ecu +14-: i've gone full circle on this game this week; monday i was was ready to pound wake forest, but today i'm dropping a unit on the pirates. don't get me wrong - ecu is not very good, and they're probably not going to win today, athough i wouldn't completely rule that out. i do see a good opporunity for them to compete today, at least within two td's.
as everyone knows, ecu was 1-11 last year and pummeled by w va in last week's season opener. mountaineers, though, are a true powerhouse, and wake has nowhere near the kind of talent the mountain boys possess. wake, like w va, is primarily a rushing team, but the mountaineers use talent to run over people while the deacons are more of a finesse team that uses a lot of cross and trap blocking, and are particularly adept at chop blocking inside the box. ecu has some athletic, though undersized, defenders who have seen and adapted to the wake forest blocking schemes before. pirates at least shouldn't have to worry about being blown off the ball like last weekend.
even more significantly, wake may have some real personnel issues on the offensive line today. most top 20 teams carry 9 or 10 offensive linemen. most middle of the road teams like wake carry eight. starting the season, wake was down to 7 with tackle arby jones out with a shoulder injury. this week, wake announceed that brodie overstreet, last saturdays starting guard, was probably lost for the season with an eye injury. that leaves 6 linemen. 2 of those, greg adkins and joe salsich, missed most of the preseason with ankle injuries, and can't possibly be in full game condition. now, go back to the fact that wake's blocking schemes require a lot of energy from the o line and you have some potential issues for the deacs, especially in the second half. and if one of those 6 happens to go down with an injury, wake is faced with running 5 guys with no subs.
it might have been hard to tell last saturday, but ecu can run the ball, and will probably show it better today. they have some athletic running backs, and get their best offensive lineman back from injury today. i expect the pirates to put the ball in the endzone at least 2 or 3 times.
there is also an intangible element that seems to be working in the pirates favor today. you have to understand that football is the heart and soul of the ecu athletic program - no other sport comes close. it's been a brutal stretch in greenville coming off the 1-11 season, especially on the heels of some successful steve logan teams. it has put boosters and students in a downrigh funk. this week, ecu athletics scored major coup with the hiring of terry holland to fill the long vacant ad's spot. all of the sudden, a lot of enthusiam has popped up. pirates have a good home field tradition, helped in large par by enthusiastic fan support. a few years ago, a visit by an acc team would turn the loyalists out in droves. i think you may see a small slice of that enthusiam return today, and there's a good chance it will carry onto the field. enough, anyway, to keep this game within a couple of td's. at least all of the factors enumerated above should keep the back door open until the final gun.
i have a few more plays in a bit.
glta
as everyone knows, ecu was 1-11 last year and pummeled by w va in last week's season opener. mountaineers, though, are a true powerhouse, and wake has nowhere near the kind of talent the mountain boys possess. wake, like w va, is primarily a rushing team, but the mountaineers use talent to run over people while the deacons are more of a finesse team that uses a lot of cross and trap blocking, and are particularly adept at chop blocking inside the box. ecu has some athletic, though undersized, defenders who have seen and adapted to the wake forest blocking schemes before. pirates at least shouldn't have to worry about being blown off the ball like last weekend.
even more significantly, wake may have some real personnel issues on the offensive line today. most top 20 teams carry 9 or 10 offensive linemen. most middle of the road teams like wake carry eight. starting the season, wake was down to 7 with tackle arby jones out with a shoulder injury. this week, wake announceed that brodie overstreet, last saturdays starting guard, was probably lost for the season with an eye injury. that leaves 6 linemen. 2 of those, greg adkins and joe salsich, missed most of the preseason with ankle injuries, and can't possibly be in full game condition. now, go back to the fact that wake's blocking schemes require a lot of energy from the o line and you have some potential issues for the deacs, especially in the second half. and if one of those 6 happens to go down with an injury, wake is faced with running 5 guys with no subs.
it might have been hard to tell last saturday, but ecu can run the ball, and will probably show it better today. they have some athletic running backs, and get their best offensive lineman back from injury today. i expect the pirates to put the ball in the endzone at least 2 or 3 times.
there is also an intangible element that seems to be working in the pirates favor today. you have to understand that football is the heart and soul of the ecu athletic program - no other sport comes close. it's been a brutal stretch in greenville coming off the 1-11 season, especially on the heels of some successful steve logan teams. it has put boosters and students in a downrigh funk. this week, ecu athletics scored major coup with the hiring of terry holland to fill the long vacant ad's spot. all of the sudden, a lot of enthusiam has popped up. pirates have a good home field tradition, helped in large par by enthusiastic fan support. a few years ago, a visit by an acc team would turn the loyalists out in droves. i think you may see a small slice of that enthusiam return today, and there's a good chance it will carry onto the field. enough, anyway, to keep this game within a couple of td's. at least all of the factors enumerated above should keep the back door open until the final gun.
i have a few more plays in a bit.
glta
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