There is a scene near the beginning of the movie Rudy that shows the main character playing football in the yard with his older brothers. Obviously, Rudy started life a little later than his brothers, so the playing field wasnt quite equal. The older brothers took advantage of this fact, so when Rudy competed, he got pushed around. But what Rudys brothers and everyone else in the film underestimated was the size of his heart. The end of the story is familiar to movie and sports fans alike, as the diminutive football players perseverance earned him the chance, against all odds, to play football at Notre Dame. The little brother simply had more drive and determination, so despite shortcomings, he broke through and defied expectations. Today, for the ninth time in history and fifth time since 1997, the Marshall Thundering Herd faces the West Virginia Mountaineers. The Herds next win in this series will be its first. And although the Mountaineers have a larger stadium, bigger athletics budget (more than double) and more resources, Marshall, like Rudy, seems tired of getting pushed around. Weve always been like their little brother, MU defensive lineman John Jacobs said. Its time for us to grow up. WVUs first four wins in the series came between 1911 and 1923, and since the Friends of Coal Bowl commenced in 2006, the series has belonged to the Mountaineers. The average score of those three games: 39-12. Marshall Coach Mark Snyder was on the Herd sidelines for each Coal Bowl. We need to do our job, he said. Ive said this now for two years. We need to do our job to make this thing competitive so it does blow up into a full-blown rivalry. I think that onus is on us now. Now seems like the time to bear that burden. Marshall enters its date with WVU with a half-seasons worth of games under its belt, the most ever before a Coal Bowl. The Herd also is coming off consecutive road wins, the first time it has accomplished that feat under Snyder. A postseason bowl game is within reach. Being able to get to 5-2 and one game closer to bowl eligibility would be huge, Marshall quarterback Brian Anderson said. But I think it would be huge for Marshall fans if we could go up there and upset the Mountaineers. Theyve definitely had the upper hand on us each year, but two years ago when they played (in Huntington) we had them for three quarters and let it slip away. Hopefully we can finish the game off this time. Future venues for the Coal Bowl is a hot topic these days, especially with new MU Athletic Director Mike Hamrick getting settled in Huntington. All but one of the past five WVU-Marshall matchups has been in Morgantown (counting todays contest), which is undoubtedly contributing to the lopsidedness of the series. Hamrick and WVU Athletic Director Ed Pastilong have held discussions about continuing the series beyond 2012, the end of the current agreement. Pastilong has made a hard, public stance that he needs a 2-for-1 agreement in favor of WVU. Hamrick wants the Coal Bowl to be played each year Its a game that needs to be played, he said but the financial windfall for Herd athletics when the game is played in Huntington makes a 1-for-1, or an agreement more favorable than a 2- for-1, imperative for the Herd. It helps us financially, it fills our stadium and helps our season ticket sales, Hamrick said. Im not embarrassed to say that. Its a good game for the state of West Virginia, and it helps us when the game is played in Huntington. Thats true on and off the field. As Anderson mentioned, the Herd had the Mountaineers on the ropes in 07 and even led at halftime, 13-6. But in the two Coal Bowl games in Morgantown, MU has scored on just three possessions in eight quarters and WVU has won by 32 and 24 points, respectively. WVU fans are loud and probably get even louder for us, Anderson said. Theyre crazy about their Mountaineers and that makes it tough to execute. Rudy never grew to be as big as his brothers, but once he matured, size didnt matter. This Marshall team is bigger, faster and stronger than the teams that were walloped by an average of 27 points the last three years, according to Snyder. If thats true, then the Herd, oozing with confidence, is the closest its been since 07 to having a team capable of knocking off its in- state FBS brethren. Maybe a little heart and determination will make up the difference. Around here people tend to not like WVU and we are tired of losing this game, Marshall center Chad Schofield said, so we want to really bring it this time.

Marshall schedule 4-2 overall (2-1 C-USA) Sept. 5 Southern Illinois W, 31-28 Sept. 12 at Virginia Tech L, 52-10 Sept. 19 Bowling Green W, 17-10 Sept. 26 at Memphis W, 27-16 Oct. 3 East Carolina L, 21-17 Oct. 10 at Tulane W, 31-10 Today at West Virginia 3:30 p.m. Oct. 24 UAB Noon Nov. 1 at UCF 8:15 p.m. Nov. 14 Southern Miss. 4:30 p.m. Nov. 21 SMU 4:30 p.m. Nov. 28 at UTEP 3 p.m.