TicketsUC Opens C-USA Grid Slate vs. ECU
Bearcats seek to boost record to 2-2
Contact: Tom Hathaway
9/20/2004
Richard Hall ranks 13th in the nation in rushing. |
Cincinnati vs. East Carolina
Date: Saturday, Sept. 25, 2004
Time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
Site: Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium (43,000, grass), Greenville, N.C.
TV: None live. Highlights on the Mark Dantonio Show on WXIX-TV 19.
Radio: WCKY-AM 1360 (Dan Hoard, Jim Kelly and Scott Springer). Also available on-line via UCBearcats.com
Records: Cincinnati 1-2, 0-0 C-USA; East Carolina 0-2, 0-0 C-USA
Series: East Carolina leads, 12-4
Last Meeting Sept. 1, 2003 in Cincinnati; Cincinnati 40, East Carolina 3
Tickets: Available at East Carolina, prices vary. Tickets for all UC home games are on sale at the Athletic Ticket Office (9 a.m. - 5 p.m. daily) and are available on-line via www.UCBearcats.com, or by phone: 513-556-CATS.
UC-Opens C-USA Play at East Carolina
The University of Cincinnati launches Conference USA football play on Saturday, visiting East Carolina for a 7 p.m. EDT game at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
Both Cincinnati and East Carolina will be out to rebound from recent setbacks in non-conference play. Cincinnati enters the game with a 1-2 ledger, after losing at Syracuse, 19-7, last Saturday. East Carolina, idle last weekend, is 0-2. The Pirates suffered a 31-17 setback to Wake Forest on Sept. 11.
The two teams will be meeting for the 17th time in the series. East Carolina owns a 12-4 advantage, and has won nine of the 10 contests played in Greenville, N.C. Cincinnati has won the last two meetings.
This marks the second consecutive season in which Cincinnati and East Carolina open Conference USA play against each other. The two met in the 2003 season opener, on Labor Day, with the Bearcats winning, 40-3.
Though only 1-7 in games played at East Carolina, the Bearcats have fond memories of their last visit to Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. Cincinnati defeated ECU, 42-26, on Dec. 6, 2002 to claim a share of the Conference USA championship and clinch a berth in the New Orleans Bowl.
Cincinnati will be seeking more consistent production from its offense in Saturday?s game. UC, which is ranked 58th nationally in total offense with a 367.7 yards-per-game average, has averaged just 265.5 yards and 6.5 points in its two losses.
East Carolina is No. 30 nationally in total offense, averaging 425 yards per game, and is ranked 20th in passing efficiency offense. The Pirates? defense has given up an average of 602.5 yards in their first two games, to rank next-to-last in total defense and last in stopping the run.
UC?s Richard Hall ranks 16th in the nation and third in Conference USA in rushing, gaining 111.3 yards per game. Doug Monaghan is tied for second nationally in interceptions after upping his season total to three with a pair of picks in last Saturday?s game at Syracuse.
East Carolina quarterback James Pinkney is ranked 11th nationally in total offense, averaging 300 yards per game.
The game will match Cincinnati, one of the nation?s five-oldest football programs, against East Carolina, which is the nation?s ninth newest program.
UC vs. East Carolina
Saturday?s game will be the 17th meeting between Cincinnati and East Carolina. The Pirates own a 12-4 lead in the series, having won the first seven meetings. Cincinnati enters the game having won the last two clashes.
About the Pirates
? East Carolina enters Saturday?s game with a seven-game losing streak, which dates back to the 2003 season. ECU has lost 15 of its last 16 games, and is 0-7 at home during that span.
? John Thompson is in his second season as head coach at East Carolina. He is not new to Conference USA, having served seven seasons as an assistant at Southern Miss and Memphis.
? The Pirates have 48 lettermen and 12 starters returning from last year?s team.
Last Meeting
Cincinnati held East Carolina to 203 yards of total offense while piling up 361 rushing yards in rolling to a 40-3 win on Labor Day, 2003, in Cincinnati. Tedric Harwell scored two touchdowns and Richard Hall and Derrick Eddington each topped the 100-yard rushing mark.
Last Time in Greenville
Cincinnati claimed a share of the Conference USA football championship and qualified for a trip to the New Orleans Bowl with a 42-26 win in Greenville on Dec. 6, 2002. Gino Guidugli threw for 323 yards and four touchdowns, with Jon Olinger on the receiving end of three of those scoring strikes. The Bearcats also benefitted fromTDs on interception returns by Blue Adams and Zach Norton.
Old vs. New
Saturday?s game matches one of the nation?s oldest football programs with one of the newest programs in NCAA Division I-A. Cincinnati, which began football in 1884, is the nation?s fifth-oldest football program. East Carolina made its gridiron debut in 1932. Only eight I-A programs are newer.
UC-ECU in C-USA
The 2004 Conference USA race will be Cincinnati?s last in the league. The Bearcats will join the Big East Conference beginning with the 2005 football season. During UC?s tenure in C-USA, the Bearcats and Pirates battled each other through the league standings. The two teams tied for second place in both the 2000 and 2001 seasons. The two schools, which have met 16 times in the last 17 years, are not scheduled to play each other following the 2004 campaign.
Coaching Similarities
Cincinnati head coach Mark Dantonio and East Carolina?s John Thompson both ascended to their positions from the defensive ranks. Dantonio coached on defense in all of his 24 seasons as a college assistant, and he served five seasons as a defensive coordinator. Thompson spent 22 seasons as a defensive aide, 19 as defensive coordinator.
