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GAME DAY CAPSULE NO. 12 - By
DENNY O'BRIEN
East Carolina vs. Marshall
Wednesday, December 19, 2001
Ladd-Peebles Stadium (40,646), 8:00 PM EDT
Television: ESPN2
Weather Fx: Clear, 55 degrees.
Pirates and Thundering Herd at a Glance
MOBILE, AL — It may not be Independence Day, but tonight's GMAC Bowl in
Mobile won't be short on fireworks. With two of the nation's top offensive
units in town, long bombs and explosion plays are likely to light up the
night sky.
Both East Carolina and Marshall boast NFL prospects at the quarterback
position with David Garrard and Byron Leftwich, respectively. The game will
also be highlighted by All-America skill players such as ECU running back
Leonard Henry, and Marshall receiver Darius Watts
Just as the offenses have been good, the defenses have been equally
disappointing for both. This one could come down to which team has the ball
last, while turnovers and special teams could prove the deciding factor.
Marshall Facts and Notes
Record: 10-2. The Herd fell five points short against Toledo in
its quest for a fifth consecutive MAC title.
Head Coach: Bob Pruett. 68-14 (6th year)
Venue: Marshall University Stadium (38,016).
Last Game: Lost to Toledo 41-36. The Herd sprinted to a 23-0 lead,
but was unable to hold on.
The Series: ECU leads, 4-1.
Last Meeting: 1978. The Pirates won, 45-0.
Last Bowl Game: 2000 Motor City Bowl. Beat Cincinnati, 25-14.
Out of the Ashes: Marshall will forever be remembered for a 1970
plane crash returning from a game against East Carolina that killed 75.
Instead of folding, though, the school returned to the field the very next
season, and has prospered into one of the winningest teams in college
football. Every year on November 14, the water at the Memorial Student
Center Fountain stops flowing, as a reminder of what happened on that
fateful, fatal day in 1970.
Quarterback U: Like East Carolina, Marshall has become a haven for
talented quarterbacks. Leftwich is poised to play for Sunday money, much
like his predecessor Chad Pennington.
Football Claim to Fame: Randy Moss is arguably the most talented
receiver to ever play the game. With size, speed, hands, and tremendous
leaping ability, Moss plays the receiver position with the style and grace
like no other.
The Breakdown
Quotes of Note: "Byron is the best quarterback I've ever been
around, seen, played against, or been close to. Being a secondary coach for
18 years in the SEC and ACC, and at Marshall, I think he's by far the best
I've been around. The thing that Byron has that is so special is his
knowledge of the game. You'll see in the game how he'll control the whole
game. He'll call the protections, he'll check the plays, and he gets in
great position to have a good play each down." — Marshall coach Bob
Pruett on QB Byron Leftwich.
"I think it will be more emotional after the game. With this being my
last game and all, I think that's when it will affect me emotionally. As far
as getting into the game, there are always emotions there, just because it
is a game. I'm going to be excited, and I'm going to keep my head focused
and just try to execute everything that the coaches have put in place for us
this week." — Garrard on his final game as a Pirate.
"If either team generates a turnover on defense, it will go a long way
toward defining where the game will end up. If we can intercept the ball, or
they can pick up a fumble or interception, the next step from that would be
a special teams explosion play adding a lot of definition." — ECU head
coach Steve Logan on the importance of turnovers and special teams play.
"The last four to five teams that we've played have all been passing
teams. They've either come into games passing a lot, or finished games
passing a lot because we got ahead early. TCU didn't pass it as much against
other teams, but against us, they threw it over 60 times. That was like two
games worth of passing, so we're used seeing a lot of passes." — ECU
secondary coach Tony Oden on playing passing teams.
Marshall Players to Watch: QB Byron Leftwich (38 TDs), WR Darius
Watts (1,417 yards), WR Josh Davis (961 yards), WR Denero Marriott (800
yards), RB Franklin Wallace (796 yards), LB Max Yates (159 tackles).
