News and Notes from East Carolina, Conference USA and Beyond

PREVIOUS NUGGETS

11.03.06: Boise State rolls past Bulldogs ... Reale, Pirates earn seconds at Kitty Hawk ... ECU softball's Kozlowski promoted

11.02.06: Mustangs a win away from bowl eligibility ... Hunt, Icenhower lead East Carolina divers ... ECU's Moore earns academic honor with 4.0

11.01.06: Kragthorpe curtails Tar Heel speculation ... Pirates in C-USA women's soccer tourney ... Backup QB Lee to start for FSU against Cavs

10.31.06: Kickoff return nets
C-USA honor for Johnson ... Pirate volleyball streaks to school record ... Mountaineers on fringe of national title picture

10.30.06: ECU's Williams: 'I just wanted it more' ... Stokes plans to give Wynn time to develop ... Central Florida's 530 yards of offense not enough

10.29.06: ECU women's volleyball extends streak ... Pirate swimmers leave Towson behind ... UTEP takes muddy victory in Grimesland

10.28.06: Cougars quarterback piling up the numbers ... ECU vs. USM part of pay-per-view twinbill ... Hokies tame Tigers in key ACC battle

10.27.06: Rice's Almond named Wooden candidate ... Pirates hosting C-USA cross country ... ECU freshman Bools shares C-USA honor

10.26.06: Tickets for Troops promotion expands ... Another C-USA honor for ECU's Icenhower ... Report: Davis would have interest in Heels

10.25.06: Ex-Pirate Adams attempts PGA qualifying ...
C-USA names football players of week ... Tar Heels will retain many football recruits

10.24.06: New thumbnails: Baker, Byrd and Thompson ... Ore golden in Hokies' win over Southern Miss ... Unbeaten start for ECU swim teams ... Tar Heels picked first in ACC hoops

10.23.06: Jenkins' three lifts Gold in scrimmage ... ECU volleyball takes sixth straight C-USA win ... Bools finishes sixth in Lady Pirate golf

10.22.06: Pirates volleyball on record streak ... Mountaineers handle Huskies, stay unbeaten ... Georgia golfer gets call to play in South Africa

10.21.06: Report: UNC-Chapel Hill's Bunting to resign ... Coaches' challenges yield few reversals ... Southern Miss prepared for Hokies

10.20.06: ECU's Roach nominated for Draddy Award ... Memphis picked first in C-USA basketball ... 4th-ranked UTEP runners coming to Greenville

10.19.06: Koren Robinson suspended by NFL ... Miami broadcaster axed over brawl comments ... Dartmouth, Holy Cross row gets investigation

10.18.06: League teams busy; ECU ends homestand ... C-USA names football players of week ... ECU's Krug captures C-USA weekly honor

10.17.06: ACC, Miami announce additional suspensions ... More suspensions also on Sun Belt's agenda ... Duke lacrosse under "60 Minutes" scrutiny

10.16.06: Coker suspends eight Miami players after brawl ... Pirate volleyball continues roll at UCF ... Szilard leads ECU women's soccer win ... Harris Poll's top 5 varies from BCS Standings

10.15.06: Stokes convenes season's first hoops practice ... Pirate volleyball wins third straight ... ECU women open basketball practice at Rose

10.14.06: EA Sports video game features ECU baseball stadium ... Pirates announce Tickets for Troops drive ... Six C-USA gridders in All-American Classic

10.13.06: Pirate basketball gets national TV dates ... ECU women's hoops getting tube time, too ... East Carolina baseball to host winter camp

10.12.06: ECU hoops scrimmages set for Homecoming ... Camels stun No. 3 UNC-Chapel Hill in soccer ... ECU picked 7th in C-USA women's hoops

10.11.06: Dougherty gets
C-USA special teams honor ... Pirate promotions abound for Tulsa game ... UCF versus Pitt on TV Friday night

10.10.06: Tulsa netter Brugues takes national title ... Miami (OH) reeling after sixth loss ... Pirates host unique diving competition

10.09.06: Buckeyes, Trojans, Gators top Harris Poll ... Denny O'Brien's Harris Poll ballot ... Gators continue success in Swamp ... Pirates stun Memphis in volleyball ... ECU soccer shuts out Herd

10.08.06: Jeff Blake bows out of hall induction ... NCAA's tax status under investigation ... North Dakota challenges NCAA mascot policy

10.07.06: Amato continues mastery of Seminoles ... ECU volleyball triumphs at home over UAB ... Millican continues bid for spot on LPGA Tour

10.06.06: Big Ten announces fines, reprimands ... Central Florida wins late field goal battle ... Millican shoots 74 in qualifying event

