By
Kevin Monroe
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East Carolina needs to
win its last two conference games to nail down a spot in the Conference
USA championship game. The Blazers of UAB just happen to be the one team
in between the Pirates and a trip to Huntington to battle Marshall for
the East Division title.
The Blazers have
talented players, but if ECU executes the following assignments, it
should prevail and leave its seniors with a fond memory of their
final home game:
CONTROL EMOTIONS
Senior Day is a special for
not only outgoing seniors, but for the whole team. For the underclassmen,
they want to play their best to make sure the seniors go out on a good note.
They know that one day they will be seniors and they hope that the
underclassmen will play their hearts out for them on their Senior Day.
These seniors have
worked tirelessly on and off the field for four or five years and
their last time playing in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium will be very
emotional. That emotion can be great if used the right way. It needs
to be bottled up and dispersed strategically.
Getting all worked
up and dispensing that emotion and energy early in the game only
serves to make players tired. Controlling it and playing within
themselves will allow the Pirates to remain focused but explosive.
DEFEND WITH TENACITY
ON THIRD DOWN
The Pirates are allowing opponents to convert 43% of the time on third down.
UAB is only converting 37% of the time but is scoring 26 points per game.
The Blazers can get the ball in the end zone and have scored multiple points
on all their foes, including 17 points against a powerhouse LSU team. If the
Pirates allow UAB to hang around and stay within striking distance, the
Blazers have the offensive capability to spring an upset.
ECU must press the Blazers into third and long situations and set up
the inevitable punt on fourth down. Third downs will be big for both
teams, but if the Pirates can keep UAB from exceeding its conversion
average, they will win this game.
TREASURE THE FOOTBALL
East Carolina is plus-5 in
turnover margin this season. Quarterback Shane Carden has been nearly
flawless. He is completing approximately 75% of his passes and has only
thrown 5 interceptions while connecting on 25 touchdowns. The Pirates have
fumbled 14 times, but have luckily only lost 6 of those 14.
In most instances,
the team that wins the turnover battle will win the game. ECU
appears to be the better team on paper, but if it turns the ball
over, UAB and its 26 points per game are good enough to ruin Senior
Day. Ball protection will be the number one priority when the
Pirates take the field on offense.
BOTTOM LINE
UAB has struggled on defense to stop
teams this season, surrendering 490 yards and 40 points per game. The
Blazers are giving up an average of 216 yards per outing on the ground and
273 through the air. If the Pirate offensive engine stays in the same gear
it has throughout most of the year, the result should be a piling up of
yardage and points.
The emotion of the day will play
a factor as will protecting the football and getting off the field
on fourth down. If the Pirates keep their cool and get down to
business, they should win this game.
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archives.
The
Brian Bailey Show airs on Pirate Radio 1250
on Mondays at 6:30 p.m. This week's guests
were high school coaches Jim Bob Bryant,
Brian Paschal, Paul Cornwell and Dave
Wojtecki:
ECU
coach
Ruffin
McNeill
discussed
the
Pirates'
road
win
over
FIU
and
previewed
their
home
game
with
Tulsa:
