PURPLE! Home Game Edition 3, 2012

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ISSUE NO. 3

home game edition east carolina

vs .

memphis


people’s court Alyssa Robinson and Justin Jones were elected 2012 Homecoming Queen and King. photo by jay clark

on the cover Leonard Paulk deflects a pass away from Memphis’ Reggie Travis. photo by jay clark

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game 3 - ECU vs. memphis 2012


east carolina university

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pirate queen ECU’s Arlie Honeycutt, Miss North Carolina 2012, waves to the crowd gathered for the homecoming parade as she rides along 5th Street behind the Marching Pirates. photo by jay clark

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game 3 - ECU vs. memphis 2012


east carolina university

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football

pirates cage tigers ecu defeats memphis 41-7 STORY BY CRAIG BARNES JR. PHOTOGRAPHS BY JAY CLARK

It was like déjà vu for the Pirates as they started extremely fast again for the second game in a row. On the fourth play from scrimmage, ECU quarterback Shane Carden hit inside receiver Justin Hardy, who was lined up in the backfield on the play, for a 67-yard strike. Carden started this game on fire throwing 9-11 for 91 yards in the first quarter, and by halftime, had broken a 12-game record for passing yards in a half. Carden finished the half completing 16 of 21 passes for 245 yards, and ended the game passing for 308 yards with five touchdowns. Carden continued to connect with Hardy and receiver Justin Jones throughout the night and credited the great performance to experience, confidence and studying films. Hardy’s consistent performance this season was on display again, while Jones, who is 6 feet 8 inches tall and weighs 257 pounds, changed the outlook for the Pirate’s passing attack by snatching three touchdowns. This dynamic duo is often referred to as “The Justins” by head football coach Ruffin McNeill. Hardy began as a walk-on freshman and has emerged to be a premier wide receiver in the NCAA. He finished the game with six 6 PURPLE!

receptions for 137 yards and two touchdowns, bringing his total to seven this season. His performance has been key to the Pirate’s 4-3 record so far, moving the Pirates into prime position to gain a bowl berth make it to the conference championship. Running back Vintavious Cooper plans to ensure that the offense, as well as the entire team, continues to dedicate themselves. “(There are) a lot of tough teams but as talented as we are, I’m really confident in our team. Our coaches are confident, and our team is confident,” said Cooper during a postgame interview. The Pirates have ...I’m really a great opportunity to claim the rest of confident in the games on their our team. our schedule as most of the remaining coaches are opponents this confident, season have losing records. and our team The Pirate is confident. defense has played almost flawlessly - vintavious cooper so far this year.

game 3 - ECU vs. memphis 2012


ir #84 justin jones (above) IR #2 Justin Hardy purple! OFfensive players of the game The dynamic duo paired up on the field Saturday night to help quarterback Shane Carden to a career night for the Pirates. They combined to finish the game with 11 catches 217 yards with five touchdowns.

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PURPLE! Play of the game Justin Hardy Touchdown On the fourth play from scrimmage, Justin Hardy lined up in the backfield, found a crease in the middle of the field and dove into the end zone for a 67yard touchdown. Hardy added another touchdown later in the game.

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game 3 - ECU vs. memphis 2012


football

Defensive end Terrell Stanley reacts after deflecting a punt that fell short, resulting in good field position for the Pirates’ next drive.

They are causing turnovers and making plays in the backfield, giving the Pirate offense more opportunity to make plays and gain points. They showed their defensive prowess Saturday afternoon, only allowing the Tigers to convert four of 13 third-down attempts. The defense was led by Gabriel Woullard’s 10 tackles and one-and-a-halfsack performance. Given the chance to play because of an injured linebacker, he stepped up and delivered. Linebackers Daniel Drake and Jeremy Grove also tamed 10 and 9 Tigers, respectively, on the night.

east carolina university

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game 3 - ECU vs. memphis 2012


OL #42 gabriel woullard purple! DEfensive player of the game Woullard brought his A-game against the Tigers on Saturday. He assisted on seven tackles while having three solo tackles and one-and-a-half sacks for loss. This was Woullard’s first game this season.

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uab b l a z e rs oc t. 20, 2 012 The Pirates look to win on the road this weekend as they take on The University of Alabama at Birmingham Blazers on Saturday at 7 p.m. The win would put them at 5-3 on the season and 3-1 in the conference.

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fan-cam

Haley Enzor and Devin Sellers embrace in the Boneyard after a touchdown by ECU’s Justin Jones. 45,137 fans were in the stands for the Pirates’ 41-7 homecoming victory over the Memphis Tigers. photo by jay clark 12 PURPLE!

game 1 - ECU vs. south carolina - 2011


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