News and Notes from East Carolina, Conference USA and Beyond

PREVIOUS NUGGETS

11.29.06: C-USA bowl slate sends ECU to Birmingham ... SMU's Needham a finalist for Hermann Trophy ... Bearcats coach bolts for Michigan State

11.28.06: ECU's Roach on
C-USA academic team ... Wager on Clemson-South Carolina turns deadly ... Shula era comes to end at Alabama

11.27.06: C-USA title game features UH-USM rematch ... Bunting farewell to press a succinct one ... ECU announces swimming, diving signees

11.26.06: Pirates add Lugo to 2008 baseball class ... VCU prevails over ECU in women's hoops ... Tulsa gains momentum for postseason trip

11.25.06: ECU-bound Herlocker paces Charlotte Catholic ... Miami enters search mode for football coach ... BC out of ACC title contention

11.24.06: Herd takes ECU hopes to Hattiesburg ... Gonzaga has a Garden party in NIT semis ... Iowa State search eliminates two candidates

11.23.06: Yow taking leave of absence for treatment ... Marshall's Bradshaw nabs
C-USA weekly honor

11.22.06: Pirates face Houston if Marshall wins ... Former teammates push Raye for MSU coach ... SMU's Wideman named academic player of year

11.21.06: Duke, Wake athletes named Rhodes scholars ... UAB captures Conference USA volleyball ... Old Dominion stuns Georgetown on the road

11.20.06: Ohio State-Michigan rematch possible ... Video helps inspire Tar Heels to beat State ... Cords stepping down as AD at Marquette

11.19.06: Cougars to host USM or ECU in C-USA title game ... ECU falls in women's hoops to Vermont ... Pirate swimming teams in seventh place

11.18.06: ECU baseball bringing in 10-man class ... UTEP edges Pirates in C-USA volleyball ... West Virginia steamrolls Pitt

11.17.06: Pirates reschedule hoops contest with NCCU ... ECU volleyball places 3 on all- league team ... Top-ranked SMU goes down in NCAA soccer

11.16.06: Paterno's hall of fame induction postponed ... Tressel downplays his dominance vs. Michigan ... ECU softball announces pair of signees

11.15.06: Pirates control their fate in East Division ... Pinkney in star game, playing for Buddy Ryan ... ECU's Lee named special teams player of week

11.14.06: ECU-NCSU kickoff moved to 7 p.m. for TV ... Butch will succeed Bunting at UNC- Chapel Hill ... Conference USA coaches make debuts ... Pirates seeded sixth in C-USA volleyball ... Lady Pirates drop hoops opener to JMU

11.13.06: Houston clinches
C-USA championship berth ... ECU volleyball slips in regular season finale ... Grad rates: Athletes outperform student body

11.12.06: ECU announces women's hoops signees ... Miners extinguish Blazers' bowl hopes ... Mustang duo in contention for Hermann Trophy

11.11.06: Rutgers kicks Cards out of title picture ... Roach selected for district academic honor ... Krug getting it done on court, in classroom

11.10.06: Pirates prepare for Saturday hoops opener ... Houston's Kolb makes cut on O'Brien award list ... UNC-CH officials mum on Davis' status

11.09.06: Former star QB to represent N.C. in Congress ... Homicide unit probing death of Miami player ... Krog's 73 puts her in top five at Augusta

11.08.06: UK's win over Payne's charges not flawless ... SMU, UAB gain NCAA men's soccer berths ... Three C-USA women's teams get NCAA slots

11.07.06: Two Marshall players get C-USA honors ... UAB women capture C-USA soccer title ... Punter faces attempted murder charge

11.06.06: Pirate volleyball takes down Memphis ... Denny O'Brien's Harris Poll ballot ... ECU swimmers, divers perform well ... Paterno recovering from fractured leg

11.05.06: Promotions aplenty for ECU-Marshall game ...
Ex-Tulsa great Largent gets humanitarian honor

11.04.06: Dougherty a semifinalist for Ray Guy Award ... Butch Davis deal with Tar Heels imminent? ... Cardinals talking national title, again ... Honors abound for ECU women's soccer team

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

East Carolina athletic director Terry Holland has addressed Pirate fans in a "From The Desk Of Terry Holland" letter at ecupirates.com regarding the Pirates' upcoming bowl game.

Saturday night in Raleigh was a proud moment for everyone associated with East Carolina University Athletics. Our team and coaching staff responded to a mighty challenge after the heart-breaking defeat the previous weekend and the Pirate Nation made a huge Purple and Gold statement in the stands of Carter-Finley Stadium.

Now we have an opportunity to finish this season in the very best possible manner — with a chance for a bowl win over a team from a BCS Conference. The PapaJohns.com Bowl will match the Pirates against a team from the Big East Conference.

While Saturday, December 23 is close to Christmas, Pirate fans have always found ways to avoid making excuses while overcoming obstacles. The positives are that this is the closest C-USA bowl site for our fans and the only bowl, other than the C-USA Champion's Liberty Bowl opponent, to feature a BCS opponent.

Pirate Football has come a long, long way in two years but our future may well be determined by how every segment of the Pirate Nation responds to this final challenge of the year.

We hope that you will do everything possible to be with us in Birmingham. If it is not possible to make the trip, we hope you will consider purchasing bowl tickets that will be donated.

It is critically important that East Carolina gets credit for every ticket we sell so we ask that you make all purchases through the ECU Athletics Ticket Office (ecupirates.com or 1-800-DIAL-ECU).

Thank you for your tremendous support during the course of the 2006 season. Let's all work together to support the Pirates and Paint Birmingham Purple.

MAURICE MERCER (6-5, 235) DE, Nash Central High ... a recruiting priority for Pirate coaching staff members Rock Roggeman and Donnie Thompson. ... Mercer cast his lot with ECU in October after receiving recruiting attention from Boston College, North Carolina, N.C. State and Virginia, among others. ... personal attention from ECU coaches was a deciding factor in Mercer's recruiting process. ... four-year varsity player in high school, the last two as a starter at defensive end. ... has also seen spot duty at tight end on offense. ... joined the program at Nash Central in its second year. ... coached by Kenneth Grantham. ... older brother, Marcus, plays at Texas State. ... had eight sacks for a 7-4 team in 2006. ... [Posted 11.29.06]

Special teams were indeed special for East Carolina in 2006 as indicated by the first-team All-Conference USA selection of two Pirate special teams performers, punter Ryan Dougherty and kick returner Chris Johnson.

Three ECU players were named to the second team: offensive lineman Eric Graham, wide receiver Aundrae Allison and defensive back Pierre Parker.

Conference USA has announced its 2006 All-Freshman football team, as selected by a panel of media members in each conference city. Ten of the league's 12 schools were represented with at least one selection, with East Carolina and Southern Methodist placing a league-high five players on the squad. SMU's Emmanuel Sanders was named to the team as both a wide receiver and kick returner.

Leading the way for the Pirates on the All-Freshman team were offensive linemen Terence Campbell and Cory Dowless. ECU also placed two defensive linemen on the list, C.J. Wilson and Scotty Robinson. Linebacker Van Eskridge rounds out the East Carolina honorees.

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.