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Audio: Coach Ruff Presser |
 East
Caorlina football coach
Ruffin
McNeill
and players Derrell Johnson and Vintavious Cooper met
with
the
media
after
the
Pirates
defeated
Ohio 37-20 in
the
Beef
'O'
Brady's
Bowl
(recorded
by
W.A.
Myatt;
file
photo
by W.A.
Myatt):
Select
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By
Al Myatt
©2013 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
View the Mobile Alpha version of this page.
East Carolina and Ohio put a lot of fresh ink in the Beef
'O' Brady's record book on Monday afternoon at Tropicana Field.
The Pirates outscored the Bobcats 20-3 in the fourth
quarter for
a 37-20 win.
In terms of team records, ECU rushed for a bowl-record
281 yards, surpassing the previous mark of 232 set by South Florida in
2008. The Pirates' average of 6.9 yards per rush was better than Central
Florida's previous rate of 5.3 yards per carry set in 2012.
ECU's three rushing scores also set a record.
The two teams combined for 1,003 yards of total offense.
Ball State and Central Florida had 782 yards between them in 2012.
The Pirates' 568 yards of total offense eclipsed the
earlier bowl record of 496 set by South Florida in 2008.
Ohio's 328 passing yards broke the record of 294 set by
Rutgers in 2009.
ECU ran 87 plays to break South Florida's mark of 79 in
2008. The Pirates also set new standards for pass completions (30) and
pass attempts (46), bettering Marshall marks from 2011.
Senior Vintavious Cooper of the Pirates rushed for 198
yards, breaking the previous mark of 107 yards set by Southern Miss's
Desmond Johnson against Louisville in 2010. Cooper, the MVP for ECU,
also had the most rushing attempts in the six-year history of the bowl
with 25. Latavius Murray of Central Florida held the old mark with 21
carries.
Cooper's 220 all-purpose yards, which included 22 yards
in catches, was also a bowl record.
Justin Hardy's nine receptions set a new bowl standard.
Florida International's T.Y. Hilton had eight catches in 2011. Donte
Foster, Ohio's MVP, set a record for receiving yards with 160. Rutgers'
Tim Brown had 99 yards in catches in 2009. Foster's 80-yard scoring
reception is the longest play from scrimmage in BOB bowl history.
Conference USA Player of the Year Shane Carden had 29
completions in 44 attempts, surpassing Marshall's Rakeem Cato's
27-for-39 effort in 2011.
While most of the new marks were of an offensive nature,
Michael Dobson set a bowl record with 14 tackles for the Pirates.
There were school records established in the 2013 finale
for the Pirates as well.
Hardy became the program's leader in career receiving
yards with 3,047, passing current Dallas Cowboy Dwayne Harris, who had
3,001 yards from 2007 to 2010.
Carden set the ECU season record for passing yards with
4,139. Previous record holder Dominique Davis, who has gone on on to the
Atlanta Falcons, threw for 3,967 yards in 2010.
Cooper ran for 1,193 yards in 2013, becoming only the
third Pirate player to surpass 1,000 yards rushing in consecutive
seasons. Carlester Crumpler was the first to do it in 1972-73 and Junior
Smith exceeded the plateau from 1992 to 1994.
Outside linebacker Derrell Johnson made his 49th
consecutive start for ECU, the longest current streak in the Football
Bowl Subdivision.
Where do 2013 Pirates rank?
East Carolina's 10-win season is the second most in
school history, ranking behind the 11-1 record compiled by the 1991 team
that topped N.C. State 37-34 in the Peach Bowl.
In 1991, ECU was No. 9 in the final Associated Press
poll.
The 1983 team, the best in the Ed Emory coaching era,
finished ranked No. 20 by the AP. Its three losses at Florida State,
Florida and Miami were by a total of 13 points.
The Pirates won Conference USA championships in 2008 and
2009 but lost Liberty Bowl matchups with SEC entries Kentucky and
Arkansas to finish 9-5 overall each season.
ECU coach Ruffin McNeill played on a 9-3 team that won
the Independence Bowl in 1978, one of series of solid teams that
transitioned to the major college level under coach Pat Dye.
One thing that set the Pirates apart in the
recently-completed season were wins at in-state rivals North Carolina
and N.C. State, something no previous ECU team had done in seven earlier
opportunities.
It's impossible to compare teams from different eras. The
single-wing powers from bygone days were forces in their own right.
The best way to look it might be that the 2013 team
continued a tradition of strong Pirate football teams.
New league, new challenges
So what's in store for 2014?
ECU will lose six starters on each side of the ball from
the current team. The personnel losses appear to be most significant in
the secondary and offensive line.
The competitive level of the American Athletic Conference
also appears to be more challenging than ECU experienced this season in
C-USA.
The program obviously has some momentum as players move
into offseason development.
High profile performers Carden and Hardy will provide
leadership in addition to their talent.
The emphasis on developing depth will be tested in 2014.
McNeill had mixed emotions after the Beef O'Brady's Bowl.
He was pleased with the Pirates' dominance at the conclusion of the game
but sad to see 20 seniors that have meant so much this season play their
last game.
Their departure puts a premium on a strong finish to
recruiting efforts over the next month.
When programs achieve more, more is expected.
The Pirates did a good job of dealing with the
disappointment of
a 59-28 loss at Marshall
for the C-USA East Division championship on Nov. 29 because it's not
easy to deal with the role of being a two-touchdown favorite in the next
game against a team that beat the team that defeated you so decisively.
It will be interesting to see what the sustained efforts
within the program will produce going forward.
"It all comes down to the process and the work," McNeill
said after the Beef O'Brady's Bowl. "We've got to finish strong in
recruiting. We've got to have a great offseason. We have to keep
developing kids and developing depth."
Identical records
At no point in history at this time in December have the
basketball and football team both had the same outstanding record, 10-3.
That's a credit to both.
The hoops Pirates return from the holiday break at home
against Georgia State at 2 p.m. Sunday.
