Thursday, November 13, 2008

We are Marshall!!!


On November 14, 1970 at around 7:35 pm Southern Airways Flight 932 crashed down a hill near Tri-State Airport in Huntington, West Virginia and killed all seventy-five passengers on board. The death list included thirty-seven members and most of the coaches of the Marshall University Thundering Herd football team. Not on the plane were three varsity players, one assistant football coach and a graduate assistant coach. Numerous local dignitaries and school officials were also on the flight.
In December, 2006 the movie "We are Marshall", starring Matthew McConaughey, Matthew Fox (from the TV show "Lost") and Kate Mara (granddaughter of New York Giants owner Wellington Mara), chronicled the rebuilding of the team and its' first victory during the following football season. This movie was filmed on the Marshall University campus and in Atlanta, GA including my old high school football field, Tara Staduim. Oddly, Marshall's football stadium from 1971 has been torn down.
Watch the video and comment on the video and the movie (if you have seen it). If you have seen the movie reply with your comments on it. Is the movie inspirational? Is it accurate? If not, research it for a few minutes, then comment. Do you see something good that came from it?

27 comments:

Unknown said...

Being destroyed is a very hard thing to come back from. The team in the movie is killed in a plane crash in the very first scenes. With seemingly no hope, the football team falls apart due to the school officials’ lack of confidence. The college students then protest, and get the team started back up again with an almost complete new team line-up. The team loses most of their first games through the movie, making it seem impossible that they could ever win. However, in the end of the movie the team pulls together and wins a game. I think this movie is very inspiring because it shows even the little guys who have nothing to their name can win with enough effort.

Shaylor Merritt said...

I first saw "We Are Marshall" in Driver's Ed. I thought it was a sad and touching movie, considering it was based on real events. I think when most people see that type of tragedy; they try to imagine how those directly affected feel by putting themselves in that position. I only have a few friends, but they are all like brothers or sisters to me. Also, a football team is like a family. I can't imagine losing 37 members of my family at once. With all this death in our world, it still seems the living end up hurt the most. As the ancient philosopher Plato once said, "Only the dead have seen the end of the war."

Unknown said...

I have not yet seen the movie “We Are Marshall” yet. Now that I have seen a little clip from it, though, I would love to see what it is all about. The clip that we watched was very touching. It inspired me to want to go see it even more. I hope that I will get a chance to watch the whole movie some time soon.

Muhammad R. said...

I have seen this movie before. It is based on a true story. It is sad to see the people who have to live without the team. The movie is inspiring to me and shows you to live life to the fullest, because tragedy can strike at any time. Anything can happen, and sometimes death is unpredictable.

Unknown said...

When I first heard of the movie We Are Marshal, I was not sure if I wanted to watch it because it was a true story which meant true pain. After seeing it, I felt so sad to see the hurt that was caused due to all those people dying. It was amazing how one event could cause people in a community to come together and become one. Even though this did not happen here, it makes you think about the what if’s. We Are Marshall should make people want to love everyone and appreciate them for the time they have on this earth.

Unknown said...

The movie, “We are Marshall” is heartbreaking, tear jerking, sad movie. The movie was phenomenal! I feel really bad for the 37 families who lost their loved ones. Losing a loved one is a really horrible thing to have to go through. I believe that if a movie can make you cry and you hardly even know the person/people the movie was based on, then it had to be even harder for the family and friends. It must have been a tragic, horrible day.

Fyfe said...

Well this blog is very educational because it tells us about the history of "We Are Marshall." I think this movie is very touching for those who where friends and family members of the football team and others and I'm sure it was touching for just the people who watched the movie. This movie is such a great movie and pretty sure it has inspired many people. The events that happened in this movie (which was based on true events) are very tragic. But I encourage you to watch this movie because it is such a great movie

-Ben Fyfe

Skye said...

I feel that the video "We are Marshall" was very touching. It made me realize that life is short and it is a horrible thing to waste. If you believe life is horrible now, think again! What would you do if one day you realized you had lost someone dear to you? For example, you find out you lost your mother or your best friend and then you realized during their last moments you were rude to them. So think about your life, where do you stand?

trevor said...

