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Thursday, March 22, 2012
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By Ron Cherubini
Staff Features
Writer |
Charting the Pirates' 2012
Journey
Spring camp an
opportunity to improve the good and fix the bad
By
Ron Cherubini
©2012 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
Ron Cherubini's
Three-part Spring Football Preview:
Thursday:
Charting the Pirates' 2012 Journey
Friday: With Davis gone, can 'O' raid again?
Monday: Respectable 'D' now seeking greatness
In 2010, it was
an epic defensive failure that killed East Carolina’s chances to continue its run of
winning seasons. In 2011, it was a mistake-prone offense and ineffective special
teams that produced a losing season and ended the Pirates' string of five
consecutive bowl seasons.
Each year in Coach Ruffin McNeil’s fledgling era has
been marked by an uncanny set of circumstances which have led to massive
failures in at least one phase of the game. Likewise, each year in the era
has also been followed by a massive reclamation that has yielded remarkable
results.
Can the coaches get ahead of the curve in 2012? That is the
question.
A third-straight mediocre season
will likely elevate the low-level buzz about the program’s
direction to a more boisterous din.
Sit tight. For the first time since his arrival, Ruff is playing the game
with a full deck of cards and both hands untied. In 2010, he faced the
daunting task of playing football with a decimated defense. In 2011, he
encountered unimaginable offensive attrition.
But, as we embark upon
2012 spring
football, aside from shoring up special teams and having to replace an outstanding quarterback
and a pair of
kickers, Ruff has a very solid base to
build upon.
Though replacing a record-setting quarterback usually spells one or two more
losses in most programs, one of the benefits of this offense is that it is
built for the guy who has learned the system best.
At Texas Tech, this staff
saw a string of prolific one-year starters for the Red Raiders and there is
no reason to believe that it can’t and won’t happen here at ECU. The Pirates
have three capable QBs battling for the job. Otherwise, the offense will be
improved with a very good receiving corps, an offensive line that is now
fully experienced and depth at running back.
The defense has the makings of a very good unit after making monumental
strides a year ago. If the unit can go from good, to game changing — meaning
that it must improve at taking the ball away — then the team may be able to
successfully negotiate the front-loaded schedule and set the table for a
big year.
There will be some missing faces
in camp this time around with three
prominent players no longer on the roster. OLB Marke Powell, perhaps the
biggest stunner, WR Mike Price, and defensive back Rakheem Morgan are no
longer Pirates.
Also, talented WR Danny Webster, star ILB Jeremy Grove, and young RB Chris
Hairston are likely not to participate in the spring activities as they
continue to rehab injuries. OT Grant Harner may also miss part of the spring camp
as he finishes up rehab.
For the most part,
however, all of the names expected to
be in the thick of camp battles are locked and loaded to go along with a
pair of JUCO defensive backs who enrolled in January.
The coaches must solve the mess that was special teams a year ago and took a
step in that direction when they hired former Pirate and long-time coaching
vet Kirk Doll. Doll should be able to turn things around quickly with the
experience that returns. Hopefully, Doll will be able to quick-fix the biggest
issue – the kick coverage units.
New kickers must be found, but there is
experience on the roster. And consistent return men must emerge.
Doll is
up to the task.
The staff also
added another former Red Raider in outside
receivers coach Dave Nichol who came over from Arizona where he also coached OWRs, so continuity
in philosophy should exist there.
As has been customary of late, the schedule starts out
in daunting fashion with four
games that bring special challenges. In short, the schedule is
not kind. First, the Pirates open with FCS juggernaut Appalachian State at home in a game
in which the Pirates will be criticized unless they win convincingly.
It's tough enough to play a formidable App State team, but a matchup with the
Mountaineers on opening day with a
trip to South Carolina looming seven days later is a classic trap
game to start the season.
Yeah… then it is off to
face a loaded South Carolina team at Williams-Brice Stadium place followed
by two more road games at Southern Miss and
North Carolina. That stretch is not only physically demanding, it will push
the mental fatigue factor to the max.
This is why it is critical for this spring to be about refining, not defining,
what the Pirates do well. The camp should be a good one in regards to the
players understanding what to do and where to be. But battles need to be
picked and won quickly so that the depth chart is solid coming out at camp,
particularly at QB, so the front-liners can ramp hard for the fall.
Starting
tomorrow, we'll take a closer look at the young men who will wage the
battles this spring.
Editor's note: This introductory
article is the first in Ron Cherubini's three-part spring football
preview series. Part II, focusing on East Carolina's offense, will be
published on Friday, Mar. 23, 2012. Part III, which examines the
Pirates' defense, will be published on Monday, Mar. 26, 2012.
E-mail
Ron Cherubini
PAGE UPDATED
03/22/12 10:56 AM.
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