By By BRIAN HAINES, Sports Writer
GREENVILLE — Can you smell what “The Rock” is cooking, because for a lot of teams it smells a lot like defeat.
Over the years Southern Miss’ M.M. Roberts Stadium, AKA “The Rock” has become one of the toughest destinations on the Conference USA schedule.
On Saturday East Carolina (2-2, 2-0) will be making its 36th trip to “The Rock” when it heads to Hattiesburg, Miss., to take on the Eagles (4-1, 1-0).
According to a well-written article on the Southern Miss fan site The Eagles Nest, “The Rock” was established in 1939 when it was then called Faulkner Field. The 1939 Southern Miss football team poured their blood, sweat and tears into the stadium, literally, as team members worked part time for 18 cents an hour hauling concrete up to what they called the “The Rock.”
While ‘The Rock” has gotten a few nips and tucks over the years, the 36,000 seat stadium has always been a tough place for visitors.
Going back to Nov. 1, 2008, the Eagles have won 11 straight games at home, a streak the Pirates will look to put an end to when they kickoff Saturday night at 7:30 p.m.
East Carolina has a lifetime 9-26 record in Hattiesburg, but have fared better in recent years. Since 2000, the Pirates have won twice in their last five trips, with the last victory being a 20-17 overtime thriller in 2006. Their last appearance at “The Rock” was in 2008, which ended in a 21-3 Golden Eagles victory.
“It’s probably one of the toughest places to play. … The atmosphere is wild and the stands are really close to the field,” said senior left guard Cory Dowless who played there in 2006 and 2008. “From a players’ standpoint you just have to get on the field and focus on the game.”
Dowless said a lot of what makes playing in “The Rock” tough has to do with the team that plays there.
“I’m not really sure why its so hard to win there, but a lot of it is because Southern Miss is always a good team,” Dowless said. “This year is no different.”
For offensive linemen like Dowless, crowd noise can become a factor when trying to listen for the snap count and audibles. However, the senior, who leads ECU with 32 consecutive starts, said that the Pirates have ways to counter act the raucous fans.
“Starting a few weeks ago for Virginia Tech we put in a silent count and some of the other guys use hands signals,” Dowless said.
Senior cornerback Travis Simmons, who played there in 2008, said he likes the charged atmosphere.
“It’s a crazy place to go to,” Simmons said. “But that’s the kind of atmosphere we like to play in. They have a great record down there and play hard. It will be a tough game.”
East Carolina’s all-time leader in receptions and receiving yards, Dwayne Harris, is a player who does not have found memories of his trip to ‘The Rock” in 2008.
“I’ve been there once and the one time I went down there I broke my foot,” Harris said. “It’s most definitely one of the toughest places to play in our conference. They have some great fans down there. From playing here, I think our stadium is the loudest, but they are probably second best.”
East Carolina’s first-year coach Ruffin McNeill said he has never coached at “The Rock” but has been there during his Pirates’ playing days.
“As a player we played there and it was always a physical battle and very tough,” McNeill said. “It was an intense battle, and like this week, it won’t be for the faint of heart. … Seeing the field on film has brought back some memories, even though it has changed a little bit. It looked cool on film but I’m sure it will be a hostile environment.”