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PREVIOUS NUGGETS |
10.10.05: College
football headliners: stars & storylines ... Conference USA
standings, scores & schedule |
10.09.05: Scoreboard
and updated C-USA standings |
10.08.05: Conference
USA schedule, standings & scores |
10.07.05: Coley
twins mean double trouble for USM foes ... Golden Eagles
hoops squad loses leading scorer |
10.06.05: Dye's
ECU Hall of Fame homecoming tripped up by illness ... Utah
coach sanctioned for slamming ACC referees |
10.05.05: C-USA
reshuffles games in wake of hurricanes ... Memphis player
booted after Beale Street incident |
10.04.05: Tip-Off
Classic pits UAB against Massachusetts ... Conference USA
standings, schedule & scores |
10.03.05: College
football headliners: stars & storylines ... Conference USA
standings, schedule & scores |
10.02.05: Scoreboard:
C-USA teams & ECU opponents |
10.01.05: BCS
poll's shaky start signals same ol', same ol' ...
Katrina-forced transfer cleared to play at Cincy |
09.30.05: Bowles
in line to head 16-campus UNC system ... End of VPI-WVU
series dampens fiery traditions |
09.29.05: Schnellenberger
faces program he helped build |
09.28.05: Storm-weary
USM starts tough stretch at ECU ... ECU Letterwinners/Hall
of Fame Weekend schedule |
09.27.05: Paper:
Liberty Bowl seals deal with C-USA, SEC ... Busted legs
deplete Memphis quarterback corps |
09.26.05: College
football headliners: stars & storylines ... Conference USA
standings, schedule & scores |
09.25.05: Scoreboard:
C-USA teams & ECU opponents |
09.24.05: Big
names helping UNC-P restore grid program ... Conference USA
schedule, standings & scores |
09.23.05: NCAA
okays instant replay in all 28 bowl games ... Conference USA
schedule, standings & scores |
09.22.05: C-USA,
NFL teams thrown off stride by Rita ... Conference USA
schedule, standings & scores |
09.21.05: Hurricane
Rita threatens disruption of schedule ... Indian mascot ban
extended to bowl games |
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News Nuggets, 10.11.05
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NOTES FROM ECU AND BEYOND...
Previous Day Nuggets...
Next Day Nuggets...
Compiled from staff reports
and electronic dispatches
Mazey benched; Godwin to fill in as head coach
Simmering unrest inside the East
Carolina baseball program apparently reached the boiling point Monday,
resulting in bombshell news out of the school's athletic department that
head coach Randy Mazey had been relieved of his duties and assistant coach
Billy Godwin would serve as acting head coach for the remainder of the
2005-06 academic year.
Athletic director Terry Holland
announced that Mazey, ECU's coach for the past three seasons, has been
suspended with pay. The ECU media relations office advised that an 11 a.m.
press conference would be conducted at the Murphy Center today to introduce
Godwin to accredited members of the media.
The development comes only months after
the conclusion of the Diamond Pirates's 2005 season was marked by the
exodus of assistant coaches Tommy Eason and
Alan Osborne and the transfer of slugger Ryan Peisel, a promising rising
sophomore, to Georgia. Sources have indicated the departures were prompted
by conflicts with Mazey over on and off the field issues, resulting in
scrutiny of Mazey's coaching style by Holland.
ECU did not indicate in its
announcement the reason for the coaching change, but Talk 1070's Henry
Hinton and WNCT-TV 9's Brian Bailey reported on the
Brian Bailey Show Monday night that sources
indicated dissension within the team continued.
Godwin, a Rocky Mount native with an
ECU graduate degree,
was hired as the Pirates' pitching coach in
June after compiling a 262-85 in six years at junior college powerhouse
Louisburg. During his tenure, he led the Hurricanes to multiple postseason
appearances, including a 2002 trip to the JUCO World Series.
"We will assist Coach Godwin in
building a staff to provide this year's team with the leadership necessary
to compete at the highest level," Holland said in a statement. "We will conduct a national
search for a permanent coach at the conclusion of the 2006 season."
ECU's press release noted that Chancellor Steve Ballard said he
made the decision to suspend Mazey based on Holland's recommendation.
"These decisions are never easy,"
Ballard stated. "But I have complete confidence in Terry Holland's assessment
of the situation."
Mazey posted a three-year record of
120-66-1 (.644) at East Carolina, extending the Pirates' string of
postseason appearances to seven straight seasons. Mazey succeeded
ECU Hall of Famer Keith LeClair, who was
forced to step down for health reasons after the 2002 season.
Prior to taking the helm of the
Pirates, Mazey put in four years as an assistant at Tennessee. He previously served one season on LeClair's first staff at ECU in 1998 after a one-year stint at Georgia
and a three-year head coaching assignment at Charleston Southern. He began
his coaching career in 1990 as an assistant at Clemson, his alma mater.
In a prepared statement released by
ECU, LeClair noted his fondness and respect for the assistant coaches who
left the Pirates after last season and issued an endorsement of the move by
ECU's administration.
"My heart and prayers go out to all of
last season's coaches who are no longer with the program," LeClair
stated.
