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One-on-One with the
Pirates
Posted Monday,
Aug. 23, through Monday, Aug. 30, 2010.
©2010 Bonesville.net. All rights reserved.
By
Ron Cherubini |
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One-on-One with the 2010 Pirates |
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Emanuel
Davis |
 If
you have to build a defense, it might as well be around one of the nation’s
premier cornerbacks. Since breaking onto the scene as a Freshman
All-America, Emanuel Davis has simply continued to get better. An
All-Conference
USA
preseason
selection,
the junior
is already
on NFL radar
screens
coast-to-coast.
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Travis
Simmons |
 Having
to play
opposite an
all-star
corner might
be a bit
daunting.
That is
unless you
are in your
own right a
stellar
performer.
Senior
cornerback
Travis
Simmons has
been part of
one of the
league’s
best
cornerback
tandems —
paired with
junior
Emanuel
Davis.
Simmons is
no stranger
to fame of
his own. ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Dwayne
Harris |
 If
you have to build a defense, it might as well be around one of the nation’s
premier cornerbacks. Since breaking onto the scene as a Freshman
All-America, Emanuel Davis has simply continued to get better. An
All-Conference
USA
preseason
selection,
the junior
is already
on NFL radar
screens
coast-to-coast.
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Willie Smith |
 Having
to play
opposite an
all-star
corner might
be a bit
daunting.
That is
unless you
are in your
own right a
stellar
performer.
Senior
cornerback
Travis
Simmons has
been part of
one of the
league’s
best
cornerback
tandems —
paired with
junior
Emanuel
Davis.
Simmons is
no stranger
to fame of
his own. ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Steve Spence |
 Since
junior
middle
linebacker
Steve Spence
came into
the East
Carolina
program, he
has been
discussed in
terms of
having the
potential to
progress
into the
starting
role at the
heart of the
Pirates
defense. A
smart,
engaging
personality
in a
prototypical
MLB body,
Spence
clearly has
prepared for
his time to
anchor down
the
demanding
position and
it shows in
every play
he runs.
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Jon Williams |
 More
than anyone,
East
Carolina
running back
Jon Williams
knows that
his
off-field
problems
have hurt
him in more
ways than
can be
summarized
in a
sentence or
two. Still,
the
ultra-talented
back is also
smart enough
to know that
late is
better than
never. With
a new coach
willing to
give him a
chance, and
a new
attitude
that relies
mostly on
self-accountability,
Williams has
seemingly
transformed ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Darryl
Freeney |
 Each
season,
Darryl
Freeney has
raised the
bar,
elevating
his
production
and
separating
himself from
East
Carolina's
corps of
receivers to
establish
himself as
one of the
biggest
receiving
threats on
the team. He
has already
posted five
(5) career
100-plus-yard
receiving
games
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Cory Dowless |
 Since
his
Conference
USA
All-Freshman
campaign in
2006, Cory
Dowless has
been a
mainstay on
the
offensive
line at East
Carolina. He
is physical,
strong, and
applies a
technician-like
approach to
blocking
that has
made him one
of the best
offensive
linemen in
the league. ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Josh Smith |
 Pirate
fans, no
doubt, were
looking
forward to
seeing what
the
combination
of Linval
Joseph and
Josh Smith
could do on
the
defensive
front in
2010… that
is, until
Joseph
declared
early for
the draft. A
good move on
the
NFL-second
rounder’s
part, but
for East
Carolina, it
meant that
Smith, the
versatile
senior
defensive
lineman,
would be the
lone player
with deep
experience
left on the
defensive
line going
into 2010.
Fortunately,
Smith is a
very
talented
player who
can go at
tackle or
defensive
end.
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Matt
Millisor |
 A
year ago,
Matt
Millisor was
a preferred
walk-on as a
multi-talented
kicker. He
had had the
same offer
from other
major
colleges –
South
Carolina for
one – but
had sized up
the
situation at
East
Carolina and
felt it was
his best
opportunity
to get an
early shot
at a
starting
role. A year
later,
Millisor
finds
himself in
the mix for
all three
starting
positions at
kicker,
battling
senior Ben
Ryan for the
place
kicking
duties,
leading the
mix for the
punting
duties and
looking to
lock down
the kickoff
duties. ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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D.J. Scott |
 One
of the three
talented
veteran
offensive
linemen
returning to
the Pirates
this season,
D.J. Scott
has been a
force on the
O-line
during his
full career
at East
Carolina. He
will man one
of the guard
positions
and will be
part of an
offensive
front that,
on paper,
should be
one of the
best —
perhaps the
very best —
in the
conference.
