Spring Break
Opinion: C-USA West is clearly superior
Ronnie Woodward, Asst. Sports Editor
Issue date: 11/11/08 Section: Sports
"Defense wins championships," said ECU safety Van Eskridge. "I don't think it's any different in Conference USA. If the defense continues to play the way we've been playing, we should be fine because we know we have guys on the other side of the ball who are going to make plays eventually."
If ECU is going to be crowned as C-USA's champion, it will have to find ways to score more points. Whatever team represents the West will be led by its offense and should be able to control the pace of the championship game, which will be played Dec. 6.
The difference in style is glaring when you break down the statistics of C-USA's teams. The top four scoring offenses in C-USA are all made up of teams from the West Division, with Tulsa leading the way at 52 points per game. In scoring defense, the East claims four of the first five spots, with ECU in first at 21.2 points per game.
The problem for the East teams is that the teams from the West have found more success with their style of play.
Defense does win championships, but C-USA is the exception to that rule. The records of C-USA's teams indicate that teams' offenses usually win games. In the West Division, four teams currently have conference records above .500. On the other side, only ECU and Marshall have winning conference records.
For some reason, the conference's best offenses reside in the West and the conference's best defenses reside in the East.
In a conference that has been defined by offense, I'll take the West.
This writer can be contacted at sports@theeastcarolinian.com.
If ECU is going to be crowned as C-USA's champion, it will have to find ways to score more points. Whatever team represents the West will be led by its offense and should be able to control the pace of the championship game, which will be played Dec. 6.
The difference in style is glaring when you break down the statistics of C-USA's teams. The top four scoring offenses in C-USA are all made up of teams from the West Division, with Tulsa leading the way at 52 points per game. In scoring defense, the East claims four of the first five spots, with ECU in first at 21.2 points per game.
The problem for the East teams is that the teams from the West have found more success with their style of play.
Defense does win championships, but C-USA is the exception to that rule. The records of C-USA's teams indicate that teams' offenses usually win games. In the West Division, four teams currently have conference records above .500. On the other side, only ECU and Marshall have winning conference records.
For some reason, the conference's best offenses reside in the West and the conference's best defenses reside in the East.
In a conference that has been defined by offense, I'll take the West.
This writer can be contacted at sports@theeastcarolinian.com.
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