N.C. gov't. leaders to Big East: Consider ECU

Time (in conference expansion mania) to pull out the big guns.

Three of the state's top elected officials are asking the rapidly changing Big East Conference to invite East Carolina University into the league, according to reports.

Gov. Beverly Perdue's office said Monday she and U.S. Sens. Richard Burr and Kay Hagan signed a letter dated Oct. 26 to presidents of Big East schools. The letter said ECU would strengthen the conference by bringing in a school with an ardent fan base, proven Sports record and growing academic reach.

East Carolina currently plays in Conference USA but applied to the Big East in September.

The Big East has been considering some teams for all Sports and others for football only to make up for the departures of Pittsburgh and Syracuse to the Atlantic Coast Conference and West Virginia to the Big 12.

Hardee's embraces N.C. college football

Yes, it has morphed into somewhat of a tacky, sexist company, but ya gotta hand it to Hardee's. The North Carolina-born restaurant is celebrating the just-started 2011 college football season across the state with a special promotion.

Every Tuesday this season, Hardee's restaurants statewide will offer a 5-piece Hand-Breaded Chicken Tenders(TM) combo meal for the reduced price of $5, a savings of over $2.

More than 230 Hardee's restaurants statewide will participate in "Team Tender Tuesdays." The promotion begins Tuesday, Sept. 6 and runs the duration of the 2011 regular football season, according to a press release.

Fans throughout North Carolina are encouraged to take advantage of "Team Tender Tuesdays," whether cheering for the University of North Carolina Tar Heels, the East Carolina University Pirates, the North Carolina State University Wolfpack or the Appalachian State University Mountaineers. (What? No Duke? No Wake Forest?)

In addition to "Team Tender Tuesdays," Hardee's will sponsor on-field promotions at three games during the season. At each game a fan will be given the chance to kick a field goal at halftime. If the kick is good, every fan in the stadium will receive a coupon for a free Hand-Breaded Chicken Tender(TM) Wrapper.

"Hardee's was born in North Carolina and we recognize the big role college sports play in the lives of many of our customers here," said Jerry Allsbrook, chief marketing officer for Boddie-Noell Enterprises, the largest Hardee's franchisee in North Carolina and the U.S. "We're looking forward to continuing our tradition of supporting North Carolina's love of football with our 'Team Tender Tuesdays' and on-field kick promotions."

Hardee's Hand-Breaded Chicken Tenders are fresh, all-white-meat chicken tenders, hand-dipped in eggs and buttermilk and lightly breaded. The Tenders were added to the menu last year and were introduced to Hardee's by Boddie-Noell who first developed the menu item in the company's North Carolina test kitchens. The 5-piece Hand-Breaded Chicken Tenders combo meal includes Natural-Cut French Fries and a beverage. ...

Bullock wins big trophy for “The Blind Side”

East Carolina alumnus Sandra Bullock won the Oscar for Best Actress for playing a tough Southern woman who adopts a black child in “The Blind Side.” | Associated Press

Bullock, 45, beat out Oscar winners Meryl Steep and Helen Mirren and newcomers Gabourey Sidibe and Carey Mulligan to win her first Academy Award, then gave a charming speech . | Her speech

She had already won the Screen Actors Guild and Golden Globe awards and tied Streep at the Broadcast Film Critics awards.

At the Golden Globes, Bullock pulled off a rare double, earning best actress nominations in two categories — drama (“The Blind Side”) and comedy (“The Proposal”).

Over the weekend, she pulled another, winning an Academy Award (“The Blind Side”) and a Razzie Award (“All About Steve”) — which are given for the worst achievements in movies. | Her speech

imdb.com | Oscar winners | 280 characters

ECU picks alum to lead football program

East Carolina athletics director Terry Holland said he didn't want to go out and get a "retread" to lead the Pirate football program. The AD stuck by his guns.

The week-long search for a replacement for Skip Holtz has ended with Holland selected Texas Tech defensive coordinator Ruffin McNeill -- an ECU alum -- to lead the Pirates, according to various reports.

