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Audio: Ruff Presser |
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  ECU
coach Ruffin McNeill
addressed members of
the media on Monday
in his weekly press
conference. (Audio
courtesy of Pirate
Radio 1250; archive
photo):
Select audio
clip... |
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Coach Ruff post-game
audio |
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  ECU
coach Ruffin McNeill
spoke with reporters
after the
Pirates defeated
Southern Methodist
(recorded by Al Myatt):
Select audio clip... |
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FOOTBALL |
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Kevin's Keys to the Game |
East Carolina
comes into today's game at
Southern Methodist with a
hard-to-decipher 2-2 record.
After opening at home with a
with a win over FCS opponent
Towson in a game that was a
lot closer than expected,
the Pirates traveled to
Gainesville and outplayed
expectations in a close loss
to the Florida Gators. It
has been that type of season
...
More from Kevin Monroe... |
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FOOTBALL |
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Pirates look to build on big win |
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 Coming
back from an early 14-0 deficit to
defeat Virginia Tech 35-28 at
Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium on Saturday
was a huge step for an East Carolina
football team that had dropped
preceding games at Florida and Navy.
...
More
from Al Myatt... |
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FOOTBALL |
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The day fiction came to life |
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I have seen that
movie before. Ronnie Bass had just
come in at quarterback in "Remember
the Titans." Bass told the line to
let a lineman through. Bass fired a
pass and flipped the lineman over in
one move. ...
More
from Brian Bailey... |
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MULTIMEDIA |
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Audio: The Brian
Bailey Show |
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  The
Brian Bailey Show airs on Pirate
Radio 1250 on Mondays at 6:30 p.m.
Brian's guests this week were ECU
coach Ruffin McNeill (right), Rose
coach Dave Wojtecki and Conley coach
Nate Conner:
Replay show... |
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By
Brian Bailey
©2015 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
VIEW MOBILE VERSION OF THIS PAGE
All James Summers needed was a red
cape.
Superman came to the rescue again this week for East Carolina. Summers
came off the bench to lead the Pirates to 42 unanswered points in
a resounding 49-23 win over Southern Methodist in
American Athletic Conference play on Saturday.
While the win certainly wasn’t a shocker, the way it came about was
definitely surprising.
SMU pulled off a couple of trick plays in dominating play early. Summers
came off the bench and all of a sudden all was right in the Pirate
world.
Summers was so good that the defense started playing better once he got
into the game. One social media post this weekend went as far as to show
a map of the east coast, proclaiming that James Summers was the reason
that Hurricane Joaquin headed east, staying away from the North Carolina
coast.
“He’s a great team guy,” said Pirate coach Ruffin McNeill at his weekly
news conference. “You’re talking about a guy who had to learn the
position over again because he was thinking wide receiver. You just have
to be patient with them and give guys a chance for success.”
That patience is showing quick dividends. For the second straight week,
Summers was the best athlete on the field. He may have come to East
Carolina as a wide receiver but he’s certainly the immediate answer at
quarterback.
Coach Ruff says the Pirates will continue to utilize both quarterbacks.
Blake Kemp provides a different skill set and a different look for
defenses.
Summers may prove to be a better bearded sixth man than James Harden in
Oklahoma City. Maybe it’s the beard. Maybe it’s just great athletic
talent that the Pirates are fortunate to have.
Story
continues after the following ad...
It’s hard to believe that Summers wasn’t expected to have any part of
the quarterback position six or seven weeks ago. Now he is very much the
key to the season. Still, both Summers and Kemp will see action under
center.
“We plan on keeping it a two-quarterback system,” said McNeill. “We
judge who starts on what gives us the best advantage.”
“Their talents complement each other and it makes teams prepare for
both," added McNeill. "James is getting more comfortable with the
package and the system. He’s really a neat kid on the sideline. I’m
proud of his progress, but we’ll use both. I think it gives us the best
opportunity as a team.”
One thing McNeill and his staff will have to monitor is the early part
of each game. ECU has overcome 14- and 16-point first half deficits in
the last two weeks. Those double digit comebacks don’t come every day.
Ruff and the staff realize that even Summers may not be able to rescue
the Pirates from another early deficit like that.
Coach Ruff likes the relationship his quarterbacks have with each other.
Both have been very complementary of the other. McNeill shared an
experience from the SMU game.
“You see them exchange mental notes,” said McNeill. “For example, SMU
has been a big zone coverage team, and they may see the safety cheat or
give way in man coverage. They exchange what they see and what they’ve
done differently to make sure we get into the right audible and right
play. They do it for one another.”
The plan is for them to continue to do it for one another.
The great quarterback experiment hits the road for a second straight
week, destination BYU. So far, so good.
BB
The
Brian Bailey Show airs on Pirate
Radio 1250 on Mondays at 6:30 p.m.
Brian's guests this week was ECU
outside receivers coach Garrett
Riley (right):
