2006 East Carolina Pirates football preview

On Monday we released the 2006 ECU Pirates football offensive preview. Today you will find the 2006 ECU defensive preview as well as special teams, a schedule analysis and a final analysis. Nowhere else on the Internet or in print will you find coverage of ECU football that is as thorough as here at CUSA-fans.com, as correspondent Bubba Rosenbaum goes in-depth covering ECU football throughout the entire 2006 football season.

2006 ECU Defense

East Carolina returns six starters on defense from a season ago, but they also lost five of their top six tacklers. The Pirates were vastly improved under first year defensive coordinator Greg Hudson, as they were better in almost every defensive statistical category. The largest improvements were seen in the secondary as ECU ranked 20 th nationally at the end of last season after being one of the worst teams in the nation versus the pass in 2004. However, the improvement wasn’t nearly as great against the run. The Pirates allowed opponents to rush for 217.7 yards per game, which ranked 112 th nationally. The schedule did feature a lot of run-oriented teams, including Memphis with former star DeAngelo Williams, but that large of a number is unacceptable regardless of the competition and must be improved this season.

The Pirates lost a wealth of experience and production at the linebacker position, with the departures of Chris Moore, Josh Chilsom, and Richard Koonce. Moore was first team All-Conference USA last year while leading the Pirates in tackles with 96 and tackles for loss with 19. Koonce and Chilsom both had 53 tackles in their final year for ECU. Filling those linebacker spots will be some pretty talented, but inexperienced players.

East Carolina opted to go the JUCO route to fill this immediate need. The Pirates brought in Orlando Farrow (6-3, 229), Fred Wilson (6-2, 250) and Danny Muhwezi (6-3, 229). All three are second on the depth chart following the spring. Wilson and Muhwezi are juniors while Farrow is entering his first and only season with the Pirates. Farrow was a highly sought after recruit and the word is that he roams from sideline to sideline making plays. Farrow and Muhwezi will play on the outside, while Fred Wilson is an inside backer.

Junior Durwin Lamb (6-1, 236) is the starter at middle linebacker entering fall camp. Lamb made Conference USA’s All-Freshman team in his first year with the Pirates and played in all 11 games last season. However, he only totaled seven tackles a year ago after registering 26 as a freshman. He should play a much larger role in this Pirate defense.

Sophomore Jarrett Wiggins (6-5, 221), who played in eight games as a freshman, missed part of spring practice with an injury. Wiggins had 16 tackles a season ago, and should be a factor in 2006 at middle linebacker.

At outside linebacker, the starters headed into the fall are redshirt freshman Jeremy Chambliss (6-0, 216) and junior Quentin Cotton (6-2, 223). Cotton only played in two games as a sophomore making two tackles.

However, don’t be surprised if the starter at this position is 6-2, 244 pound sophomore Pierre Bell. Bell played in all 11 games as a true freshman and finished his first year with East Carolina on a real high note, intercepting UAB’s star quarterback Darrell Hackney twice in ECU’s 2005 season ending victory. He had 28 tackles on the season, including 3 for losses.

On the defensive line, the Pirates possess some pretty good talent, but lack depth in spots, particularly on the inside. They are also thinner since senior Shauntae Hunt, the projected starter at one defensive end, is now questionable for the first part of the season after suffering a freak, non-football related knee injury this summer. Hunt (6-5, 270) was the team’s seventh leading tackler last year with 36, including eight for losses and four sacks.

The Pirates will now rely even more heavily on sophomore Zach Slate (6-5, 219). Slate redshirted in 2005 after playing on special teams during his freshman campaign.

At the other defensive end spot, East Carolina is looking good with the return of junior Marcus Hands, who had a very good first year in the purple and gold in 2005. Hands, who is an excellent pass rusher, totaled 21 tackles in eight games. He missed the last three games and all of spring practice with a shoulder injury. The Pirates are hoping he picks up right where he left off as ten of his 21 tackles were for losses, including a team high six sacks.

Scotty Robinson, a 6-4, 242 pounder, who redshirted in 2005, is expected to back up Hands or possibly start at the other defensive end spot while Shauntae Hunt is absent from the Pirates’ lineup. Robinson, like Hands, is very good at pressuring the quarterback, as he possesses tremendous quickness off the edge.

