ECU Works Toward Second Scrimmage
August 19, 2010 | Football
Aug. 19, 2010
Listen to Coach McNeill's Post-Practice Interview
GREENVILLE, N.C. - East Carolina continued preparations for its second intra-squad scrimmage of preseason camp with a two-and-a-half hour practice in shells Thursday morning. The Pirates spent the first half of the workout at the Cliff Moore Practice Complex before conducting the second half inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
"We needed to get some stadium work in, so we brought skeleton, seven-on-seven and team-on-team to Dowdy-Ficklen," head coach Ruffin McNeill said. "We want to make sure we get the feel for our stadium with game time just around the corner. I thought it went well today."
Thursday's practice was structured much like Wednesday's with the focus being team-on-team work. For the second-straight day, over an hour of the practice was conducted in skeleton drills or against early-designated scouts.
The offense spent periods against scouts working on screens and inside release and with wide receivers going one-on-one against defensive backs. The unit's line also dedicated time to blitz pickup.
During the team-on-team session, the offense focused on third-down plays and conducted simulated overtime periods. ECU also spent 20 minutes going through special teams situations.
The Pirates will practice Friday morning before holding their second intra-squad scrimmage of the fall Saturday afternoon at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
"I expect execution during the scrimmage," McNeill added. "I want everybody to know his role on offense, defense and special teams. The players need to do a great job of doing their jobs."
Notes: The Pirates' scrimmage Saturday precedes the 16th annual Meet The Pirates Night, ECU's preseason football fan fest, which will begin at 6:00 p.m. ... McNeill announced the addition of three players to the Pirates' 105-man preseason roster Thursday ... OL Adhem Elsawi (6-5, 324, So-TR, Campbell University), CB D.J. Graham (5-10, 183, Fr-HS, North Brunswick HS) and P Phillip McNaughton (6-1, 260, So-TR, University of Technology, Sydney, Australia) are expected to participate in Saturday's scrimmage ... Graham and McNaughton are eligible to play during the 2010 season while Elsawi will sit out in compliance with NCAA transfer rules.
Friday's Practice Time: 9:00 -11:30 a.m.
Season Opener: Sept. 5 vs. Tulsa in Greenville (2:00 p.m.)
