East Carolina Challenges Old Dominion In Norfolk

Game Two: East Carolina (1-0) at Old Dominion (0-1)
Date	Saturday, September 7th
Time	6:00 p.m. (EDT)
Location	Kornblau Field at S.B. Ballard Stadium (21,944) \| Norfolk, Va.
Live Game Coverage	Radio: WNCT 107.9FM Streaming: ESPN+
Internet Options	Live Stats
Official Web Sites	East Carolina \| Old Dominion \| The American
Game Notes	East Carolina \| Old Dominion \| The American
2024 Statistics	East Carolina \| Old Dominion \| The American
ECU Football Central	East Carolina Media Hub \| Roster \| NCAA Football \| College Scoreboard

Official Social Media Sites
Facebook	East Carolina \| The American
Twitter	East Carolina \| ECU Football (in-game updates) \| The American
Twitter Hashtags	#PirateNation \| #AmericanFB
Instagram	East Carolina \| The American

GREENVILLE, N.C. – Having experienced victory in a season opener for the first time since 2016, East Carolina takes to the road for the first time in 2024 in a non-conference contest at Old Dominion. Kickoff inside Kornblau Field at S.B. Ballard Stadium is slated for 6 p.m. and the game will stream live via ESPN+.

The Pirates are under the direction of sixth-year head coach Mike Houston.

New faces in vital places laid the groundwork last Saturday night as an inspired ECU (1-0) side took a big step to putting the 2023 season in the rear-view mirror by dominating Football Championship Subdivision visitor Norfolk State 42-3 at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

With transfer quarterback Jake Garcia directing new offensive coordinator John David Baker's up-tempo offense, the Pirates churned out 506 total yards, surpassing their yardage for any game during last year's season. Garcia completed 23 of 36 passes for 308 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions while speedy wideout Anthony Smith made the most of his first collegiate start with a career-best and team-high five catches for 86 yards.

Zakye Barker, who registered 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 conversion in 18 attempts. Maryland transfer Gavin Gibson, a junior cornerback, also made his mark - picking off a Jalen Daniels pass and returning it 30 yards for a second-quarter touchdown.

The Monarchs (0-1) traveled down to Williams-Brice Stadium last Saturday and put quite the scare into Southeastern Conference opponent South Carolina before committing two crucial turnovers that led to a narrow 23-19 loss. ODU outgained its host 305-288 but were plagued by the four total giveaways.

Quarterback Grant Wilson completed 22 of 38 passes for 197 yards a passing and rushing touchdown and two interceptions while Aaron Young paced the ground attack with 56 rushing yards on 16 carries. Isiah Page also collected 115 aerial yards and a receiving touchdown.

East Carolina Records, Streaks and Trends

With their 42-3 win over Norfolk State, the Pirates won their first season opener since 2016 when they routed Western Carolina 52-7 inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
ECU's 506 yards of total offense represented its most in a single contest since racking up 534 at Temple in 2022.
Garcia is the first Pirate signal caller to reach the 300-yard passing mark in a game since Holton Ahlers registered exactly 300 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. In all, the Pirates tallied 17.0 TFLs for minus 50 yards – the most in a single contest since they piled up 15.0 at Old Dominion in 2018.
East Carolina has forced at least one turnover in 40 of its last 44 contests and 51 of the last 58.
Since the start of the 2023 campaign, the Pirate 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 by a 4-0 margin. The Pirates and Monarchs will square off for the fifth time since 2013 but just the second time in Norfolk. In the most recent meeting between the programs, ECU defeated ODU 39-21 in Greenville during the second week of the 2022 season.

Last Time Against ODU
East Carolina 39, Old Dominion 21
(Sept. 10, 2022 @ Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium, Greenville, N.C.)

