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Tracking the College Gridiron Stars of the Future
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Football Recruiting Report
Friday, February 15, 2002
By Sammy Batten
Staff Writer for The Fayetteville Observer |
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Pirate
Football Signing Day Report Card
©2002 Bonesville.net
Compared to a year ago, there was a minimum of fanfare when East Carolina
recently announced its 2002 football recruiting class.
It's not that ECU didn't have something to celebrate, because there is
plenty of potential in the group of 22 signed to national letters-of-intent
on February 6. But the '02 signees lack a nationally-hyped prospect like
quarterback Paul Troth, whose signing in 2001 brought instant prestige to
the recruiting class.
Instead of so-called "blue chip'' players like Troth, the Pirates signed
a collection of athletes with exceptional raw talent, most of whom will
require a year or two of seasoning before making contributions on the field.
Defensive back Richard Moton, a junior college transfer, is the only recruit
guaranteed not to red-shirt next fall.
Others could play, but for the most part, we really won't be able to
judge the true level of this group for about two years. But we'll try anyway
with this position-by-position evaluation of the Pirates recruiting class.
Jump to Position: [ QB |
RB | WR |
TE | OL |
DL | NT |
LB | DB |
P/K ]
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QUARTERBACK (Will Bland, James Pinkney,
Kort Shankweiler): Even though David Garrard is graduating, ECU
still has some exciting talent at quarterback, led by rising sophomore
Desmond Robinson and Troth, who will be a red-shirt freshman. And let's
not forget that Richard Alston has a year of eligibility remaining and
he could be a factor at that position, if needed.
So what the Pirates needed from recruiting was to build some depth
and find players to groom for the future. They accomplished both those
goals and more with this trio.
Pinkney has excellent height (6-foot-4), is mobile and capable of
making strong throws on the run. If he uses the next two years wisely as
he waits for playing time, Pinkney could be first in line to succeed
Troth.
Bland and Shankweiler are projects. Neither has an especially strong
arm, but Bland is an impressive runner with 4.4 to 4.5-second speed in
the 40-yard dash. The 5-foot-9, 175-pound Bland could easily help ECU at
another position like H-back, receiver or running back if things don't
work out at quarterback. And although expectations aren't high for
Shankweiler, he is the kind of smart, hard-working athlete who will do
whatever it takes to make a contribution. The situation makes
Shankweiler the perfect choice for class "sleeper.'' - (C+)
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RUNNING BACK (none): Rising junior
Art Brown and sophomore Marvin Townes are the heir apparents to
graduated Leonard Henry. Behind those guys, however, is just one other
young back in sophomore Demarcus Fox, so signing someone for depth
purposes would have been a good idea. But the leading candidate, Joel
McClenney of Perquimans, never panned out and ECU was left empty-handed.
If Bland or someone else in the class winds up playing here, that will
fill the void. Until then, only one grade applies. - (F)
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WIDE RECEIVER (Bryson Bowling,
Iverick Harris, Mickey McCoy, Kevin Roach): Injuries clobbered the
Pirates at receiver last year, which made creating some depth there
necessary in recruiting. The Pirates did that and then some, getting
four players who are capable of making an impact next fall. McCoy is an
excellent prospect at H-back where his receiving and rushing skills can
be exploited, while Bowling is a big-time deep threat. The 6-5 Roach is
the next Larry Shannon/Arnie Powell.
The real prize of this group is Harris. The 6-3, 195-pounder is so
talented he was even pursued by Notre Dame early in the recruiting
process. He can get deep, leap and take the ball away from defenders, or
catch a short pass and turn it into a long gainer. Harris is a lot like
Troy Smith, ECU's former record-settting receiver. - (B+)
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TIGHT END (none): East Carolina went
so far as to offer a starting job to 6-7, 215-pound Manny Lawson,
according to his coach at Eastern Wayne High School, Joe Mitchell. But
the Pirates lost the Lawson sweepstakes to N.C. State and got shut out
at a position where they could have used the help. - (F)
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OFFENSIVE LINE (Gary Freeman, Eric
Graham, David Jorgenson, Steve Mercier, Drew Sutton, Thomas Wingenbach):
There's no real superstars here, but are there ever on the offensive
line? Nice size and excellent numbers makes this a stronger effort than
the general public may believe. Freeman, Jorgenson, Mercier and
Wingenbach are all under-rated and will form the foundation of ECU's
future blocking corps. Losing a commitment from big-time tackle prospect
Daniel Inman of Hope Mills, N.C., in January was a big blow to the class
and a major frustration for Pirate fans. Inman was the ECU commit, but
wound up signing with Georgia. - (B)
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DEFENSIVE LINE (Shauntae Hunt, Eric
Terry): A pair of stars-in-the-making. Hunt (6-6, 248) and Terry
(6-4, 225) are tall, long-armed pass rushers who run like linebackers.
Give them a year in ECU's weight training program and these guys will be
absolute terrors for opposing quarterbacks. - (B+)
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NT (Dontre Brown): The 6-foot Brown isn't
tall enough for the defensive line by many schools' standards, but he's
a perfect fit for nose tackle in ECU's 3-4 alignment. He's tremendously
strong and tough as nails, which is why he was a starter for three
seasons at one of the state's premier prep programs, Douglas Byrd. - (C)
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LINEBACKER (Lorenza Pickett): The
Pirates probably didn't get enough help at linebacker, but they did sign
one very good one. Pickett is a helmet-rattler, who forced 10 fumbles as
a senior to earn defensive player of the year honors in one of the
state's best 4-A leagues. Whether it's on special teams or as a back-up
at inside linebacker, watch for Pickett to see some action next fall. -
(C-)
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DEFENSIVE BACK (Jared Brogden,
Reicko Jones, Richard Moton, Mar'ques Woolford): Continuing to
upgrade the speed of its secondary was a priority for ECU, and one it
met in signing Brogden, Jones and Woolford. All three have the speed to
make big plays at cornerback or on kick returns. Moton is a physical
hitter who should contribute as a back-up at safety and on special
teams.
Knocking the grade down in this area significantly, however, was the
late defection of cornerback Jacoby Watkins. The Scotland High School
star backed out of his pledge to the Pirates in January to sign with
North Carolina. Watkins was the state's second-best cornerback prospect
this season behind N.C. State signee A.J. Davis, according to SuperPrep
recruiting magazine. - (C+)
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PUNTER-PLACEKICKER (Ryan
Dougherty): Starting punter Jared Preston and placekicker Kevin
Miller are both graduating after the 2002 season and Dougherty is the
heir apparent to one of those jobs. He may even get a chance to handle
the kickoff duties next fall, which would cut down the
wear-and-tear on Miller's leg and give Dougherty game experience. Either
way, it was a good move on the ECU staff's part to sign a kicker,
especially one with Dougherty's potential. - (B) |
The overall grade for this class? I see it as about a C+. It's a
better-than-average group that will improve ECU's team speed and depth at
almost every position. But there are a few too many diamonds-in-the-rough to
push the grade any higher.
Of course, if those diamonds mature quickly, the Pirates could be richer
than expected two years from now.
Send an e-mail message to
Sammy Batten.
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archives.
02/23/2007 02:35:29 PM
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