An Update From AD Jon Gilbert

Pirate Nation:

It has been a trying year for many, but we are thankful to all of Pirate Nation who continue to show support to our student-athletes, coaches, and staff. We feel it each day as we work to move ECU Athletics forward.

Let's get to some updates.

Remaining home football schedule
Our original 2020 football schedule featured six games at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we were forced to cancel three games (Marshall, South Carolina and Norfolk State) and had only families of student-athletes at the Central Florida contest.

We spent considerable time looking at a variety of factors concerning the addition of a home game on Dec. 5 to conclude the season. In the end, we decided that Saturday's game against SMU will be the final regular season game of 2020. The only exception will be if this week's game is postponed due to COVID-related reasons. We will hold Dec. 5 to play the SMU game.

It's been a challenging year for our football team as we navigate COVID-19, but I'm proud of the resiliency and determination of our student-athletes, coaches, and staff. I understand the disappointment of our fans who wanted an additional home game, but we felt this was the best decision moving forward. We will honor our seniors this weekend with a pregame ceremony. Please monitor ECU Athletics' social media accounts this week for videos honoring our seniors.

I know Coach Houston is looking forward to a full off-season workout program as we prepare for 2021.

Most importantly, it is our hope we can welcome our fans back to campus next fall.

We Believe Fund update
Pirate Nation continues to support the "We Believe" fundraising campaign to fund student-athlete scholarships.

More information can be found here: https://ecupirates.com/feature/WeBelieve.

Our incredible group of donors have raised nearly $400,000 in two weeks, including recent leadership gifts from Rich Balot, John and Linda Charlesworth, Tyler and Laura Beth Clark, Van and Jennifer Isley, and Judy and Sam Lovelace.

I want to acknowledge the following individuals who have invested in the "We Believe" fund over the past week: David Alexander, Robert Allen, Robert L. Allen, Kyle and Jessica Barber, Ken Blocker, Jr., Bruce Bright, Travis and Cassie Burt, Tony Cannon, Cape Fear Pirate Club, Dr. Ed S. Clark, Randy Cole, Ed and Lindy Daughtry, Richard and Edith Edwards, Dwight and Linda Flanagan, David L. Forbis, Doug Gomes and Kathy Herring, Bubba and Mary Grant, Ed Hamilton, Gene Graziosi, Horace D. Gurganus, James Hammond, Cathy Hastings, Robert and Betty Hill, Geoff Hudson, Alex Keddie, Philip King, Michael Letchworth, Ted Lockamon, Terry Mann, Scott McAndrew, Rusty McCown, John McDade, Joe E. McKoy, Paul McRae, Mark and Nancy Meltzer, Chris Melvin, David and Mandy Moore, Tyre H. Moore, Michael Morgan, Bill and Vicky Morris, John and Becky Osborne, Philip Perdue, Molly Pierce, Fay Raynor, Wes Rothrock, John Rous, James and Joanne Salisbury, Bobby and Miller Stanley, Curtis Struyk, Anne Suggs, Julian and Amber Thomas, Allen Wagoner, Bert Ward, Worth Wilson, Jr. and Zachary Womack.

The support our donors provide for scholarships impact the lives of so many young men and women that are a part of the ECU Athletics family. I thought the video of Coach Mike Houston awarding a scholarship to football student-athlete Elijah Morris following the win at Temple gives you an idea of how much a scholarship means.

Basketball season to open with no spectators
Our department continues to make the necessary changes related to the COVID-19 pandemic in terms of capacity restrictions at our venues. We will open the 2020-21 home portion of our men's and women's basketball schedule at Minges Coliseum without any fans. Our top priority is providing a safe environment for all participants as North Carolina remains in a "Safer At Home Phase 3," which limits mass indoor gatherings to a limit of 10 people.

While this is disappointing for all parties, I completely understand the severity of the pandemic and our department is committed to upholding the safety of our student-athletes, campus, and community.

Due to the uncertainty of the capacity restrictions, we will not sell season ticket packages for the 2020-21 season. Our department will continue to work with University, local and state health officials as the season progresses and monitor any changes to capacity restrictions. If we are allowed spectators, we will communicate to Pirate Nation in a timely manner.

I appreciate all the work Coach Kim McNeill and Coach Joe Dooley, along with their staffs and student-athletes, have done with following all our COVID-19 protocols during the preseason. Both programs are committed to providing a safe environment for our student-athletes to practice and compete.

All our men's and women's home games not picked up by a linear network (ESPN, ESPN 2, etc.) will be broadcast on ESPN+. The women's basketball team will host the Georgia Bulldogs in Minges Coliseum on Thursday, Dec. 3. The men open the home portion of their season on Saturday, Dec. 5 against Radford. All home games in 2020-21 will be broadcast on the ESPN platform.

Fan Cutouts to be sold for Minges Coliseum
Pirate fans will have the opportunity to purchase fan cutouts to be placed in Minges Coliseum for men's and women's basketball games, as well as volleyball matches this spring. With limited capacity expected in Minges Coliseum, this is a great opportunity to decorate the venue with faces of Pirate fans.

Fans can upload photos of friends, family, or even their pet, and the photo will be displayed inside Minges Coliseum. Please order quickly so we can have the cutouts ready for the start of the season. All money raised will provide operational support for ECU Athletics.

Click here to purchase your cutout.

On behalf of everyone involved with ECU Athletics, have a Happy Thanksgiving.

Go Pirates!

Jon

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