Blake Harrell is in his first offseason as head football coach at East Carolina after taking on those responsibilities on Oct. 20 on an interim basis. He was named head coach in late November.

With recruiting and player development, the term offseason is really misleading. Even when the Pirates are not preparing for games, there is a demanding workload.

“Our guys are busy getting after it in the weight room, and trying to add on strength, and weight, and size, as well as speed and stuff,” Harrell said Wednesday. “We just started yesterday doing some team competition, just meaning one-on-one competitions, one-on-one runs, different stuff like that that we can move forward with.

“In the offseason, in general, it’s all about developing individuals and developing players, and then just making sure that you develop your culture as well, as far as your team philosophy and your team culture.”

Primary in those developmental objectives is new strength and conditioning coach Mike Sirignano.

“He came from Rutgers,” Harrell said. “He’s been the head guy at Georgia State, App State and Louisville. He’s not only worked at Power Four levels, he’s also worked at Group of Five levels and understands some restrictions that we have.

“He’s been at the top and knows what it looks like and what it needs to look like.”

No signees on Signing Day

The first Wednesday in February has been known as National Signing Day, but the culmination of high school recruiting for the current senior class now takes place in December.

ECU didn’t sign anyone this week, but Harrell hasn’t ruled out roster additions.

“You’re always looking to add to your roster,” he said. ” … We’re a little over on our roster size number, assuming it goes to a 105 roster limit. We’ll have some guys we got to cut loose.

“If there’s a guy out there that we think can help us meet our needs or help us move forward, we’ll grab that guy.”

Spring ball

Because of the increased volume of roster additions with NIL and the instantaneous eligibility from the transfer portal, there is greater emphasis on system installation and teaching in spring football.

“We pushed it back,” Harrell said. “We don’t start until March 25th, and the spring game is April 26th. We pushed it back just to give our players more time to develop in the weight room, or develop their skill set in the offseason.

“Whether it’s weight room or strength gains, weight gains or weight loss, whatever it may be, just trying to get them in the best physical shape before spring ball and give them the biggest block of time.

“We’ve added 37 new players this spring to our roster. In the weight room, you can do a lot to develop the culture, the team culture, but in practice, we’ve got to make sure we’re developing players to fit our scheme and our techniques and doing a great job there.

“It’ll be a big spring. We got a lot of new faces. We’ve got, obviously, some returners, but we’re also missing some guys that were around here for five, six years: D’Anta Johnson, Elijah Morris, Rahjai Harris, Parker Moorer, (Hampton) Ergle. All of those guys are certainly gone. We’ve got to replace those guys, and that’s what spring’s about.”

New defensive coordinator

Harrell has brought in Josh Aldridge from Auburn to be defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. Harrell had fulfilled those responsibilities since January, 2020.

Aldridge will have some latitude from the defensive system Harrell directed.

“Here’s how I’ve been saying it,” Harrell said. “We’re still going to be in the same ice cream shop making the same ice cream. It might just have a little bit different flavor.

“Me and him think very similarly, think a lot of ways, but I think he’ll add his flavors to it. We’ll mix it in there, and I think it’ll help us grow, and think outside the box and become better.”

Bivens back

Former ECU linebacker Bruce Bivens, who played for the Pirates from 2017 to 2021,  has returned to the program as director of player development.

“Bruce is one of my favorite players,” Harrell said. “When he got here, we nicknamed him the Hammerhead because he would certainly bring it. An outstanding young man and always a smile on his face. He’d been managing people in his previous role.

“Just thought he was really good about managing. He’s really good at managing our players, and mentoring those young men to help them grow off the field, and as well as holding them accountable.

“He will do really well working with academics, working with our strength and conditioning department, as well as community service. Different things we can do there. Then Bruce is a recognizable young man and name and just will help these guys grow.

“We always talk about how we want to put a great product on the field. We want to do a great job in the classroom and off the field. That’s where Bruce is going to come into play.”

New cornerbacks coach

Harrell has added Tarron Williams to the staff as cornerbacks coach.

“Tarron was a graduate assistant for us back at Lenoir-Ryne. … Worked with him before when I got here to East Carolina. He was in player development, and he did that role. … just did a really nice job, for I guess three seasons. A really nice job there.

“He’s very well known around the community, around campus, and very well liked. It was great to get a familiar face, not only to do what we do defensively and schematically, back into the fold, but just a guy that knows this place, knows this community, what it is to be a Pirate, and even a better person to get back in our program.”

Female staffer

In the male-dominated world of football, Lydia West is unique as the new director of football operations.

“It’s just like a NASCAR team,” Harrell said “You don’t want to have all tire changers. You don’t want to have all gas men. You’ve got to make sure your crew and your staff is made up of different people from different backgrounds to help you grow.

“Lydia West is a rock star. She does an awesome job of being organized, and keeping everybody on their toes. Doing a really nice job of helping us move forward and grow that position.

“I worked with her at Kennesaw State, and she wore several hats there, whether it was recruiting, operations, chief of staff. She did all those things there. We’re certainly fired up to have her here and help us grow in that area.”

Among West’s responsibilities is making travel arrangements for the team.

“That’s exactly what she does,” Harrell said. “She does all our travel arrangements, whether it’s home games, away games, as well as just setting up daily schedules for the students sometimes to make sure everything flows there.