Marshall took a huge hit that day. Today at Marshall University their fountain has stop in the memory of those who were lost that night. The new Head coach (of the 1971 team) tried to rebuild the Thundering Herd. He had talk to the board members, into allowing him to play freshmen. If it wasn't for Marshall we probably wouldn't play freshmen to today.

Unknown said...

The movie “We Are Marshall” is a very sad and touching movie. I feel sorrow for all of the families that had to get the phone call or heard about it. That moment of shock has to be hard to deal with knowing that it’s over and her son is gone. The one football player that lived has to wonder every now and then why it wasn’t his time. I know that one minute they were all just ready to play the game and the next they are gone. I don’t exactly know how I would react to seeing the whole field on fire and knowing that my friend is in that. Everyone wants to live to grow older and they never got the chance. I think this movie has a very touching story and because I know it really happened it’s hard to deal with. When I saw that movie I wondered how I would take a horrible tragedy like that. I would not mind seeing that movie again.

Ball23 said...

Being a member of a team this really shows how important it is to respect my teammates. We have to live everyday like it’s our last because tomorrow is not promised. I have learned how to forgive people and not hold grudges. You never know when the ones you love are going to leave this earth. You have to be careful how you treat people. I have realized that is not all about me. This movie is a great way to explain that you need to stay close to the ones you love. People may understand the way I am they may not understand me at all but that gives me all the more reason to be me and love my life. I have learned to be thankful for what I do have and the love ones that I do have. To lose 37 people that you care about and that you are used to be around is hard. It’s hard just to lose one person that you care about so I could not imagine 37. When you come across situations like this you have to be very strong to get through them. Some how and some way you have to think on the positive side to make things better. I live life to the fullest because life is too short to wait to live it.

Roland Downing said...

To my First Block students. You all did some super work after we spent some time discussing proofreading. Remember that if it is worth doing, it is worth doing well! Also, it is not easy to lose one friend or loved one, much else 37 or even 75 of them. Have a great weekend!

Unknown said...

I've seen the movie before in English and Driver's Education.The movie was based on a true story, about the Marshall Football team being in a plane crash. Today is the anniversary of the plane crash of the football team. Friends and family was very upset about that tragedy. If one of my friends was in a plane crash like that I'll be very upset about it. Especially if we were very close friend.

Unknown said...

I think the video was very sad and touching to watch. And I also saw the movie "We are Marshall" and that movie was the best football movie I ever seen in my entire life. And I also think the movie was very inspiring and accurate. The reason why think the movie is inspiring is because even know they lost all their football players, they never gave up making another football team. And it was a very good history lesson for me to learn from.

Unknown said...

I have once watched "We Are Marshall" it was a very long time ago. The first time i had seen the movie i cried nonstop. A plane of football players, coaches, the bus driver, and teachers were all killed at one time. The school had to come up with a whole new football team because every high school has a football team. This was a very horrible thing to happen, but they all moved on with there lives.

Unknown said...

"We Are Marshall" is an inspiration film that shows the feelings of a town after the death of many in a plane crash. The members aboard that plane were most of the varsity football team and coaches from Marshall University. It occurred in 1970 and 75 people were killed. It took the lives of many, and changed the lives of many more. No one will ever forget that day I am sure. I would hate to be in that position and wouldn't wish it on anyone. The movie, I believe, is pretty accurate. It displays many feelings given from that town that, I am sure, was felt when the crash actually happened. The movie is incredibly inspirational as you watch a town's community come together as one big family, and fight through the tragedy together.

Maurica said...

I think that the fact the whole football team died is pretty sad. I think that the accident is inspiring because it shows you that you should always appreciate life. Live life to the fullest while you are here. I think that the accident may have brought families together and created a strong bond in the school. I have not seen "We Are Marshall", but it seems like it would be a very interesting movie.

Anonymous said...

