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Paul Troth shoots the breeze about his hobbies, school, and the pressures of stepping into the starting quarterback role at East Carolina in this Bonesville.net exclusive.

A: Oh, definitely. Now, we're really going at it in conditioning, and getting our off-season stuff going. We're getting ready for next season.

A: I think I've improved a bunch. I've got a whole new perspective, and physically I really like the improvements I've made in the weight room with the help of coach Whitten. But mentally, I'm more proud of what I've done on the field, and that's just carried over to the physical aspects.

Q: So, when you look back now, do you still think that the early enrollment was a good idea?

East Carolina QBs
During the Logan Era

Jeff Blake (90-91): Led East Carolina to an 11-1 season in 1991 and #9 national ranking.

Memorable Moment - Directed fourth-quarter comeback against N.C. State in the '92 Peach Bowl to cap off a magnificent season with a 37-34 victory.

Striking Stat - His 3,073 yards passing in 1991 remains a single season record.

Noted For - Leadership, deep ball. No lead was ever safe with ECU's Captain Comeback under center.

In the Pros - Still has one of the best deep balls in the game. Currently a member of the Baltimore Ravens, where he will push Chris Redman for the starting job.

Marcus Crandell (94-96): Accurate passer that mastered ECU's short-to-intermediate passing game. Led the Pirates to back-to-back Liberty Bowls in '94 and '95, including a victory over Stanford in the '95 game.

Memorable Moment - Led East Carolina to an impressive 31-6 pounding of then-ninth ranked Miami in the Orange Bowl. Crandell threw for three scores in the game.

Striking Stat - His 453 total yards against Syracuse in '95 is the best single-game total offense mark in school history.

Noted For - Accuracy, knowledge of offense. Had excellent touch in the short-to-intermediate passing game.

In the Pros - Starting Quarterback, Calgary Stampeders. Led the underdog Stampeders to the 2001 Grey Cup, winning MVP honors in doing so.

Dan Gonzales (97): Started the final four games of the '96 season in place of Crandell, who suffered a knee injury against Arkansas State. The Pirates ended the season winning three straight, but would struggle during Gonzo's senior season, due largely to inconsistent play from the offensive line.

Memorable Moment - Rallied East Carolina from a 21-0 deficit to Wake Forest in the Pirates' '97 home opener to win 25-24.

Striking Stat - Hurled a school record 62 passes against Cincinnati in 1997. ECU won 14-7. His 37 completions in the game is also a single-game record.

Noted For - Intelligence, rifle arm. Sometimes it paid being on the business end of one of Gonzo's throws.

In the Pros - Last season was a member of the CFL's Montreal Alouettes.

David Garrard (98-01): The most decorated passer in East Carolina history. Holds school career records for passing yards, total offense, and touchdown passes, just to name a few.

Memorable Moment - His second-half performance against ninth ranked Miami in Carter-Finley Stadium was inspirational. Trailing 23-3, Garrard led the Pirates to 24 unanswered points in what was arguably the biggest win in school history.

Striking Stat - His 414 yards passing against Memphis during his freshman season is the top single-game passing performance in school history.

Noted For - Strength, long ball. Often touted for his accuracy on deep throws, and is extremely tough to tackle.

In the Pros - Fourth-round selection of the Jacksonville Jaguars in last month's amateur draft. Impressed coaching staff so much during the team's first mini-camp that he was elevated to #2 on the depth chart, behind longtime starter Mark Brunell.

Logan on Troth:

"Paul's talent is in the intermediate passing game, although he is developing a deep ball that is becoming pretty attractive. Now, that's just in practice so far. Paul's strength is putting the ball in a small place. He can do that. Right now, he's pretty attractive at that."

Q: So, now that you're listed as the #1 quarterback, do you feel a lot of pressure to pick up where David (Garrard) left off?

A: There is always pressure involved. But, I don't think the pressure comes from me trying to be like David or any other quarterback that has come through here. I just have to be my own style of quarterback and help the team any way I can. I think it will all take care of itself overall, with coach Martin and coach Logan helping me out along the way.

The pressure is just going out and performing up to my capabilities everyday. It's not the pressure of being David Garrard, or Marcus Crandell, or Jeff Blake. I know each of those guys have their own individual qualities, and I have mine.

Q: But what about all of the accolades that you bring from high school -- being one of the top quarterbacks in the nation? Do you think that adds a little more pressure on you?

A: With the fans, yeah, I think there are a lot of expectations. In my mind, I come in like all the other freshmen. High school was high school, and that's over with. The high school accolades certainly bring a lot of pressure from the fans' standpoint. But from my teammates and myself, I don't think that pressure is there like the fans think it should be.

A: Yeah, I just came in with the mentality that I was like all the other freshmen. We came in, and some of us got to play. Nobody's better than the other, and we're all in the same class and on the same team.

Q: The results of your physical progress are quite obvious. But what other areas of quarterback play have you seen big improvements?

A: I think overall the pace on my throws -- the velocity with which I throw. I always thought I threw hard in high school, but I knew I had to step it up in college and throw even harder.

Another aspect is the way that I approach practice. I practice every day like it was a game. In high school, I wasn't as intense. But the way I practice now, it's very intense, and it has affected everybody around me -- the intensity level has been really high. Also, I think my ability to run the offense and lead the team has improved so much since the season started last season.

