Mark Snyder: Playing Possum

You can get away with a lot of things, if that is all it looks like you know how to do. That was what I heard someone say once, and in my time on this planet, I have noticed that to be a constant. 

For Marshall University Football Head Coach Mark Snyder, I believe this has been not only a constant, but a strategy. In the heart of the folksy "aw shucks" area of the United States it is expected by some. Although the leader of a football program is not one of those positions fans usually like to have the "good ole' boy charm".

Snyder's oft-quoted "We need to fix that," has become the brunt of many jokes around the W. Page Pitt School of Journalism and Mass Communications at Marshall. It has even become cliche and tag line on the Herd Nation message boards. However, I am starting to see genius where others see ignorance.

Marshall fans have expected the prominence of the last decade to have continued through these years, but it did not. Coach Snyder may have known what he was working with and knew it was going to be a longer turnaround than expected.

Moving from the Mid-American Conference to Conference USA is no easy task, coupled with the fact that Marshall was still serving NCAA sanctioned probation for violations under Bob Pruett. 

The problems facing The Thundering Herd were not going to disappear overnight, and I believe Snyder knew that. Animals have defense mechanisms and human beings are no different. Putting up a false front is one of the oldest tricks in the book.

I am no saint. On numerous occasions, I have called Snyder out on questionable plays and poor choices. However, one also needs to remember that this is Snyder's first job as the head of a program and the learning curve in college football is very steep.

Going into the 2009 season, I feel, from what I have seen and heard, Snyder knows a lot more than he wants everyone else in Huntington, WV, and Conference USA to know. He has had his players in the system that currently stands for a season now and has surrounded himself with coaches of his choosing.

My expectations are not that Marshall will win the conference, although CUSA has shown itself to be unpredictable in the East Division. For me, a winning season will be sufficient, as it will be for Snyder.

However, if a winning season is not the result in December, then Mark Snyder will have to find a new defense mechanism. This time, against unemployment.