Pirates Top Tigers In Four-Overtime Classic

Saturday, October 15

Greenville, N.C.

7:30 P.M.

East Carolina University

4-3 , 2-2

Memphis

4-3 , 2-2

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Memphis

East Carolina

October 16, 2022 | Football

Box Score Game Book (PDF)Postgame Notes (PDF)Quotes (PDF)Mike Houston Postgame Players Postgame

GREENVILLE, N.C. – East Carolina already experienced a couple of crushing last-second losses on its home field this season. A wild four-overtime victory over Memphis on Saturday night gave the Pirates a chance to celebrate.

After digging out of an early 17-point hole and then letting the lead slip away in the final minute, the Pirates endured an overtime shootout to send a Homecoming crowd home happy with a 47-45 victory. C.J. Johnson's catch of a Holton Ahlers pass put ECU up for good, then an overthrow by Memphis quarterback Seth Henigan sealed it.

"Throughout a season you usually lose one you shouldn't, win one you shouldn't, and then the rest of them kind of balance out," fourth-year ECU Head Coach Mike Houston said. "We've lost a couple I didn't think we should have. You won tonight against a very good Memphis squad, and you won it in dramatic fashion, so obviously this is an incredible just moral boost to our kids but also a confidence boost."

The Pirates dropped their opener 21-20 to NC State and fell to Navy 23-20 in two overtimes the last time they were in Dowdy-Ficklen. Junior defensive lineman Jeremy Lewis certainly did not want to repeat those feelings.

"Losing in overtime, that was a heartbreaker," Lewis said. "You don't ever want to feel that again."

The Pirates avoided that on the strength of momentum-swinging interceptions by Malik Fleming and Julius Wood, a solid performance by senior quarterback Holton Ahlers and the return to form by running back Keaton Mitchell.

Ahlers completed 26 of 34 passes for 304 yards, tied Shane Carden for career touchdown passes at 86 and teamed up with C.J. Johnson on what proved to be the winning points. Mitchell, working his way back from a hip pointer, rushed for 149 yards – 132 of which came after halftime – and scored a career-high three touchdowns. He also had a two-point reception in overtime.

Mitchell now has nine career 100-yard games, including three this season.

"Everybody loves his break-away speed and all that, but the thing I loved about tonight is we talked about dominating the point of contact no matter what position we played this week," Houston said. "I thought he did a great job of running behind his pads; he did a great job of running between the tackles tonight. He made some great moves in the open field, but he also had a lot of plays where he had contact after two or three yards, but he would surge forward for five or six."

Mitchell's 24-yard run in overtime last year proved the difference in a 30-29 win at Memphis. The Tigers (4-3, 2-2 AAC) failed on a two-point gamble to drop that game. Saturday's loss came on the heels of blowing a 22-point lead and falling 33-32 to Houston.

"As long as we win, I don't care," Ahlers said of another OT battle with Memphis. "We won both of them. I told the media after last week's loss we would figure out what type of team we have in that locker room. I already knew what type of team we had, but we showed it there tonight."

Ahlers referenced a 24-9 setback at Tulane last week in which the offense sputtered, and the Pirates appeared to still be slogging along as Memphis shot out to a 17-0 lead. But momentum drastically shifted in the final two minutes of the half.

ECU (4-3, 2-2 AAC), which came up empty on fourth down from the 3 and failed on a fake punt on its previous two possessions, pieced together a 75-yard drive to get on the board, then scored one play after Malik Fleming's interception and return to the Memphis 16.

Ahlers scored the first touchdown on a 3-yard run then zipped a pass to Isaiah Winstead to tie Carden's milestone.

"What a second quarter, I mean holy cow," Houston said. "The drive by the offense, the interception by Malik Fleming, a great defensive call finally getting some pressure on Henigan. Then the return to set us up, and then the strike from Holton to Isaiah Winstead. All the momentum completely swung back going into the half, which I thought was huge."

Wood made sure the surge didn't stop in the second half. After Chris Howard booted the second of his three field goals for a 20-13 lead – he is now 14 of 14 on the year – Wood corralled a tipped pass and weaved his way through arm tackles 47 yards for the tying score. Henigan entered Saturday's game with just one interception this season but threw two against the Pirates.

"We got some pressure on Henigan, and he airmailed the dig route a little bit, and Julius was right there to make the play," Houston said. "We work interception return drill each week, and I thought our kids did a great job of setting up kind of a wall on the sideline and Julius did a great job of getting in the end zone."

Wood, a 6-2 safety in his second year after transferring from Blinn Community College, said he was in the right spot for his second career interception.

"He tipped it, and I just had to go get it out of the air, Wood said. "Once I saw green grass, I knew it was time to go to the house. There were people trying to tackle me while I was on the way there, and they didn't do a good job."

Andrew Conrad, a freshman from Kernersville replacing kicker Owen Daffer, gave ECU its first lead at 23-20 with a 22-yard field goal, but Howard answered with a 46-yard boot.

The Pirates drove for a potential game-winning touchdown with Mitchell slipping in from the 1 for a 30-23 lead with 1:45 go. Henigan, who threw for 407 yards and a pair of touchdowns, didn't flinch and led Memphis 75 yards in eight plays and just 1:26, hitting Joe Scates with a 13-yard scoring pass.

Asa Martin's 9-yard run and Mitchell's 1-yard plunge forced a second overtime. Mitchell put the Pirates on top 43-37 in the second overtime with a 12-yard run, but the required two-point conversion pass failed.

The Tigers needed five plays to answer with Henigan sneaking in from the 1. Martin's run for two never had a chance.

A shootout with one play from the 3-yard line ensued. Memphis scored on a pass from Henigan to Skates for a 45-43. Ahlers, after surveying the field, finally found Mitchell along the right sideline, and he sidestepped a diving attempt by Sylvontan Oliver and tied it.

Ahlers said he was running out of options before finding Mitchell.

"Once you get to that last read, it's either him or you've got to run it or something," he said. "I'm glad he caught the ball and made a play there and got us in the end zone."

In the fourth OT period, Ahlers teamed up with Johnson, who made a spectacular grab with Joshua Hastings draped over his back.

"We hadn't run that play all year," Ahlers said of the winning play. "We hadn't practiced it all year. He runs that route really good, just a slot fade. I told him on the sideline I thought we could have it all game and they waited for the right time to call and obviously he made a great catch."