HUNTINGTON, W.Va. (MU SID) - The Thundering Herd football team conducted the first of 15 spring practices Tuesday at Joan C. Edwards Stadium.

Thursday's 3:30 p.m. practice and Saturday's full-pads practice at 11 a.m. are open to the public.

The Herd will practice in Charleston on April 12 (11 a.m. at Laidley Field) and conclude spring practice with the Annual Green and White game at Edwards Stadium on Saturday, April 26 at 3 p.m.

Head Coach Mark Snyder enters his third full spring with a wealth of returning players and competition this spring should be intense as the Herd welcomes back 33 players who have started at least once in the career.

The Marshall Offense will be under the direction of first-year offensive coordinator John Shannon who will have the task of finding a replacement for departed quarterback Bernard Morris.

The Herd will also look to fill holes along the offensive line where it must replace All-Conference USA center Doug Legursky as well as tackle John Innman.

The good news for Shannon is that Marshall returns nearly all of its skill players, including a stable of running backs led by 2007 C-USA All-Freshman selection Darius Marshall.

Veterans also abound on the oustisde as Marshall brings back a number of vertical threats including tight end Cody Slate and wideouts Darius Passmore and Emmanuel Spann.

The Marshall defense is looking to rebound from a 2007 season that was filled with injuries and new defensive coordinator Rick Minter looks to have a quality pool of players to work with.

The defensive line should get a huge boost from the return of 2006 Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year Albert McClellan and senior defensive lineman Montel Glasco who were sidelined a year ago with injuries (the duo will be limited this spring, but they are expected to be ready this fall).

A stable of talented young players that benefited from significant playing time a year ago, and the return of impact players like All-C-USA selection C.J. Spillman at safety and Maurice Kitchens at linebacker give Marshall fans plenty to be excited about on the defensive side of the ball. In fact, Marshall returns its top four and seven of its top 10 tacklers from a year ago.