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GAME NO. 2 CAPSULE -
DENNY O'BRIEN
East Carolina at Tulane
Saturday, September 8, 2001
Louisiana Superdome (69,767), 3:30 PM EDT
Television: WITN-TV 7 (regional)
Weather Fx: Indoors
Pirates and Green Wave at a Glance
East Carolina (0-1) travels to New Orleans to face a Tulane team (0-2) that
is equally hungry for a victory. The Pirates suffered a disheartening
two-point defeat to Wake Forest at home last Saturday, while Tulane enters
the game reeling over back-to-back blowout losses to BYU and LSU.
There will be no shortage of offense in this one, as both teams have potent
attacks. Each is looking for an improved effort on defense, but the
opposition presents plenty of challenges. Whichever team brings the better
defense on Saturday should stand victorious.
Tulane Facts and Notes
Record: 0-2 (0-0 C-USA).
Head Coach: Chris Scelfo, 10-15 (third year).
Home Venue: Louisiana Superdome (69,767).
Last Week: Lost to LSU 48-17. The Bayou Bengals used a 27-point
second quarter explosion to roll past the Green Wave in Baton Rouge.
The Series: East Carolina leads 3-1. The Pirates lone trip to the
Superdome came in 1997, resulting in a 33-16 loss
Last Meeting: 2000. Trailing 14-13 at the half, the Pirates exploded
for 24 second-half points, en route to a 37-17 victory. In the game, David
Garrard threw for two touchdowns and ran for another.
Last Bowl Game: 1998 AXA Liberty Bowl. Defeated Brigham Young, 41-27.
He coached here? Tulane has become a launching point for up and
coming coaches. Mack Brown led the Green Wave before heading off to Chapel
Hill, where he made the Tar Heels a top 5 team. Brown, of course, is now the
head coach at Texas, which incidentally hosts the Heels on Saturday.
With the help of quarterback Shawn King, Tommy Bowden guided the Green Wave
to a perfect 12-0 season in 1998, but soon bolted for Clemson. Bowden’s
tenure in New Orleans spanned just two seasons.
The Good Ole Days: Remember the good ‘ole days when Tulane annually
competed among the nation’s elite in college football? Probably not, but the
Green Wave once competed as a member of the SEC.
The 1925 Tulane outfit finished 9-0-1, with its lone blemish
a tie against Missouri. The Green Wave was invited to the Rose Bowl, but
declined. The 1931 Tulane team finished 11-1, losing only to Southern Cal in
the Rose Bowl, 21-12. Among its 11 victories were eight shutouts.
Football Claim to Fame: Quarterback Shawn King guided Tulane to a
perfect 12-0 season in 1998, despite a broken bone in his non-throwing hand.
King led the nation in passing efficiency during his senior
campaign, and was a second-round draft pick of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
King led the Bucs to back-to-back playoff appearances over the last two
seasons as a starter, but with the recent acquisition of North Carolina
native Brad Johnson, has been relegated to backup duties.
The Breakdown
Quotes of Note: “We’ve really emphasized the
conference play to our players all through the summer in summer camp. This
being our first conference game, it’s crucial that we get off to a good
start.” – ECU offensive coordinator Doug Martin on the importance of
conference play.
“The main thing we’ve done here is we’ve had a tradition of never losing two
games in a row. We’ve really held on to that belief -- that’s a bedrock
foundation of our program here. We’ve just got to rebound.” – Martin on
not losing two in a row.
“They’ve been an eight-man front the past couple of years and they seem to
have gone to a seven-man front and are playing quite a bit of nickel
coverage. They got measurably better on the defensive side of the ball from
the first game to the second game.” – ECU head coach Steve Logan on the
Tulane defense.
“We’ve just got to go down there and get back to our core issues, which are
to run the football, stop the run, don’t turn the ball over, and give
ourselves a chance to win the football game" – Logan on getting back to
the basics.
“I think East Carolina on offense is as good as anybody. They had a tough
start last Saturday, and I think it really woke them up and they’ll come in
here with a vengeance.” – Tulane head coach Chris Scelfo on the Pirate
offense.
Tulane Players to Watch: QB Patrick Ramsey
(90-45-2, 606 yds, 5 TDs), QB J.P. Losman, RB Mewelde Moore (241 yds), WR
Terrell Harris (15 rec. 228 yds), P Casey Roussel (46.8 avg.), DB Adrian
Mitchell (28 tackles).
Striking Stats: Tulane has recorded neither a
sack nor an interception on defense this season.
