GREENVILLE
Between gasps after an exhausting morning practice in brutal heat, receiver Jamar Bryant of East Carolina described his disappointment from last season.
After catching 19 passes in the first five games, Bryant was suspended for the remainder of the season for an unspecified violation of team rules. He watched helplessly as the Pirates won the Conference USA title and lost to Kentucky in the Liberty Bowl.
"I made a mistake," Bryant said. "People make mistakes. You've got to learn from them, basically. I learned from it last year, sitting out. It hurt me a lot watching those guys go out there and play. We won and I was happy we won. The games we lost I was really sad, because I thought I could be out there helping."
Bryant, East Carolina's leading receiver in 2007, could be out there helping again this season.
He is practicing with the team and Coach Skip Holtz has said Bryant has done everything he has been asked to do, but still has more things he needs to do to be eligible for the Sept. 5 season opener against Appalachian State.
It's clear that Holtz has high hopes for Bryant and an offense that is re-charged for the 2009 season. Holtz prefers to play a wide-open spread offense and has done so throughout most of his tenure at East Carolina.
A debilitating run of injuries and suspensions, including Bryant's, caused Holtz to change direction in the middle of last season. The Pirates became conservative.
During one stretch, East Carolina scored fewer than 20 points in four straight games, which is shocking for a team in scoring-crazed Conference USA. But the Pirates won three of those games.
"We were going to try to control it, we were going to punt it away, we weren't going to do anything foolish and turn the ball over and put our defense in poor field position," Holtz said. "We were going to try to win it old-school."
They did. But now Holtz is ready to get back to his preferred brand of football.
A new running back -- Brandon Jackson, a transfer from Kentucky -- has rocketed up the depth chart and impresses with his quickness. Dominique Lindsay returns in the backfield after missing all of last season with a knee injury.
Speedy playmaker Dwayne Harris is back at receiver after missing the last four games of last season with a foot injury. If Bryant can get on the field, too, senior quarterback Patrick Pinkney will have two talented, dangerous targets.
As a sophomore, Bryant led East Carolina with 48 catches and 704 receiving yards. After his fast start in 2008, his weight ballooned from 208 pounds to about 230 during his suspension.
Although he was stronger, he couldn't move as well. His back and knees hurt when he ran. He consulted a nutritionist, quit a late-night snacking habit and reported to camp at about 212 pounds.
He admitted, though, that he's still a bit rusty.
"I haven't been in a game situation in a while," Bryant said. "I'm just trying to get the kinks out. I still don't think I'm back to where I was last year. But I've got time."
Holtz said he hopes that Bryant will be able to play the full season as Holtz retools his offense to take advantage of the re-infusion of talent at skill positions.
"We're a better football team with Jamar," Holtz said. "There's no doubt about it."
■ Ken Tysiac is a reporter for The Charlotte Observer.
Email
Facebook
Google
Twitter
Favorites
More
Advertisement