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Insights and Observations
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Henry's Highlights
Monday, May 1, 2006
By Henry Hinton |
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Feisty new Godwin emerges as
stakes get bigger
�2006 Bonesville.net
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Losing two of three to
Tulane this weekend has put East Carolina in a tough situation heading into
the final stretch of the regular season.
The Pirates (28-17, 7-8)
had the Green Wave on the ropes all weekend but could not close the deal
both Friday, when they lost a controversial 9-5 game in the last inning, or
Sunday, when they left two critical runners on base late in their 6-4 loss.
Saturday�s game was a
different story. There is no ten-run rule in college but if there was the
umpires might have stopped it early as ECU won 13-3.
Pirate fans in attendance
on Friday night got to see a spirited side of new head coach Billy Godwin.
After blowing a late lead, the Pirates allowed the Green Wave to load the
bases with the score tied 5-5 and two out in the top of the ninth.
Pitcher Jason Neitz ran
the count on Tulane�s Brad Emaus to 2-2. The next pitch was a fastball at
the knees that nearly everyone in Clark-LeClair Stadium thought was the
third strike. Everyone except the home plate umpire, that is. Ball three!
On the next pitch with a
full count, Emaus roped a triple right over third base deep into the
left-field corner clearing the bases.
Unable to control his
pent-up frustration, Godwin called time out, emerged from the dugout and
appeared to be headed to the mound to talk to his pitcher. Just as he
arrived at the mound, however, he turned toward the home plate umpire and
got in his face, making his point that those runs were on him.
It did not take the
umpire long to give Godwin the thumb and the head coach was sent to his
office underneath the stadium to listen to the finish on the radio. Godwin
left but not before he got his money�s worth.
Crawling back into
contention for an NCAA regional berth will not be easy for the Pirates. With
series remaining with Southern Miss, UAB and Memphis and two non-league
games with Coastal Carolina, the Pirates will certainly have to have a
strong finish to have a shot.
Whimper a Giant
Congratulations are in
order for East Carolina�s Guy Whimper.
It�s totally possible
that the New York Giants used their ECU connections when deciding to draft
the former Pirate offensive lineman in the fourth round of the NFL draft on
Sunday.
General Managers and head
coaches are prone to digging into players� backgrounds before making the
decision to use a high draft choice on them. If that was the case with
Whimper, there were plenty of angles the Giants might have used.
Giants GM Ernie Accorsi
is very familiar with the Pirate program. In fact he has even been to
Greenville and Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. Several years ago Giant trainer Ronnie
Barnes was honored at an ECU game. Accorsi was in attendance as a show of
respect to his friend.
Barnes got his start in
the East Carolina sports medicine program in the 70�s. After acquiring his
ECU degree, Barnes stayed on in Greenville as Rod Compton�s assistant.
Accorsi may have had Barnes do some checking on Whimper before using such a
high draft pick.
Accorsi was quoted on the
Giants� Website on Sunday saying, �He (Whimper) is a great athlete. He is
inexperienced. He is a little raw but he is a great athlete. And the reason
we picked him was strictly because we think he can be a left tackle because
of his athletic ability.�
The Giants� head coach
also has a pretty keen knowledge of the ECU program, having drafted David
Garrard while he was head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars. Perhaps Garrard
can give Whimper some advice on dealing with the fiery Tom Coughlin.
Couglin also commented on
Guy Whimper on the Giants�s site.
�In the Hula Bowl he
played left tackle and our scouts were extremely impressed with his speed
and his quickness,� stated Couglin. �This guy runs under 5 flat for being a
legitimate 300-, 305-pounder. So we were very impressed with his
athleticism, his quick feet, his ability to play on the left side in the
Hula Bowl.�
ECU head coach Skip Holtz
also released a congratulatory statement for Whimper late Sunday.
"I'm really excited for
Guy and his family, and his future in the NFL," said Holtz. "He's worked
awful hard for this opportunity and I'm confident he'll make the most out of
it. We certainly wish him nothing but the best."
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This page updated
04/21/08 07:06 PM.
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