Advertisement

Marshall wears uniforms honoring plane crash victims in win over FIU

nick bromberg
College football and motorsports writer

Marshall wore special tribute uniforms Saturday against Florida International to honor the 45th anniversary of the plane crash involving members of the team.

The Marshall plane crash on November 14, 1970 killed all 75 people on board. The team was returning from a game at East Carolina and the plane crashed upon descent. Thirty-seven football players and eight members of the coaching staff were on board.

Marshall beat Florida International 52-0.

The school has an annual ceremony on the anniversary of the crash every year. This year, members of the National Guard saw that the Marshall flag at the crash site was tattered. So they went to the Marshall bookstore to get the flag replaced.

From the West Virginia Gazette:

“We went to the crash site immediately to replace it,” said National Guard Sgt. 1st Class Brian Thomsen, later adding that he kept the old flag, which he now has with him in North Carolina.

It was a silent deed, Thomsen said, adding that he would be surprised if anyone noticed the flag was changed.

“We didn’t do anything overt,” he said. “We just wanted to honor the connection the community has with the memorial.”

The win moved Marshall to 9-2 on the season. The Thundering Herd are second in Conference USA's East Division to Western Kentucky. The two teams meet on November 27 in a de facto East championship game.

- - - - - - -

Nick Bromberg is the assistant editor of Dr. Saturday on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at nickbromberg@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!