In the wee small hours of the morning after the Fiesta Bowl, West Virginia's football program made a commitment to continued excellence.

About a month later, Marshall made a similar move to try and get the Herd out from down under in Conference USA.

That's why the preseason predictions for both programs are looking up through the binoculars of this longtime press box occupant.

If the state's two major college programs are to make strides this season, one major reason will be significant coaching hires in Morgantown and Huntington.

Bill Stewart's advancement to the head coach's headset on the WVU sideline remains a subject of debate in the Mountain State. What Stewart did -- in his typical gung-ho, ego-be-dammed way -- is of more significance than his anointing after a stunning win over Oklahoma.

He got Mountaineer brass to commit to spending enough to lure sideline alumni and other young promising minds from programs in whose shadow WVU often has played.

Stewart got "Rich Rodriguez money" combined for 10 assistants, at $2.075 million annually  -- with two-year contracts as an added sweetener.

At Marshall, Coach Mark Snyder's needed opportunity to win -- diminished by an unreasonable non-conference schedule -- is bolstered by the February hire of new coordinators John Shannon (offense) and Rick Minter (defense).

It's interesting to note both men's coaching resumes run through Ohio -- as does Snyder, who is a Buckeye State native.

However, Shannon and Minter have something Marshall never has had before. Each has a $165,000 salary, a record for assistants in the Herd program -- and two-year contracts to boot.

They have brought a new aggressiveness and fresh concepts to a program that hasn't had a winning season since 2003. Snyder would do well to listen to them -- as Stewart does his aides at WVU.

The Herd might not get a winning season in 2008, either, but the view here is 6-6 is a major improvement from last season's 3-9. The early schedule includes Wisconsin and WVU on the road and a home date against Cincinnati only six days after going to Morgantown.

Marshall's chances to break even are compromised because the Herd plays in C-USA's toughest division (East) and also plays the West's best team (Tulsa). A season finale at home against the high-powered Golden Hurricane might be the season maker or breaker for an MU team that is about youth and depth (finally).

Snyder has stated that nothing less than reaching a bowl is a successful season. A 6-6 finish might do that in C-USA, which has six guaranteed berths and could get a seventh. So, fourth place in C-USA East could get there.

The Herd needs nothing less than a split of September league games with Memphis (home) and Southern Mississippi (road). As important as a four-game finish against East Carolina, Central Florida, Rice and Tulsa might be Athletic Director Bob Marcum's considerable lobbying clout with bowl games in Texas, New Orleans and St. Petersburg.

As for the Mountaineers, there's much more to like than quarterback Pat White and an offensive line that's one of the nation's best. However, the question is about a defense that needs to replace front men Keilen Dykes and Johnny Dingle and safeties Ryan Mundy and Eric Wicks.

There's a good reason those four still are in NFL preseason camps. WVU must show it again can get pressure on opposing quarterbacks who will try to pick apart a secondary that is long on talent but short on experience.

There's something WVU hasn't done since 1993 that the Mountaineers should do in 2008.

Although West Virginia has enjoyed three consecutive 11-win seasons and finished in the top 10 of the polls in three straight years (joining only LSU, USC and Ohio State to say that), the 'Eers haven't won 11 regular-season games since retired Coach Don Nehlen's last national title contender.

Stewart's first WVU team will do that. The view here is WVU will go 11-1 in the regular season and make it unscathed (7-0) in a topsy-turvy Big East Conference for the first time since 2005. A third Bowl Championship Series date goes with that.

The likely loss? How about Auburn? Yes, I know the Tigers will be visiting Mo'town on a Thursday night and all of the intimidation that can bring. However, WVU's speed won't be anything the Plainsmen haven't seen in the SEC.

Also, is 60,000 under the lights at Mountaineer Field any more imposing than 92,400 on a Saturday night at LSU, or 92,750 between the hedges at Georgia's, or 92,138 at rival Alabama, or 104,079 making Neyland Stadium a rocky (top) experience?

Don't think so.

The bottom line is WVU and Marshall appear from this perspective to have more in common than a Sept. 27 Coal Bowl III date. If they can land the coaches they did in the offseason, they should feel good about now and the future.

Contact Sports Editor Jack Bogaczyk at ja...@dailymail.com or 304-348-7949.