2008 Woodie Awards
Opinion: VT win solidifies quest for respect
Ronnie Woodward, Asst. Sports Editor
Issue date: 9/4/08 Section: Sports
Thompson's last game at ECU was an embarrassing 52-14 loss to a mediocre N.C. State team in Charlotte, which concluded the 2004 season.
Holtz took over that off-season and his mission of gaining respect from the local teams in bigger conferences started with Duke. As a three-point underdog, the Pirates beat the Blue Devils 24-21, kicking off the Holtz era with a win over an ACC team, albeit a bad one. The next season, ECU beat Virginia and N.C. State. Last year, ECU beat North Carolina in the first home game of the year and had a 4-1 record against ACC opponents under Holtz at the time.
Last December, the Pirates traveled to Hawaii to play Boise State in what was supposed to be one of the most lopsided games of the bowl season. Once again, Holtz garnered respect for his program, defeating the nationally-ranked Broncos, 41-38, and finishing the 2007 season with an 8-5 record.
That brings us back to Charlotte and back to the stadium where ECU was pummeled in Thompson's finale by its bitter rival, N.C. State.
ECU stood toe-to-toe with Virginia Tech in Charlotte, proving it belongs on the national scene.
Holtz started his tenure with a win over Duke back in 2005 and now has a win over the ACC's best team, gaining respect along the way.
"It was a great feeling, especially beating a team of their caliber," said senior linebacker Pierre Bell of the Virginia Tech win. "It's been a long time coming."
The hard part now is maintaining the national respect that ECU has recently earned.
Holtz has stressed the importance of that this week, noting that ECU didn't do a good job of that last season. In 2007, the Pirates followed their win over UNC with a home loss to Southern Miss and an extremely humbling 48-7 loss at West Virginia.
The win/loss outcome of Saturday's much-anticipated game with West Virginia might not be as important as how ECU is viewed by the Mountaineers after the game is over. The Pirates will have to prove that the wins over Boise State and Virginia Tech were not flukes, and they can only do that by showing that they belong on the same field as a team like West Virginia.
Proving his team belongs is something Holtz is getting used to-he's been doing it ever since he took the program over nearly four years ago.
This writer can be contacted at sports@theeastcarolinian.com.
Holtz took over that off-season and his mission of gaining respect from the local teams in bigger conferences started with Duke. As a three-point underdog, the Pirates beat the Blue Devils 24-21, kicking off the Holtz era with a win over an ACC team, albeit a bad one. The next season, ECU beat Virginia and N.C. State. Last year, ECU beat North Carolina in the first home game of the year and had a 4-1 record against ACC opponents under Holtz at the time.
Last December, the Pirates traveled to Hawaii to play Boise State in what was supposed to be one of the most lopsided games of the bowl season. Once again, Holtz garnered respect for his program, defeating the nationally-ranked Broncos, 41-38, and finishing the 2007 season with an 8-5 record.
That brings us back to Charlotte and back to the stadium where ECU was pummeled in Thompson's finale by its bitter rival, N.C. State.
ECU stood toe-to-toe with Virginia Tech in Charlotte, proving it belongs on the national scene.
Holtz started his tenure with a win over Duke back in 2005 and now has a win over the ACC's best team, gaining respect along the way.
"It was a great feeling, especially beating a team of their caliber," said senior linebacker Pierre Bell of the Virginia Tech win. "It's been a long time coming."
The hard part now is maintaining the national respect that ECU has recently earned.
Holtz has stressed the importance of that this week, noting that ECU didn't do a good job of that last season. In 2007, the Pirates followed their win over UNC with a home loss to Southern Miss and an extremely humbling 48-7 loss at West Virginia.
The win/loss outcome of Saturday's much-anticipated game with West Virginia might not be as important as how ECU is viewed by the Mountaineers after the game is over. The Pirates will have to prove that the wins over Boise State and Virginia Tech were not flukes, and they can only do that by showing that they belong on the same field as a team like West Virginia.
Proving his team belongs is something Holtz is getting used to-he's been doing it ever since he took the program over nearly four years ago.
This writer can be contacted at sports@theeastcarolinian.com.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Hah
posted 9/04/08 @ 9:11 PM EST
Where to begin?
Why does a "sports opinion" column get an entire half page of copy (including photo) when there are a million other things to be dealt with, including a more in-depth preview of the upcoming game. (Continued…)
Hah
posted 9/04/08 @ 9:12 PM EST
recuiting booth = recruiting BOOST.
Typo...and I didn't even have a copy editor to catch it!
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