ECU Falls To No. 13 UCF In 2020 Opener

Saturday, September 26

Greenville, N.C.

12 Noon

East Carolina University

0-1 , 0-1

UCF

2-0 , 1-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

UCF

East Carolina

September 26, 2020 | Football

Box Score

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GREENVILLE, N.C. – In its latest start to a season in 73 years, East Carolina could not muster an upset performance as the Pirates dropped a 51-28 decision to No. 13 UCF Saturday afternoon at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. ECU had not begun a football campaign this far into September since the Pirates fell to Lenoir-Rhyne back on Sept. 27, 1947.

Due to venue capacity limits set by the state of North Carolina because of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, approximately 350 student-athlete family members were in attendance.

Dillon Gabriel, who earned Davey O'Brien National Quarterback of the Week laurels after leading the Knights (2-0) to a 49-21 victory at Georgia Tech last week, was as good as advertised. He completed 32 of 47 pass attempts for 408 yards and four touchdowns while UCF compiled 632 yards of total offense in running 87 plays.

Gabriel connected with Jaylon Robinson a team-high nine times resulting in 150 yards and two touchdowns for the sophomore receiver while Greg McCrae ended up as the Knights' leading rusher with 83 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

East Carolina (0-1) racked up 459 total yards of offense as junior quarterback Holton Ahlers began his season by completing 14 of 29 pass attempts for 215 yards and three touchdowns as well as a lone interception. He added 55 yards on 12 carries. Graduate student Audie Omotosho was the squad's top receiver, garnering three catches for 56 yards.

Sophomore receivers Tyler Snead and C.J. Johnson were on the receiving end of two of Ahlers' touchdown tosses while junior running back Darius Pinnix, Jr., recorded both a rushing and receiving touchdown as well as 56 total yards (39 rushing). Freshman back Keaton Mitchell paced the ground unit with 66 yards on eight attempts.

Indicative of an early-season affair, the teams combined for 30 penalties while the Pirates turned the ball over four times - including fumbles on three-straight possessions after their opening-drive touchdown.

After winning the coin toss and opting to receive, ECU quickly cashed in with a nine-play, three-minute drive capped by an Ahlers-Pinnix 17-yard connection through the air to grab the early upper hand. The American Athletic Conference preseason favorite responded with 41 consecutive points, however, before the Pirates were able to break that streak midway through the third quarter.

McCrae put UCF on the board with a one-yard plunge that knotted the score at seven with 8:22 to go in the opening quarter before the Knights took advantage of a Chase Hayden fumble on the first play of East Carolina's ensuing drive, turning it into a 26-yard field goal conversion by Daniel Obarski that gave the visitors the lead for good.

UCF out-scored ECU 17-0 in the decisive second quarter that featured a 64-yard Robinson catch and score which propelled the Knights to a 13-point advantage. Jake Hescock added a seven-yard touchdown grab with 24 seconds remaining before the break.

The teams shared the ball pretty evenly in the first half with East Carolina even enjoying a slight advantage in time of possession (15:33-14:27), but three turnovers hurt the Pirates' attempt to keep the game close. UCF out-gained ECU 363-214 and shook off 13 penalties that cost the Knights 75 yards. Gabriel completed six passes of 20 yards or more in the first two quarters, including the 64-yard strike to Robinson.

UCF picked up right where it left off to begin the second half, using just 1:49 of the clock to go 75 yards in eight plays to the endzone where Gabriel found Jacob Harris to push the Knights' lead to 34-7. The teams traded touchdowns from there as a Johnson 37-yard reception cut the Pirate deficit back to 27 with 6:26 to go in the third quarter.

Obarski's third field goal of the game with 13:33 remaining in the game afforded UCF its largest lead of the day at 44-14. East Carolina would end up out-scoring UCF 14-10 in the final stanza as Pinnix, Jr., and sophomore receiver Tyler Snead touchdowns bookended a rushing score by Johnny Richardson to provide the contest's final margin.

ECU returns to action next Saturday, Oct. 3, when it travels to Atlanta to face off against Georgia State at Center Parc Stadium (formerly Turner Field). The non-conference affair is scheduled for a Noon kickoff with ESPNU handling the broadcast.