Q: Speaking of leadership, you're just a sophomore. Do you think it is up to the seniors to lead this team, or do you feel that as the quarterback, it is your duty to step up and assert yourself as a leader?

A: Whenever you're at the quarterback position, you know you have to step up and lead the team, either by example or vocally. I plan to do my share. The seniors on the team -- Christshawn Gilliam, Ben Thomas, and guys like that -- are really focused on leading the team. They are really the focal point of leadership already. I hope I can add my input into the leadership of this team, either by leading by example or vocally -- preferably both.

I've always learned that if you're a quarterback, that's a given. You've got to accept that responsibility, and if you don't, it could hurt the team. The quarterback has to be the leader on the field, and be kind of like the coach on the field.

A: I need to be consistent -- constantly come out and perform up to my level. Also, I think I really need to improve on my footwork. You can never be too good with your feet. I also really need to learn our offense back and forth, inside and out, which will involve a lot of film work and study time.

A: Definitely, because you get to see yourself when you make a mistake, and how you react to that. And when you do something well, you get to see how your teammates react to that on film. Also, if you are having trouble with the football on a particular day, and it is wobbling a lot, you can take a look at your technique to see if anything is going wrong.

Film is also a great way for you to learn the plays, because it is repetitious. I like knowing that I put in the extra work -- more than any other quarterback out there. If I can go to bed and say to myself that I worked as hard as I can, then I can sleep easier.

Q: One of the knocks against you by some have been that you're immobile. Is that a misconception about you?

A: I kind of get upset when people say I'm not mobile. Mobility doesn't always mean the ability to scramble and get first downs. You can define it as the ability to not take a sack. I think I do a good job of that. I'm not going to give our team negative yardage, because I'm not going to take a sack.

My idea of being a mobile quarterback is not so much the Michael Vick type -- running 50 yards down field and breaking tackles. I can stand in the pocket and avoid the sack, which is my idea of being quick on your feet.

A: Overall, I think the toughest thing to grasp about this offense is that there are so many options on so many plays. If you learn the progressions correctly on each play, it will make it much easier. Overall, the progression reads on certain pass plays, and knowing where to run the ball on certain calls, I think those are two toughest things about this offense -- knowing where to put people in the right position to make plays. That is my job as the quarterback -- to put the guys that make plays in the right place in the right situations so that they can make plays.

Q: Each quarterback that has come through East Carolina has brought a different strength to the offense. What do you think you bring?

A: I think my ability to put the ball where it is supposed to be, and not be erratic with my throws. I can't throw the ball 85 yards like David, but I can give us an opportunity to make a play down field. Overall, I think my strength right now is my accuracy and ability to run this offense.

A: Definitely. I could always say "Well, I wanted to redshirt" or "I didn't want to redshirt." It would have been an advantage either way, I think, and it worked out fine. I got the opportunity to learn and travel with David every game. I got room with him before every game and see how he prepares. It was a really good learning experience, because you're going to have your good days and your bad days. Some days you're going to be the greatest guy on campus, but sometimes you're not. You're going to be the goat. I just learned how he had to deal with that. Overall, the way he carried himself on the field and off is something that I really picked up on.

Q: You began developing your relationship with coach Logan back in the seventh grade. What is it about him that really attracted you?

A: I think he is just one of the most unique people that I've ever met. I say that not only from a football standpoint, but also as a person. I liked his approach that if you don't want to be here, he's not going to try to convince you to be here.

From a football perspective, I like how he learned from Bill Walsh, John Cooper, and guys like that. His idea of football is scoring points — exciting, fast tempo offense. He wants the offense to dictate games. He does not want to be dictated. That's the kind of mentality that I have. I love his intensity. That's what drew me to him. His intensity is like nobody I've ever met coach-wise.

A: Not really. The wanted me to go where I thought I was going to have fun and play a lot. It broke down to did I want to go to Miami and sit for three years behind other star quarterbacks and wait my turn, or did I want to go somewhere where I was going to play.

Also, I wanted to be in an atmosphere that was a football town. I didn't want to go to some place that had other sports as the focal point. I wanted to go to a football school. I really liked the campus, too, and the eastern North Carolina attitude that we have a chip on our shoulder.

A: Not really, but it doesn't bother me whether they do or they don't. When I'm on campus, I just try to get to campus and act like a normal student. I don't wear a lot of our East Carolina stuff on campus. I'd rather people know me as a college student and a good person than just as a football player.

A: Well, I room with Charlie Dempsey and Hagen Mason, and we're like three peas in a pod. Whatever one is doing, the other two are pretty much hanging out and doing the same. We play a lot of video games -- overall typical college stuff.

We play a lot of Playstation 2 College Football. We started a tournament, and right now, one of our neighbors is winning right now, and he doesn't even play football. It can get really intense. Sometimes, we end up not talking to each other.

A: My goals and the team goals go hand in hand. Every year, we want to go to a bowl game and win the conference. That's an automatic goal. There should be no reason not to think that.

The talent in the locker room right now has the potential to do it. I think it's an advantage not having as much expectations, because we might be able to sneak up on some people. There are no stars on this team. We have 11 guys on offense, 11 guys on defense, and we all work hard. Our goals never change here at ECU -- go to a bowl game, win the bowl game, and along the way, win the conference.

A: I'd like to bring a conference championship here. By the time my freshman class leaves, I'd like to say that we brought a conference championship to ECU.