Herd Athletic Director makes plea for HC

[Coach Bill Lewis]

Dec. 5, 2016

Dear Thundering Herd fans:

Seven years ago this month, when I introduced Doc Holliday as our head football coach, I made a plea to all: leave ego at the door. I’m taking my own advice here.

This is where I went to school. This is where I met my wife. This is where my family and I wanted to be when we were blessed with the opportunity to return here in 2009. Losing hurts. Negativity causes pain. Rumors, from the mild to the absurd, affect all of us deeply because they affect the perception of our city, our school and our athletic department.

I am listening.

First, let me assure you that there is an open-door policy for our student-athletes – current and former – when they have issues. We have met and talked to people – and will continue to do so – regarding any issue that has ever surfaced. We understand those who are upset by recent events. We did our best, but we acknowledge we can do better. We’re listening to them to make sure they – like all former athletes here – are appreciated. We value every former student-athlete whether they were part of an undefeated national championship team or my teams of the 1970s who didn’t experience that level of success. We’re all part of the program’s rich history, whether one was an All-American or a walk-on who didn’t see a snap.

That is why it hurts to read about the disappointment from our former student-athletes and our passionate fan base. I left skin out on that field, too. It is the gift and the curse of being the athletic director at your alma mater – there is no one who wants this athletic department to prosper more than me, and it hurts like hell when we come up short.

Fans, the disappointment is justified. The football season is not what any of us wanted, and that is especially true in the offices of the athletic director and the head football coach. Be assured, Coach Holliday will not rest until the football program is pointed in the right direction. When I leave the Shewey Building at night, it is comforting to see the light on in the head coach’s office. His passion and fire have not been subdued. If anything, they have been stoked. I appreciate his deliberate approach to the evaluation of the players and staff this offseason. He has my full support.

We embrace our own here, which is why beloved Marshall basketball great Dan D’Antoni was brought back to rejuvenate our hoops program. We are loyal here. We compete the right way here. We do not cut corners and we do not cheat the system here. We value academics here. Marshall University had the most academic medal-winners in Conference USA during the 2015-16 calendar year. We have coaches who stay and see their programs flourish. In the past years, we have been in the mix for championships in football, men’s basketball, baseball, women’s basketball, men’s soccer, women’s soccer, volleyball and more. We have built tens of millions of dollars of new facilities. We are not finished.

We. Ten times in that paragraph I used the word “we.” We have accomplished this – together. Our student-athletes compete for championships because we have a passionate fan base that supports them – either by being there to cheer in the stands or through financial means. It all matters. Every little bit helps. We succeed because of you. We need you.

I am reminded of a shirt I saw one of our prominent former players wore to a game this season. The front read: Marshall vs. Everybody. This is a concept I want us to embrace. We need every last one of you to be ambassadors for our city, our school and our athletic department. We are in this together.

This is my eighth year at Marshall. We have accomplished a lot together. But I know the scrutiny that comes with the position. All decisions are not going to be popular. Every decision is not one size fits all. We cannot possibly satisfy everyone. That is the hard part, but it is a burden I welcome because I know we all bleed Kelly green. There is nothing worse than indifference, and there’s no sign of indifference with this fan base. You’re passionate. You have heart. You’ve made yourself loud and clear over the past days, weeks and months – and that is refreshing and reassuring.

From this point on, it is Marshall vs. Everybody. Stay together and we will overcome together.

We are One Herd.

Mike Hamrick