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Last week I made my
annual plea for
a tribute to East Carolina's proud football history. And
the only fitting way to honor that is with visible monuments inside
Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium that showcase ECU's greatest players and its most
successful teams.
Many of you agree. If
there is one detail about ECU football that has been ignored, it is the
lack of attention to the program's proud history inside its home venue.
That much was clear from
the responses that flooded my inbox this past week, none of which
resonated more than the ones sent from that close-knit fraternity of ECU
football lettermen.
Former walk-ons, prominent
ECU record holders, and consensus All-Americans chimed in, with a strong
consensus that past accomplishments aren't valued by East Carolina or
its faithful supporters. If that were the case, they argued that the
upper deck facade would be a tapestry honoring ECU's greatest players
and its most memorable teams.
Actually, it's the latter
that was most resounding in their responses. But that's because humility
and team pride are more accurate descriptors of this passionate bunch,
not the me-first egocentric mantra that has become so ingrained into to
the culture of high-profile athletics.
Even so, there are some
larger-than-life performers throughout ECU's football history that
deserve to be singled out with a permanent tribute in the stadium where
they captured the hearts of the Pirate Nation.
It's a small but important
detail to which programs throughout the country pay meticulous
attention. In addition to the local schools I mentioned last week,
Southern Miss with its shoestring budget makes sure that anyone who
visits "The Rock" is reminded that Brett Favre and many other greats are
Golden Eagles to the core.
We're not talking a major
expense here. It's not like a "Ring of Honor" or "Memorial Park" inside
Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium would require a Murphy Center type of financial
commitment.
Far from it. And the
benefits of making such an upgrade would far exceed the monetary
investment by East Carolina and its donors.
While it is the former
that should take the lead in such an effort, it's likely the latter who
must advance this cause if it is to gain any legs. It wouldn't be the
first time we've seen a successful grassroots movement that led to a
cosmetic improvement to Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
Not too long ago one was
responsible for the flagpole that proudly flies the ECU Jolly Roger at
the closed end of the stadium.
But that's typical of
ECU's proud fan base, which historically has gone far beyond the call of
its annual commitment to the Pirate Club. Whenever there is a financial
need or special project that is outside the realm of the school's
athletics scholarship fund, East Carolina's proud boosters always step
up.
That time has come again.
East Carolina has too
proud of a football history not to visibly display the fabric of it
inside the magical place that staged much of it. If the Purple Bloods
truly embrace the preservation of ECU's gridiron tradition, perhaps they
should launch a grassroots movement to outfit Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium with
evidence of it.
It wouldn't go unnoticed
by the players responsible for what ECU football is today, which is a
major program on the Division I level with a rich bowl history. A
permanent tribute to those men can't come soon enough.
