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Pirate Notebook No. 36
Wednesday, December 19, 2001

By Denny O'Brien
Staff Writer and Columnist

MOBILE, AL — The ties that bind the football programs at East Carolina and Marshall are somewhat uncanny in nature.

From the fatal plane crash in 1970, to ECU athletics director and MU alumnus Mike Hamrick, the schools' football programs will forever be intertwined.

The long lineage of similarities doesn't end with a history lesson, though, as the modern era has shown the two schools share many common traits, the most important of which is a winning tradition. Both ECU and Marshall boast a string of winning seasons and bowl berths.

Tonight, the history of these two programs will take center stage at 8 p.m. EST (ESPN2) as the Pirates and Thundering Herd clash in the third annual GMAC Bowl. It will mark the first time since 1978 that ECU and Marshall have met on the gridiron.

It will also provide a glimpse of what an NFL quarterback will look like over the next 15 years. In six-foot-one, 249-pound David Garrard (ECU) and six-foot-six, 240-pound Byron Leftwich (Marshall), fans will witness the growing fad at the quarterback position — big, mobile, strong-armed studs.

"You've got two or three different trends," Marshall head coach Bob Pruett said. "You've got the big quarterbacks that throw the football, then you've got the more mobile one that runs the ball like Northwestern and some of those other people do.

"Programs that are usually winning have got the big quarterbacks that throw the football. The ones that are struggling and trying to win — they're going to have the mobile guys."

Bigger quarterbacks have always been coveted by professional scouts. With the ability to see over defenses and fire intermediate darts with relative ease, tall quarterbacks, especially, are a hot commodity in the NFL.

"A big quarterback can see the defense," Pruett said. "Being big isn't the key, but it's being mobile with the size and the ability to throw the football."

Pruett and ECU head coach Steve Logan seem to have the best of both worlds. Though Leftwich and Garrard are more touted for their pocket presence and rifle arms, both are capable of tucking and running if the situation calls.

Since arriving in Greenville, Garrard has sold Logan on the advantages of having a sizable signal caller. Though, as Logan has often told the story, it took a little convincing from a chubby teenager to close the deal.

"David came to my (football) camp when he was, I believe, 15," Logan said. "I put him on the scale at 268 pounds — he was a fat little boy is what he was.

"He told me he was a quarterback, and I said 'yeah, right... throw this football.' He let go of the football, and I had the privilege of coaching Jeff Blake and Marcus Crandell who both play professional football today, and I could identify that football."

Logan is thankful he gave that hefty youngster a shot to shine on that steamy summer day. Garrard would eventually break every meaningful passing record in East Carolina history, while leading the Pirates to four consecutive winning seasons along the way.

Garrard is just the latest of a long line of top-flight gunslingers that have flourished under Logan's tutelage. Prior to taking over the reigns of the Pirates' complicated offense, Garrard was preceded by Jeff Blake, Marcus Crandell, and Dan Gonzales, all of whom are playing football for money.

"This is my 13th year at East Carolina, and I've had three quarterbacks previous to David," Logan said. "All three of those men are still playing professional football. David will certainly be the fourth."

Like Logan, Pruett has been surrounded by great QB talent in his six seasons at Marshall. When Pruett left Gainesville for Huntington, he brought with him standout Eric Kresser, who would lead the Herd to the I-AA national title in 1996.

Following Kresser, Chad Pennington directed one of the most successful three-year stretches in Marshall football history, while making a Heisman run in 1999. Now, Leftwich, who threw for 4,132 yards and 38 touchdowns this season, is poised to pick up that campaign and make a strong push for the bronze statue next year.

"I've just been fortunate to be around those guys," Pruett said. "They've been good players.

"They've been in an offense that let them have some freedom to call plays, check off, and to learn how to be a quarterback. Eric Kresser started it, then Chad Pennington, and now Byron. We are a quarterback school — we throw the football."

Pruett, a seasoned veteran in the coaching profession, has been around more quarterbacks than he can count. When asked the best with whom he has been associated, Marshall's six-year head coach doesn't even hesitate.

"Byron is the best quarterback I've ever been around, seen, played against, or been close to," Pruett said. "Being a secondary coach for 18 years in the SEC and ACC, and at Marshall, I think he's by far the best I've been around.

"The thing that Byron has that is so special is his knowledge of the game. You'll see in the game how he'll control the whole game. He'll call the protections, he'll check the plays, and he gets in great position to have a good play each down."

Tonight's quarterback showdown will be the first between Leftwich and Garrard and, at the collegiate level, it will also be the last.

Garrard will close out an illustrious career against the Herd, one in which he has thrown for a school record 9,029 yards and 60 touchdowns. Garrard also holds the school-best mark in total offense with 10,238 yards.

Set to play his final game as a Pirate, Garrard admitted that it will be an emotional setting tonight. However, he also noted that once the game begins, it will be business as usual.

"I think it will be more emotional after the game," said the Durham senior. "With this being my last game and all, I think that's when it will affect me emotionally.

"As far as getting into the game, there are always emotions there, just because it is a game. I'm going to be excited, and I'm going to keep my head focused and just try to execute everything that the coaches have put in place for us this week."

Tonight won't be Garrard's last appearance in Mobile, though, as he was selected to play in perhaps the nation's most prestigious post-season All-Star game for college seniors with NFL potential.

"I'll be back down for the Senior Bowl," he said. "That will be a fun time. I'll come down and try to impress a lot of the scouts, GMs, and owners of different teams."

East Carolina players didn't exactly put on a happy face during their last trip to Mobile. At 9-2 and ranked in the top 20, many of the Pirates felt they deserved a more prestigious bowl than the inaugural Mobile game.

That attitude has changed this time around. After a disappointing 6-5 season, the Pirates are grateful for the chance to strap on the headgear one final time.

"A lot of the guys are excited to be here," Garrard said. "Having a second chance to be able to play in this game is going to be a chance to show the nation that 6-5 is not really telling of our whole season.

"We feel like this is our chance to show that we deserve to be somewhere. We have a great feeling this time."

The offenses are spectacular. The defenses are less than stellar. Tonight's GMAC Bowl certainly has all the ingredients for a high-scoring affair.

With the two offenses likely to cancel each other out, both Logan and Pruett feel that the outcome of tonight's contest could hinge greatly on turnovers and special teams.

"If either team generates a turnover on defense, it will go a long way toward defining where the game will end up," Logan said. "If we can intercept the ball, or they can pick up a fumble or interception, the next step from that would be a special teams explosion play adding a lot of definition."

Combined, the Herd and Pirates have seven losses on the season. When examined closely, Pruett noted two common traits in each loss.

"I think if you look at their games, and especially our games that we've struggled in, we've had turnovers and special teams have hurt us," Pruett said. "In Florida, punt returns and turnovers killed us down there.

"Our inability to kick the ball in the end zone, to field a punt, field kick offs, and them faking an extra point hurt us up at Toledo. That, and us turning the ball over cost us the ball game."

Pruett also noted yesterday something Logan has been preaching all season. Though the Pirates currently sit at 6-5, East Carolina is a few breaks away from a magnificent season.

And if the Pirates insist on turning the ball over tonight, they could very well find themselves at 6-6, nullifying that coveted fourth-consecutive winning campaign.