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BASKETBALL
RECRUITING |
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Recruiting push starts with
backcourt |
 Guards
Shawn Williams (left) and Elijah
Hughes (right) each entertained
offers from a number of schools
before verbally committing to
join East Carolina basketball
coach Jeff Lebo's recruiting
class of 2016-17. ...
Thumbnail sketches... |
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Greg Vacek's Monday
Infographic |
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24 |
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31 |
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East Carolina's historical frustration
against SEC teams was prophetically summed
up by the Gainesville Sun's pregame 'Picks'
headline: "Different teams, same result."
The prediction by columnist Pat Dooley ahead
of the Pirates' Saturday matchup at Florida
was on the button as ECU fans experienced
another SEC 'Ground Hog Day' ...
Details and data from Greg Vacek... |
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Costly slip but Pirates moving
on |
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 GAINESVILLE,
FL � A wet ball after a day of
rain proved to be a deciding
factor Saturday night. East
Carolina was driving when
quarterback Blake Kemp lost the
handle in the closing seconds on
a 2nd-and-10 at the Florida
13-yard line. Alex McCalister
recovered for the Gators to
preserve a 31-24 win for the
tenants at Ben Hill Griffin
Stadium ...
More from Al Myatt... |
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Pictured: East Carolina coach Ruffin
McNeill contemplates the action
during the ECU-Florida game. (Al
Myatt photo) |
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Ruff post-game audio |
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  ECU
coach Ruffin McNeill
spoke with reporters
Saturday night after the
Pirates' loss at Florida
(recorded by Al Myatt):
Select audio clip... |
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By
Brett Friedlander
�2015 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
VIEW MOBILE VERSION OF THIS PAGE
The East Carolina football team came out of its
season opening win against Towson
with more questions than answers.
Last Saturday in Gainesville, even in defeat, the Pirates
may have done the opposite.
Though ECU is much too far along to be satisfied with
moral victories, coach Ruffin McNeill and his team can at least feel
good about the fact that even in
their 34-27 loss at Florida,
they might just have found a quarterback capable of leading them to a
successful season.
And surprise, it wasn�t the one for which many fans were
clamoring.
Backup James Summers did make his first appearance as a
Pirate, playing two short possessions in the second quarter while going
3 of 4 for 13 yards. But when ECU finally got its act together and began
to find a productive offensive rhythm, it was another junior college
transfer � starter Blake Kemp � that led the way.
Kemp will never make anyone forget his predecessor, Shane
Carden, who rewrote the school record book over the past three seasons.
He still has trouble throwing across his body and isn�t very accurate on
routes of more than about 10 yards.
Despite all that, he and new offensive coordinator Dave
Nichol found a way to work around those shortcomings. On a soggy field
aptly called �The Swamp,� they came within one slippery misfire of an
improbable road victory against an SEC opponent.
�We have full confidence in Blake and in our team that we
were going to get the job done,� junior receiver Isaiah Jones said
afterward. �I�m just really proud of my guys. We really fought hard.�
Much of that fight was against themselves through the
first 2� quarters.
After stunning the crowd at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium with
a with an impressive touchdown drive on the game�s opening series,
capped by the first real downfield completion of the new season, the
Pirates fell back into the run, run, short pass rut that helped make
last week�s win against Towson much closer than it should have been.
In the process, they wasted numerous opportunities to
take control of the game.
Save for a quick-change 27-yard strike to Jones on the
first play after a Bobby Fulp interception, it took ECU falling behind
24-14 late in the third quarter for Nichol to finally stop babying his
replacement quarterback and aggressively start finding ways for him to
get the ball to his team�s best playmakers.
�We knew what they ran and we had the right plays called
for their coverages,� Kemp said. �We did a good job of running what the
coaches wanted.�
Story
continues after the following ad...
Kemp found Jones and tight end Bryce Williams 11 times on
the Pirates� final three drives, one of which resulted in a field goal
and another in a touchdown. Their final possession might also have
yielded points, but the threat ended at the Florida 13 when a wet ball
slipped out of Kemp�s hand as he reared back to throw with 20 seconds
remaining.
His final numbers were a Carden-like 34 of 54 for 333
yards, three touchdowns and an interception.
�I asked our coaches to find adjustments and answers, and
I thought we did that.� McNeill said. �We�ll still learn from that.�
Some of that learning will undoubtedly be done by
Summers, who was recruited as a wide receiver and was only moved back to
quarterback three weeks ago following a season-ending injury to
projected starter Kurt Benkert.
McNeill praised Summers� cameo performance as �warlike�
because of the circumstances under which it came. The coach indicated
that Summers will probably get more opportunities as the season
progresses.
But considering the growth, the leadership and the grit
Kemp showed, especially after his team fell behind and needed it most,
it�s more likely that those future snaps will come in change-of-pace
situations than as the full-time leader of the offense.
ECU
coach Ruffin McNeill met with
reporters on Monday in his weekly
press conference. (Audio courtesy of
Pirate Radio 1250; file photo by Al
Myatt:
The
Brian Bailey Show airs on Pirate
Radio 1250 on Mondays at 6:30 p.m.
Brian's guest this week was ECU
defensive line coach Marc Yellock
(right):