Having
started all
14 games a
year ago,
sharing the
lead on the
line for
pancake
blocks,
Scott has
all-league
potential
and has been
a durable
and reliable
producer for
the Pirates.
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Dustin
Lineback |
 Though
technically
East
Carolina's
linebacking
corps does
not return a
starter,
outside
linebacker
Dustin
Lineback
does carry a
couple of
starts from
a year ago
into the
2010 season.
He has a
starter’s
mentality
and a nose
for the
football
that makes
him a very
effective
backer. A
former
walk-on,
Lineback has
progressed
through the
depth chart
to earn a
position as
a senior
starter. No
frills, no
glitz, but a
hitter and a
guy who
knows what
the position
demands, he
should be a
leader on
the defense
this season. ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Antonio
Allison |
 In
2009,
Antonio
Allison was
on his way
to a
breakout
season at
defensive
tackle. In
his first
two games,
he had 6
tackles and
was looking
every bit
like a
stalwart in
the next
generation
of the
vaunted East
Carolina
defensive
front. Then
a foot
injury took
him out for
the season.
Missing the
season was
more painful
than the
injury and
Allison has
attacked his
preparation
for this
season like
a man on a
mission. He
is primed to
excel in
2010 as the
Pirates look
to reload
the
defensive
line with
Allison and
highly
talented
players like
him.
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Bradley
Jacobs |
 As
a junior
college
transfer,
Bradley
Jacobs knew
he would be
expected to
come into
the East
Carolina
program and
earn a
starting
position at
safety.
Perhaps more
daunting
than coming
into a new
program with
that
pressure in
place,
Jacobs was
contending
with the
expectation
that he
would also
try to the
fill the
shoes of not
just one,
but two
high-impact
safeties.
Physically,
he is being
asked to
step in at
strong
safety,
where
one-year
star Levin
Neal was a
game changer
a year ago. ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Justin Jones |
 A
player that
was
described
not too long
ago as a
project,
former tight
end Justin
Jones is
proving to
be a bit of
an offensive
enigma for
East
Carolina. At
6-8 and 252
pounds with
a receivers
mentality,
the now wide
receiver has
enjoyed an
impressive
spring,
summer and
fall heading
into the
season. A
giant to
cover,
linebackers
will
struggle to
out-battle
him for
quick-
hitters at
the second
level and
downfield.
He is swift
and agile
enough to
get body
position and
then, of
course, has
the wingspan
to get his
hands on the
ball – high,
low, left or
right –
before his
coverage can
get it.
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Justin Dixon |
 Every
once in
awhile, East
Carolina
reels in a
bonafide
prep
superstar.
It has
happened in
the past,
for example,
when the
program
landed wide
receiver
Jamar
Bryant. Blue
Chippers, as
they are
called,
don’t always
pan out, but
in the world
of prep
rankings,
about the
only thing
the gurus
get right
are the very
top players.
When Justin
Dixon
decided to
come to East
Carolina,
the Pirates
received a
commitment
from one of
the top 10
linebackers
in the
nation.
Since the
day he
stepped onto
ECU’s campus
there has
been great
anticipation
to see what
he can do
for the
program. ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Dominique
Davis |
 For
almost a
year now,
the name
Dominique
Davis and
the future
of East
Carolina’s
offense have
been linked.
Through his
initial
commitment,
to his
decision not
to enroll in
school in
January
after the
former
Pirates
coaching
staff
vacated, to
his arrival
as a
more-than-interested
observer of
spring
practice,
Davis has
been
discussed as
the lynchpin
in
sustaining
ECU’s
success.
...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Brad Wornick |
 Sometimes
the
conditions
come
together to
create the
perfect
opportunity
for the
underdog.
For Brad
Wornick – an
aspiring
sophomore
quarterback
– the
graduation
of
sixth-year
quarterback
Patrick
Pinkney and
the arrival
of Coach
Ruffin
McNeill and
his wide
open,
pass-first
offense has
created the
perfect
setting for
an
opportunity. ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Giavanni
Ruffin |
 In 2009,
Giavanni
Ruffin
staked his
claim to be
East
Carolina's
starting
running back
in 2010. His
style is the
blend of a
physical
runner, ala
Brandon
Simmons,
with the
wheels to
make big
plays, ala
Brandon
Fractious.
With Jon
Williams’
track
record, it
was a safe
bet that
Ruffin would
be the front
runner for
the main
running back
job. But an
off- season
misstep that
saw
promising
running back
Brandon
Jacobs
booted from
the team
left Ruffin
serving an
internal
suspension.
Meanwhile,
Williams
came to camp
a new man
and has
staked his
claim ...
More from
Ron
Cherubini... |
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Ron Cherubini Archives
08/30/2010 02:53 AM |
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