IRVING, Texas – East Carolina linebacker Zakye Barker, running back Rahjai Harris and wide receiver Chase Sowell headline eight Pirates that were named 2024 All-American Athletic Conference performers according to an announcement by the league Tuesday afternoon.
The trio of Barker, Harris and Sowell were tabbed second-team selections, while offensive lineman Parker Moorer and safety Omar Rogers earned third-team accolades. Rounding out the Pirate honorees were defensive lineman JD Lampley, wide receiver Anthony Smith and return specialist/wide receiver Winston Wright Jr. as honorable mention picks.
In his first year as a starter on defense, Barker posted a team second-best 86 tackles (29 solo). He has started 10 of 11 contests owning a team-best 12.0 TFLs (-27 yards) that includes two sacks (-9 yards). He is tied for the team lead with Samuel Dankah with a pair of forced fumbles and stands fourth in the league with 8.6 stops per game. In nine of 11 games, he has tallied eight or more stops posting a season-best 13 against Appalachian State.
Harris earned his second career all-conference selection after taking home Rookie of the Year and first-team accolades in 2020. This season, he leads the team in rushing yards (972), carries (189), touchdowns (10) and scoring (62) and is second in total offense per game (86.4). Harris is 28 yards shy of becoming the newest member of the 1K rushing club, currently ranking sixth all-time at ECU in ground yards (2,876) and needing 26 yards to move into fifth place in program history.
Sowell caught 34 passes for 678 yards and three scores on the year. He ranks second in the conference in receiving yards per contest (75.33) and has registered a pair of 100-plus yard receiving games (138/at Army; 117/Temple) standing second to fellow receiver Anthony Smith, who collected three.
Moorer, a mainstay of the offensive line the last two seasons, has started 23 consecutive games at right tackle for East Carolina. This year, he has helped the Pirate offense rank among the FBS leaders in passing yards per game (18th/273.8), total offense (30th/433.3), scoring offense (33rd/32.5) and first down offense (38th/264). He has been a part of a line unit that has produced four individual 100-yard rushing efforts and three individual 300-plus passing games as well as four games with 200 or more team ground yards and five games with 500-plus yards of total offense.
During the regular season, Rogers topped the defense with 96 tackles (40 solo) which included eight games with seven or more stops and a team-best four with double-digit tackles. In the Pirates’ regular season finale against Navy, he posted a career-best 14 tackles. In all, he tallied 5.0 TFLs (-9 yards), 1.0 sack (-5 yards), one interception, two pass breakups, one quarterback hurry and recovered one fumble.
Lampley established a new personal season high with 22 tackles (10) solo during his third year with the program. He stood tied for eighth on the team with 4.0 TFLs (-16 yards) which included 1.5 sacks (-12 yards). Coming off the edge, his six quarterback hurries led the club which was also a new season best. Lampley recorded at least one tackle in nine of 12 games and tallied two or more on six occasions.
In 12 starts, Smith led the Pirates with 767 yards receiving and topped the team with a 20.2 yards per catch average. He tallied three 100-plus receiving games (121/at UNT; 120/FAU; 101/Temple) and caught a career-best five passes in a game on three occasions. Smith also stood second in receptions (38), receiving touchdowns (6) and receiving yards per game (63.9) during his initial year at East Carolina.
Winston Wright Jr. tallied 1,255 all-purpose yards (114.1 per game) for the Pirates in 2024. He registered 91 yards on the ground, 556 receiving yards (third on team), 18 punt returns and 590 kickoff return yards to rank sixth in The American. Wright Jr., a midseason All-America selection by The Sporting News, caught 54 passes, scoring a team-best eight touchdowns. He returned 22 kickoffs, posting a 26.8 average which included a 94-yard scoring return at Charlotte marking his third career return for a score (first at ECU).
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