Wayne County High Schools, Middle Schools , MU, WVU

By JOHN RABY,AP Sports WriterHUNTINGTON, W.Va. (AP) — Marshallcoach Doc Holliday doesn’t want to see arepeat of last year’s floundering defense.While Marshall thrived behind quarterbackRakeem Cato, opposing offenses ranup 43 points per game on the ThunderingHerd, which allowed at least 50 points fivetimes.Chris Rippon resigned as defensivecoordinator a day after Marshall finishedthe season 5-7. The widely traveled ChuckHeater, who was on Urban Meyer’s staffat Florida along with Holliday last decade,was hired by Holliday from Temple to tryto straighten out a unit that returns sevenstarters.“Offensively we took some strides. Wegot better a year ago,” said Holliday, Marshall’sfourth-year coach. “Defensively, wedidn’t. We’ve got to make sure that happensthis year.”He’ll try to turn things around with Heater,who’s at his 12th school in a college coachingcareer that began in 1976. Heater earnedThe Wayne County News, 2013 Football Preview, AUGUST 28, 2013, PAGE 29Cato’s return has Marshall confident in 2013two national championship rings while onUrban Meyer’s staff at Florida and anotherin 1988 at Notre Dame.“Seeing from last year to this year, youcan tell the attitude of the defense changed,”said Marshall defensive end Jeremiah Taylor.“When somebody makes a play, you seethe whole sideline up and cheering, rootingthem on.”Marshall has yet to earn a berth in theConference USA championship game sincejoining the league in 2005. The key to gettingthere this season could loom in the regularseasonfinale Nov. 29 at home against EastDivision favorite East Carolina.Marshall opens the season at home Aug.31 against Miami (Ohio).Here are five things to know as Marshalllooks for its third winning season in fiveyears:1. CAN CATO CLICK?: Cato’s 4,201passing yards last season were nearly 1,100yards more than any other Conference USAquarterback and were the third most in schoolhistory. Cato’s 37 touchdown passes lastyear were two shy of Chad Pennington’sschool record 39 set in 1997. With a veteranoffensive line protecting him, Cato looks tohave another great season. “He has a totallyunderstanding of what we’re trying to getdone offensively,” Holliday said.2. TOP TARGETS: Despite the loss ofAaron Dobson to the NFL, Cato has severalsolid returnees in wideout Tommy Shuler andtight end Gator Hoskins. Shuler, who’s returningfrom offseason foot surgery, amasseda school-record 110 catches for 1,138 yardsand six touchdowns last year, while Hoskinshad 35 catches for 374 yards and a team-high10 scores. Penn State transfer Devon Smithis eligible after sitting out last season. Hecaught 25 passes for 402 yards in 2011 forthe Nittany Lions.3. WHERE’S THE D?: Marshall lostfour games a year ago by seven points orless, and one of the reasons may have beenseveral injuries in the secondary. CornerbackDarryl Roberts missed all of last seasonrecovering from a broken ankle, and safetyA.J. Leggett sat out with a shoulder injury.Third-leading tackler D.J. Hunter at safetyjoins them in a depth-filled secondary. Theline is led by Taylor, who led Marshall with5.5 sacks and was ranked fifth in tackles with54. Fourth-leading tackler Jermaine Holmesis a key at linebacker.4. NOT SO FRIENDLY HOME: Marshallis 11-6 at home under Holliday but went just3-3 last season. There was a time when JoanC. Edwards Stadium was a virtual lock for ahome win. The Thundering Herd went 91-7there from 1990 to 2004.5. COACHES IN FLUX: In addition toHeater, Marshall added five other assistantcoaches for this season: Adam Fuller atlinebacker, Sean Cronin at defensive end,Mike Furrey at wide receiver, ThomasBrown at running back, and Alex Mirabalon the offensive line. Several veteran assistantsalso took on new responsibilities, andScott Sinclair was hired as Marshall’s fifthfootball strength and conditioning coach inthe past two years.Predicted order of finish in ConferenceUSA: Second in East Division.THE HERD’S HOPE – In this Oct. 6, 2012 file photo, Marshall quarterback Rakeem Cato reacts after a Herd fumble was recovered and turned into a touchdown by Tulsaduring an NCAA college football game in Huntington, W.Va. Marshall coach Doc Holliday doesn’t want to see a repeat of last year’s floundering defense. While Marshallthrived behind quarterback Rakeem Cato, opposing offenses ran up 43 points per game on the Thundering Herd, which allowed at least 50 points five times. (AP Photo/TheHerald-Dispatch, Mark Webb, File)