HUNTINGTON - It was a play Thundering Herd fans have been waiting to see out of Michael Janac, the towering defensive lineman.

Southern Mississippi had a third-and-9 at the Marshall 32-yard line, and crossed the Herd up a bit with a Damion Fletcher run off left tackle.

But Janac reached across the field, using his entire 6-foot-4 frame and then some, and collared Fletcher for a harmless 4-yard gain.

That play doesn't count as a coveted "tackle for loss," but it left an impression on middle linebacker Maurice Kitchens.

"They were mad because they thought it was a facemask," Kitchens said. "Nah, he has really long arms, and wrapped his arms about three times around Fletcher's neck. I'm like, 'That will hurt.'"

The result was more important for the Herd. The tackle stopped a touchdown drive, limiting the Golden Eagles to a field goal and keeping Marshall ahead 17-13. A year ago, that play may have gone the Eagles' way.

A lot of plays went the other team's way a year ago, when the Herd and its duct-taped defensive line struggled to an 0-7 start. And in the past two games against West Virginia, the MU front has been largely manhandled.

In the 2006 game at Morgantown, the mismatch in the trenches was evident from the opening drive, with Steve Slaton typically getting 5-8 yards before first contact. The Mountaineers settled for about 6 yards per carry in the 42-10 win.

Last year in Huntington, it took a half for Slaton and Pat White to get going, but they did against an even thinner Herd front. By the time Noel Devine threw the final daggers into the Herd, WVU averaged more than 7 yards per carry.

Maybe, when the teams meet at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, things will be different for Marshall. There is no doubt that this defensive line is different.

With a combination of players who survived last year's 3-9 season and dug in to improve, players returning from injuries and moved from other positions and a couple of reinforcements, this is a bigger, faster, stronger, deeper unit. Add in new line coach Jerry Azzinaro and coordinator Rick Minter, and this line is going places.

"It's a lot better," said Albert McClellan, the rising star from 2006 who sat out last year with an injury. "The D-line is more committed. Everybody's paying more attention than in the past, we're all trying to get better, plus everybody loves to run. It's a defensive line that loves to run; everybody wants to run from sideline to sideline, north to south, and that's pretty much what this game's going to be."

The numbers are looking better after four games, three of which the Herd has won. The rushing defense is greatly improved, with the Herd's 3.38-yard per carry against a far, far cry from the 4.83 of last season.

Even Wisconsin, a team that would as soon use its quarterback as a lawn ornament, averaged a hair under 4 per attempt.

In the Southern Miss game, the Eagles managed just 123 yards on the ground. The veterans behind the defense have noticed the front's work, and they love it.

"Our defensive line started first, and that's what we have to carry for the next game," said Maurice Kitchens, who made 14 tackles in last year's MU-WVU battle. "They continue to make huge plays for us. I didn't have to worry about running down and making open-field tackles - defensive line was through there, just like they've been in past games. They are strong up front, really strong up front."

Free safety C.J. Spillman notices, because he has only made 28 tackles in four games. Last year, he averaged about 12, which meant he was doing a bunch of disaster cleanup.

"That's a whole 360-degree change," Spillman said. "We're getting the pressure rush, we're getting people in the quarterback's face, hurrying up and throwing the ball, whereas last year, they were able to sit back there and just try to find someone who's open."

Marshall is pretty much rotating eight players in the four line spots, with several others available. McClellan, the 2006 Conference USA defensive player of the year, and John Jacobs are leading statistically with 14 tackles - which is interesting, considering they pretty much split time at one end spot.

"Now I can run a little more, turn it all loose in the plays I am in," McClellan said. "Me and Jake, we're equaling out on plays, so we both go all out, give it pedal to the medal."

Next is tackle James Burkes, the Capital High graduate who came out of nowhere last year and refuses to go away, with 12. The rest of the rotation: converted linebacker Ian Hoskins 10, Janac 10, 2007 nonqualifier Delvin Johnson 7, Johnny Jones 5 and Vinny Curry, another '07 nonqualifier, 3. Several, like Jones and Hoskins, can be found inside or outside on any play, and the occasional three-man front has been thrown in.

"Fortunately, we've got guys we have enough of, where we're able to play 40, 45 plays each and stay somewhat refreshed, or at least charged, being able to keep good players on the field in the closing moments without being totally gassed," Minter said. "So if definitely allows you to play a lot of guys, because unfortunately for us, in three of the four games, we've played a lot of plays on defense."

That includes 83 against Illinois State, 83 against Memphis and 80 against Southern Miss. That has meant a lot of potential big plays for the youngsters.

"They all made big jumps but I tell you, Johnny Jones made an enormous jump this year," McClellan said. "He spent the whole summer in the weight room, lifting twice, sometimes three times a day. Then he comes out here and he's really committed, he actually understands the football - this is his fifth year playing football in his life, so he's still learning a lot."

Jones has been credited with three starts on a tackle alongside Burkes, with Johnson one. Johnson, who didn't skip the weight room during his 'prop' year, could be the one with the most outrageous upside.

But Minter issues a word of caution.

"He's four games old, that's it," Minter said of Johnson. "He's like a true freshman, playing four games with about seven or eight weeks of coaching. That's just about the extent of it. I think Jerry [Azzinaro, the line coach] does a great job with him, he has a tremendous upside, the future is very bright for him and the Herd, but it's just scratching the surface right now.

"He's got a long way to come from being a 7-year-old baby on the college football field."

There are a few such "babies." Minter only had a few to work with in the spring - Hoskins and McClellan were recuperating from injuries, Curry and Johnson were getting eligible, for example. Therefore, the line remains young and prone to the occasional gaffe.

Prime examples came in the Southern Miss game. Jacobs lined up offsides to negate an interception that would have kept the score frozen at 34-20, and Janac whiffed on a sack that would have nipped a last-play "Hail Mary" in the bud.

While this line is much better than in recent years, it must be perfect against WVU. That's a taller order than Janac on stilts.

"... while it looks good in uniform, it's really a work in progress because we're really very young and inexperienced at that spot, outside of a couple of guys," Minter said. "While it's a wealth of numbers, it lacks in true, game-day college experience.

"But as we're nearing the midpoint, we can no longer say that."

Reach Doug Smock at 348-5130 or dougsm...@wvgazette.com.