"They are good friends and I appreciate everything they did to push our
program forward. I support Dr. Ballard, Coach Holland and (Senior Associated
AD) Nick Floyd's decisions as they continue to focus the program on our goal
of winning the national championship."
Before becoming afflicted with ALS,
also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, LeClair galvanized the fan base and
raised the program's sights when he declared the team's ongoing objective is
to reach the College World Series.
"I certainly hope that everyone will
provide great Pirate support for Coach Godwin and the team this season,"
LeClair added in his statement. "Our goal remains the same – getting to Omaha."
The College World Series is staged each
year in Omaha, NE.
Pinkney earns 3rd career player of week honor
This was the week of heroics by
quarterbacks in Conference USA as reflected by the league's weekly honors
selections.
East Carolina QB James Pinkney and
Southern Methodist signal caller Jerad Romo shared the offensive player of
the week award after leading their teams to dramatic wins against conference
opponents, while Mustangs Joe Sturdivant (DB) and Chris McMurtray (K)
received the defensive and special teams accolades, respectively.
SMU is the first C-USA team to claim at
least a share of all three honors since Texas Christian won all three on
Nov. 4, 2002.
CO-OFFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
James Pinkney, Junior QB, East Carolina
Delray Beach, FL (Olympic Heights HS)
Pinkney passed for a career-high 355
yards and three touchdowns and rushed for another score in East Carolina's
41-28 win over Rice. He completed 22-of-34 passes and ran for a team-high 32
yards as ECU picked up its first conference win of the year.
After falling behind 28-24 early in the
fourth quarter, Pinkney engineered the Pirates on a six-play, 68-yard drive
for the game-winning score and then added a career-long 81-yard touchdown
pass to secure the game.
It is Pinkney's third C-USA
Player-of-the-Week honor and the second this season. On Sept. 6, he was
selected
player of the week for his performance
against Duke. In 2004, Pinkney
received the accolade for his performance
in an ECU victory over Army.
Jerad Romo, Senior QB, Southern
Methodist
Tehachapi, CA (Antelope Valley JC)
Romo recorded SMU's first 300-yard
passing game since the 2000 season by going 30-of-43 for 333 yards and two
touchdowns in a dramatic 28-27 win at UAB. He led the Mustangs on an
80-yard, four-play drive in the final 23 seconds that culminated with a
33-yard Hail Mary scoring pass as time expired to wide receiver Bobby Chase.
The SMU win snapped a school-record 14-game road losing streak.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Joe Sturdivant, Junior DB, Southern
Methodist
Lilburn, GA (Parkview HS)
Sturdivant had two interceptions and a
fumble recovery in SMU's 28-27 win at UAB. It marked Sturdivant's first
career picks and his first-ever fumble recovery. He had 32 yards in
interception returns and compiled six tackles and one tackle for loss.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Chris McMurtray, Senior K, Southern
Methodist
Garland, TX (Rowlett HS)
McMurtray set a new career high,
hitting three field goals in SMU's 28-27 win at UAB. He was 3-of-3, hitting
from 27, 32 and 22 yards out. McMurtray also hit a PAT and his 10 points
scored were the most in a game for a Mustang kicker since the 2002 season.
From staff reports and
Conference USA and
ECU Athletics releases.
Conference USA standings, scores & schedule
STANDINGS
(Through games
of Saturday, Oct. 8, 2005)
EAST DIVISION
TEAM
C-USA ALL
Central Florida 2-0
3-2
UAB
1-1 3-2
Southern Miss
1-1 2-2
East Carolina
1-1 2-3
Marshall
1-1 2-3
Memphis
1-2 2-3
WEST DIVISION
TEAM
C-USA ALL
Houston
2-1 3-2
Tulsa
2-1 3-3
Texas-El Paso
1-1 3-1
Tulane
1-1 2-2
Southern Methodist 1-2 2-4
Rice
0-2 0-4 SATURDAY'S SCORES
[Conference USA
teams in bold; ECU opponents in red.]
Central Florida 38, Memphis 17
Houston 35, Tulane 14
East Carolina 41, Rice 28
Southern Methodist 28, UAB 27
Tulsa 34, Southern Mississippi 17
Virginia Tech 41, Marshall 14
Florida State 41, Wake Forest 24
Miami (FL) 52, Duke 7
West Virginia 27, Rutgers 14
THIS WEEK'S
SCHEDULE
(Conference USA games in
bold.)
Friday, Oct.
14:
Texas-El Paso vs. Tulane (Ruston,
LA) 8:00 pm
Saturday, Oct.
15:
East Carolina at Southern Methodist
3:00 pm
Tulsa at Rice 4:00 pm
UAB at Marshall 5:00 pm
Memphis at Houston 5:00 pm
Central Florida at Southern Mississippi 7:00 pm
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News Nuggets are
compiled periodically based on material supplied by staff members; data
published by ECU, Conference USA and its member
schools; and reports from Associated Press and
other sources. Copyright 2005
Bonesville.net and other publishers. All rights reserved. This material may not be
published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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