Bonesville: The Authoritative Independent Voice of East Carolina

News & Features from ECU, the AAC and Beyond

  • Home
  • News & Features
  • Recruiting
  • Photos
  • Audio
  • Roundup
  • Comments
  • Legacy Archives

ECU Postseason Scoreboard

• ECU 2023 Football Schedule
• ECU 2022-23 Hoops Schedule
• ECU 2023 Baseball Schedule

— Recruiting Thumbnails —
Football: 2023 • Hoops: 2023-24

The Bradsher Beat
Pirate Nation begins trek out of ‘wilderness’

December 4, 2018 By Bethany Bradsher Leave a Comment

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

East Carolina Board of Trustees Chairman Kieran Shanahan described the place the Pirate faithful have been inhabiting this fall as “the wilderness,” and that seems accurate if that wilderness is also dry and sweltering like a desert. Fans in the Pirate Nation have been trudging along, thirsty and scorched, suffering a glut of disappointments, wondering if what looks like a clear blue pond in the distance is just a cruel mirage.

Monday, with the approval of the contracts of new athletic director Jon Gilbert and new football coach Mike Houston and the press conference introducing Gilbert to the media, those parched Pirates made it to the water’s edge, drank their fill and found themselves with a clear head and something even more refreshing than a cool drink of water — genuine, undiluted hope.

After weeks of speculation and frustration, the Murphy Center was all smiles Monday afternoon, and everyone was available to share their thoughts on the process that was kept hush-hush for so long.

Chancellor Cecil Staton spoke about the eight-month quest for the right leader, telling 94.3 The Game later that he felt like ECU had hit two home runs, and it was only the first inning.

Special athletics advisor Dave Hart, whose own relationship with Gilbert goes back a decade, gave interviews to the media afterwards, too.

Jon Gilbert (SouthernMiss.com photo)

But the star of the day was Gilbert, who characterized himself as “a servant leader” who planned to reinforce a beleaguered athletic department by focusing on the pillars of unity with the larger mission of the university, academic excellence among student-athletes and a high level of athletic success.

It wasn’t an easy decision to make the move to Greenville after less than two years at Southern Mississippi, but Gilbert sees something special at ECU that Hart has always reinforced.

“One of the reasons that I accepted the job here, I go back to my days at Alabama working for Dave, and the love that he had for East Carolina,” Gilbert said. “I can’t tell you how many times he told me how hard it was to leave. And I knew it was special and I felt it was the right opportunity.”

Gilbert, played football for Lenoir-Rhyne and worked as a graduate assistant football coach at Eastern Kentucky while earning his master’s in sport management. Prior to his hiring at Southern Miss, he worked at the University of Alabama for nearly 17 years, serving in a variety of capacities within the athletic department, and then spent six years at the University of Tennessee as the Executive Senior Associate Athletics Director. He worked with Hart at both Alabama and Tennessee.

Even back in his years as a student-athlete at Lenoir-Rhyne, Gilbert met the late legendary Pirate administrator Henry Van Sant and Hanley Painter, an old-timer within the Lenoir-Rhyne athletic department, who was fond of telling Clarence Stasavich stories. From that impressionable age, Gilbert remembers being struck by their stories of the people and the traditions in the Pirate Nation.

“I knew what a rich history this institution had, and that really excited me,” he said. “I feel like there’s tremendous growth here, and opportunity and potential, and that’s why I chose to be here.”

He is aware that he is moving into a college sports stronghold that has been shell-shocked by events like Saturday’s 58-3 loss at North Carolina State, but Gilbert believes that he can reinstate trust and rebuild a winning tradition with some simple, but profound steps — creating a culture of excellence and fun within the ECU athletic offices and relentlessly showing up to support Pirate athletics and listen to the fans who are there beside him cheering ECU teams on.

“I will bring a leadership style of communication, openness and visibility,” he said. “I will literally be at almost everything. Certainly, I’ll be at football, but I will be at all our other sports as well, and make sure that those student-athletes know that they have my support and I value what they’re doing. I want to earn your trust. I think it’s really important that I earn the trust of the entire Pirate faithful. I am who I am. I’m pretty simple. I want to win, I want to do it the right way, and I want to have fun.”

Staton, who thanked Hart for his dedication and described the “deep dive” that he and other ECU leaders undertook to thoroughly evaluate the athletic program and identify the optimal candidates for these key openings, talked about Gilbert’s years of experience at elite institutions and his vision for pushing the programs he leads to new heights.

“Under his leadership Southern Miss has increased resources in the areas of academic success as well as student-athlete well-being,” Staton said “He hired for Conference USA the very first full-time nutritionist. He built the student-athletes’ first nutrition fueling bar. He cares deeply about our student-athletes and will bring that mindset and that commitment to all he does here.

“I don’t think we could have done better.”

Head baseball coach Cliff Godwin, who had breakfast with Gilbert on Monday morning, said that he called Southern Miss baseball coach Scott Berry when he learned Gilbert was the leading candidate. The first thing Berry said to him was, “I hope he doesn’t take the job.”

“I’m just excited about him coming here and leading our athletic department,” Godwin said.

