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| ECU's
Justin Hardy heads to the end zone for a
touchdown against Southern Methodist earlier
this season. The
senior receiver from Vanceboro needs to haul
in four more passes to surpass the
all-time NCAA career receptions record held
by Oklahoma's Ryan Broyles. The
record-breaking catch could come as soon as
Saturday when the Pirates host Tulane. (Bonesville
photo by W.A.
Myatt) |
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American Football
Schedule |
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SATURDAY |
SMU at UCF, 12 pm (ESPNN)
Tulsa at Houston, 3 pm (ESPN3)
Tulane at ECU, 3:30 pm (ESPN3)
USF at Memphis, 4 pm (ESPNN)
Cincinnati at UConn, 8 pm (CBSSN) |
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BASKETBALL |
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Transfers pace Pirates |
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GREENVILLE —
Florida State
transfer Terry
Whisnant made four
of seven attempts
from behind the
3-point line and
scored 16 points to
lead East Carolina
to a 92-51
nonconference
basketball win over
Virginia-Lynchburg
at Williams Arena in
Minges Coliseum on
Thursday night. ...
Story, photos and
audio... |
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Pictured: The East
Carolina bench
reacts after walk-on
Peyton Robbins
scores a basket in
the final minutes of
the Pirates' 92-51
victory over
Virginia-Lynchburg
on Thursday night at
Minges Coliseum.
Thirteen ECU players
scored in the rout,
five of them in
double figures. (Photo by W.A.
Myatt. ©Bonesville.net) |
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FOOTBALL |
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Losses set stage for
Tulane's arrival |
Saddled with a two-game
losing streak under adverse
conditions in the rugged
American Athletic
Conference, East Carolina's
football team has been
looking forward to returning
to competition following a
layoff from a Thursday night
game at Cincinnati on Nov.
13. ...
More from Al Myatt... |
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FOOTBALL SPECIAL
FEATURE |
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Fifteen Questions for B.J.
Tyson |
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 Bunyon Devell (B.J.)
Tyson, Jr., is off
to a good start in
East Carolina's
basketball program.
Two games into the
2014-15 season, the
6' 3" freshman is
averaging 17.0
points, 5.5 rebounds
and leads the
Pirates in steals
with seven. He is
playing 23.5 minutes
per game. Tyson has
hit nine of his 10
free throws (90
percent) and 12 of
22 field goal
attempts (54.5
percent), although
he has made just one
of seven behind the
arc. ...
More from W.A.
Myatt... |
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Pictured: Freshman
guard B.J. Tyson has
hit the court
running after
attending East
Carolina for a year
before joining the
roster this season.
The Wadesboro
product leads the
team in steals and
is second in
scoring. (ECU Media
Relations photo) |
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FOOTBALL |
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Justin Hardy deserves better |
Justin Hardy has been snubbed. East
Carolina's spectacular receiver will
most likely set the all-time NCAA
record for career receptions this
week when the Pirates host Tulane.
Hardy needs just four catches to
break the record set by Ryan Broyles
of Oklahoma in 2011. ...
More from Brian Bailey... |
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MULTIMEDIA |
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Audio: The
Brian Bailey Show |
  The
Brian Bailey Show
airs on Pirate Radio
1250 on Mondays at
6:30 p.m. Brian's
guests were prep
football coaches
David Wojtecki,
Bobby Curlings, Paul
Cornwell, Sport
Sawyer, Scott
Gardner:
Replay
show... |
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MULTIMEDIA |
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Audio: Coach Ruff Weekly
Presser |
 ECU
coach Ruffin McNeill spoke
with the media at his weekly
press conference on Monday
as the Pirates prepare to
host Tulane on Saturday
(courtesy of Pirate Radio
1250; file photo):
Select
clip... |
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BASKETBALL |
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UNC-Asheville holds off
Pirates |
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GREENVILLE — UNC-Asheville's
Andrew Rowsey stands 5 feet,
10 inches but he was huge on
Sunday afternoon. Rowsey, a
sophomore, scored 28 points
to lead an 83-79
nonconference basketball win
at East Carolina. ...
More... |
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BASKETBALL |
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Pirates cruise in hoops
opener |
 GREENVILLE
— East Carolina
rolled past North
Carolina Wesleyan
99-81 to open the
2014-15 basketball
season at Williams
Arena in Minges
Coliseum on Friday
night. The Pirates
won their first game
of the season for
the 15th consecutive
time. ...
Story, photos,
post-game audio... |
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Pictured: Sophomore
forward Michel Nzege
compiled a
double-double with
18 points and 12
rebounds in ECU's
season-opening win
over N.C. Wesleyan.
