Recap: ECSU

So, let’s get it out of the way – the bad news.

1. What the heck was going on with the kicking game. Someone look it up for us, when was the last time we missed two extra points in a game? And add a missed 31-yard field goal? That’s obviously got to get cleaned up, whatever it was that was happening.
2. The defense only gave up 380 yards of offense. Not too bad, but not great. Take away the two HUGE plays (75 yd run and 82 yd reception), and you’re left with just 223 yards. We looked really bad on defense in the first quarter and found ourselves down 14-7 as it ended. Coach Eliano gave some folks a “pep talk,” and things got a lot better after that.
3. Nine penalties – which was supposed to be something we were working to improve on. I think we even had back-to-back false starts. ECSU also had a play that was apparently an irresistible hard count from the qb that cause our line to jump offsides (twice), and the qb attempted to just throw the ball up for grabs to a receiver streaking down the field.

The not-so-good news:

1. The punt/kick-return defense was pretty hit or miss. There was a 1-yard punt return – good. And there was a 33-yard punt return – bad. We also leaked out a kick return of 35 yards – no so good. Eddie Carmona kicked the first two kickoffs for touchbacks – good.
2. It didn’t look like we had a lot of injuries – good. The only one I know of is that Larry Duvall appeared to break two fingers on his left hand – bad.
3. We dropped a pretty easy interception and ended the game with zero turnovers forced.

Now moving on to the good news.

1. Kenneth Robey was a man out there today. He ran a perfect stop-and-go route for the 63-yard touchdown. That play was very patiently set up by previous playcalling. I’m not very patient as a fan and wanted more downfield passes, but it was worth the wait I guess. If you looked at the returning roster after the end of last season, Robey might not have been on the THREE-deep of most fans. He made his move in the fall and clearly showed he has the skill to be an impact player this season.
2. Nathan Dick was very efficient. The live stats show that he finished with a QB rating of 186. We had a quarterback a couple years ago that put up similar numbers in games. It was fun to watch Nathan out there. He looked good and in control.
3. The offense had 585 total yards, a whopping 407 in the first half. We only had 27 points at the half, but that’s some pretty good ball movement up-and-down the field.
4. Nine players caught passes.
5. The defense allowed just 141 yards in the second half, and in the game was brilliant on 3rd down (2-of-12) and perfect on 4th.
6. The defense seemed to be almost constantly rotating people in and out. Lots of people got playing time. It should have given the coaches a pretty good idea who can and can’t do what.
7. I don’t know what the live stats looked like live, but they are pretty sweet now after the game is over! I’m loving that.

It’s now time for bed.

Gameday: ECSU

Thursday, Sept. 2, 2010, has finally arrived. It’s been 278 days since a disappointing 17-16 loss to North Dakota to end last season. There’s only seven more hours until kickoff now though, and the Bears and their fans are looking for improvement over last year’s 5-7 season.

Winning game one is obviously crucial to that goal. Elizabeth City State University is a D2 school. I think many FCS schools don’t have the same respect for D2 schools like most of us do, having just been there five years ago. However, I think some UCA fans aren’t expecting much of a contest tonight either. We saw last year that if the team doesn’t come out and play well, even “lower-level competition” can keep things close for far longer than you’d like.

Enough editorializing. Everyone should be able to see things for themselves starting tonight at 7 p.m. Yes, that even means people who live an hour away and get off at 5 p.m. You should be there too.

Here’s some previews for our game and some that include a look at the SLC matchups for the weekend. If you’ve found other stories online, please let me know or add them in the comments.:

• Huge challenge for Vikings
  

  Elizabeth City State faces its toughest test in years tonight when it takes on Central Arkansas. Not only will the Vikings be far away from home, they will be playing on just four days rest, fresh off a 15 1/2-hour bus ride and facing a Football Championship Subdivision opponent for the first time since 2005.

  Despite encountering long odds versus a team with nearly three times the amount of scholarship players, the Vikings (1-0) have goals heading into the game that are far beyond just getting a pay check for being willing to play there and coming home healthy.

• Bears on prowl for game action (subscription link)
• Guarantee games on docket for most SLC teams

Scouting: ECSU

Elizabeth City State University

Record: 1-0 (1-0)
2009 Record: 7-4 (5-2)
Mascot: Vikings
Conference: Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA)
Head Coach: Waverly Tillar, 8th season
Located: Elizabeth City, NC
Enrollment: 3,025

Last Week: The Vikings took on conference foe Johnson C. Smith last week. Even though they only totaled fewer offensive yards (372) that Smith, ECSU won easily at home, 27-45. Smith was able to move the ball up and down the field, especially by air (308 yds), but two intereceptions and two fumbles cost them. One INT was returned for a td after Smith had cut a 24-7 lead down to 24-21, and the Vikings pulled away after that.

