PRL Monday: Future of college sports, paying athletes & more

Athlon Sports picks ECU in middle of AAC pack

More college football teams and conference previews are showing up on the web. Over the weekend, we showed you the first East Carolina football preview as College Football News broke down the Pirates. Now, Athlon Sports is out with its take on the AAC and where ECU...

Pirates in baseball: Shawn Armstrong gets hold in win, Burleson has two hits in loss

Two ECU alums had good individual days on Sunday. Texas Rangers reliever Shawn Armstrong got his fifth save of the season with some quick work in a 4-2 win over the Washington Nationals. He struck out a batter in the eighth inning to stop a rally. He lowered his ERA...

Cornell Powell, DC Defenders heading to UFL title game

J.H. Rose High School football alum Cornell Powell is heading to the UFL championship. Powell helped the DC Defenders to a 36-18 win on Sunday over the host St. Louis Battlehawks in the XFL Conference Championship. The Defenders (7-4) will face the Michigan Panthers...

Harold Varner III finishes 18th at LIV Golf Virginia event

Harold Varner III had another solid round at the LIV Golf Virginia event. So did a lot of other golfers. The East Carolina golf alum shot -3 to finish at -7, good enough for 18th, at the three-day event at the Robert Trent Jones Club in Gainesville, Va. Joaquin...

Need further proof Keaton Mitchell is back? Read this

Keaton Mitchell is so fast … how fast is he? The old comic line applies to the East Carolina running back as the Baltimore Ravens wrapped up the second week of OTAs on Friday. Media outlets have been reporting on how good and fast he’s looked this week. The Baltimore...

Report: Former ECU pitcher Lance Williams commits to Maryland

It didn’t take former East Carolina pitcher Lance Williams long to decide the next step in his college future. SCOOP: ECU right-hander Lance Williams has committed to Maryland, per source. The freshman made 25 appearances in 2025, earning a win in an NCAA regional...

Pirates in baseball: Good week continues for Jeff Hoffman with another save

East Carolina alum Jeff Hoffman is having a very good week. The Toronto Blue Jays closer picked up his third save this week in a 5-4 win over the Minnesota Twins. Despite giving up a solo homer in the ninth, he recorded a strikeout and two flyouts to end it. Hoffman...

Cornell Powell, DC Defenders play in XFL Conference Championship

J.H. Rose High School grad Cornell Powell and the DC Defenders (6-4) take the field against the St. Louis Battlehawks (8-2) on Sunday in the XFL Conference Championship. Powell leads the league in touchdowns with seven catches. He has had four touchdowns in two games,...

ECU alums DaShaun Amos, Jeremy Lewis play in CFL openers

The last two games of Week 1 of the CFL season saw two East Carolina alums play with different results. The British Columbia Lions beat the Edmonton Elks, 31-14. ECU alum and rookie Jeremy Lewis played at linebacker and registered a tackle. The Hamilton Tiger-Cats...

Harold Varner III’s big day moves him up leaderboard

After a somewhat slow start in the first round of the LIV Golf Virginia tournament on Friday, East Carolina golf alum Harold Varner III made up for it with a big day on Saturday. Varner shot a -5 and is tied for 14th place after the second round. He’s now at -4, seven...