Bud Light Pregame Tailgate Show: ECU plays at Memphis in another Thursday contest

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – East Carolina continues its two-game road swing Thursday night when it travels to Memphis (Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium/ 58,325) on Oct. 22 … Game time is set for 7:30 p.m. (ET) and will be televised nationally on ESPN2 with Matt Barrie (PxP), Chase Daniel (Analyst) and Paul Carcaterra (Sideline) calling the action … Thursday’s game will be the 27tth all-time meeting between the two schools with ECU holding an 18-8 all-time advantage … The Pirates have won 10 of the last 12 contests in the series, including three straight… Both teams are coming off of losses with ECU falling in overtime at UAB, 30-17 and Memphis dropping a road game at Tulane, 31-17.

THE HEAD COACH
Blake Harrell (Western Carolina ’02), who is in his sixth overall season at East Carolina, was officially named the 23rd head football coach on Nov. 27, 2024. Harrell, the program’s interim head coach (Oct. 20-Nov. 26, 2024) and the squad’s defensive coordinator/inside linebackers coach since his initial hire in January of 2020, led the Pirates (9-4, 6-2 American) in 2025 and a share for fourth place in league play. His team stood among the FBS leaders (Top 25) in 15 statistical categories with his offense averaging 32.7 points per game while allowing 20.1, the fewest since at East Carolina since 1999. He has guided the Pirates to a 17-8 (.607) record in 25 games. He became the fastest head coach to 14 victories and the quickest to 10 wins in conference play, while becoming the second coach in program history to win consecutive bowl games with a 23-17 victory over Pittsburgh at the 2025 Go Bowling Military Bowl. In 2024, he posted a 5-1 record over a six-game span which included a 26-21 come from behind victory over NC State in the 2024 Go Bowling Military Bowl in Annapolis, Md. On Dec. 28, 2024. The win was the first over a Power 4 team since 2018, when ECU topped North Carolina, 41-19. Following the Charlotte win, ECU secured bowl eligibility in consecutive games and for the fourth time in the last five campaigns (2021 Military, 2022 Birmingham, 2024 Military).

FAST FACTS
Record: 3-3 (.500); American Record: 1-1 (.500); Last 5 Games: 3-2; Last 10 Games: 6-4; Last 15 Games: 10-5; Streaks: When East Carolina travels to Memphis, it will be the 26th game of the Blake Harrell era (17-8/.607) … The Pirates contest against the Tiger will be the 962nd since the start of ECU football in 1932 (484-466-11/.509).

ANALYZING THE 2026 OVERALL SCHEDULE
COMPOSITE RECORDS: ECU’s 2026 opponents posted a combined 77-76 (.503) record in 2025. The Pirates’ four non-conference foes were 24-29 (.453), while the eight American squads tallied a collective 53-47 (.530) mark. Five programs had eight or more wins – Alabama (11), Old Dominion (10), South Florida (9), N.C. Central (8) and Memphis (8).

SEVEN BOWL TEAMS: For the second consecutive season, ECU’s schedule features contests against seven teams which participated in bowl games a year ago. In addition to Alabama (CFP first round and Rose Bowl), Appalachian State (JLab Birmingham Bowl), Army (Wasabi Bowl), Memphis (Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl), Old Dominion (StaffDNA Cure Bowl), Rice (Lockhead Martin Armed Forces Bowl) and South Florida (StaffDNA Cure Bowl) each made FBS postseason appearances last December and January. Of the Pirates’ six home games, five will be against 2025 bowl qualifiers, while two of six road contests will be against postseason teams.

IN THE FINAL POLLS: Alabama is the lone ECU opponent that finished ranked in the two major polls (Associated Press, AFCA Coaches) to end the 2025 season coming in at No. 9. Old Dominion received votes in both polls, while Army garnered one vote in the AFCA poll along with East Carolina.

NON-SATURDAY ACTION
East Carolina is 40-51-1 (.434) on non-Saturday games since 1932 … Oddly, the Pirates have fared better on the road (20-20; 17-24-1 at home; 4-6 neutral sites) … In terms of days (including bowls), ECU is 5-1 on Sundays, 0-2 on Mondays, 3-1 on Tuesdays, 2-4 on Wednesdays, 17-18 on Thursdays and 14-25-1 on Fridays … Most recently, ECU is 14-20 when deviating from the normal Saturday routine since 2010 … In 2025, the Pirates (2-2) had four Thursday night games – the most of any FBS team.

CHARTING THE PIRATES MONTH-BY-MONTH

In all, East Carolina is 4-4-0 in August, 141-133-1 in September, 173-173-4 in October, 154-139-5 in November, 13-11-0 in December and 1-4-0 in January … With the Pirates win over Pitt in 2025, ECU remained somewhat productive in December – a month in which it has won seven of its last 11 outings (wins vs. Boise State/’07, Tulsa/’08, Houston/’09, Ohio/’13, Coastal Carolina/’22, NC State/’24, Pitt/’25; losses to Maryland/’10, UL-Lafayette/’12, UCF/’14 and NC State/’18).

ON THE ROAD
Since becoming a conference member in 1997, East Carolina is 76-111 (.406) when playing away from Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium … In 2026, the Pirates are 1-2 on the road … ECU closed out the 2025 season 4-3 away from home following a 23-17 win against Pittsburgh … In 2024, ECU also posted a 4-3 record … Three years ago, ECU finished the year 1-5 on the road and in 2022, they posted a 4-2 road slate (wins at South Florida/Boca Raton, Fla., BYU, Temple and Coastal Carolina/Birmingham, Ala., losses to Tulane and Cincinnati) … From a non-conference standpoint, ECU snapped a seven-game skid when it topped Old Dominion 24-21 on Sept. 28, 2019 but has played 15 road non-American tilts since, including bowl games (8-7).

UP NEXT
ECU returns home for the first of two consecutive games hosting Temple (Oct. 31, 3 p.m.) and South Florida (Nov. 6, 7:30 p.m.) inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.