Striking Stat: Marshall is yielding 217.8 yards per game on the
ground.
When the Pirates have the ball: Offensive coordinator Doug Martin
has to like the Pirates' chances against a Marshall defensive unit that is
yielding more than 200 yards rushing per game. That could feed right into
running back Leonard Henry's hands, who is averaging more than 130 yards per
game.
The Pirates will likely attack the Herd's soft run defense with a mixture
of running plays. Look for Henry to get his share of carries between the
tackles, in addition to the Pirates' utilization of the trap and speed
option.
If Marshall decides to stack the line of scrimmage, Garrard becomes
increasingly dangerous off play action. H-back Richard Alston is likely to
have a few plays designed just for himself, too.
Advantage: East Carolina.
When the Herd has the ball: Marshall makes no secret what its
plans are: "We are a quarterback school — we throw the football," Pruett
said.
The Herd will throw early and often against an East Carolina secondary
that has been troubled throughout the season. The Pirates have faced several
passing teams over the course of the season, and have stopped nary a one.
Look for ECU to mix up its coverage and blitz packages, but it will
likely be ineffective. Leftwich, along with receivers Watts, Marriott, and
Davis will be too much for the Pirates to handle.
Advantage: Marshall
Special Teams: With the offenses expected to keep each other in
balance, this game could very well be decided by special teams. The Pirates
have excelled for the better part of the season, but did make a costly
mistakes in consecutive losses to Louisville and Southern Miss.
Kicker Kevin Miller and punter Jarad Preston have both excelled this
year, but so has Marshall's Curtis Head, who does double-duty for the Herd.
Advantage: Even
Coaching: Logan and Pruett are well respected in the coaching
ranks largely as a result of their respectable overall records and the
levels to which they have taken their programs.
Both are charismatic, quotable, and funny, but come kick-off, these two
are all business.
Advantage: Even
Intangibles: East Carolina has never won in the state of Alabama,
which has been a thorn in the Pirates' side in recent years. The Pirates
have, however, been to Mobile before — but in this case, that should hold no
significant advantage.
A win by the Herd will mark the fourth consecutive bowl victory for
Marshall, which has been to a bowl in each of its five seasons as a Division
I program.
Advantage: Marshall
What East Carolina must do to win:
- Blitz. Rushing three and dropping eight hasn't worked so far. Give
Leftwich time, and he will pick apart the Pirates' porous D.
- Mix it up. The Pirates need to mix their usual quota of explosion
plays with a handful of time-consuming drives to score points and keep the
Marshall O off the field.
- Attack. Following the lay-off since the Southern Miss game, the
Pirates need to come out firing if they hope to shell-shock the Herd.
- "Special" teams. At one point this season, the Pirates were truly
special on their special teams. They could use a little more of that magic
against Marshall.
- Turnovers. It has been the Achilles' heel for this team. The Pirates
haven't forced many, and have been pretty generous about giving them away.
This defense needs to force turnovers, while the offense needs to protect
the ball.
What Marshall must do to win:
- Make the right check. Leftwich will need to make quick recognition at
the line of scrimmage. Defensive coordinator Tim Rose plans to throw an
array of schemes at the Herd QB.
- Pressure Garrard. When Garrard had time against the Cards and Golden
Eagles, he shredded them. When he didn't.... he didn't.
- Force turnovers. If Marshall can find itself working with short
fields, the Herd can make quick work of those Pirates.
- Protect Leftwich. Leftwich is poised in the pocket, and would prefer
not to run. If hurried, he can be disrupted.
- Avoid giving up big plays. The Pirates do much of their damage via the
explosion play. Limiting those would increase exponentially the Herd's
chances of winning.
Prediction: This one certainly looks like a back-and-forth affair,
with the team that gets the ball last staking claim to victory. Though
Marshall can match the Pirates' speed, ECU has an advantage in size and
strength. Look for the Pirates to do something they haven't been able to do
all season, which is wear a team down, winning 37-28.
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02/23/2007 02:05:46 AM
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