Countdown to Kickoff
September 22, 2006 04:52 PM | General
September 22, 2006
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia travels to East Carolina to face the 1-2 Pirates at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium (43,000) in Greensville, N.C., in a 4:30 pm non-conference match up to be televised nationally on ESPN2 (Gary Thorne, Andre Ware and Todd Harris).
The Mountaineers took a charter flight from Clarksburg to Greenville earlier this afternoon, arriving in time for an afternoon workout. West Virginia and East Carolina have met 17 previous times with the Mountaineers owning a 15-2 record. Both West Virginia losses have come on the road in 1995 in Greenville and 1999 in Charlotte.
Here is Saturday’s Countdown to Kickoff:
10 – Running back Steve Slaton has run for 23 touchdowns in his last TEN games.
9 – Quarterback Patrick White has thrown only NINE incomplete passes in three games so far this season. The sophomore is 24 of 33 for 259 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions.
8 – Pirate quarterback James Pinkney has thrown for more than 200 yards in seven of his last EIGHT games. Pinkney threw for 204 yards and a touchdown against West Virginia in last year’s game.
7 – East Carolina has had SEVEN winning seasons in the last 12 years.
6 – West Virginia has now had SIX straight 300-yard rushing games dating back to last year with a high of 451 yards against Pitt on Nov. 24, 2005..
5 – The Mountaineers have scored a touchdown on their opening possession in each of the last FIVE games dating back to last year’s South Florida victory. Two of the five game-opening drives took place in fewer than three plays.
4 – East Carolina has had FOUR Top 3 finishes in Conference USA in the last nine years since 1997.
3 – The Mountaineers have had THREE drives covering 90 yards or longer so far this season, including a 10-play, 96-yard drive in the Maryland game that ate 4:42 off the clock.
2 – West Virginia has lost TWICE to East Carolina in a 17-game series that began in 1970. Both losses have come on the road with West Virginia losing 23-20 in Greenville in 1995 and falling 30-23 in Charlotte in 1999.
1 – WVU has the nation’s TOP rushing offense averaging 348.7 yards per game.
Enjoy Saturday’s game and be sure to stop back afterward for complete post-game coverage.
