Leftwich's Jaguars win in rematch with Pennington

By Anthony Hanshew
The Herald-Dispatch

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- Sunday's gathering at Giants Stadium was equal parts football and family, at least from the quarterbacks' perspective.

Former Marshall University teammates Chad Pennington and Byron Leftwich squared off Sunday afternoon on the NFL stage, renewing the friendliest of rivalries. Numerous members of the Thundering Herd football family, including their former coach, watched from Pennington's box seats as Leftwich earned the right to boast with a 26-20 overtime victory.

Leftwich closed a physical, hard-fought contest with a 36-yard touchdown to Jimmy Smith, improving the Jacksonville Jaguars to 2-1. Pennington and the New York Jets dropped to 1-2.

"He got me the first time, and I got him this time," Leftwich said, referring to the Jets' victory over Jacksonville in 2003.

Marshall's top two all-time passing leaders were repeatedly knocked to the turf during their reunion. A punishing John Abraham shot to Leftwich's chest resulted in a 33-yard fumble return touchdown by James Reed; Pennington was temporarily knocked from the game, following a blindside shot to his surgically repaired shoulder.

"That's the job of playing quarterback," Leftwich said. "You have to take your shots. You've got to get up from it and go out and be ready to play."

Sunday's matchup wasn't always aesthetically pleasing, but it was competitive throughout. Leftwich completed 16 of 23 passes for 177 yards and two touchdowns, and Pennington connected on nine of 19 attempts for 76 yards.

Pennington was sacked four times and intercepted twice, and Leftwich was picked off once and sacked twice. - NFL Football -

Of greater concern than statistics or perhaps even a loss was the status of Pennington's shoulder. His February surgery kept him from participating in most preseason camps.

"It's frustrating and demoralizing," said Pennington, who led Marshall to an undefeated 1999 season. "You work really hard to get back to play, put in all of the extra hours of work to get back on the field. And then to have something like that happen -- it really tests you."

Bobby Pruett, who coached both Leftwich and Pennington during his Marshall tenure from 1996-2004, caught an early flight Sunday morning to take in the duo's secondNFL encounter. Pruett provided color commentary for Saturday's Troy-South Carolina game (kickoff in Columbia, S.C., was 7 p.m.) and flew to New Jersey early Sunday with his wife, Elsie.

Joining the Pruetts in Pennington's box seats were Chad's family and several prominent Thundering Herd supporters.

"I had a friendship with Byron, too, because we were the same age and went to Marshall," said Pennington's younger sister, Andrea. "Plus, coach Pruett is here and a lot of the Marshall family, so it's a special day." - NFL Football -

Two years ago, Pennington's Jets edged Leftwich and the Jaguars 13-10 in the same stadium. Marshall fans Dean and Debra Cusatis made the easy, 30-minute trip from their New Jersey residence and again were in attendance Sunday.

This time, the drive lasted nine hours. They have since moved to Burlington, N.C., but remain enthusiastic Thundering Herd and Jets fans, attending several games a season.

"It shows how far Marshall's program has come," Dean Cusatis said while grilling burgers outside of Giants Stadium. "They represent very well for a school their size. It makes you feel good because you know you're not a bandwagon fan if you watched Chad play in college for four years and you watched Byron in college for four years."

Following Sunday's action, Leftwich, Pennington and Pruett joined for a jovial chat near the stadium's entrance ramp. Just minutes before, frustration from an overtime loss was unmistakable while addressing the media. - NFL Football -

Funny what seeing friendly faces can do to a mood.

"It's been a good weekend," Pennington said, excluding the obvious. "It's always good to see two Marshall guys out there competing, and you've got (Jacksonville punter and Marshall alum) Chris (Hanson), who is punting as well as anybody in the league.

"It says a lot about our program and where we came from and hopefully where we're going to go."

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