GREENVILLE, N.C. – After winning its first season opener since 2016, East Carolina will make its first road game in 2024, a non-conference game at Old Dominion. Kickoff at Kornblau Field at SB Ballard Stadium is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the game will be streamed live on ESPN+.
The Pirates are under the leadership of a sixth-year head coach Michael Houston.
New faces in key positions laid the foundation last Saturday night as an inspired ECU team (1-0) took a big step toward putting the 2023 season behind them by dominating visiting Football Championship Subdivision team Norfolk State 42-3 at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
With transfer quarterback Jake Garcia Management of the new offensive coordinator John David BakerWith their fast-paced offense, the Pirates totaled 506 yards, surpassing their yardage in every game last season. Garcia completed 23 of 36 passes for 308 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions, while the speedy wide receiver Anthony Smith made the most of his first college start with five catches for 86 yards, which was his personal best and the highest performance on his team.
Zakye Barkerwho made a team-high eight tackles, led an ECU defense that limited the Spartans to just 43 yards on 45 rushing attempts and just one third down attempt in 18 attempts. Maryland transfer Gavin Gibsona third-year cornerback, also made a name for himself by intercepting a pass from Jalen Daniels and returning it 30 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter.
The Monarchs (0-1) traveled to Williams-Brice Stadium last Saturday and gave their Southeastern Conference opponent South Carolina quite a scare before committing two crucial turnovers that led to a narrow 23-19 loss. ODU beat its host 305-288 but suffered from the four total turnovers.
Quarterback Grant Wilson completed 22 of 38 passes for 197 yards, one passing and running touchdown and two interceptions, while Aaron Young led the ground attack with 56 rushing yards on 16 carries. Isiah Page also collected 115 air yards and one receiving touchdown.
Records, winning streaks and trends in East Carolina
- With their 42-3 victory over Norfolk State, the Pirates won their first season opener since 2016, when they crushed Western Carolina 52-7 at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
- ECU’s 506 yards of offense were the most in a single game since Temple’s 534 yards in 2022.
- Garcia is the first Pirates signal-caller to reach the 300-yard passing mark in a game since Holton Ahlers recorded exactly 300 yards in the 2022 Birmingham Bowl win over Coastal Carolina.
- Thirteen (13) different ECU defenders recorded at least a half tackle for loss in last Saturday’s opener. Overall, the Pirates posted 17.0 TFLs for minus-50 yards – the most in a single game since they posted 15.0 at Old Dominion in 2018.
- East Carolina has forced at least one turnover in 40 of its last 44 games and 51 of its last 58 games.
- Since the start of the 2023 season, the Pirates defense has scored four touchdowns (2/ASU ’23, 1/UTSA ’23, 1/NSU ’24).
The series
East Carolina leads the all-time series with Old Dominion, 4-0. The Pirates and Monarchs are facing each other for the fifth time since 2013, but only the second time in Norfolk. The last time the programs met, ECU defeated ODU 39-21 in Greenville in the second week of the 2022 season.
Last time against ODU
East Carolina 39, Old Dominion 21
GREENVILLE, NC – First came the rain. Then came the lightning and thunder. The electrifying show on Saturday, however, did not take place in the night sky above the Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium, but on the soggy grass below. Lit by Keaton Mitchell (lightning) and Rahjai Harris (Thunder), East Carolina turned a close game into a dominant 39-21 victory over Old Dominion, rebounding from a heartbreaking loss to NC State to open the season and evening its record at 1-1. Mitchell’s 81-yard sprint early in the fourth quarter dealt a devastating blow to the Monarchs (1-1), who had just surprised Virginia Tech, then Harris landed the knockout victory just 24 seconds later. ECU outscored ODU 23-7 after holding a 16-14 lead in the third quarter. A look at the stats reflects that dominance. ECU had a decisive advantage in total plays (86-43), first downs (30-12), total yards (531-290), rushing yards (261-15) and time of possession (40:52-19:08). The Pirates also played a game without a turnover, but forced two turnovers in the second half. The running game, which was limited to 49 yards in the first half, picked up momentum in the second half as the ODU defense began to falter. Mitchell, the Pirates’ fastest, finished the game with 160 yards on 18 carries, eclipsing the 100-yard mark for the seventh time in his career, and scored two touchdowns. Harris, more of a slugger, finished the game with 61 yards on 16 carries and also caught four balls for 14 yards. Mitchell’s run was the catalyst and followed the pattern of many of his game-winning runs – he now has 15 runs of 20-plus yards and six of 50 or more in the last two years. With the Pirates leading 22-14 and launching an attack at the 19, Mitchell shot through a gap on the left side, leaving the ODU secondary in his tracks. Harris capitalized on a fumble recovery by JD Lampley Moments later, they scored on a 15-yard run to make it 36-14. Ali Jennings, who transferred from West Virginia, was ODU’s only threat, catching eight passes from Hayden Wolff for 200 yards, including touchdowns of 16, 18 and 35 yards.
Against opponents outside the conference
The Pirates have compiled a non-league regular season record of 44-62 (.415) since 1997, including a 1-3 clip in 2023. The Pirates posted a 3-1 record in 2022, picking up wins over Old Dominion, Campbell and BYU while losing the home opener to NC State. In 2021, they split their four non-league games, losing to Appalachian State and South Carolina to open the season before bouncing back and picking up wins over Marshall and Charleston Southern. During his first season as head coach at ECU in 2019 Michael Houston led the Pirates to a 3-1 record – the program’s first non-conference win since 2014. ECU has won 10 of its last 18 non-conference games since 2019.
A starter log
DL Chad Stephens enters the Old Dominion contest after starting 20 consecutive games as a member of the defensive unit. OL Hampton Ergle currently has the longest offensive start streak with 14 going into Saturday’s game. ECU had 10 first-time starters in a Pirate uniform against Norfolk State: LB Zakye BarkerOIL Darius BellLB Craig by RyheemQB Jake GarciaDB Gavin GibsonTE Julia KellyDB Devon KingOL Emmanuel Poku, WR Anthony Smith and WR Winston Wright, Jr.
1999 Pirates honored at UTSA game
East Carolina University athletic officials have announced that the 1999 Pirate football team will be recognized at the UTSA game on Saturday, Sept. 28, at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. The 1999 season was one of perseverance after Hurricane Floyd left catastrophic damage in Eastern North Carolina on Sept. 16. ECU had started the season 2-0 with wins over West Virginia and Duke before traveling to South Carolina. Before the Pirates’ 21-3 victory in Columbia, South Carolina, Floyd made landfall, and over the next 12 hours, 15 to 20 inches of rain fell across much of Eastern North Carolina. Unable to travel home, the Pirates remained in Columbia and prepared for their home game against the ninth-ranked University of Miami Hurricanes. With parts of the city still suffering from the effects of the flooding, the game was moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, and Carter-Finley Stadium. Trailing 23-10 after the third quarter, ECU rallied from a 20-point deficit to defeat the Hurricanes and improve to 4-0. The 1999 team finished 9-3 overall, played TCU in the 1999 Mobile Alabama Bowl, and received the Disney’s Wide World of Sports Spirit Award at the 1999 annual Home Depot College Football Awards.
Next
East Carolina will play its second home game of the 2024 season on Saturday, Sept. 14, when Appalachian State travels to Greenville for a nonconference game. Kickoff at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium is scheduled for 4 p.m. and the game will be broadcast live on ESPNU.