10.05.06: Gold captures ECU World Series with 8-7 win ... Tulsa runs past Southern Miss ... Former ECU golfer Millican in LPGA qualifying

10.04.06: TV exposure continues for C-USA teams ... Former UVa stars make $1 million gift ... SMU takes two of three weekly league honors

10.03.06: Curry to receive Stagg award ... Inspired by fallen teammate, Rice whips Army ... ECU women's golf team finishes 11th

10.02.06: Takeaways, sacks mean good things for UVa ... Gators pull even with WVU in Harris BCS poll ... Swofford presented with Homer Rice Award ... Tulsa win streak continues at ECU's expense

10.01.06: Cavs blast Duke 37-0 in Durham ... Vols deal Memphis a resounding defeat ... Pirate women's cross country wins meet

East Carolina senior punter Ryan Dougherty was named one of ten semifinalists for the 2006 Ray Guy Award, which identifies the nation's top Division 1-A collegiate punter, the Greater Augusta Sports Council has announced.

Dougherty, a native of Orlando, FL, is averaging 43.6 yards a punt on the season and has booted 30 punts for 1,309 yards including a career-long 72-yarder against Virginia on Oct. 7, a game for which he was named Conference USA's Special Teams Player of the Week.

The two-time All C-USA performer (2003-04) currently ranks second on the all-time C-USA charts in punts (216) and yards (9,178), while ranking third in ECU's history in punts.

This year 47 punters were nominated for the honor. Each of the punters on the list was evaluated on his overall statistics and contribution to the team. Particular emphasis was placed on the following categories: net average, percentage of total punts inside the 20-yard line, average return yardage, and percentage not returned.

Eddy Landreth of CarolinaBlue.com has reported that former University of Miami and Cleveland Browns coach Butch Davis and North Carolina may be close to a deal.

The report hedged as it added "that until the papers are signed and announced there is no such thing as a done deal."

If Davis assumes command of the Tar Heels, according to a source with ties in Greenville, former East Carolina coach Steve Logan may be high on Davis's list of potential offensive coordinators. Logan has been a successful offensive coach in NFL Europe and has become actively involved in broadcasting since his ouster as head coach of the Pirates four years ago.

Howard Schnellenberger said in 1985 that the University of Louisville "is on a collision course with the national championship. The only variable is time."

After the No. 5-ranked Cardinals beat No. 3 West Virginia, 44-34, Thursday night before a record crowd of 43,217 in Papa John's Cardinal Stadium, time is no longer a variable, according to a Louisville Courier-Journal report by Eric Crawford.

This time, it wasn't the program's lofty dreams that collapsed against West Virginia.

This time, it was the goal posts that collapsed, after the biggest win in school history. In a timely move, the university had installed collapsible goal posts just this week.

There's a long way for the 8-0 Cardinals to go. Some computer rankings need to fall their way. They need to win big games on the road.

But the Cards are in the national championship conversation after knocking off the highest-rated team they have ever beaten.

"I think they'll jump to No. 3," the paper reported ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit as saying. "I'll be really surprised if you don't see Louisville jump to that spot."

That would mean the Cards would need only to keep winning and wait for the loser of No. 1 Ohio State's game against No. 2 Michigan later this month to fall. The top two teams in the Bowl Championship Series ratings at the end of the season advance to the BCS title game in Glendale, AZ, on Jan. 8.

Junior defender Kat Norris of East Carolina has been named first team All-Conference USA while sophomore goalkeeper Amber Campbell was a C-USA second team selection, according to an ECU athletic media relations release.

This is the second straight postseason honor for Norris, as she was named second-team all-conference last season. Midfielder Sarah Kirkley represents the Lady Pirates as a member of the C-USA all-freshman squad.

Norris is a mainstay on the Lady Pirates defense. She has started all 18 games this season and has recorded two assists.

Campbell has played all but 65:06 in goal for ECU this season. She was named NCSAA National Player of the Week and also earned a spot on the Soccer Buzz Elite Team of the Week for the last week of the regular season.

Kirkley is a spark in the Lady Pirate midfield. As a freshman, she currently ranks first on the team in assists (10) and second in points (14).

Earlier this week, ECU's Nicole Moore, a sophomore exercise physiology major, was named to the Conference USA All-Academic Team. During the season, Moore was named to the Soccer Buzz Elite Team of the Week. Along with Erin Johnson of Marshall, Moore is the only member of the team that boasts a perfect 4.0 grade point average.

Six Lady Pirates received honorable mention academic recognition: Jami Dickerson, Blair Heffner, Rachel Hills, Madison Keller, Patty Pierce and Mary Puckett.

News Nuggets are compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data published by ECU, Conference USA and its member schools; and reports from electronic services and other sources. Copyright 2006 Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.