No questioning ECU's legitimacy

2008-09-11T17:07:40-04:00

2008-09-06T20:16:25-04:00

2008-09-10T06:38:24-04:00

2008-09-11T17:07:39-04:00

Football season at last

Mohnton 521737

2 One point this brings us is, early polls don't mean ANYTHING. They are something that we football fans enjoy, that help hype us into a frenzy, but these kids have to play the games. Judging how good an ECU team is will not happen until there is more of a body of work for both them and all of their opponents. Marshall beat them last year, right? Granted, Marshall was improving finally toward the end of the year... I vote no polls until 6 weeks into the season, and then the polls should be based on performance and not reputation. Then we could see where ECU fits. And WVU and OSU and USC. 2720067

2008-09-11T14:58:16-04:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/183/869/thumb/team-logo-miss.gif 44 CA

sfprman

San Francisco 184169

1 Way too early for this. When WVa. loses to Colorado and Va . tech to nebraska, the blinding shine should come off those victories. Congrats to E.Carolina, but, whoa, there. 2718377

2008-09-08T23:04:35-04:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/464/699/thumb/Jeremy_Hoornstra.jpg 1882 CA

DO_WORK_SON

Travis Afb 465139

I'm just not ready to jump on this bandwagon yet. Virginia Tech is not a good team this year, and no one ever knows what West Virginia team is going to show up. 2696587

2008-09-08T18:32:19-04:00

WVUfan

Buffalo 517887

"All the Pirates did was knock off the number 8 team in the country" and they "may" turn out to be overrated? Who ranked them at #8 without playing a down? Oh, the media and the coaches. Mandel, I believe, had them at 14 ... are they overrated there from one game? Yes, ECU looked very good. They held onto the ball and benefited from several calls (the "fumble," pass interference, a myriad of ball spots, WV's TD being called back, etc.). There is no doubt that the WV defense, who lost 7 starters, dismissed one or two returning starters and has their best defender in street clothes, is having problems. And after losing a 1,000yd rusher, their top receiver, HC and OC, they're having to adjust on offense. But ECU should have won by a lot more given those breaks and the home field advantage. 24 points is not an insurmountable number. Hats off to ECU. They played well, kept White off the field and made him uncomfortable when he was on the field. ECU won and WV looked bad, but this is not the same team that blew up Oklahoma in January, and it's not all Bill Stewart's fault. They have a very young, inexperienced defense and are making adjustments with the new staff. At least, I will reserve judgement until they've had a few weeks to adjust. 2694732

2008-09-08T09:17:32-04:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/172/041/thumb/WVjoel1.jpg 69 ga

wv80

bethlehem 172341

With West Virginia's loss to East Carolina they look like they belong in the ACC. 2687466

2008-09-08T09:16:14-04:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/172/041/thumb/WVjoel1.jpg 69 ga

wv80

bethlehem 172341

ECU is following the footsteps of Utah, Boise State, Hawaii and Bringham Young. West Virginia got spanked, but they'll be back. Let's judge the Mountaineers on 12 games, not two. Long year ahead. Anything can happen. Wins over Colorado, Auburn, Pitt and USF would go a long way in appeasing the fan base. 2687463

2008-09-08T07:36:51-04:00

hamtundra

Raleigh 517214

Mandel, in regards to my previous comment above, I find it very interesting that the Coaches Poll has ECU at 20th, much lower that the AP's 14th. I think that supports my claim that the media is going on too little information when evaluating ECU and therefore hyping them a bit too much. The coaches, who have much more football sense (although probably watched much less of ECU or other teams that some in the AP, I'll admit) place ECU in a much more reasonable position. Mandel, you are my favorite college football analyst, as I think you research things well and try to keep grounded. Take what I said and consider it, so that you can avoid being sucked into the hype-vortex like your colleagues. Stay a step ahead of them! 2686906

2008-09-08T00:36:42-04:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/517/110/thumb/Sashes.jpg 33 OR

