Lester Hicks Recounts the Marshall University Crash in 'Against all Odds – 4th Down and Forever'

By: Jul. 11, 2014
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Powder Springs, Ga.

In a tragedy mourned nationwide, the 1970s crash of Southern Airways Flight 932 killed 75 people, including Marshall University's entire varsity football program.

Lester Hicks was one of an eclectic group of athletes recruited from the junior varsity, other sports and various schools, to restore the university's crippled football program. Hicks is no stranger to adverse circumstances. As the 12th child of uneducated sharecroppers, football was his only escape from an impoverished life. As a young man attending college, Hicks struggled with suicidal thoughts and depression.

Hicks shares his journey, and the journey of the Marshall University Thundering Herd, in his new memoir, "Against all Odds-4th Down and Forever: How the 1970 Marshall University Football Team Plane Crash Inspired Me" (published by AuthorHouse).

Hicks speaks to many topics, including:

  • The years following the 1970 tragedy
  • Overcoming poverty and depression with football
  • The courage needed to bring yourself from the brink of suicide
  • Developing as a well-rounded student-athlete
  • Football lessons on and off the field

"Against all Odds-4th Down and Forever"
By Lester Brian Hicks
Hardcover | 6 x 9in | 304 pages | ISBN 9781481737128
Softcover | 6 x 9in | 304 pages | ISBN 9781481737135
E-Book | 304 pages | ISBN 9781481737111
Available at Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the Author
Lester Hicks earned an associate of arts degree from Ellsworth Community College. He also earned a bachelor of arts and a master of science degree from Marshall University. Hicks, a senior environmental safety engineer, has been with the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company for 28 years. Hicks serves as a mentor to troubled youth, teaches Sunday school, serves on the Cobb County Literacy Council to decrease the dropout rate and improve literacy in his county. Hicks maintains an emotional tie to Coach Lengyel, the program, and the university that did so much for his character and prepared him to touch the lives of others through service and mentoring. Hicks and his wife, Della, live in Powder Springs, Ga.

AuthorHouse, an Author Solutions, LLC, Inc. self-publishing imprint, is a leading provider of book publishing, marketing, and bookselling services for authors around the globe and offers the industry's only suite of Hollywood book-to-film services. Committed to providing the highest level of customer service, AuthorHouse assigns each author personal publishing and marketing consultants who provide guidance throughout the process. Headquartered in Bloomington, Indiana, AuthorHouse celebrated 15 years of service to authors in Sept. 2011.For more information or to publish a book visit authorhouse.com or call 1-888-519-5121. For the latest, follow @authorhouse on Twitter.



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