Memphis looks to bounce back from last Friday’s loss against Tulane Saturday afternoon on the road against East Carolina. The Pirates enter this game following a 48-22 win over Charlotte, and they’re currently on a three-game winning streak.
ECU head coach Blake Harrell is in his first full season as the Pirates’ head coach, and he holds an 11-4, which goes back to last season when he took over for former head coach Mike Houston in week seven.
A year ago, ECU started the season 3-4 before making the decision to fire Houston following a 45-28 loss to Army. The football program turned to Harrell as the interim, and the team rallied to finish the regular season 4-1 and beat NC State in the Go Bowling Military Bowl.
This season, the Pirates are 6-3, and they’ve found a lot of success inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. Harrell’s team is 4-1 at home, and they’re averaging 37.2 points in those games.
ECU leads the series against Memphis 17-8, and they’ve won the last two meetings, including a 47-45 victory inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium in the most recent meeting in 2022.
The Pirates average 33.9 points per game, and the offense is generating 467.7 yards of total offense per game.
The group is led by redshirt junior Katin Houser. The quarterback has started all nine games, and he’s recorded 2,469 passing yards, 14 touchdowns and five interceptions.
Houser has found a nice relationship with the Smith duo in the receiver’s room. While they aren’t related, a pair of Smiths lead the unit in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns.
Anthony Smith leads the team with 683 receiving yards, while Yannick Smith has reeled in a unit-high five touchdown. While the Smith duo are Houser’s go-to receivers, he does a nice job spreading the love, and he has connected with at least 10 receivers for one at least one reception in five of the nine games this season.
In the backfield, running back London Montgomery has finished with 84 or more rushing yards in the last three games and has recorded 534 yards and five touchdowns this season. Houser can also pose a threat with his legs, and he leads the team with six rushing touchdowns on 111 yards this season.
Defensively, ECU holds opponents to 17.3 points and 326 yards of total offense per game, and they’ve done a great job turning opponents over. The Pirates rank No. 41 nationally in turnovers gained, including eight fumble recoveries, and they come in at No. 25 in the country in turnover margin.
The Pirates defense also puts a lot of pressure on opposing quarterbacks, and the group ranks No. 18 in the country with 24 sacks on the year. Seniors Zion Wilson and Jasiyah Robinson play a large role on the defensive line, and they’ve combined for 6.5 sacks and 11 tackles for loss.
In the secondary, Safety Ja’Marley Riddle leads the team with 49 tackles and two interceptions, but he’s had trouble bringing guys down at times and leads the team with 11 missed tackles, according to Pro Football Focus.
In the special team’s department, field goal kicker Nick Mazzie has shown a lot of consistency, converting 84.6 percent of his field goal attempts this season. He has made a 50-yarder this year, and he’s 4-for-5 kicking from 40-plus.
The Tigers opened as a two-point underdog against the Pirates, and it’s clear Ryan Silverfield’s team will need to be prepared for a team that is playing well, especially at home.