“We’re actually getting ready to head over here to Bagelman in a little bit to make sure we’ve got some things set up there, then over to the hotel to set some things up. I’m just kind of getting her around, introducing those people. She’s been really good.”

General manager search

Harrell is searching for a general manager after Noah Joseph left to become a defensive analyst at LSU.

“When we hired him, he was kind of done with that avenue, and did a really good job in the month and a half he was here,: Harrell said.  … “He was doing a really good job in helping grow that position.

“I think just the SEC, when they gave him a call, I think that was a chance for him to do that. He said if he passed it up this time, he never thought he’d get back on the field, so he wanted to give it one more go, which we all have got to understand.”

The GM position helps coordinate financial aspects of NIL.

“Just looking forward to somebody that can help us grow in the personnel department, as well as the collective, and managing that and managing our staff,” Harrell said. “I’ve got a bunch of folks we talk to and a bunch of folks that are very familiar with East Carolina. They understand what our brand’s about, what this program and university is about, and would be excited to join us.”

Funding the collective

Harrell indicated that funding for the Boneyard NIL collective has seen a response to an 8-5 season and a bowl triumph.

“When you beat N.C. State and you win five out of your last six, I think there’s only one way forward to go, and that’s up,” said the Pirates coach.

Salary jump

Harrell went from a reported salary of $341,000 as defensive coordinator to a $1.3 million package with his new contract.

He doesn’t anticipate that money will change him.

“No, no,” Harrell said. “We’re going to stay in the same house and do the same thing, shop at the same Aldi’s, and where else does my wife shop? The only shopping I ever do is Amazon, but my wife, she hits up Aldi’s, and the Dollar Store, and all those places. I don’t see any of that changing. That’s just who we are. We’ve got all we need, and that’s each other.”

Punting situation

Coaches don’t like to punt, but it’s an important phase in terms of field position.

Luke Larsen will have to be replaced.

“Luke did an awesome job for us here, and we knew going into the season, this was going to be his senior season and last go at it,” Harrell said  “He walked on Senior Day. I don’t know if Luke is going to go punt somewhere else, or if he’s going to go into the job world, which kind of seemed what he was leaning toward.

“He just told me, ‘Hey, Coach, I want to put my name in the portal, just in case somewhere like Hawaii called, I’d go live in Hawaii for a season and check that out.’

“He said, ‘If somebody wants to pay me crazy money, I might go punt for them. Otherwise, I’m just going to go get on with my life.’ That was the reason he put his name in the portal. We have another Australian, Tomas (O’Halloran).

“Tomas has got a really strong leg, is a freshman for us. I think he turns 20 this spring, so he’s a little bit younger than Luke, but we’re fired up about him. We’ve just got to get him a lot of kicks, a lot of punts in this spring. That way, he’s ready.”

Pro prospects

Several Pirates will be looking to continue their careers as pros.

“We’ll do our pro day March 26th,” Harrell said. “Obviously, Shavon Revel is still being projected as a first round pick. Could fall to the second, but I think he’s definitely an early pick.

“That’s obviously the guy that’s going to get a lot of attention as we move closer to draft day. Rahjai, and Ta (Johnson), and Eli (Morris) and those guys, I don’t know if they’ll get drafted, but I do think they’ll get an opportunity and a shot in somebody’s camp.

“They’re all working hard and working their tails off to perform at pro day. Certainly had good careers here for the Pirates, and did a really good job. Pulling for those guys, and just really think that somebody, if they’ll take a chance on them, they’ll find out what type of young men and players they are, and be really excited that they did take a chance on them.”

Spotlight shifted

Harris had a play for the ages in ECU history when he went 86 yards with 1:33 remaining to provide a 26-21 victory in the Military Bowl. The spotlight moved off of Harris, however.

The focus shifted to pushing and shoving that brought players off the sideline in the final minute in the bowl win over the Wolfpack.

“That’s what I told our players,” Harrell said. “I said, ‘For 59 minutes and 16 seconds, it was all about us. It was one of the best games in college football, but what did headlines say? What did the ESPN ticker say?’ We talked about that. We talked about how we’ve got to improve and be champions in all aspects. We can’t just be champions when we want to be champions.

“We got to represent our university and our program in the right manner all the time. If the umpire’s not standing between two guys, when one of them gets pushed into the other kid, it probably doesn’t look as bad as it is. But at the end of the day, we’ve just got to be out of that situation and stay away from it.”

Super Bowl thoughts

Kansas City meets Philadelphia in New Orleans on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. in Super Bowl LIX.

“If I was taking a team, it’d be hard to go against Kansas City,” Harrell said. “I just think (Patrick) Mahomes (Chiefs quarterback) has done it too many times on too many stages, and continues to do it.

“I think they believe they can do it, where the Eagles are a really good football team. I like the quarterback (Jalen Hurts), but I don’t know if something starts going in the way of Kansas City, if they have enough confidence and belief that they can make it happen. That’s just me from the outside. I haven’t studied it or watched it a whole lot, but that’s just kind of my general thoughts.”

Harrell shared his approach on defending premier Eagles running back Saquon Barkley, who averages 128.8 yards per game rushing.

“I’d make sure I’d stacked the box and could stop the run,” Harrell said. “You better tackle him low … and better hold, wrap up and hold on, and hope your teammates get there sooner than later.”