Published: August 28, 2008 12:00 am         

Ratliff among MU hall inductees

Marshall has more on its slate than just Saturday’s football opener.

Seven new members will be inducted into the Marshall Athletics Hall of Fame on Friday. Among the inductees will be current Thundering Herd tight ends coach Phil Ratliff and former head coach Jim Donnan, who will provide color commentary when Marshall opens against Illinois State.

The other inductees will be Anna Mitina (tennis), Tom Kies (golf), Byron Carmichael (soccer), J.R. VanHoose (basketball) and three-sport standout Bill Harris.

All seven will be introduced prior to Saturday’s kickoff.

Marshall coach Mark Snyder knows all about the Illinois State program.

He was an assistant at rival Youngstown State in 1991-96 before moving on to Minnesota from 1997 to 2000.

Illinois State played Minnesota in 1999.

“They are very sound in what they do. They kind of look like a Big Ten team,” said Snyder, a former defensive coordinator at Ohio State. “I think their whole conference (Missouri Valley) is going that way a little bit.”

It was Snyder’s custom his first three seasons to have the team vote on four captains. Beckley natives Shavar Greer and Doug Legursky have been among those chosen for the honor.

This year, however, Snyder has decided to make his entire senior class the team captains.

“They have done a great job of leading this summer and through preseason camp,” Snyder said. “I know for a fact when you name four or five guys as a captain, the others tend to move to the back of the group a little bit and we did not want that to happen.”

There are 14 seniors on the roster, seven of them starters. They are receivers Emmanuel Spann and Darius Passmore, offensive linemen Brian Leggett and Matt Altobello, defensive end Ian Hoskins, linebacker Maurice Kitchens and free safety C.J. Spillman.

True freshman Ahmed Shakoor wound up second on the depth chart at one of the cornerback spots. He will back up redshirt freshman T.J. Drakeford.

“He has done good,” Snyder said. “He has some natural leadership ability in him. He can run well. We’re excited about him.”

Shakoor, a 5-foot-11, 195-pound Stone Mountain, Ga., native, was ranked as the No. 27 cornerback in the country by ESPN.com and No. 46 by Rivals.com out of Stephenson High. He runs a 4.44, and had 50 tackles and 12 pass breakups as a senior.

The game ball for Saturday’s game will be delivered by the U.S. Army Fastrax Airborne parachute team.

Also, the first 5,000 fans will receive a free Marshall schedule magnet.