“You’re always worried this late because you run into student-athlete recruitment and assistant coaches get taken, so the bowl becomes more shallow. But I had confidence we’d find the right person because I knew what Terry was doing and who he was evaluating,” ECU chancellor Dr. Steve Ballard said after the ECU Board of Trustees made the new hire official shortly after a 5 p.m. emergency meeting inside the Spilman Building on campus.

“I was a little concerned about the timing, but when I saw the people we were evaluating, I thought we’d be fine,” Ballard said. ...

“His human skills and his interpersonal skills are A-plus, and I think you’ll see that the minute you talk to him,” Ballard said of McNeill. “I had a great hour-and-a-half with him today. I did my own referencing on these people, and everybody who knows Ruffin says the same thing about him.”

Holland, who made the second football coach hire of his six-year tenure at the school, joined the trustees meeting via teleconference. Holland fired John Thompson toward the end of the 2004 season before hiring Holtz in December of that year.

“Coach McNeill’s interview revealed his strong commitment to doing things the right way and his love of coaching young men to grow in every part of their lives,” Holland said. “His excitement for what ECU football can become in the future was contagious and his deep and abiding appreciation for what East Carolina University has meant to him and his family was truly moving.” ...

Johnson, Wilson are NFL All-Pro selections

"Chris Johnson didn't get any votes for MVP. He didn't miss any for The Associated Press 2009 NFL All-Pro team," says the AP.

The 2,000-yard rusher from the Tennessee Titans (who played at East Carolina) was the only unanimous choice for the squad, which was announced Thursday. He's joined in the backfield by Colts quarterback Peyton Manning, who won an unprecedented fourth Most Valuable Player Award last week, when only quarterbacks received votes.

"That'd be a good thing," said Johnson, who won the Offensive Player of the Year award Wednesday. "Because I feel like if you put a season out there, out of those dudes who got votes or the dudes who won, I wouldn't feel they had a better season than I had, and broke as many records in one season that I had."

Also named to the All-Pro team was former N.C. State player (and High Point native) and current Arizona Cardinals safety Adrian Wilson.

This is the first time that Wilson has been named to the NFL All-Pro team, and the first NC State player to be selected since Torry Holt in 2003. Wilson is the only member of the Cardinals represented on the first team [said GoPack.com].

During the 2009 season Wilson started all 16 games, while recording 74 tackles and a career-high five interceptions and 13 pass deflections. Wilson has been with the Cardinals for nine years since being drafted in the third round in 2001.

While having solid contributions as a rookie, Wilson took over the starting strong safety spot in his second year and has never relinquished it. Since coming into the league Wilson has recorded 686 tackles, 20.5 sacks and 23 interceptions.

Former Pirate Johnson named NFL Offensive Player of the Year

"That blur speeding away from opposing defenses and running off with The Associated Press 2009 NFL Offensive Player of the Year award is Chris Johnson," writes the AP's Barry Wilner.

Considered the fastest man in pro football, Johnson was uncatchable in setting a league mark for yards from scrimmage (2,509) and becoming the sixth player with a 2,000-yard rushing season. Johnson played in college at East Carolina.

He is the first NFL player to finish with at least 2,000 yards rushing and 500 receiving (503).

That earned the second-year pro 38 1/2 votes Wednesday from a nationwide panel of 50 sports writers and broadcasters who cover the NFL. Johnson easily beat New Orleans quarterback Drew Brees, who received nine votes.

"I kind of realize what I did and I feel like I had a dream season," said Johnson, who scored 16 touchdowns (14 rushing), second to Minnesota's Adrian Peterson, and tied the NFL mark with six consecutive games rushing for at least 125 yards.

Also in the running was League MVP Peyton Manning, who received 1.5 votes, and former N.C. State and current San Diego Charger QB Philip Rivers, who got a vote.

ECU to open dental clinics in Ahoskie, EC and Sylva

East Carolina's somewhat controversial dental school is slated to open in 2011. Until then, the university will place dental clinics in three locations in the state in order to increase access to dental care in North Carolina.

The three locations will be in Elizabeth City, Ahoskie and Sylva, according to reports.

North Carolina's ratio of dentists to the population is below the national average. Four counties don't have dentists at all, and dentists in five more counties are close to retirement.

What if East Carolina really WAS a state?

It was hard not to chuckle at this Onion article last week. (Note: This is a sarcastic -- as in NOT REAL -- publication.)

