After a rocky start, Marshall's Doc Holliday has done a masterful job raising the profile of a decades long struggling Thundering Herd team. Holliday has reinvigorated the Herd program to become the top team in Conference USA. In fact, Holliday's recruiting has put Marshall head and shoulders above every other team in Conference USA.(read Marshall Football) Now, with rumors swirling that Holliday and Pitt are interested in each other, it seems reasonable that Holliday's time at Marshall might be coming to an end.
Holliday was hired in 2009 by AD Mike Hamrick to turn the Marshall program into a winner. Marshall,no stranger to Championships and winning seasons, had been in a long winners slump since entering Conference USA in 2005. Hamrick hired Holliday in the midst of a coaching arms race in Conference USA. Former Conference USA school's, UCF, ECU, Houston, and Tulsa as well as current conference mate, Southern Miss, had dominated the Conference USA winners circle for years. Good schools push other schools in their conference to either get better or get worse, Hamrick decided that he wanted the Thundering Herd to get better. If Marshall was going to keep up with the cream of the Conference USA crop, the program would need to hire a superior coach. In many ways, Holliday represents the last of the old guard in Conference USA. A conference that once was a cradle for talented coaches learning their craft and then moving on to larger schools.
Holliday's biggest asset has been his strong recruiting ties to Florida. Holliday quickly made the Thundering Herd recruiting classes the highest rated in Conference USA. Early on in his Head Coaching career with the Herd however, it looked as if his teams would have great on field talent, but average coaching. As a first time head coach, Holliday made some rookie mistakes that cost the Herd games early in his coaching tenure. He quickly learned however, that just as important as good players, are good assistant and position coaches. To his credit, Holliday, over the last two years, has assembled one of the best coaching staff's in Conference USA. The result of which, have been two 10 win seasons in a row and the reality of being one of the best G5 programs.
Marshall's dilemma in keeping Holliday is two fold, money and conference prestige. Holliday is not even the highest paid coach in Conference USA this year. Couple this with very public comments by the CFP( College Football Playoff Committee) of no confidence in Marshall's bid for the coveted Access Bowl this year( largely because of its weak schedule in Conference USA) and the time looks right for a speedy Holliday departure. Further complicating Marshall's attempt at keeping Holliday is the reality that a 12-1 season this year has landed the Thundering Herd in an a bad bowl game against a G5 opponent that will garner little interest to the rest of the college football world.
Doc Holliday will be an asset to any P5 school looking for a coach with strong ties to talent rich Florida and a proven ability to learn from his mistakes. If Holliday does leave after this season, the Marshall program will face a very uncertain future. Holliday is a double edged sword for Marshall, as his gift to the program is largely himself, a gift that will be very difficult to replace if he leaves. Marshall has become the envy of Conference USA. If Holliday were to stay for several more years, the Thundering Herd would almost certainly become a worthy candidate for the AAC if a slot were to open up in that conference. If Holliday does leave this year, Marshall recruiting will almost certainly regress. This regression, and the reality of playing in a watered down Conference USA, will make for some very nervous Thundering Herd fans. Stay tuned.
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