Calmplexity

Salem 517550

BlakCass; You don't understand at all. USC is a TRADITIONAL powerhouse which has won several National Championships and fields one of the best defenses in college football. They do not recruit players, they choose from a long list of HS blue chippers. ECU needs to add a bit more to their resume before being annointed # 1. 2686553

2008-09-07T16:16:48-04:00

YoHoPiratesLifeforME

Greenville 517477

I work at ECU and have been a fan for a long time. I agree with the "critics" that ECU has a long season ahead. It is too early to start calling out that ECU are BCS busters... let history decide that at the end of the season. Also, it is the problems with the BCS that people are looking for schools like ECU to BUST! ECU needs to play one game at a time vs the Conference USA teams, and rivals like NC State. Play smart and play well! Also, play one game at a time, let the others worry about which Bowl they get... Also, I agree that ECU might not be a top 12 team based on performance, that it might be the hype. but many a team has been in the top 25 and top 10 on hype alone. So as the season goes on and ECU plays game after game, we will see if these opening upsets stay in the memory of the voters. Still, either way! GO PIRATES! What a weekend in Greenville. 2683795

2008-09-07T16:14:15-04:00

http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/226/040/thumb/Bobcats.jpg 13 NC

cltbobcatsfan

Matthews 226340

ECU now ranked 14th in the nation. Not bad for a non-BCS school. They would probably be #5 if they were in a BCS league. 2683807

<img style="width: 425px; height: 298px; float: right;" title="AP" src="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/images/09/06/t1_ecuwvu.jpg" border="1" alt="AP" width="425" height="298" align="top" /> Ladies and gentlemen, we have on our hands a true, legitimate BCS-buster. In the span of two weeks, East Carolina has knocked off two of the six BCS-conference champions of a year ago -- Virginia Tech and West Virginia -- and its latest conquest was downright flabbergasting. No last-minute punt block necessary this time. All the Pirates did Saturday was <a href="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/ncaa/scoreboards/2008/09/06/38691_viewcast_recap.html">knock off the No. 8 team in the country, 24-3</a>. The Pirates are clearly on a whole other level from some of the more recent mid-major successes. This is not 2007 Hawaii rolling off 12 straight wins against the nation's weakest schedule. While 2006 Boise State ultimately legitimized itself against Oklahoma, the Broncos' only regular season triumph of note was a rout of Oregon State. Not since the Urban Meyer/Alex Smith Utah team crushed three major-conference foes en route to its perfect 2004 season has a non-BCS team looked so indisputably impressive -- and the Pirates aren't even done. They've still got games remaining against ACC foes N.C. State (Sept. 20) and Virginia (Oct. 11). Whereas teams like Utah, Boise State, Hawaii and BYU have been known for their prolific offenses, Skip Holtz's team is a whole different animal: A mid-major team with a major-league defense. Saturday, the Pirates held a Pat White-led offense to three points. Three points. The Mountaineers -- which last season averaged 456 yards a game -- finished with just 248. And unlike last year, there was no White injury to blame for the defeat. While Virginia Tech and West Virginia may well turn out to be vastly overrated, they've both made multiple BCS appearances since 2004. No team has pulled off two more impressive victories to start the season than ECU. The BCS rules say a team from one of the "other" conferences must finish in the top 12 to reach one of the five big bowls. The Pirates belong in the top 12 right now. They've already earned enough respect that even if they slip up once along the way to a Conference USA opponent, they may still -- and probably should -- finish high enough in the polls. Looking ahead, it will be interesting to see what happens if multiple contenders emerge for that coveted "outsider" berth. BYU has been considered the favorite all through the preseason, but the Cougars barely survived Saturday against mediocre Washington. It may well turn out that Utah is the Mountain West's biggest threat. Meanwhile, Fresno State beat Rutgers last week and has a chance to pull its own ECU moment next week against No. 11 Wisconsin. Clearly, the Pirates belong at the head of the pack as of today. Their biggest obstacle right now: Avoiding a potential "letdown" next week at Tulane. 1227 http://img.fannation.com/upload/user_profile/image/940/61/thumb/mandel_stewart.jpg 2 NY

Stewart Mandel

New York 94361