CHRONICLING ECU & C-USA SPORTS
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View
from the 'ville
Thursday, August 3, 2006
By Al Myatt |
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Bucs finding their way, but CSTV lost
�2006 Bonesville.net
College Sports Television had a remarkable
feat in its presentation of Conference USA's football kickoff from Irving,
Texas, on Tuesday.
In addition to providing entertainment and
insight from coaches of the league's 12 teams and selected players via
interviews on its telecast/webcast, CSTV also managed to move East Carolina
about 350 miles southwest � to Greenville, SC.
That was the university's location, according
to a pop-up graphic of pertinent information on the Pirates, that appeared
on screen while ECU coach Skip Holtz, cornerback Kasey Ross and offensive
tackle Eric Graham were taking questions.
Perhaps the Pirates have been removed to a
degree from the level of success required to be on the college football map.
The last bowl trip for the Bucs, as the CSTV info expressed, was in 2001.
From being picked sixth (and last) in the East
Division by the league coaches to getting punk-slapped by the misplacement
of the 22,000-plus students on its campus, the proverbial chip that belonged
to some of the great Pirate teams of the past should be properly positioned
to provide some motivation for ECU players and fans in 2006.
It isn't the first time the Greenvilles of the
Carolinas have been mixed up. If memory serves correctly, former N.C. State
basketball coach Jim Valvano said he once wound up south of the border when
he was supposed to make an appearance in Pitt County.
But CSTV should have gotten it right.
It has a contract with C-USA and it's in the
network's best interests to correctly promote the league schools. This
wasn't a quickie graphic during the course of a game. This was an event that
was planned well in advance with ample time to do things right.
The Pirates were the first program to appear
and CSTV fumbled the opening kickoff. It was the equivalent of poorly
informed announcers of yesteryear grating the nerves of regional fans by
calling Carolina, "the Wolfpack" or N.C. State, "the Tar Heels."
Even though CSTV had the mix-up on ECU's
address, its on-air personnel tried to liven up the production by putting
Ross on the spot. He was asked if he would like to go back to his high
school days if Holtz would grant him a quarter to play quarterback.
With the poise of a defender who doesn't bite
on a play fake, Ross responded, "It sounds real good but let's face reality.
Quarterback? Nahh ... It was fun. I played it all my life but I knew coming
to college to have a chance to play ... I'm a corner � and I'm doing all
right at it."
Holtz credited the players for buying in to
his system during 2005 although the offense had its fourth coordinator in
four years and the program had its third head coach in four years.
"They could have sat back, folded their arms
and said, 'We've seen this dog and pony show before,' " said the Pirates
coach.
The biggest difference in the Holtz regime is
in team unity, said Ross, who was recruited during the John Thompson
coaching era.
"I would have to say the unity that they've
brought," Ross said. "Instead of individuals, we're a team now. There's no
'I' � no name on the back of the jersey. We're just playing for one cause
and that's East Carolina � that guy that's beside you."
Or, behind you, as in the case of Graham's
respect for ECU quarterback James Pinkney. Graham said Pinkney's courage
during a sack-prone season in 2004 inspired the offensive line to get
better.
Holtz said the Pirates have taken the momentum
of season-ending wins over Marshall and UAB and improved across the board.
The program's talent level is better, he said, even though there are areas
where inexperienced players must mature quickly.
"I don't know how good we will be, but I want
us to be the best we can be," Holtz said.
The Pirates coach said the program has
progressed beyond the ABC's from his first season in command.
"Going into year two, we're kind of getting to
M-N-O-P," he said. "We're making some progress. We've come a long way. We're
not to X-Y-Z yet. We're not where we need to be, but we're not where we were
either."
That last statement could apply to CSTV's
sense of geography. The Pirates weren't where they need to be (Greenville,
NC), and they weren't where they were (Greenville, SC) either."
Apart from that gaffe, CSTV put together a
good show.
Anybody can make a misstake.
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02/23/2007 12:30:34 AM
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