On This Date
Cincinnati is 3-4-1 in games played on Sept. 25. The date is the anniversary of two significant contests. In 1999, UC visited Ohio State, the first meeting of the two schools in 68 years. The Bearcats lost to the No. 12 Buckeyes, 34-20. UC suffered a 24-21 loss at No. 11 Syracuse in 1993 when the Orange scored 18 points in the fourth quarter to avert an upset.
1999 No. 12 Ohio State L, 34-20
1993 No. 11 Syracuse L, 24-21
1976 Miami (O.) W, 17-0
1971 Houston L, 12-3
1954 Dayton W, 42-13
1948 Hardin-Simmons T, 7-7
1937 Western Reserve L, 32-6
1920 Kentucky Wesleyan W, 35-0
Monaghan Making Catches
Doug Monaghan, owner of a couple of receiving records at his high school (Colerain), has revived his pass-catching skills as a member of the Cincinnati secondary during his collegiate career. The senior strong safety intercepted two passes in last Saturday?s loss at Syracuse. His first interception snuffed out an SU scoring drive, which had reached the UC 16, in the first quarter. His second pick, which he returned 29 yards, set up the Bearcats? lone touchdown.
Monaghan is ranked second in the nation in interceptions, averaging one per game. His two picks Saturday upped his career total to eight and moved him into a tie for ninth place on the UC career INT list.
Block That Kick
The Bearcats continue to add to their reputation for blocking kicks. Already this season, UC has a pair of rejections. Mike Wright blocked a PAT try in the Sept. 11 Miami game, which was scooped up and returned for a defensive two-point PAT by Daven Holly. Last Saturday, Adam Roberts blocked a Syracuse field goal. Cincinnati blocked five opponent field goals in 2003 and returned two of those blocks for touchdowns. Andre Frazier rejected two field goals. Other blocked kicks were recorded by Doug Monaghan, Daven Holly and Zach Norton, the latter a departed senior.
Hall of a Day
Richard Hall, who is ranked No. 16 nationally in rushing this week (111.3 yards per game), must take the Cincinnati-Miami football rivalry to heart. Hall, who rushed for a career-high 161 yards in the 2003 showdown vs. the RedHawks, topped that this season by gaining 238 yards, the sixth-highest single game rushing total in UC history, in UC?s 45-26 win on Sept. 11. Hall, who scored three touchdowns in the ?oldest rivalry West of the Alleghenies,? put Cincinnati on the scoreboard first with a 70-yard TD run. He later broke free for a 79-yard jaunt, the longest rush in six seasons and tied for the sixth-longest run in UC history, to set up the Bearcats? final TD. For his efforts, Hall was named Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week last week.
Thomas Makes Big Plays
Hannibal Thomas is ranked 24th in receiving yards peer game, averaging 90.3 yards per outing. Thomas enjoyed a career performance in the Sept. 11 win over Miami. The senior caught five passes for a personal best 175 yards. Thomas scored on a 69-yard pass play from Gino Guidugli, and was involved in receptions of 53, 26 and 24 yards. Thomas is fast making a name for himself as a big play performer. He has been involved in six of Cincinnati?s 14 plays of 20 yards or more.
Iron-men Performance
Cincinnati?s starting five offensive linemen are earning good grades for their endurance. The five?left tackle Steve Eastlake, left guard Kyle Takavitz, center Adam Shorter, right guard Matt Mercer and right tackle Clint Stickdorn?have played together for 176 of UC?s 191 offensive plays. The only time they were not on the field as a unit was during the final 15 offensive snaps of the 45-26 win over Miami (Ohio). The unit has allowed only two sacks.
Starting Streak
Gino Guidugli will be making his 40th consecutive start when Cincinnati visits East Carolina on Saturday. The senior took over the starting quarterback assignment in the third game of his freshman season and has not missed a start since. A couple of other members of the senior class also have impressive starting stats.
? Kyle Takavitz has started the last 29 games, 14 at right tackle in 2002 and 15 at guard in 2003 and this season.
? Strong safety Doug Monaghan has started 37 of the 39 games in which he has played during his four-year career (he?s missed five games due to injury). Monaghan has a streak of 15 straight starts.
Frazier in the Record Book
Andre Frazier is marching through the Cincinnati record book. The senior defensive end is No. 4 in career sacks with 17.5, and is No. 7 in tackles for loss with 35.5. The UC career records are 27.0 for sacks and 56.0 for tackles for loss, both set by Antwan Peek, currently a member of the Houston Texans, to whom Frazier served as an understudy his first two years as a Bearcat.
Milestone March
Several other Bearcats have a chance to leave their marks on the defensive records lists:
? Doug Monaghan has moved into a tie for ninth place in career interceptions with eight. Monaghan, with 175 solo tackles, needs just one more solo tackle to reach 10th place on that career list and is closing in on the career total tackles list.
? Daven Holly, with seven career interceptions, needs one more pick to move into a tie for ninth place. Last season, Holly tied the UC single season record for interceptions with six.
? Trent Cole has moved into a tie for eighth place in career tackles for loss (33.5), and with 10 sacks, needs two more to reach the top 10 at UC.
? Tyjuan Hagler, with 29 tackles for loss, can reach eighth place with 3.0 TFLs.
Up Next
The Bearcats return to Nippert Stadium after a two-week road swing to host UAB on Oct. 2. Kickoff is 7 p.m. The UAB game is Family Night, with Skyline Chili offering two-for-one ticket coupons at its area locations.