Tuesday will mark Good News, Part Two, as the media and athletic executives gather in the same room at 10 a.m. to officially introduce Houston as ECU’s 22nd head football coach. Gilbert made it clear that he did go to Harrisonburg, VA, to meet with Houston, even if the two personnel decisions seemed to happen almost simultaneously to the outside observer.

“I did hire the football coach; when I went to speak with him I asked both Dave Hart and J.J. McLamb to go with me, but I did hire him and I have spoken to him numerous times,” Gilbert said.

DUAL HIRINGS DON’T MEAN OVERNIGHT TURNAROUND
PIRATES TURN BACK MARYLAND EASTERN SHORE
QUARTERBACK CONTINUITY POWERS PACK
AUDIO: DAVID BLACKWELL POSTGAME…
VIEW GAME DAY PHOTO GALLERY…
PIRATES OVERTAKE APPALACHIAN STATE
AUDIO: “BONESVILLE PREGAME PODCAST…”
UNEXPECTED MANDATE FALLS ON DAVID BLACKWELL
SHAKEUP BEGINS FOR ECU FOOTBALL
VIEW ECU’S 2018 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE

Related

Tweet
Share
Share
Pin

Filed Under: News & Features

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recent News & Features

BASEBALL NEWS
ECU tells Sooners, ‘later’

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Pirates prep for regional

Baseball News
Pirates headed to UVa

Baseball News
Tulane tops Pirates in American final

Baseball News
Saturday sweep puts ECU in Sunday AAC final

Baseball News
13 proves lucky for ECU

VIEW FROM THE EAST
Schwartz scores in transition

Baseball News
Pirates oust Cincinnati

Baseball News
Bulls upset ECU in AAC Tournament

Baseball News
Pirates arrrgh American champions again

More News & Features

ECU Schedules

  • ECU 2021 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2020-21 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2021 Baseball Schedule

ECU Recruiting

  • Football Recruiting Class of 2021
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2020
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2019
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2018
  • Football Recruiting Class of 2017
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2021-22
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2020-21
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2019-20
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2018-19
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2017-18
  • Hoops Recruiting Class of 2016-17

Past Football Schedules

  • ECU 2020 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2019 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2018 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2017 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2016 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2015 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2014 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2013 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2012 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2011 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2010 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2009 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2008 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2007 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2006 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2005 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2004 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2003 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2002 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2001 Football Schedule
  • ECU 2000 Football Schedule
  • Historical Schedules

Past Basketball Schedules

  • ECU 2019-20 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2018-19 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2017-18 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2016-17 Basketball Schedule
  • ECU 2000-2015 Basketball Archives

Past Baseball Schedules

  • ECU 2020 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2019 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2018 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2017 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2016 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2015 Baseball Schedule
  • ECU 2001-2014 Baseball Archives

Recruiting Class Profiles

ECU Recruiting News
ECU snatches late addition from Hoosiers

ECU Recruiting News
Class of 2024 starts with prized receiver

ECU Recruiting News
Late pitch lures lineman with pedigree

Recruiting Evaluation Part 2: Defense
Report card: Quality talent fills big holes

Recruiting Evaluation Part 1: Offense
Report card: Pirates reload at skill spots

ECU Recruiting News
Towering lineman Neolian still honing skills (updated)

ECU Recruiting News
More help is on the way to ECU secondary

ECU Recruiting News
Portal delivers blue chipper RaRa Dillworth

Class of 2023 Early Signing Review (UPDATED)
Pirates tap transfer portal for more talent

AAC Early Signing Review
New members dive into AAC recruiting wars

Class of 2023 Early Signing Review
First wave of recruits just the beginning

ECU Recruiting News
Brown finds way to ECU through portal

ECU Recruiting News
Transfer safety McDaniel destined for ECU

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates land coveted Spartanburg quarterback

ECU Recruiting News
Swift ECU recruit ‘in a class of his own’

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates win out for Georgia prep linebacker

ECU Recruiting News
Linebacker with pedigree charts path to ECU

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates find a gem in Palmetto State receiver

ECU Recruiting News
Official visit swayed North Mecklenburg star

ECU Recruiting News
Physical Georgia receiver poses tough matchup

ECU Recruiting News
Pirates project lineman Durant as center

ECU Recruiting News
ECU spotted potential in Conley lineman

ECU Recruiting News
ECU lands fleet-footed Georgia defensive back

ECU Recruiting News
‘Football town’ helps draw Short to Pirates

ECU Recruiting News
ECU targets edge rushers

Recent Web Roundups

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Friday, June 2, 2023

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Thursday, June 1, 2023

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Writer Archives

  • Bonesville Staff
  • Brian Bailey
  • Sammy Batten
  • Bethany Bradsher
  • Brett Friedlander
  • Al Myatt
  • NFF
  • Greg Vacek
  • Danny Whitford

Recent Web Roundups

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Friday, June 2, 2023

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Thursday, June 1, 2023

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Wednesday, May 31, 2023

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Monday, May 29, 2023

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Sunday, May 28, 2023

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Saturday, May 27, 2023

GREG VACEK'S WEB ROUNDUP
Friday, May 26, 2023

More Web Roundups

Copyright © 2023 Bonesville.net · Website by Seaport Webworks. · Log in · Privacy Policy