By
Denny O'Brien
©2012 Bonesville.net
All Rights Reserved.
GREENVILLE — By all
measures, Saturday’s Conference USA showdown against Houston had the
buildup of the most critical game of Ruffin McNeill’s tenure at East
Carolina.
Fresh off
last week’s 56-28 debacle against Navy,
McNeill suddenly found himself in testy territory with a fan base
beginning to question the program’s direction. To say that McNeill and
his staff needed to demonstrate bounce-back ability would understate the
situation.
There also was plenty on
the line for the Pirates, namely bowl eligibility and preservation of
their C-USA title hopes. ECU also desperately needed to regain its
collective swagger after getting thoroughly bullied by the Midshipmen
last week.
The response? A dominating
performance that resulted in a much-needed 48-28 cakewalk victory over
the surprisingly well-tamed Cougars.
“It was a tough week to
battle back from,” Pirates Coach Ruffin McNeill said. “I thought it said
a lot about our character.
“A lot of teams wouldn’t
have bounced back from the week we had before. I’m proud of our coaching
staff defensively. They did a great job of getting those guys to bounce
back against a team that really works at a high execution level. They
did a great job of controlling this team.”
Not only did the Pirates
bounce back from last week’s loss, they completely outclassed a group
that had won four of its last five and was still in the hunt for the
C-USA West division crown. The Pirates did so with a sense of urgency
seemingly absent for much of the season to date.
Offensively, the Pirates
attacked with proficiency through the air and efficiency on the ground.
Defensively, they forced punts on Houston’s first four possessions,
which fueled a 28-0 first half lead.
In short, a coaching staff
whose preparation has been questioned this year should be applauded for
how well the team was prepared Saturday.
Before Houston could
blink, it was on the business end of a blowout that could have been much
worse. And the Pirates were doing it with a mix of Vintavious Cooper
runs and Shane Carden passes.
Even more impressive was
the volume of contributions from players who generally haven’t been
go-to options. Receiver Danny Webster immediately comes to mind with a
hat trick of receiving touchdowns, as do receiver Derrick Harris and
running back Reggie Bullock, both of whom had standout days.
“We had those receivers
there,” Carden said. “It was never really a confidence thing with them.
It was just today.
“We got them the ball
more. We want that. We want everyone touching the ball and we want
everyone to score. When we’re working like that, the offense flows
better.”
It’s hard to envision it
flowing much better outside a pair of turnovers that negated potential
scores and led to one Houston touchdown. Even the nation’s most astute
offensive minds would embrace a 305-yard passing effort, complemented by
245 on the ground.
In terms of play calling,
you could hardly ask for a better afternoon from Pirates offensive
coordinator Lincoln Riley, who kept the puzzled Coogs off balance all
day. He had an answer for every Houston set, be it an all-out blitz or
seven men in coverage.
With two games remaining,
the Pirates now are bowl eligible with a welcome off week and two very
winnable games remaining. An 8-4 finish and an appearance in the C-USA
championship game suddenly feel within reach.
There’s no question,
though, that East Carolina still has some serious deficiencies on both
sides of the ball. The Pirates are at a clear disadvantage any time the
opponent drops back to pass, and pass protection isn’t exactly a strong
suit.
Saturday’s convincing
victory didn’t resolve that.
But if the mettle of a
team and its staff is measured by how well they pick themselves off the
turf, the Pirates’ passed a serious test on Saturday.