GREENVILLE — East Carolina completed the practice portion of its spring schedule Wednesday, working for two-and-a-half hours in seasonal temperatures and breezy conditions at both the Cliff Moore Complex and Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

╩While the shells-only session finished the Pirates’ weekday workout slate, it also served as a final tune-up for the program’s annual spring game scheduled for Saturday beginning at 2:30 p.m. After spending the opening hour at its customary practice facility, ECU moved to the 50,000-seat stadium for skeleton work, a special teams dress rehearsal and a 25-minute team-on-team segment.

╩“I thought we finished things off pretty well,” East Carolina Head Coach Ruffin McNeill said. “We wanted to get another taste of the stadium and I felt, just being there, energized all of us. I’m pleased how this football team embraced its work this spring and I think we have built a pretty good foundation heading into the summer. There’s still a lot to be done, but we’ve gotten off to a good start.”

╩McNeill indicated the Purple-Gold Game will resemble more of an offense versus defense scrimmage similar to those played during the last two weekends, and will primarily feature the top three levels of East Carolina’s positional roster. Live hitting will be permitted in all positions, except quarterback and during kickoff, punting and return situations, and the Pirates will attempt all extra-point and field goal tries.

╩“I approach Saturday like a practice, but with the excitement of getting a chance to play in front our fans,” McNeill explained. “We need to continue to show improvement in the fundamentals, play smart, get turnovers on defense and protect the ball on offense. We’ve preached ‘complete and compete’ all spring and that needs to carry over to Saturday and beyond.”

╩Tickets, which are priced at $5.00 for the contest or $10.00 with the addition of a plate of bar-b-cue from the Pigskin Pig-Out Party, can be purchased online at www.ECUPirates.com or by calling (252) 328-2300 locally or (800) DIAL-ECU outside the Greenville area.

╩

NOTES:

McNeill announced safety Bradley Jacobs’ status is questionable for the Purple-Gold Game after the senior suffered a left ankle injury during last Saturday’s scrimmage … McNeill also said Monday’s practice, scheduled earlier as a make-up for a March 30 weather-related postponement, will now serve as an extended film study session and a brief staggered positional walk-through at the Cliff Moore Complex … Wednesday’s gathering represented the last official position coach-supervised team practice until the Pirates conduct their first workout of fall camp Friday, Aug. 5 … As has been the case every Wednesday this spring, officials were utilized during the entirety of the outing at both venues … Redshirt freshman safety Lamar Ivey recorded an interception to highlight the defense’s effort in the team-on-team work, while redshirt freshman quarterback Shane Carden found sophomore receiver Justin Jones on an eight-yard scoring pass for the offense during redzone emphasis.

╩