Marshall coach credits former Winfield boss as mentor by Chuck McGill, Daily Mail, Friday December 18, 2009

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. - Two hard-nosed football coaches shared a lengthy embrace at a news conference here at the Marshall Memorial Student Center's Alumni Lounge on Thursday.

One of those men is a 1975 Hurricane High School grad who, after a dogged and determined career as an assistant coach, had finally broken through by earning his first head coaching job. The other man, a Charleston High School grad and Winfield coaching legend, was credited with laying the foundation for Thursday's moment.John "Doc" Holliday was named the Thundering Herd's 29th head football coach, ending a nearly three-week search for Mark Snyder's replacement. But as Holliday, 52, gave a nod to college football mentors such as West Virginia's Don Nehlen and Florida's Urban Meyer, he said Winfield's Leon McCoy "had a greater influence on me than anyone in the world." It all started in the small basement at Sleepy Hollow Country Club in Hurricane, where Holliday joined Winfield athletes for weight-lifting sessions.