CHARLOTTE – East Carolina headed to Charlotte on Saturday with hopes of redemption against its in-state and American Athletic Conference rival. But much like last year’s disappointing loss in Greenville, the Pirates met frustration at every turn.
Go to ECUPirates.com for more on the game
The 49ers, mostly punchless on offense through five games, met little resistance on a sunny afternoon at Jerry Richardson Stadium and rolled to a 55-24 victory. Charlotte (3-3, 2-0 AAC) set a school record with six rushing touchdowns along with a bevy of team and individual season bests on the way to its second straight-win in the series.
Charlotte defeated ECU 10-7 last year in Greenville in a defensive stalemate in which the Pirates (3-3, 1-1 AAC) managed just 127 total yards. Saturday’s rematch delivered a stark contrast with the two teams combining for 856 total yards.
The 49ers flexed their dominance at the line of scrimmage as they ran at will in piling up 307 yards on the ground and 513 total yards. Charlotte entered the game averaging 318.2 total yards with a high of 358 and 17.8 points per game.
“We talked about all week that the strength of their team is their fronts, their offensive and defensive front,” sixth-year ECU head coach Mike Houston said. “Those offensive linemen they have are really high-rated guys and very, very good players. We had a hard time with them tonight.”
Consequently, the Pirates never could come up with a much-needed stop. A defense playing without leading tackler Zakye Barker and top defensive back Shavon Revel Jr. due to injuries surrendered 14 plays of 11 yards or more – eight runs amassing 242 yards and six passes totaling 149 yards. Four of the big runs ended in the end zone, highlighted by a 65-yard dash by Hahsaun Wilson and a 62-yarder by Cartevious Norton – both career bests. Wilson also scored on a 23-yard run, and Norton added touchdown runs of 11 and one yard.
Norton, an Iowa State transfer, finished with a personal high of 164 yards on 15 carries, and Wilson posted a season-high of 88 yards on 10 carries. Freshman quarterback Deshawn Purdie completed 13 of 22 passes for 206 yards and rushed for one score.
O’Mega Blake, who spent three years at South Carolina before transferring to East Carolina, then left for Charlotte after spring practice, collected a team-high four catches for 65 yards.
“We missed a lot of tackles and we misfit some stuff,” Houston said of the defensive struggles. “It’s on us. You can put it on me, you can put it on our coaching staff. I don’t know the last time someone has done that to us. We obviously have got to get it fixed.”
ECU also will be doing some soul searching on offense. Quarterback Jake Garcia started for the fifth straight game and completed 6 of 8 passes for 111 yards and a touchdown before throwing his 12th interception. Michigan State transfer Katin Houser entered and connected on just 11 of 28 passes for 84 yards and an interception, which Charlotte returned for a score.
“I thought Jake, he was just pressing on some stuff and doing some things out of character,” Houston said. “I felt like he wasn’t giving us a chance. We got behind, and he’s trying to do too much, I don’t know, but we decided to make the switch. Katin has had a great week of practice, and I think he did some good things and did some things we’re going to have to get cleaned up. But either way we have to play better at that position.”
Winston Wright Jr. provided the bulk of the highlights for ECU, returning a kickoff 94 yards for a second-half touchdown and grabbing all four of his catches in the second half. Penn State transfer London Montgomery made the most of his slim opportunities with a 48-yard touchdown run in the third quarter.
But the Pirates’ fate seemed destined by an ominous tone set on the opening series for each team.
Henry Rutledge gave Charlotte an immediate spark with a 43-yard kickoff return, and the 49ers scored eight plays later. Purdie completed all three of his passes on the drive, including a pair to convert third downs.
ECU then missed a chance to pull even when Anthony Smith’s end-around pass to Chase Sowell slipped through the open receiver’s hands.
The Pirates failed to score on that drive, and the 49ers went to cash in on five of six first-half drives (not including a two-play possession to end the half) in mounting a 31-10 lead and never let off the gas.
ECU did trim a 14-0 deficit to 14-10 on a 38-yard field goal by Noah Perez and Garcia’s 13-yard pass to Tyler Savage (the first of his career). The Pirates trailed 17-10 and looked to be mounting a drive for a potential tying score when Elijah Culp picked off a second-down Garcia pass.
Wilson score the first if his three touchdowns eight plays later for a 24-10 lead and zapping. Norton’s 62-yard sprint with 1:40 left in the half all but zapped the Pirates’ spirit.
Now ECU has two weeks to recover before traveling to undefeated and run-heavy Army.
“We all have a lot of pride in the way we play, and that performance today is not reflective of who we want to be. Now it’s who we were today, and we have to own it,” Houston said. “But the players, they’ll be back in there. The coaches, they’ll be back in there tomorrow, and we’ll take a good look at this film and get the corrections made that we can get made and get ready for Army. That’s what you do. You show back up and go back to work. That’s how you make stuff like this go away.”