AL MYATT | Shaw's status unsure [fb-090612]

South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier may not make a decision on his starting quarterback until shortly before a 12:21 p.m. kickoff on Saturday with visiting East Carolina. Connor Shaw sustained a bruised shoulder last Thursday night in a 17-13 win at Vanderbilt and his playing status has been a source of widespread speculation for this week's matchup.

Shaw missed practice early in the week. Two factors will influence Spurrier's choice between Shaw and sophomore Dylan Thompson, those being how well Shaw can throw and the risk of further injury. Thompson completed two passes in four games last season. He rushed five times for 16 yards with a score.

Running back Marcus Lattimore had 110 yards rushing and two touchdowns on 23 carries at Vandy.

Shaw started last year against the Pirates in the season opener in Charlotte but it was backup Jeff Garcia who came off the sideline to provide the winning impetus in a 56-37 Gamecocks win after ECU had jumped out to a 17-0 lead. Garcia and five Pirates turnovers defused an upset.

Who starts at quarterback Saturday is a non-issue as far as ECU coach Ruffin McNeill is concerned.

"I've seen three (quarterbacks) on film and they do the same things that Connor does," McNeill said. "I expect Connor to play. He's a tough nut, a tough hombre. ... I expect him to be back and, if not, I expect the offense will be the same — throw the football, which coach Spurrier has always done. The quarterback is a dual threat, which they have designed running plays and zone read plays for him. It won't change with whatever quarterback is playing.

" ... All those guys can run and throw the football. It's just like last year's game with Garcia and Connors in that game, too. ... The philosophy for Coach Spurrier won't change."

McNeill said Wednesday that nose guard Michael Brooks would not play Saturday at South Carolina. Brooks sustained a knee injury last week in a 35-13 win over Appalachian State and will be out one to two weeks.

The nose guard rotation this week will include Terrell Stanley, Lee Pegues and Leroy Vick.

Terry Williams, another nose guard, is scheduled to return next week at Southern Miss after drawing a two-game suspension stemming from his arrest earlier this summer. McNeill said charges in that case had been reduced.

Back from one-game suspensions are receivers Dayon Arrington, Danny Webster and Antonio Cannon, who all missed the season opener.

"That will help the rotation," McNeill said. "It gives us depth at all three receiver positions at outside with Dayon, on the other side with Antonio and Danny Webster, at inside receiver."

A right knee ailment kept cornerback Leonard Paulk from playing against Appalachian State but he returned to practice on Sunday and is expected to be available this week.

"We've just got to knock the rust off of him," McNeill said. "We're hoping he's ready to go. He practiced good on Monday. He got work Sunday and Monday so I'm expecting Leonard to be ready to go."

The forecast for Columbia, SC, on Saturday is calling for a high of 89 degrees with a 30 percent chance of rain. Winds will be south-southwest and the humidity is projected to be 77 percent. The UV index is nine, which is very high.

"We played at 12 (noon) here in Greenville and Greenville is as hot as any place in the country," McNeill said, referring to the Pirates' win over Appalachian State last Saturday in oppressive conditions. "It was smoking here and humid. I think we had that test last week."

The stands had thinned considerably from the paid attendance of 49,023 due to the temperature with the issue still in doubt in the second half.

"I was surprised to see it, too," McNeill said. "It was hot on the field. I think it was hotter on the field than it was in the stands. It might have been over 100 on the field. ... I hope the fans will hydrate and take care of themselves (this week)."

The near-capacity crowd at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium last Saturday had thinned in deference to the heat by the time Appalachian State quarterback Jamal Jackson (12) dropped back to pass in the third quarter. (Bonesville photo / W.A. Myatt)

News sources reported that about 300 people were treated for heat-related symptoms at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium last week.

"Any of the fans who had a setback because of the heat, I hope they're doing OK," McNeill said.

Williams-Brice Stadium is one of many venues in college football that McNeill has become familiar with during the course of his career as a college player and coach, a span which dates back to 1976.

"Columbia is a tough place to play," he said. "I've played in it as a player in that stadium. It was all (synthetic) turf at that time. I've coached in that stadium."

As a player, McNeill was a sophomore strong safety for Pirates coach Pat Dye when ECU took a 19-16 loss to the Gamecocks in Columbia in 1977. As a graduate assistant at Clemson in 1985, McNeill was on the winning side in a 24-17 Tigers victory at South Carolina. McNeill was defensive line coach at ECU in 1992 when the Pirates, with Coach Steve Logan at the helm, topped host South Carolina, 20-18, in a rainstorm.

"It'll be a great atmosphere," said the third-year Pirates coach. "It's an SEC opponent, well-coached. Coach Spurrier is one of the top coaches in the game and has been for a long time. They have a very talented football team on all three sides of the ball. We know we have our hands full ... but we're looking forward to it."

Coaches used to say that the biggest improvement occurred from the first week to the second week. The timing of that bump would be good for the Pirates as they face a team that is tied for ninth nationally in the Associated Press poll.

Fundamentals and techniques are the areas where McNeill is looking for ECU to take a step forward.

"Playing with better footwork and hand placement and lower pad level," said the Pirates skipper. "Playing 11-man football, which means executing our offense, defense and special teams, where everybody is on the same page consistently."

Trent Tignor's debut as punter for the Pirates showed promise. His attempts to pooch a pair early in the game resulted in touchbacks but he showed the ability to be a positive factor in field position as he averaged 44.5 yards on four efforts with a longest of 58 yards. Tignor boomed some high spirals against the Mountaineers.

"He's a defensive player, really, because he changes field position," McNeill said. "He did a very good job of hang time and distance. We tried to pin 'em on some pooch kicks, one that we couldn't get and the second one that I thought we should have gotten with better 11-man football on special teams."

Confidence is a valuable commodity when playing in an 80,250-seat SEC arena against a nationally-ranked foe.

"I think they believe in themselves and each other," McNeill said. "That's always going to be a continual process there. They believed during the game last week even though things were not as smooth as you might hope. They stayed poised and confident in themselves and their teammates. They know they've all invested a lot of energy and time and sacrifice. When everybody has invested, then everybody has that mutual respect and that's what this team has."

The focus required for success on the road has been a point of emphasis since the Pirates opened preseason practice.

"We've talked about travelling from the first day of fall camp," McNeill said. "I don't look ahead but I thought I had to prepare our team for three games on the road that we're about to face. So it was presented in fall camp on three occasions. I brought it up again just to let them know about the stadium and how many it seats, the turf that they'll be playing on, the locker room that we'll be dressing in, the environment. It will be a live crowd. I've played in it and coached in it. I could give them actual feedback on that.

"Again, it's just making sure we worry about ourselves, making routine plays, making sure we give all we've got on every play, which I think this team has done since we've been here, but continue to do that and let's go have a good time."

ECU had just three penalties for 30 yards last year against South Carolina while the Gamecocks were flagged eight times for 55 yards.

Playing smart, penalty-free football has been a building block in McNeill's regime. The Pirates had just two penalties for 25 yards last week against Appalachian State.

According to ECU sources, Saturday's game in Columbia will be called by a Conference USA crew. SEC officials worked the matchup in Charlotte a year ago.

The Pirates can't do any better from a penalty standpoint than their flag free day in the second game last season against Virginia Tech.