ECU receives timely bye week

A week off couldn't have come at a better time for the Pirates.

After winning the first three games of the season for the first time since 1999, ECU [3-2,1-1] has gone from on top of the world to nonexistent after critical losses to N.C. State and Houston.

Last season the Pirates played 11 straight weeks before their bye week. This season, the first bye week comes after five games; something ECU coach Skip Holtz believes will be extremely beneficial to his team.

"It's huge," said Holtz of the bye week. "I think we need it for a number of reasons. We need it from a physical standpoint; we have 32 names on the injury report right now and hopefully we can turn and get some of those guys healthy by not banging on them so hard during the course of the week and then not having a game on Saturday. We can get some guys healthy."

When ECU plays its next game on Oct. 11 at Virginia, Holtz will be trying to win his third straight game after a bye week.

"It also comes at a great time for a mental standpoint. I don't think we played very well Saturday [against Houston], obviously," Holtz said. "I don't think we responded very well from an execution standpoint and how we came back after the N.C. State game. I think they're playing extremely well and want to be good, but we just have to look at the film and see where we're making the mistakes and how critical every little play is."

Perhaps the most devastating news to come out of Saturday's 41-24 loss to Houston is that senior quarterback Patrick Pinkney is nursing an injury to his ankle. It remains to be seen just how long, if at all, Pinkney will be out.

Junior quarterback Rob Kass saw playing time Saturday in place of a hurt and underachieving Pinkney, but Kass says that no matter who is playing signal caller, it all comes down to winning.

"Both of us are out here working to get better every single day," said Kass. "I have to prepare every single game like I'm the starter; I have to be mentally and physically prepared. I know that going into the next couple of games there is an opportunity for me to get in there and play, and I'm going to take full advantage of it.

"Patrick is the captain of our team, he is a leader, but I also bring a sense of leadership to the team too," he said. "Last year we both played well and played together and if we have to go back to that [two quarterback system] for us to continue to win, then I guarantee you this team is all for it."

The Pirate offense was less than stellar last Saturday against Houston, producing only 275 total yards, most of which came when there was no doubt that Houston would take the win.

In the first half alone, ECU only passed for 15 yards, while gaining 79 on the ground.

While the offense may be a cause of concern, Kass doesn't believe there is a cause for worry.

"I would say our problem doesn't come down to really 'X's' and 'O's,' it just comes down to execution," Kass said. "The first three games we were converting on third down and protecting the ball as an offense and we know we have to go back and refocus on those things."

Kass is hoping the offense can learn from the mistakes it made against Houston.

"It is already behind us," Kass said of the Houston game. "You learn from your mistakes. Obviously there's some frustration there but you learn from that and move on; that's what a mature football team does and that's what we are."

The ECU defense was the strong point for the first three games of the season, but bumps and bruises have taken their toll on the unit.

"This bye week is very important from the standpoint of putting the tough losses to Houston and N.C. State behind us and fixing some of the internal things such as injuries," said junior defensive back Van Eskridge. "The injury bug has hit us pretty hard this season. We've played in some tough football games this season and a lot of our key guys have bumps and bruises so it's very, very important to us."

The defensive secondary has taken a lot of heat in the wake of Houston's 399-yard air attack against ECU. Even so, Eskridge believes his unit can rebound.

"Houston has a great offense if you go back and look at their resume," Eskridge said. "They have been a team for a long time that puts up a lot of points and throws for a lot of yards because that's what they do. If you ask me, there's nothing wrong with the defense, there's nothing wrong with the secondary. We just have to do what we know how to do better."

The bye week, according to Kass, also "gives us an opportunity to look back at the previous five games and get better while learning from our mistakes."

And what a first five games they were. ECU was once No.14 in the nation before the two heartbreaking losses forced the Pirates out of the polls.

While the losses did hurt the team, they are now focused on moving on and preparing for the rest of the season.

"Of course we are disappointed at losing," Eskridge said. "Any time you lose it hurts; it's like it leaves a hole in your stomach. But you know, we're 3-2 and there is a lot of football left to be played this season. We can still reach a lot of the goals that we set at the beginning of the season. We just have to come out and keep playing, keep grinding, keeping pushing and try to end this thing the best we can and hopefully that will be 10-2."

This writer can be contacted at sports@theeastcarolinian.com.