GREENVILLE, N.C. - First came the rain. Then came the lightning and thunder. The electrifying show didn't materialize in the night sky above Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium on Saturday, however, but on the soggy turf below. Sparked by Keaton Mitchell (lightning) and Rahjai Harris (thunder), East Carolina transformed a tight contest into a dominant 39-21 win over Old Dominion, rebounding from a season-opening heartbreaking loss to NC State and even its record at 1-1. Mitchell's 81-yard dash early in the fourth quarter delivered a staggering blow to the Monarchs (1-1), who were coming off an upset of Virginia Tech, then Harris landed the knockout just 24 seconds later. ECU outscored ODU 23-7 after clinging to a 16-14 lead in the third period. A glance at the stats reflects that dominance. ECU had a decided 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 turnover-free game while forcing a pair of second-half turnovers. The running game, limited to 49 yards in the first half, found its footing in the second half as the ODU defense began to wear down, Mitchell, the Pirates' speedster, finished with 160 yards on 18 carries, eclipsing 100 yards for the seventh time in his career, and scored a pair of touchdowns. Harris, more of a bruiser, finished with 61 yards on 16 carries and added four catches for 14 yards. Mitchell's run provided the catalyst and followed the pattern of many of his game-breaking runs – he now has 15 plays of 20-plus yards and six of 50 or more in the last two years. With the Pirates leading 22-14 and starting a drive at the 19, Mitchell darted through a hole on the left side and left the ODU secondary in his tracks. Harris cashed in a fumble recovery by J.D. Lampley moments later with a 15-yard run for a 36-14 lead. West Virginia transfer Ali Jennings provided the lone ODU threat, hauling in eight Hayden Wolff passes for 200 yards, including touchdown grabs of 16, 18 and 35 yards.

Against Non-Conference Opponents
The Pirates have produced a 44-62 (.415) regular season non-league record since 1997, which includes an 1-3 clip in 2023. The Pirates posted a 3-1 ledger in 2022, picking up wins against Old Dominion, Campbell and BYU, while dropping the home opener to NC State. In 2021, they split their four non-conference games falling to Appalachian State and South Carolina to open the season before rallying back to post victories against Marshall and Charleston Southern. During his first season as head coach at ECU in 2019, Mike Houston led the Pirates to a 3-1 record - the program's first winning non-conference ledger since 2014. ECU has won 10 of last 18 non-conference games dating back to 2019.

A Starter's Log
DL Chad Stephens enters the Old Dominion contest having started 20 consecutive games as a member of the defensive unit. OL Hampton Ergle currently has the longest starting streak on the offense at 14 prior to Saturday's game. ECU had 10 first-time starters in a Pirate uniform versus Norfolk State: LB Zakye Barker, OL Darius Bell, LB Ryheem Craig, QB Jake Garcia, DB Gavin Gibson, TE Casey Kelly, DB Devon King, OL Emmanuel Poku, WR Anthony Smith and WR Winston Wright Jr.

1999 Pirates to Be Recognized At UTSA Game
East Carolina University Athletics officials have announced that the 1999 Pirate Football team will be recognized at the UTSA game on Saturday, Sept. 28 inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. The 1999 season was one of perseverance following the catastrophic damages left behind from Hurricane Floyd, which impacted Eastern North Carolina on Sept. 16. ECU started the season 2-0 after wins against West Virginia and Duke before traveling to South Carolina. Prior to the Pirates' 21-3 win in Columbia, S.C., Floyd made landfall and much of Eastern North Carolina received 15-20 inches of rain over the next 12 hours. Unable to travel back home, the Pirates stayed in Columbia, preparing for what would have been their home game against the ninth-ranked University of Miami Hurricanes. With portions of the city still reeling from the flood, the game was moved to Raleigh, N.C., and Carter-Finley Stadium. Trailing 23-10 after the third quarter, ECU rallied from 20 points down to defeat the Hurricanes and improved to 4-0. The 1999 team finished with a 9-3 overall record, played in the 1999 Mobile Alabama Bowl against TCU and was the recipient of the 1999 Disney's Wide World of Sports Spirit Award at the annual Home Depot College Football Awards.

Up Next
East Carolina plays its second home game of the 2024 campaign Saturday, Sept. 14th, when Appalachian State travels to Greenville for a non-conference affair. Kickoff inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium is set for 4 p.m. and the game will air live on ESPNU.

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Zakye Barker

Darius Bell

Ryheem Craig

Hampton Ergle

Jake Garcia

Gavin Gibson

Rahjai Harris

Casey Kelly

Devon King

J.D. Lampley

Anthony Smith

Chad Stephens

Winston Wright Jr.

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