Catch
Bonesville's exclusive weekly Internet radio program,
BONESVILLE HUDDLE, featuring insightful
give-and-take between columnists Al Myatt, Brian Bailey
and Denny O'Brien. (Posted in Windows Media Format each
Wednesday for streaming on demand.)
Off weeks haven't been a blessing for East Carolina. The Pirates are 0-2
this season following idle Saturdays, a streak they hope to break in
Houston.
Heading into the 3:00 PM (EST) Conference USA tilt, Pirates coach Steve
Logan says his team maintained its focus its third extended break between
games, despite the natural tendency to become stale.
"It's not hard to keep them focused," Logan said. "We've gone out and
taken a lot of snaps against East Carolina. We are just spending so much
time and energy on ourselves and that is just what this group needs right
now.
"The bad news is we've got a bunch of youngsters out there. The good news
is that we've got a bunch of youngsters out there. They have a good time out
there playing and are excited about playing. We have a chance, in my
opinion, because of youth, to get better."
Logan did not let up on his midseason trend of conducting full-contact
drills during the bye week to continue to hone a physically aggressive
attitude in a team he labeled as lacking that attribute a few weeks ago.
Thus far, the 11th-year Pirates coach likes what he has seen.
"We have seen the toughness," Logan said. "We have gotten more physical
as the season has gone along.
"We have gotten our players in better spots to perform. I know that Vonta
Leach has really helped our offense become more physical. Defensively, we
are moving some guys around and taking some looks. Richard Koonce has moved
around a few places on defense and I am not sure where we are going to play
him, but he is a guy that we need to get on the field and keep on the
field."
Logan and defensive coordinator Tim Rose also continue to toy with the
Pirates defense, searching for the right combinations and schemes. Two
players who have emerged as bright spots on an otherwise maligned unit are
freshmen cornerbacks Reicko Jones and Jared Brogden, who continue to earn
more playing time.
Though undersized, both Jones and Brogden are quick and physical, which
has enabled the Pirates to deploy more man coverage. Logan says that's a
look the Pirates will continue to show.
"We are continuing to tweak, fine-tune and find ways to get stabilized on
the defensive side of the football," Logan said. "But Reicko certainly can
play the man coverage and Jared is doing a good job of it. We are feeling
better and better about some of the things that we are doing on the back
end.
"We've just got to go and execute it a little bit better and
get stabilized up front. The man coverage is something that we will continue
to play a good bit of. The spread offenses have dictated basically that you
have to play man coverage and not sit in zone coverage all day."
Denny
O'Brien's
C-USA
Power Poll
1. TCU (7-1, 4-1) - Consecutive
routs of Louisville and Southern Miss puts Frogs in class of their own.
2. Southern Miss
(5-3, 3-1) - No Nix could spell trouble for Eagles in Birmingham.
3. Tulane (6-3, 3-2)
- Green Wave could seriously cloud C-USA picture with a win in Fort
Worth.
4. Louisville (5-4,
3-2) - Disappointing season rolls on for Louisville, which lost the keg
of nails to rival Bearcats.
5. Cincinnati (4-5,
3-2) - Season has taken a turn for the better with back-to-back
impressive victories.
6. UAB (4-4, 3-1) -
Bowl appearance within reach for Blazers.
7. East Carolina (2-5,
2-1) - Win in Houston would keep title dreams alive for Pirates.
8. Houston (4-4, 2-3)
- Cougars have bowl hopes of their own. Win over East Carolina
keeps that dream alive.
9. Memphis (2-7, 1-5)
- Pride is all the Tigers have left in disappointing campaign.
10. Army (0-8, 0-6) - The
season can't end soon enough for winless Knights.
When ECU has the ball
The magic number for East Carolina remains 150. As in
rushing yards.
When the Pirates eclipse that mark, victory is generally the
result. On paper, it looks as if ECU should have no problem meeting that
quota, but recent changes to Houston's defense could make that a bit more
difficult.
"On defense, they had an open date before the Memphis game
and they did an about-face on what we were getting ready for," Logan said.
"So, we have a new set of problems that we're going to have to deal with.
"They simplified the defense with not many blitzes at all
and just freed up the kids and let them play football."
Fewer blitzes should mean more time for quarterback Paul
Troth, who has shown signs of brilliance when given the time to shuffle
through his reads. If Troth finds his groove — which he should — holes
should open for Art Brown.
A healthy offensive line and the lead blocking of recently
anointed fullback Vonta Leach could mean another big day for "Touchdown" Art
Brown.
