Pirates Turn Focus To Second Intra-Squad Scrimmage
August 21, 2015 | Football
Coach McNeill and Players On Meet The Pirates
GREENVILLE, N.C. - East Carolina finalized preparations for its second and final scrimmage of preseason camp with a two-hour morning workout in shells Friday morning at Hight Field inside the Cliff Moore Practice Complex.
The contest, which will be held at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium Saturday morning, will be another critical component that will help define the depth chart heading into game-plan mode for the season opener against Towson. Following the simulated contest, players will return to the stadium to meet and interact with fans during the 21st Annual Meet The Pirates Night - an event that begins at 6 p.m.
"I was a good hard fought day for us," sixth-year head coach Ruffin McNeill said. "We shortened some of the practice, but it was intense out there. The guys really got after the conditioning with Coach (Jeff) Connors and finished off strong.
"I really liked the way we executed on all three sides of the ball. The offense's execution continued to pick up from the last scrimmage, which is what I expected to see. I was really pleased with the defense as well. We got a lot of special teams work in today and that group is progressing nicely."
Friday's workout consisted of two team periods totaling 23 minutes where the Pirates' worked on the run game and the overall game plan. The skill positions spent the first 21 minutes working on the quick game and routes on air, while the offensive and defensive line continued work on pass protection and pass rushing drills.
East Carolina dedicated nearly 30 minutes working on all phases of special teams before wrapping up its 16th practice of camp with five minutes of ball security and conditioning drills.
Saturday's intra-squad scrimmage, which McNeill indicated would be closed to the public, is designed to work on execution and fundamentals in all facets of the game.
"Saturday we are going into Dowdy-Ficklen for our last scrimmage," McNeill added. "We are not going to worry about the quantity of reps, but the quality. I want to see great execution and fundamentally sound football. I'm also looking for great sideline discipline from everyone. We will have the American Athletic Conference officials in house, so it will be good to show them how we play and make sure they know we are trying to be a smart football team. Lastly we will work on communication with our coaches to the field and back up to the coaches box."
Single-game, three-game mini packs and season tickets for all ECU homes games are still available to the Pirate Nation and can be purchased by calling the ECU Athletic Ticket Office at 252-737-4500, through the Online Ticket Center, or by visiting the ECU Athletics Ticket Office.
Up Next:
Saturday's Scrimmage: 9 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Season Opener: Sept. 5 vs. Towson in Greenville (6 p.m. ET)