At a press conference Monday, Jaguars quarterback and East Carolina University alum David Garrard indicated through certain statements to reporters that "East Carolina" is one of the 50 United States. "I can say without hesitation that it is definitely my favorite of all the Carolinas," said the former ECU Pirate, who, when pressed, identified the imaginary commonwealth's capital as Greenville and its state bird as the red-necked grebe.

Garrard is "quoted" as saying that he feels pride in crossing the border between North and East Carolina and that Barrack Obama carried the fictional E.C. in the last presidential election, proving that it is a progressive state.

I thought about this for a second: what if E.C. really was its own state? Of course, this has been tried before, to no success, way out west. Oh, and no one really even remembers that.

Six more inducted into N.C. Sports Hall of Fame

The N.C. Sports Hall of Fame (based at the N.C. Museum of History in Raleigh) recently added a half-dozen new deserving members.

"John Swofford, ACC commissioner since 1997 and a former quarterback at North Carolina, is in the class. Also in the class are Appalachian State head football coach Jerry Moore, North Carolina women's basketball coach Sylvia Hatchell and former East Carolina and Wake Forest men's basketball coach Dave Odom," said WRAL.

"Former North Carolina State running back and Canadian Football League star Willie Burden, and veteran golfer Roger Watson are also inductees."

The News & Observer's Caulton Tudor writes today that it's only a matter of time before Carolina Hurricanes legends Ron Francis and Glenn Wesley are added.

"Nowhere to be found is anyone with a hockey background. That should change soon," writes Tudor. "Under the 10-year state residency rule for non-North Carolina natives, former Carolina Hurricanes stars and current employees Ron Francis and Glen Wesley will be eligible for consideration in the 2010 voting."

State-Carolina will meet at the end of the season

Duke and North Carolina will play for the Victory Bell once again. But this year, the Blue Devils and Tar Heels will meet on Nov. 7 -- almost a month before the end of the ACC football season. The Heels will instead meet N.C. State in its last regular-season game, not Duke. State and Carolina meet on Nov. 28 in Raleigh.

The ACC's schedule was released today.

ACCNow has a look at the N.C. teams' respective schedules.

-N.C. State
-UNC
-Duke
-Wake Forest
-East Carolina

Good news: A game that should be played

It's not Georgia-Florida, Ohio State-Michigan or even N.C. State-North Carolina. Nonetheless, the news that East Carolina and Appalachian State will face on the gridiron next year is great news for college football in the state.

"The Sept. 5 game at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium in Greenville will mark ECU's first matchup against a Football Championship Subdivision (FCS), formerly known as Division I-AA, opponent since 2001.The Mountaineers own a 19-10 lead in the Appalachian series that dates back to 1932 but the two programs haven't met since the Pirates won 38-21 in Boone on Nov. 3, 1979.

" 'Although this is a single-game contract with Appalachian State for the 2009 season only, it is my hope that this game will be a springboard for a great in-state rivalry in the future,' ECU Director of Athletics Terry Holland said. 'The Mountaineers have proven their ability to compete against the very best programs in the area and in the nation.'"

This matchup presents a nice east-versus-west rivalry that both sets of fans can get behind. Hopefully it is a game that will be played quite regularly. It's a game that should be played on a consistent basis, along with N.C. State-Duke (whacky ACC division scheduling has screwed that up), N.C. State/UNC-South Carolina, along with the other border schools (Tennessee and Georgia come to mind), as well as NCSU/UNC-ECU. Of course, if/when UNC Charlotte adds football, the idea of scheduling like this might go out the door.

The 'BBQ Bowl' gets underway on Saturday

Nationally-ranked East Carolina will travel to Carter-Finley Stadium tomorrow for the latest bout in what the N&O's Caulton Tudor (correctly) calls the state's greatest football rivalry.

"As traditional rivalries go, it's still an infant," writes Tudor. "The winner doesn't get to stake claim to an oak bucket dating to Teddy Roosevelt's administration (or earlier), or a victory bell mounted on a funky little wagon, or anything else that equates to tangible evidence of an important outcome. It's not even a conference game, probably never will be. ...