True Freshman Johnnie McCoy (6-3, 246) could also see significant playing time at defensive end.

On the inside, East Carolina has some solid returnees, but is believed to lack depth. At nose guard, the starter is slated to be junior Mark Robinson (6-3, 275), who played in all 11 games a season ago, while making 32 tackles. 6-1, 323 pound senior Dontre Brown should also play a lot of snaps at nose guard. He also played in all 11 games last season, while totaling 16 tackles and one sack.

At defensive tackle, sophomore Brandon Setzer (6-6, 311) returns after fairing well in his first action as a Pirate in 2005. “Setz”, as he is known by his teammates, was in on 28 stops a year ago. He also had seven tackles for a loss.

Setzer’s back up is scheduled to be Wendell Chavis. The 6-2, 275 pound junior played in five games as a sophomore, and had one tackle.

The Pirates are hoping that newcomers C.J. Wilson and Jay Ross can solidify the interior of the defensive line.

The strength of this East Carolina defense will likely be the secondary. Last season, defensive coordinator Greg Hudson and secondary coach Rick Smith engineered quite a turnaround while working with the same personnel. Despite losing strong safety Zach Baker to graduation, this unit should be just as good, if not better than in 2005. Baker was tied for the team lead in interceptions with three and was third on the team in tackles with 58. Senior Kyle Chase (5-8, 188) is listed as the starter at strong safety headed into 2006. Chase was eighth on the team in tackles as a junior with 36, and had three pass break-ups.

Sophomore Herman Best (6-0, 200) who played in nine games last season is expected to back up Chase. He made one tackle as a freshman, while the majority of his playing time was on special teams.

At free safety, the Pirates are in really good shape. They return two very talented and experienced seniors in Pierre Parker and Jamar Flournoy. Both should see significant playing time as they are essentially deadlocked for the starting role entering camp in August. Parker (6-0, 217) was East Carolina’s second leading tackler during his junior season. He made 69 stops, while also being tied for the team lead in interceptions with three. Flournoy, who missed the 2005 season due to disciplinary action, recorded 75 tackles in 2004. He also made 14 for losses.

At cornerback, the starters will likely be junior Travis Williams (5-10, 182) and senior Kasey Ross (6-0, 180). Both players played in all 11 games in 2005, while Ross started every game. Ross was ninth on the team in tackles with 35 and tied for the team lead in interceptions with three. Ross is a very good cover corner.

Sophomore Stacy Walls (5-9, 184) is listed as Travis Williams’ back up while senior Markeith McQueen (5-9, 179) is expected to back up Ross. Walls played in ten games as a freshman making eight tackles, while Markeith McQueen only played in two games due to suffering a season-ending injury in the Wake Forest game

Sophomore JJ Millbrook (5-9, 203) and converted receiver, 5-11, 185 pound Jerek Hewett should provide solid depth. Millbrook had two interceptions in the spring game. Hewett, who is also on the East Carolina track team, gives the Pirates blazing speed at the position.

Don’t be surprised if this Pirate defense is improved from last year, but its fortune will likely be dictated by the play it gets from its inexperienced and youthful linebackers. If the secondary can match last year’s performance against stiffer competition this season and the Pirates can stop, well at least slow down the run, this defense should be good enough to win with.

2006 ECU Special Teams

East Carolina lost special teams coach Greg McMahon to the New Orleans Saints over the off-season, but don’t expect a drop-off in their performance this season. They should be better in ’06 under new coach Don Yanowsky. Yanowsky is beginning his second stint at ECU after having been with the Pirates in 2001 and 2002, during which he coached the defensive line and some special teams.

Yanowsky is walking into a very good situation as the Pirates return two outstanding seniors in punter Ryan Dougherty (6-1, 227) and placekicker Robert Lee (5-11, 217). Dougherty, who will be in his fourth season of handling the punting duties, averaged 40.3 yards per punt last season. This total was down from his sophomore and freshman seasons, during which he averaged 41.8 and 44.5 yards, respectively. That 44.5-yard average ranked him in the nation’s top ten and earned him Conference USA All-Freshman team honors. Last season, he was second-team All Conference USA. In addition to his punting duties, Dougherty also handled kickoffs for East Carolina during his junior season. He was a major asset to the Pirates’ effort to win the field position battle as 30 of his 55 kickoffs resulted in touchbacks. He also had 20 punts that were downed inside the 20-yard line. He could be a Ray Guy Award candidate this season.