We are Marshall was a very sad movie. All of the family members of the football players must have been completely devastated. I really don’t think anything could come out good from a situation like this, except the community coming together as a whole. I can’t even imagine this happening to our football team in Windsor. I would not be the same person after such a tragedy. This school means a lot to me as do the people that make it such a great place, and if we were to loose thirty of those people at one time it would completely turn my world upside down.

Lauren! said...

I think this movie is one of the best ever made. This movie has a wonderful story behind it. It is very inspirational because even though basically the whole team was killed in a plane crash there were a few individuals who were determined to get the football team up and going again. Also in the movie the coaches had to fight for the right to let freshmen play. If they wouldn't have been able to play then the football team would not have existed. I think that the coaches show a great deal of dedication when they were trying their hardest for the team. To me the movie is pretty accurate. The scenes were pretty much thorough in my opinion and followed the story behind it. Some of the scenes may not have been exactly on point but I think they followed well enough. Even though We are Marshall is an extremely sad movie it is inspirational to all. I would definitely recommend this movie to others.

whsduke™ said...

The clip is very emotional because it shows how three players lost basically their whole family. I have seen the movie and it is very hard to understand what those players and families went through. If practically my whole football team died, I do not know how I would cope with it. Your football team is like your family, and I would think it to be even more so in a college where you are away from your immediate family for months at a time. Those players who rebuilt the team are heroes in a sense for their being able to go through all that pain and still be able to bring back the football team. I believe that the movie is an awesome tribute to the people who lost loved ones in the crash. It is also a very inspirational movie due to the fact it teaches that even in times of hurt, we all must learn to move on while still remembering that though our loved ones are not on this earth anymore, they live on through those who cared about them.

Unknown said...

I have never seen the movie “We are Marshall” although I have heard that it is a touching movie. Luckily, I have never lost a close friend or family member and could not imagine what the people involved with the crash must have gone through. Now I want to see the movie and know more about what happened. I wonder how the families of the victims are doing now?

LeAnne said...

We are Marshall was a great movie. It opens your eyes to life, it doesn’t last forever. We never know when that’s going be our last breath, the last time you hug you dad, last time you say mom I love you. The movie touched my life personally, I changed the way I leave my house. Some days I would leave angry and say I hate you. What if that was the last time I could have ever talk to my mom, my best friend. How could I live knowing that was the last thing my mom herd? I try and do better now. I couldn’t live with myself

Unknown said...

I have never seen the movie We are Marshall before and I didn't want to because it was a sad true story. When I saw the video that was shown in class I thought most of teenagers complain and fuss about what's not fair and so on. Those teenagers were killed and really didn't get a chance to live life and I thought that was breath taking to hear about that tragic loss not just towards the team but to their families and friends. I thought that it was sad and unfair to them. I think that it is important to continue to spread this story so that others will read and understand that after the tears and grief their courage and strength continues to live on in hope that even when things seem impossible there is a way to break through the pain to peace and happiness.

Unknown said...

That video was sad to watch all the people crying and hurt because they lost a close friend. I have lost a father and that was real hard. I couldn't imagine losing a friend. If I had lost a friend a teammate it would hard to deal with, because when a person or people become apart of your life it’s not just something you can put on a shelf. I can actually be a witness to that. About two years ago I met this guy in the hospital and we started talking, and after we talked for a while and spent time together there was something about us that made us be a part of one another . Not as husband and wife but as brother and sister so anyway on October 2 2004 he walked out and my whole life crashed

Roger said...

I think that the movie was very inspirational because it give hope to people. Even though they have lost everything, they still live your life and things like that happen. No, I do not think that the movie went the way that the real story went. Yes, I see same good thing that has come out of this. Some of the thing was that the freshmen that played would not have played without that happen.

Layfette said...

This movie helps you love before you lose it and lets you know tomorrow is not promised. The movie shows how great a sport like football is, how people come together because of football. The movie was sad but also inspirational. It teaches you to never give up. That is what life is all about.

Roland Downing said...

To my Third Block students. You all did some great work. Make sure that you proofread your work before publishing. Remember that if it is worth doing, it is worth doing well! Also, it is not easy to lose one friend or loved one, much less 37 or even 75 of them. Have a great weekend!