When the Pirates have the ball: The Pirates
will look to establish the run against a Green Wave defense that is yielding
334-plus yards per contest. Senior RB Leonard Henry carried the ball only 11
times last week, but figures to get plenty of touches this Saturday. Look
for the Pirates to mix in the option with the inside running game.
Quarterback David Garrard should have plenty of time to operate against a
defense that has yet to record a sack. The Green Wave may play a lot of
two-deep zone to limit the Pirates big-play ability, so the underneath
routes could be open all day.
If the Green Wave improvises by stacking the line of scrimmage, look for the
Pirates to take a few deep shots.
Advantage: East Carolina
When the Green Wave has the ball: Unlike last
week, the Pirates have a good idea of what they’ll see from Tulane
offensively. But that isn’t necessarily good news.
Utilizing a no-huddle, spread attack, the Green Wave will look to exercise
its short passing game to expose ECU’s soft zone. Though Tulane has the
ability to strike quickly through the air, it is equally adept at a ball
control passing game.
Quarterback Patrick Ramsey’s last outing versus the Pirates in ’99 wasn’t a
memorable one, so expect a determined effort there. RB Mewelde Moore has
become one of the better all-around backs in the country, and will get his
share of touches.
If the Pirates can’t pressure Ramsey, expect the senior quarterback to pick
apart a defense that, for the time being, has to lack a little confidence.
Advantage: Tulane
Special Teams: Tulane punter Casey Roussel and
kicker Seth Marler make up, perhaps, C-USA’s finest kicking tandem. Roussel
is averaging 46.8 yards per boot.
ECU punter Jarad Preston had a stellar debut last week, but must maintain
consistency to meet the standard defined by Logan in the pre-season. Kicker
Kevin Miller has yet to attempt a field goal.
The Pirates appear to have a decided advantage in the return game with
Marvin Townes and Terrance Copper handling the runbacks. The Green Wave has
struggled with its kick coverage.
Slight Advantage: East Carolina
Coaching: Steve Logan is working on his tenth
year as head coach of the Pirates, while Chris Scelfo has but two full
seasons under his belt. The bulk of the ECU staff has been together for
years, so there is no shortness of continuity.
ECU defensive coordinator Tim Rose has had success against the Tulane
offense over the past two seasons.
Advantage: East Carolina
Intangibles: The Pirates appear focused on
erasing last week’s disappointment and acutely aware that the road to the
C-USA championship starts in New Orleans. Still, you have to wonder about
the mindset of the ECU players after being dealt the unpleasant surprise by
Wake Forest.
The Green Wave will have to its advantage the cavernous Superdome, which
will be less than one-third full on Saturday. By and large, the Pirates have
struggled in similar settings.
The artificial surface has been both friend and foe to the Pirates, who lost
three players to injury on the Mountaineer Field turf last year.
Slight Advantage: Tulane
What East Carolina must do to win:
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Establish ground game. The Pirates managed just 63 yards
on the ground against Wake last Saturday. As history suggests, when the
Pirates don’t run, they don’t win.
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Avoid long-yardage situations. ECU constantly found itself
in 2nd and long and 3rd and long situations against the Deacs, which
literally made for a ‘long’ day at the office for the Pirate offense.
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Win field position war. The Pirate offense constantly
found itself with its back against the wall last Saturday, while Wake
benefited from excellent field position. Giving Ramsey a short field with
which to work could be very costly.
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Take care of the football. The turnover bug bit the
Pirates three times against the Deacons. Two of those turnovers produced
10 Wake Forest points.
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Stop the run. No explanation needed.
What Tulane must do to win:
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Control the clock. Wake Forest showed last week that it’s
tough for the Pirate offense to get going when it is on the sidelines.
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Pressure Garrard. The Green Wave hasn’t recorded a sack
this season, which has proven costly.
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Protect Ramsey. Given time to throw, Ramsey has the
ability to pick almost any defense apart. However, his lack of mobility
makes him susceptible to the Pirates blitzing defense.
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Patience on offense. Tulane can take a page out of the
Wake Forest notebook by showing patience on offense. The Deacs took what
the Pirates gave them, and the Green Wave must do the same.
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Convince Jim Haslett to let his New Orleans Saints defense
pull double-duty this weekend. The young Tulane defense must grow up.
Quick!
Prediction:
Tulane and ECU will trade shots in what could amount to a
four-hour affair. Both defenses have struggled thus far, but the Pirates
have the most experience there. Pirates win a shoot-out, 37-28.
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02/23/2007 02:05:39 AM
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