be planned in accordance with each other so services wouldn't overlap. There was no reason to be around. A number of the victims are buried in a grave site in the Spring Hill Cemetery in Huntington; 20th Street between Joan C. Edwards Stadium, Marshall's current on-campus football stadium, and Spring Hill Cemetery was renamed Marshall Memorial Boulevard in honor of the crash victims. | There was no playbook, and nobody had been in that position before.". It was an impression he put in her heart. Carter can't recall how a Marshall assistant found his film in the late 1960s. One year later, the unthinkable happened. After the game, 37 members of the Marshall football team, its coaching staff, team doctors, University Athletic Director Charles E. Kautz, and some 25 team fans and boosters boarded Southern Airway Flight 932 and departed from Kinston, North Carolina at 6:38 p.m. en route to the Tri-State Airport outside Kenova, West Virginia. All were qualified for the flight. Then success occurred in streaks. "Just a very smart guy. 75 members, coaches, and fans were killed in November 1970 plane crash. Digitized University Archives Collections After an uneventful flight, the crew contacted Huntington Airport tower at 7:23 p.m. and were cleared for a localizer approach on runway 11. Not surprisingly, Call will be the keynote speaker at Saturday's memorial. The late Jack Hardin, then a Huntington Herald-Dispatch reporter, once recalled stepping over a log on his way up the hill to cover the story.
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