[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 147 (2001), Part 20]
[House]
[Page 27579]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]



                MARSHALL UNIVERSITY GMAC BOWL CHAMPIONS

  (Mr. RAHALL asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 
minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. RAHALL. Mr. Speaker, last night's GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama 
could have carried a warning from the Surgeon General: Not recommended 
for those with heart conditions. In the end, with all due respect to 
the gentleman from North Carolina (Mr. Jones), the best team won.
  In only its fifth year, the Marshall University Thundering Herd 
stampeded over East Carolina. Although the Herd was down 38-8 at half-
time, the enthusiasm of Marshall's fans did not waiver.
  But Marshall rallied in the third quarter and charged on in the 
fourth. When time expired, the game was tied at 51. The noble opponents 
battled through two overtimes before Byron Leftwich connected on a pass 
to Josh Davis, ending the contest and securing the laurels of victory 
for our Thundering Herd. As the headline in the Huntington Herald 
Dispatch reads this morning, ``Miracle in Mobile.''
  I congratulate Marshall's tenacious players and coaches, and applaud 
its faithful fans. Few football programs have suffered as severe a 
loss, struggled so valiantly, and risen to such heights, all in the 
course of 30 years.
  During half time, Coach Bobby Pruett, who hails from my hometown of 
Beckley, West Virginia, talked with his team of belief and faith. It is 
a lesson we should all remember, not only in times of need, but in our 
everyday lives.

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