"The impact of those early State-ECU games on regional football interest was immeasurable. That's why the game in Carter-Finley Stadium on Saturday will be among the most emotional played anywhere in the nation. It's rivalry for the sheer sake of rivalry. ..."

It's a game without a name, which says a lot about the impact/importance of the game itself.

But Dave Singleton has thrown out some ideas for the game.

"Looking around the country, other long-standing traditional football games have adopted, over time, unique handles. There’s the Carolina’s Clash, which Raycom marketing execs cooked up for a game between NC State and UNC-Chapel Hill in Charlotte, The War on the Shore, The World’s Largest Cocktail Party and so on. Many are named for seemingly random trophies, which mean little except to the competitors: The Old Wooden Bucket, The Keg of Nails, The Old Rusty Tweezers (OK, I made that last one up, but you get the idea.)

"So now, some 12 years later, I still yearn to find the perfect label for the game. The series, such as it is, still divides households, still creates upheaval and still generates exceptional pigskin exuberance. We just need something to call it…

"Here’s a few I’ve since come up with, followed by why they just don’t work. I invite you to come up with ideal solution for this little problem and post it in the comments section below.

"Backyard Brawl: Would be perfect, except it’s taken.

"The Frontyard Fisticuffs: too violent…. and silly.

"War on (US Hwy) 64: Greenville is on 264, so not geographically correct, and a might cumbersome.

"The Tobacco Bowl: Rich in heritage, but totally not PC.

"Carolina Conflict: Contrived, besides the word Carolina is too deeply buried inside the name of NC State to be actually relevant.

"The Oyster Bowl: except we’re the only ones with any natural proximity to Our Favorite Mollusk (42nd St. Oyster Bar notwithstanding). I believe that we used to play William and Mary annually in a regular season ‘Oyster Bowl’ many moons ago.

"Farmers Vs. Freaks, Plowboys Vs. Pirates, Plunderers, Pillagers etc… Stereotypical, and antiquated. Nope, wouldn’t recommend these at all."

One person suggested the "BBQ Bowl." Sounds about right.

The Pirates are favored for the fifth time in the last eight games, and you can expect a lot of purple in the stands.

"As we have have said many times, this is ECU’s Super Bowl, every year," says StateFans Nation. "This is especially true when the Pirates are favored, and even more so when favored and playing in their favorite place to riot, Carter Finley Stadium. Nine out of ten NC State fans don’t give a rat’s ass about the game, other than a little schadenfreude when the hillbillies go home disappointed. We don’t remember any Wolfpack tears shed when then-AD Jim Valvano cancelled the series and pledged never to renew it. You see, Valavano - like most thinking people - didn’t see the logic in scheduling games that mean the world to your opponent, and nothing to your own institution (other than the significant chance of serious property damage)."

Yep, it's a rivalry.

Pirates riding high

Yes, Wake Forest is the lone ACC college football team in the Associated Press top 25 this week at No. 20, but East Carolina is perhaps the best team in the state.

The Pirates jumped from unranked to No. 14 in the poll (and up to No. 20 -- one spot behind Wake -- in the USA Today poll) after knocking off Virginia Tech last week and demolishing then-No. 8 West Virginia this week.

It's no surprise that "Purple Pride" is riding high.

"The Pirates had gone 3-20 before [coach Skip] Holtz arrived four years ago, and they are not in a conference that receives an automatic bid for the Bowl Championship Series," says the News & Observer.

"It just goes to show what good coaching can do," said [Pirate Club president Grant] Jarman, who saw purple flags flapping on cars around town all day Sunday. "This is a proud Pirate nation right now."

With a favorable schedule ahead, ECU could just crash the BCS party.

"The Pirates have two distinct schedules left, an ACC schedule and a Conference USA schedule," writes Lenox Rawlings. "The C-USA schedule looks harder, with road games against Central Florida and Southern Miss. The ACC road games: N.C. State on Sept. 20 and Virginia on Oct. 11. The rest: Tulane and Alabama-Birmingham on the road, Houston, Memphis, Marshall and Texas-El Paso at home, plus the C-USA title game.