Players to Watch

• Creven Powell (QB, #12, 6-2/180) - Returns as the starter after only completing 47.5% of his passes last season and finishing with more INTs than TDs.Was 19-for-27 last week for 240 yards, 1 td and 1 int.
• Daronte McNeill (RB, #8, 6-2/215) - Last year’s leading rusher – as a freshman – returns to lead the ground attack again. He had 83 yards in week one and averaged 4.3 ypc which was exactly his average last season.
• Cedric Blacknall (RB, #28, 6-0/190) - Returns as the backup running back. Last year it was almost a two-back system. Blacknall actually had more touchdown carries than McNeill.
• Dexter Manley (WR, #5, 6-3/190) – Manley is a senior who led the team in receiving and picked up where he left off. He had five receptions for 76 yards and a touchdown last week. Two of the top receivers from last year were held in check last week (Jermain Lindsay and Karvin Gwaltney) while Manley continued to lead the team. They didn’t complete a lot of passes last year, but the bulk of the receivers are back.
• Offensive Line (Avg 6-2/308) – They are big, some very big. And they are all upperclassmen. And fyi, the reason the average is just 308 is due to the 260 lbs. center. The right side of the line are 350 and 330.
• Defense – Returns the top six tacklers from a year ago. Had seven players with 6 tackles or more last week.
• Malcolm Jenkins (DE, #92, 6-5/235) - With a body type that should be very familiar to UCA fans, Jenkins dominated opposing offensive lines last season. He wracked up 22.5 tfl, 11.5 sacks, and 55 total tackles. He had 2.5 tfl last week, including one sack. He also was credited with eight qb hurries. The offensive line will have their hands full.
• Tolber Matthews (LB, #11, 6-2/225) – The leading tackler returns. And if Jenkins isn’t in the backfield, Matthews might be.

Football Entrance

If you want to be surprised by the football team’s new tunnel entrance, don’t “read more.” If you want to see what showed up for the student pep-rally thing from last week, you can check it out.

Read more »

The week that is (8.30.2010)

Well, this week ALL of the Fall sports get into the full swing of things! Let’s take a quick look at the match ups coming this week.

1. Football

The first football game of the season is Thursday night at 7:00! I don’t know about you, but I am excited to see how this team will come together. The Bears will face off against DII foe Elizabeth City State (North Carolina). The Vikings [1-0 (1-0)] won their first contest on Saturday against Johnson C. Smith 45-27 after holding a 24-7 lead at halftime. One of their defensive ends to watch out for is Malcolm Jenkins who finished Saturday with 7 tackles (5 solo, 2 assisted), a sack for a loss of 3 yards, 2-1/2 tackles for a total loss of 10 yards, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery, 2 pass breakups and 8 quarterback hurries vs. Johnson C. Smith. Granted Johnson C. Smith is a conference foe for ECSU, and they finished the last season with a record of 3-7 (2-5). Good luck guys!

2. Men’s Soccer

After playing three exhibition games and coming out of those with a record of 1-1-1, the Bears open regular season play at home versus Oral Roberts Wednesday at 4:00. This will also be Oral Roberts’ first regular season game of the season. In their last match, the Bears tied NAIA member Oklahoma Baptist. However, in that match the Bears played 23 members of the team in order to prepare them for the regular season matches. After facing Oral Roberts, the Bears with travel to Kansas City, MO to face UMKC on Saturday. Good luck guys!

3. Women’s Soccer

After opening the season with a 1-1 record, the Bears will play three games this week looking to improve their record. It all starts Wednesday when the Bears face off against UALR in Conway at 2:00. The Lady Trojans come into the match with a record of 0-3 (all on the road). On Friday the Bears will travel to Baton Rouge to face Southern University, and then return home to face Lipscomb on Sunday. Good luck ladies!

4. Volleyball

Volleyball opened their season with a 3-1 week at the UniWyo Wyoming Invite hosted by the University of Wyoming. The team’s only loss came at the hands of the home team. Jessica Hays and Chloe Smith were both named to the all-tournament team. This week the ladies continue their travels as they face-off against OU in Norman on Wednesday. OU comes into the match with 2-1 record after a loss to Wichita State and wins over UT-Arlington and Miami (FL). The team will then travel to Fort Worth to face LSU and Alcorn State on Friday and then TCU on Saturday. The road doesn’t get any easier next week either…Good luck ladies!

UniWyo Wyoming Invite

The season kicks off at noon today as the Sugar Bears take on a Northern Arizona (live stats) team that returns 10 players from last year’s 8-17 (5-10) season. The Lumberjacks were picked seventh in the Big Sky preseason poll.  NAU started the 2009 season win a 3-1 win over Boise State. On paper, it would take a near-perfect effort for that to happen again – but it is just the first match of the season.

Tonight at 7, they will face a very experienced host in Wyoming (live stats). All six starters return for the Cowgirls. They finished just 13-18 (3-13) in the Mountain West in 2009. They do have the MWC Freshman of the Year, outside hitter Jodi Purdy, leading their offensive attack. Her numbers weren’t that different from Chloe Smith’s. Purdy led the Cowgirls with a 3.43 kills per set average, while adding 2.53 digs and 28 service aces. Chloe’s numbers were 4.46/1.99/29. The matches that include the host will be video streamed online.

The schedule for Saturday starts with another noon match, this one against the Murray State Racers (live stats). They struggled in non-conference play – losing 10 straight to start the season and had an overall 13-18 record, but finished at 11-7 in the Ohio Valley. They reached the semi-finals of the conference tournament and have been picked to finish third in the OVC this year. They return the OVC Defensive Player of the Year in Kayleah Sauer. The Racers are return the bulk of their team. And their new libero comes in with high expectations from the coaching staff. The Racers started 0-1 already in the tournament as they lost this morning to Southern Utah. . .

who will be the final match for the Sugar Bears tomorrow at 6 p.m. (live stats) Southern Utah was 9-20 (7-12) last season in the Summit League. They are another team that returns all six starters. Sophomore Analaine Pelaez is their leader offensively, and the Sugar Bears will face another conference freshman of the year. Pelaez led the conference in kills per set at 4.18. They began the 2009 season in the Sam Houston State tournament and lost to the host 2-3.

The good news on paper is that the Sugar Bears are the only team that had a winning overall record last season. It’s certainly not out of the question to start the season 4-0.