Pirates Jayvees Top Fork Union, 30-17
September 23, 2003 | Football
GREENVILLE, N.C. -- James Pinkney connected with Bryson Bowling for two touchdown passes to lead East Carolina's junior varsity football squad to a 30-17 win over visiting Fork Union Military Academy on Tuesday afternoon at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
The game, played in front of 539 fans, was ECU's first jayvee game in over 20 years.
Pinkney, a redshirt freshman, completed 10 of 17 passes for 149 yards. His favorite target was Bowling, a sophomore, who had six receptions for 98 yards.
The Pirate jayvee squad was comprised mainly of ECU scout team players along with several regulars who have seen limited time or missed games during the 2003 varsity season.
"What you saw out there today was good for everybody," ECU first-year head coach John Thompson said. "One, these guys competed and gave us a little life. It was good to win. Two, they [Fork Union] had some players on that team that we were able to expose to what we have. It's a good recruiting tool. We also saw some guys step up and do some things that are going to help us down the line."
Fork Union, which entered the game with a 2-0 record, began with a promising first quarter when Joshua Morgan blocked an East Carolina punt in the Pirate end zone which led to a safety.
East Carolina was quick to strike back when the Pirates capitalized on a botched punt snap by Fork Union and forced a short punt which gave them field position at the FUMA 45. That set up a 43-yard touchdown pass from Pinkney to Bowling to stake ECU to a 7-2 lead.
Late in the first quarter, ECU doubled its points with an 11-yard touchdown by the game's leading rusher, Dominique Hatcher. Hatcher rushed for 59 yards on 16 carries.
Kicker Nate Steinbacher gave the Pirates a 17-2 lead after making a 48-yard field goal attempt late in the second quarter. It was Steinbacher's only successful kick in three attempts on the day.
FUMA put together a quick scoring drive in the final two minutes of the first half, capped by a four-yard touchdown pass from quarterback David Carter to receiver Dorlen Bryant. The touchdown reception was followed by a two-point conversion making the score 17-10 at intermission.
East Carolina came out strong in the third quarter by driving 50 yards in five plays on its first possession. Another TD strike from Pinkney to Bowling, this time for 30 yards, gave the Pirates a 24-10 lead.
Two plays later, Fork Union responded with a 75-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Wayne Hunter to receiver Trey Lewis to trim the Pirate lead to 24-17.
The Pirates regained a comfortable lead late in the third when Dontae Bibbs intercepted a Blue Devil pass at the FUMA 20. On the next play, ECU's Iverick Harris ran the ball to the FUMA 1 on a reverse, then Jason Pender punched the ball in for a one-yard touchdown run. The point after by Steinbacher failed, accounting for the final score of the game, 30-17.
Graduate assistant coaches Shep Campbell and Larry Shannon served as co-head coaches of the Pirate jayvee squad for today's game.
Thompson noted the play of several individuals who took advantage of the real-game experience.
"Iverick Harris stood out. He returned some kicks and you're probably going to see him returning some [more] kicks. We haven't seen him do that," Thompson said. "James Pinkney did some good things. Dom [Hatcher] came out and ran the football well. Kyle Chase made a lot of big hits. Those guys, we're going to have to look at them a little bit harder in practice now."
East Carolina's varsity squad returns to action in one week, Tuesday, Sept. 30, when the Pirates host Houston in a Conference USA matchup. Kickoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