As a junior, placekicker Robert Lee was a semi-finalist for the Lou Groza Award, which is awarded annually to the nation’s top placekicker. Lee connected on 17 of 19 attempts, including a long of 51 yards, and his two misses were from 42 and 44. He was also perfect on extra-point attempts. If the Pirates move into field goal range, their odds of getting at least three on the board are very good.

Redshirt freshman Ben Hartman will be Lee’s backup and could potentially handle the kickoff duties for the Pirates depending on how much of a load they want to put on Ryan Dougherty. Hartman has a very live leg and provides ECU with solid depth.

Ryan Dougherty will once again be the holder for Lee. Wilson Raynor is expected to fill the departed Mike Yartin’s spot as the starting deep snapper. Walk-on Britt Johnson could also see some time at deep snapper.

The Pirates’ return game needs improvement this season. Last season, East Carolina ranked near the bottom nationally in kickoff return yardage. You will likely see Dominique Lindsay and Chris Johnson handling the kickoff return duties. Lindsay returned three for 47 yards a year ago, while Johnson had 21 returns for 459 yards, including a long of 43.

The punt return specialist will most likely be Markeith McQueen. This was an area of frustration for ECU a season ago due to the presence of poor decision-making. Aundrae Allison might also be seen in this role as he returned six for 33 yards in 2005.

2006 ECU Schedule Analysis

Expect East Carolina to be a better football team this season. How much better? Well, that is tough to say, because of the extreme difficulty of the schedule. The Pirates’ schedule features eight teams who played in bowls last year, seven of who won the game.

“We have to raise our game to compete at even a higher level than we did a year ago because the ante went up—the schedule is harder,” Holtz said. “I think we can be a better football team, and it may not yield the results of how much we improved from the year before, because of the difficulty of our schedule.”

The non-conference schedule is very challenging and will be for the next several years as the result of a long-term contract that includes the likes of Virginia Tech, West Virginia, Virginia, Navy, North Carolina, and North Carolina State. This season the Pirates play Navy, West Virginia, Virginia, and North Carolina State.

ECU travels to Annapolis to open the season against Paul Johnson’s Navy Midshipmen. Navy’s rushing attack, which led the nation last season, will be a stiff test for the Pirate defense. However, there is the advantage of playing them to start the season where the Pirates will have plenty of time to prepare for their high-powered option attack.

After back to back Conference USA games at UAB and at home against Memphis, East Carolina will welcome defending Sugar Bowl champion West Virginia into Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium for a highly anticipated ESPN match up.

Following the showdown with the Mountaineers, the Pirates will have an open week before Al Groh’s Virginia Cavaliers make their first trip to Greenville. East Carolina will then conclude an unheard of five-game homestand over six weeks with conference contests against defending champion Tulsa and SMU.

This quirk in the scheduling doesn’t come without a price as the Pirates will then be forced to go on the road for four of their last five games, including trips to Southern Miss, 2005 CUSA runner-up Central Florida, Rice, and rival NC State. Mixed in between road trips to UCF and Rice is a home game against the Thundering Herd of Marshall.

Final Analysis & Keys to Success

The Pirates need to improve in a few areas in order to be successful. These areas include stopping the run, running the ball, their play on third down and getting off to better starts. ECU allowed opponents to convert 46.5 percent of their third downs last season while converting only 37.1 of its attempts. East Carolina was also outscored 88-34 in the first quarter a year ago.

If East Carolina improves these deficiencies from a year ago, which should happen, then they should make their first bowl trip since the 2001 GMAC Bowl in Mobile. The Pirates have a realistic shot to win at least seven or eight games against this schedule, but a good start is critical. They will most likely need to win at least one of the non-conference games, as it will be very difficult to run the table in Conference USA play.

The final prediction: East Carolina wins at least seven games, competes for the Conference USA East Division title, and goes bowling. Skip Holtz and his staff will then receive the raises that they will be very deserving of.