Earlier this week, I wrote about the Marshall University plane crash in 1970. As a follow up to that post, I want to share some follow-up information.

A bust of Nate Ruffin was recently unveiled during the 2010 Homecoming Festivities on Marshall University’s campus. Ruffin was a member of the 1970 Thundering Herd football team and was very instrumental in keeping the program alive after the crash. Ruffin did not make the ill-fated trip to eastern North Carolina the day of the crash because of an injury. Ruffin, who was portrayed by Anthony Mackie in the film We Are Marshall passed away several years ago and is buried at Springhill Cemetery in Huntington, WV, beside the mass grave holding the six unidentified bodies from the crash.

Steve and Mary Williams commissioned the bust of Ruffin. During the October 2010 Homecoming ceremonies, the Marshall Black Alumni Association, along with the Marshall University Alumni Association, held a joint champagne reception to dedicate the Nate Ruffin Lounge in the Marshall University Foundation Hall, home of the Erickson Alumni Center.