Herd inspired by those other Mountaineers: Appalachian States upset

HUNTINGTON - Ashton Hall is in upset mode.

Who can blame him?

After the Marshall starting cornerback got off MU's chartered jetat Tri-State Airport Saturday evening, he went home, tuned histelevision to ESPN's SportsCenter and, much to Hall's delight,discovered that Appalachian State had pulled off an incredible 34-32upset victory at No. 5 Michigan.

He knew what he had to do next.

Hall promptly picked up his cell phone and called Jacque Roman,his old teammate from Camden County High School in Kingsland, Ga.

"My homeboy is a starting linebacker for Appalachian State,"explained Hall of Roman, the Mountaineers' 6-foot-1, 240-poundsophomore middle linebacker. "So, I got a chance to talk to him. Itwas real good. He gave me a new ray of hope."

After all, if Roman and his Appalachian State teammates could pulloff an upset of that magnitude on the road, why couldn't Hall and hisMarshall teammates knock off No. 3-ranked West Virginia University at11:02 a.m. Saturday in the Friends of Coal Bowl (ESPN2) here atsoldout Edwards Stadium?

That's the seed that Roman planted.

"He was just telling me, 'Go out there and do your thing,' " saidHall, a 5-10, 183-pound sophomore. "He said you've got to have thatmindset. You have to have the mind-frame that you can win. You've gotto go out there believing."

Who knows? Perhaps, lightning can strike twice involving programsnamed the Mountaineers.

"Man, why not us?" said Hall. "Why not us? I think that's hittingeverybody."

Indeed, Appalachian State's stunning upset has created a wave of"on any given Saturday" sentiment here.

"With App State beating Michigan, that's right up our alley," saidquarterback Bernard Morris. "I mean, what more could you want than tobeat the No. 3 team in the nation? That's something we're going totry to pull off.

"It's like I said earlier, any given Saturday, man. It comes downto the team that doesn't give up and makes the most plays and makesthe most big plays. That's what it all really boils down to ... whomakes the big plays and who doesn't turn the ball over."

Josh Johnson agrees with Morris, pointing to execution as the keyto pulling stunning upsets.

"You watch the Appalachian State-Michigan game and they wereunderdogs," said the junior middle linebacker, noting that Marshallis a 231/2-point underdog to WVU. "But they executed all their playson both sides of the ball.

"It's not the name of the team that wins, it's the team that playsthe best that wins. They played a lot better than Michigan. That'swhat happens when you execute."

Running back Darius Marshall is a firm believer that anything canhappen if a team plays hard.

"There are a lot of breaks and gives in a game," said theimpressive true freshman. "If you come out and play hard, you mightbe rewarded with the win. You never know when lightning might striketwice.

"Anything can happen. West Virginia is a great team. They deserveto be No. 3 right now with two Heisman candidates in Steve Slaton andPat White. They're terrific athletes. But, hopefully, we can come outand upset them just like Michigan got upset last weekend."

That's the favor that Appalachian State - once a bitter Marshallrival during their NCAA Division I-AA days - inadvertently did forMarshall by upsetting Michigan just one week before the Herd hoststhe Mountaineers.

Appy State allowed Marshall to dare to believe.

"It gives you the idea that it can happen," said reserve safetyJohn Saunders, a Barboursville native. "It gives you a glimpse ofhope. That's what we're wanting to get here at Marshall. We know wecan play well, too, so hopefully we can get a win.

"Anything can happen. That's why we play football games."