The native of
Geneva, Switzerland
sat out last season
after transferring
from Winston-Salem
State. (Photo by W.A.
Myatt.) |
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Time to deal with loss |
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CINCINNATI — The schedule will
soon compact for East Carolina's
2014 football team with three
games in 13 days. The Pirates
will host Tulane on Saturday,
Nov. 22 to start the close to
the regular season. They'll play
at Tulsa the following Friday
before returning home to face
Central Florida on Thursday,
Dec. 4. ...
More from Al Myatt... |
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By
Brett Friedlander
©2014 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.
View ECU's
2014 football schedule
VIEW MOBILE VERSION OF THIS PAGE
At some point during Saturday’s game against Tulane,
probably in the first half, Justin Hardy will come off the line, get a
step on his defender and catch his fourth pass of the day from
quarterback Shane Carden.
When he does, he will surpass Oklahoma’s Ryan Broyles to
become the all-time receptions leader in FBS history.
It’s an achievement that will be acknowledged with an
announcement over the Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium PA system. The game may even
be stopped for a short ceremony.
But while the Pirates and their fans will celebrate the
moment with the respect and admiration it deserves, it’s likely to come
and go with barely a mention on SportsCenter and little to no fanfare
among those not as familiar with Hardy and his prolonged greatness.
That’s a group much larger than anyone could ever have
imagined.
We learned that earlier this week when Hardy
was inexplicably left off the list of 10
semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award, presented
annually by the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation to the top
receiver in college football.
The omission, in its simplest terms, means that according
to the award’s 268-member voting panel, the ECU star isn’t among the
nation’s 10 best players at his position. All it takes is one look at
the statistics to debunk that notion.
The 5-foot-11, 188-pound senior, who started his career
as a walk-on, currently ranks third in the FBS with an average of 8.9
catches per game (80 in nine games). He is eighth nationally in
receiving yards per game at 111.3 and is ranked higher in both
categories than six of the 10 players named as Biletnikoff
semifinalists.
Though Hardy has clearly caught the eye of those who
actually matter in football, as his selection along with Carden as one
the first players named to the prestigious Senior Bowl proves, his award
snub means that despite all he’s accomplished, one of the greatest
players in Pirates history is also, sadly, one of the most
underappreciated players in college football history.
It’s a reality that managed to do something that doesn’t
happen very often – raise the public ire of ECU coach Ruffin McNeill.
“That’s the most idiotic thing I have ever heard in my
life that they would not put that young man on there,” McNeill said at
his regular weekly press conference Monday. “What are you looking for? A
student? He already graduated. We had an academic meeting today and
tried to find out how he can make the Dean’s List. He’s getting ready to
break the all-time receptions record.
“I’m not the smartest guy in the world, but here is a
`C’, here is an `A’ and I think there’s a `T’ around here somewhere
(and) that spells CAT. Justin Hardy isn’t on there? I don’t know who is
picking that. I hope these words get back to whoever didn’t choose him.”
The roster of Biletnikoff voters is available on the
award’s
official website.
I happen to be one of them. As such, I’m embarrassed that so many of my
colleagues were too lazy to look past the usual suspects when casting
their ballots.
Only one of the 10 semifinalists, Colorado State’s
Rashard Higgins, plays for a non-Power 5 conference team. That
disparity, as McNeill made sure to point out, means that ECU was
disrespected just as much as Hardy by the Biletnikoff Award semifinal
snub.
“We conduct our athletic program from top to bottom, with
first class and if someone doesn’t understand that, then they need to
come over here and spend some time,” McNeill said. “There is respect and
disrespect. When you’re young, you probably deserve some. But when you
respect others then, in theory, they should respect you. And we respect
all. So in turn, maybe it’s naïve, but I expect respect to our
university, our athletic program and our kids. When it doesn’t happen,
I’m going to stand up for them.”
For the record, Hardy was among the top three picks on my
semifinal ballot. It should also be noted that I wrote his name in as
the top pick on my subsequent ballot selecting the award’s three
finalists. Though it won’t help right the wrong of Hardy’s omission, at
least perhaps it will make a statement: That both Justin Hardy and ECU
deserved better.
Hardy did receive a consolation prize on Tuesday when he
named as one of 10 semifinalists for the Burlsworth Trophy – symbolic of
the nation’s best college player who started his career as a walk-on.
He’ll also get a permanent place in the FBS record book
with his fourth catch Saturday. When that happens and he reaches the
magic mark of 350 career receptions, Hardy will become – statistically –
the best receiver in major college football history.
Whether the Tallahassee Quarterback Club Foundation
recognizes him with trophy or not.