"Winning them all is incredibly difficult in any league. Each ECU game seems manageable, based on the offense's versatility behind quarterback Patrick Pinkney (41 completions in 51 passes so far) and the running brigade that replaced Chris Johnson (1,423 yards rushing in 2007). Coach Skip Holtz, who has a far smaller ego than his preening father, Lou, praised the defense for containing West Virginia's Patrick White (97 yards rushing, 72 yards passing). The Mountaineers rolled up 599 yards in a 48-7 romp over ECU last year but gained just 251 this time.

"That's why ECU folks want to party like it's 1991, when the Pirates rallied past N.C. State 37-34 in the Peach Bowl and finished No. 9."

Don't remind me.

Our international readers seem interested in Link Wray, 'One Tree Hill' and Kristen Davis

Not sure if one can scientifically gleam much from the Dare Society's Feedjit traffic map; however, it sure seems like our international visitors have a keen interest in the following posts:

-'Sex' star Davis to launch fashion line at Belk (Peru, Canada, Bucharest)

-Wray's 'Rumble' among best guitar songs of all time (England)

-'One Tree Hill' picked up for sixth season (Bucharest, Bangkok)

-A visitor from Chile seems to be interested in musician Ryan Adams, while a Swedish visitor appears intrigued by the N.C. State-East Carolina rivalry.

These posts have been hit pretty often from our oversees (and across the border) friends. Why is that? Well, I can assume that anytime the word "sex" is in a title, it will probably fly up the search engines. Link Wray appears to have had quite the European following, so that one's understandable. Perhaps our Bucharest and Thai friends think the post about "One Tree Hill" is in regards to the U2 song and not the CW teen drama?

So, our international visitors: Welcome! And what was it that brought you here? Inquiring minds want to know.

Quick hits: Burlington focuses on mass transit & journal focuses on state's humor

Burlington eyes public transit
"In Alamance County, the need for public transportation is growing along with the population – especially in Burlington, which is the largest city in North Carolina without a public transit system," said News 14 Carolina.

"Buses are filling up across the state as working class citizens opt to leave their cars at home. The best Burlington has to offer is 28 passenger vans. 'We do about 275 trips a day currently, and that demand continues to go up,' explained Dennis Williams, executive director of the Alamance County Transportation Authority. ..."

Annual journal puts focus on state's humor writers
"The 2008 North Carolina Literary Review showcases work by some of the state's best writers on the topic of humor," said the Greenville Daily Reflector.

"It may make you laugh out loud, or tear up in that 'laughed-so-hard-I-cried' kind of way.
Margaret D. Bauer, NCLR editor and Rives Chair of Southern literature at East Carolina University, admitted to having both of those reactions while she reviewed material for this year's edition.

"And she hopes readers — and listeners to special, supplemental CDs — will share the experience.

" 'Humor is a popular topic, and we thank these literary critics and the creative writers who responded to our call for contributions, and we know you'll enjoy reading the issue's content as much as you do listening to the CDs,' Bauer said. ..."

Pack vs. Pirates: Good rivalry or an excuse to hate on each other?

Let me come right out and say that as a lifelong N.C. State fan and graduate, I don't believe the Wolfpack gains a whole lot from playing East Carolina in football.

Having said that, I acknowledge that the game is great for football in the state of North Carolina. We may act like we don't care about the Pirates (which is different than not caring for them), but us Wolfpackers want nothing more than to beat ECU on Saturday in Greenville. And it's not just because we don't want to hear their bragging for the next couple of years. Come Saturday, we will really hate ECU.

Without going much into details, suffice it to say that this rivalry game has had its share of less-than-pretty moments. It's been two decades since the great "riot" at Carter-Finley following a Pirate win. Things got WAY out of hand when Pirate fans stormed the field (something they would do again years later at C-F), but those close to both programs state that that game fueled the rivarly. (By the way, the Greenville Daily Reflector has posted State and ECU jokes. Be warned: They're all very lame.)

New State coach Tom O'Brien says he understands how important this game is; however, current ECU coach Skip Holtz acknowledges that a win over State -- ONE-AND-FIVE State -- would do wonders for his program.

This is probably ECU's biggest game on its schedule this year, while State still is looking ahead to its No. 1 rival, North Carolina. Nonetheless, one writer believes the Pack and the Pirates should duke it out for their own unique trophy.