Marshall University: Ashes to Glory

Clearly released to coincide with the publicity generated by the feature film We Are Marshall, starring Matthew McConaughey, filmmakers John Witek and Deborah Novak's two-hour 2000 documentary Marshall University revisits one of the most inspiring “comeback” stories in the history of college sports. In the fall of 1970, a chartered plane carrying the coaches and players of Marshall University's proud football team crashed, tragically killing all aboard. The bulk of the film recounts the efforts of substitute coach Jack Lengyel to reconstitute the team from scratch, secure the support of heartbroken Huntington, WV residents, and mount an extraordinary follow-up championship season. Combining archival game footage with filmed interviews, this very traditionally made documentary pieces together an unusually moving real-life story of triumph over almost unimaginable despair. DVD extras include a “making-of” documentary, and a trio of featurettes (on Huntington in the 1970s and profiles of the two Thundering Herd Marshall teams). Recommended. Aud: C, P. (E. Hulse)