Advantage: ECU
When Houston has the ball
Cougars coach Dana Dimel had to notice two things from East
Carolina's game against Louisville:
You can run the ball through the heart of the Pirates
defense.
You can throw it on the East Carolina secondary.
That has to have the third-year Houston coach salivating
because the Cougars do both well.
Joffrey Reynolds leads Conference USA in rushing, averaging
120 yards per contest. With a combination of power and speed, the senior
running back has the tools to bull his way through the line and break things
open in the secondary.
Quarterback Nick Eddy has found his rhythm in the pocket and
has a host of reliable pass catchers at his disposal. KeyKowa Bell, Brian
Robinson, and Brandon Middleton compose arguable the league's best trio of
receivers.
With so many weapons, it's hard to imagine East Carolina
keeping the Cougars offense at bay.
Advantage: Houston
Special Teams
This could be a historical week for Pirates kicker Kevin
Miller.
With five more points, the Virginia Beach native will become
East Carolina's all-time leading scorer. That comes on the heels of being
named a semifinalist for the Lou Groza award.
In Dustin Bell, who has nailed eight-of-nine field goal
attempts, Houston has a reliable kicker, too. However, Jimmy McClary
averages just over 39-yards per kick, whereas Jared Preston is the league's
best.
East Carolina also holds an edge in the return game, so the
Pirates could hold a field position advantage.
Advantage: Even
Prediction
The city of Houston has been kind to the Pirates, who were
victorious in both previous trips to the Cougars' den. ECU's most recent
trip to the town was even sweeter — a 40-27 victory over Texas Tech in the
galleryfurniture.com Bowl. With both the Pirates and Cougars possessing
suspect defenses and capable offenses, this has all the makings of a Texas
Shootout. Which team turns the ball over less and performs well on special
teams could emerge the winner. Turnovers can't be predicted, but special
teams appear to favor the Bucs. Pirates win a close one, 35-31.
CONFERENCE USA STANDINGS
(Through games of 11/07/02)
----------
Conference
Overall
Teams
W
L
W
L
Texas Christian
4
1
7
1
Southern Miss
3
1
5
3
UAB
3
1
4
4
East Carolina
2
1
2
5
Tulane
3
2
6
3
Louisville
3
2
5
4
Cincinnati
3
2
4
5
Houston
2
3
4
4
Memphis
1
5
2
7
Army
0
6
0
8
Around Conference USA
Memphis at South Florida
Memphis has a chance to do what no other league member has
done this season — beat South Florida.
In the process, the Tigers have the opportunity to do what
no opponent has done in 18 games — win at Raymond James Stadium.
But, considering the ease with which opposing offenses have
scored against the porous Tigers defense, both streaks should be safe.
Memphis won't have the answer for Marquel Blackwell, who will likely
accumulate more convincing content to add to his flashy website. Bulls
38, Tigers 20.
Air Force at Army
The season isn't lost just yet for Army. The Black Knights
still have a shot at the Commander-in-Chief's Trophy.
That's the good news.
The bad news is the Cadets must march over Air Force to
collect the hardware, which is highly unlikely. The Falcons possess the
nation's second-best rushing attack. Army ranks among the nation's worst in
rushing defense.
That spells disaster. Falcons 42, Black Knights 7.
Southern Miss at UAB
The Golden Eagles desperately need to get things going
offensively after a grounding by Texas Christian last week. The absence of
star runner Derrick Nix certainly doesn't help the situation.
What does help is a porous UAB defense, which is a complete
180 from the past two seasons. There aren't many things the Blazers do well
on that side of the ball, so Nix's absence could be irrelevant.
The bigger question is, can a suddenly potent Blazers
offense light it up on a suddenly humbled USM defense? The short answer:
nope. Eagles 30, Blazers 16.
Game of the Week: Tulane at
Texas Christian
Prior to the season, few expected this early November
matchup to have such championship implications.
Surprise!
Though a loss would all but eliminate Tulane from
championship contention, a victory over red-hot TCU keeps the Green Wave in
the hunt. The Frogs, having already beaten Louisville and Southern Miss,
could shift into cruise control with a win.
That won't be easy, though, with starting quarterback Tye
Gunn sidelined with an injury. The offense sputtered earlier in the season
with Sean Stilley under center, largely due to the quarterback's
inconsistent play.
However, the Frogs do have two things going for them, which
should be enough to notch the home win. They've suddenly discovered how to
run the football, while their defense remains the program's staple. Frogs
27, Wave 17.