By Al Myatt
©2015 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.

View the Mobile Alpha version of this page.

Audio: Replay Coach Ruff's signing day presser...

View thumbnails of ECU's recruiting class of 2015...

GREENVILLE — Signing day signals the end of the recruiting period, the time when letters of intent are faxed to college football offices around the country and futures of programs are determined in large part for years to come.

Story continues after the following picture...

ECU coach Ruffin McNeill discusses his incoming crop of recruits.
(Photo by W.A. Myatt)

Where teams stand in the national pecking order generally affects the caliber of player they can attract.

One trick when you're on the cusp of the Power Five as East Carolina is in the American Athletic Conference is to be able to evaluate recruits and their futures. The Pirates coaching staff must be able to see what players can become even more than what they are.

How else do you explain players like Shane Carden and Justin Hardy, who attracted little recruiting attention but came to flourish in coach Ruffin McNeill's system at ECU?

There are no silver medals in recruiting.

The Pirates don't spend their time chasing four- or five-star prospects only to finish in the category of also-rans when final decisions are made.

Flying under the radar is one of the best phrases to describe some future Pirates. A guy who has something to prove is often better prepared to come in and work in coach Jeff Connors' weight program and develop during his tour of duty on the scout team than a guy who arrives with a full helping of hype only to find that he's starting at ground zero when he reaches Top 25 University.

The McNeill system has a support network that eases the transition for any high school player. It's family. McNeill relishes his role as patriarch of the Pirate program. McNeill refers to wife, Erlene, as team Mom. His staff are uncles with the exception of defensive coordinator Rick Smith, whose age and wisdom have earned him the Grandpa designation. The players are sons and brothers.

In the big business of college football, it can be comforting to have someone who has experienced the adjustment to the Football Bowl Subdivision level as a personal resource.

Players must take care of their academic responsibilities. There are study halls and tutors to help in that process and the coaching staff monitors class attendance.

The most important factor McNeill emphasizes is that the Pirates find players who are not afraid to achieve.

In a general sense, ECU announced a class on Wednesday that has big play capability on offense and explosive, lengthy guys on defense.

For the Pirates, it's not about signing players relative to ratings that are generated by recruiting analysts, but finding the right fit in terms of the ECU offense, defense and family.

One of McNeill's favorite ploys is to ask school cafeteria workers about a potential player's personality.

"We want to know how he reacts to adversity," McNeill said.

This is the sixth class the Pirates have brought in under the ECU alumnus.

"This class builds on our last class and others as well as any we've had," McNeill said.

Many coaches would rather go to the dentist than hit the road in search of players. McNeill is a 180-degree turn from that.

"I wish they would change the rule and I could go out to see recruits more than one time," McNeill said during a news conference from the club level at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium on Wednesday afternoon.

He has always been about family. But doing it is tougher than saying it and people are starting to see through his actions that there isn't a CEO in the football office at ECU. There's a caring father.

That's why there was probably as high a degree of late retention among commitments as can be recalled for the Pirates.

Five are already enrolled. That group includes inside linebacker Tony Baird, defensive back Nhyre Quinerly, former Havelock running back and Tennessee transfer Derrell Scott, defensive back Corey Seargent and defensive lineman Kyron Speller.

"I don't recruit backups," McNeill tells prospective players. "I recruit starters."

Quarterback John Jacobs maintained his commitment after a solid high school career in Shawnee, OK, despite the departure of offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley to Oklahoma. His coach, Billy Brown, said his players know the Pirates because they see ECU on television.

The Pirates can match exposure through the AAC television package with anybody.

"People know us wherever we go," McNeill said.

The quarterback competition for Carden's successor will begin March 20 with the start of spring practice. Kurt Benkert played sparingly as Carden's backup in 2014. Left-hander Blake Kemp, a junior college transfer, preserved his eligibility for two seasons as a redshirt in 2014. Cody Keith sat out last year to let an ailment in his throwing arm recover. Wednesday signee James Summers will likely play receiver although he was a quarterback at Hinds Community College after leading Greensboro Page to a state championship. Jacobs will eventually join the mix.

One source said Summers is working on fulfilling academic eligibility requirements at Pitt Community College.

The public will get to see how the quarterback situation is shaking out at the spring game on April 18.

The 17 signees plus Virginia Tech transfer Chris Mangus, who enrolled at ECU in 2014 but sat out the season in accordance with NCAA rules, may be joined by a few more, McNeill said after receiving "adoption papers" from Virginia to Texas on signing day.

The Pirate coach did his time in the waiting room — and living rooms. It appears ECU may have gotten just what the program needed.

Daddy Ruff is excited about the new additions.

Audio: Replay Coach Ruff's signing day presser...

View thumbnails of ECU's recruiting class of 2015...