East Carolina Football

The East Carolina Pirates have their new head coach, making it official with Duke offensive coordinator Scottie Montgomery on Sunday, according to Sammy Batten of the Fayetteville Observer.

Montgomery takes over for Ruffin McNeill, whom ECU fired after six seasons that included four bowl game appearances. McNeill was named assistant head coach at Virginia by new Cavaliers head coach Bronco Mendenhall on Saturday.

East Carolina made Montgomery's hiring official on Twitter:

Pirate Nation, @ECUAthletics welcomes Scottie Montgomery as its head football coach! #ECUScottieMo #ECUndaunted pic.twitter.com/K3wRAFWVpc

— East Carolina Pirates (@ECUAthletics) December 13, 2015

The 37-year-old will be introduced as the team's head coach on Monday, per Brett McMurphy from ESPN.com.

ECU athletic director Jeff Compher also released a statement, detailing that he feels Montgomery is the kind of coach he was looking for, per Brett Friedlander of the Star News Online:

Ten days ago I said that I was looking for someone who will be a fierce competitor, who will lead our football program to championships, while equally demanding academic success. As we worked through the entire search process, it became overwhelmingly clear that Scottie Montgomery possesses every attribute necessary to put our football program in a position to win championships and graduate our student-athletes.

While McNeill's firing came as a shock, East Carolina rebounded nicely with the hiring of Montgomery. Duke's offense has been a model of consistency the last few years, even before Montgomery became the Blue Devils' offensive coordinator. Given Montgomery's age, there's plenty of room to grow as a coach, which seems to show East Carolina is going the patient route with this hiring.  

Montgomery spent the last two years as the Blue Devils' offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach. Duke ranked 38th in the nation in passing with 253.4 passing yards per game in 2015 under Montgomery, a 37-yard increase from the year before.

Duke will play the Indiana Hoosiers in the Pinstripe Bowl on Dec. 26, but it's uncertain whether Montgomery will be coaching for the Blue Devils in that game.       

Montgomery takes over an ECU team that went 5-7 this season and averaged 27.4 points per game.

Editor's Note: According to ESPN, Lincoln Riley has been hired to be Offensive Coordinator for the Oklahoma Sooners.  GREENVILLE, N.C. — A six-inch surgical scar offers a permanent reminder of the helmet that smashed into Lincoln Riley’s right shoulder when he was a high school quarterback in a rustic, remote place called Muleshoe, a Friday Night Lights kind of football town in the west Texas panhandle.

Riley once thought he could be a big-time college quarterback. And who knows, had it all worked out just right, he might already be the most famous person to come out of Muleshoe since Lee Horsley, an actor who starred in the TV series Matt Houston in the 1980s.

But Riley said he wasn’t quite the same quarterback after that hit, and the major football programs never did come calling with scholarship offers. He passed on what he considered lesser opportunities in the Ivy League and elsewhere and instead took his diminished talents to Lubbock, about an hour southeast of Muleshoe, hoping to make the Texas Tech roster as a walk-on in 2002. Riley wanted to coach high school football someday and was intrigued by Mike Leach’s high-scoring spread offense.

Unfortunately for Riley, Leach was less than intrigued with the quarterback.

"He threw it sidearm, and he couldn’t throw it very far," Leach said of Riley, "sort of pushed the ball, and so I wasn’t interested in playing him at quarterback."

But Leach certainly recognized talent when he saw it: coaching talent. He was impressed that Riley had learned the entire playbook in a few days. So Leach did Riley a favor: He cut him from the team in spring practice before Riley ever played a competitive down of college football.

And then Leach gave Riley the break of his life.

Leach offered a job assisting him on the coaching staff. Riley actually had to think about it before accepting—he thought Leach would give him at least a shot to compete as a third-stringer. But Riley came to his senses quickly enough and took the first step on a path that has led him to become one of the top young college coaching prospects in the country.

If you follow the SEC, you may already know Riley was on the short list of contenders to become the next offensive coordinator at Kentucky before West Virginia’s Shannon Dawson was hired. But if you don’t know Riley’s name yet, maybe you have heard of the high-powered offense he runs at East Carolina (8-4).

That’s the team ranked No. 3 in the country in passing at 367 yards per game and tied for fifth in total offense (533 yards per game) going into the Birmingham Bowl on Saturday against Florida’s ninth-ranked defense.

This will be a showcase game for East Carolina and the supposedly lesser American Athletic Conference against a once-storied SEC opponent. And a showcase for Riley, 31, the offensive coordinator and mastermind of East Carolina’s potent spread offense.

How potent? Ask North Carolina. Well, maybe you better not. East Carolina humiliated the Tar Heels, piling up 789 yards of offense in a 70-41 victory on Sept. 20.

No, those aren’t typos. The only team to produce more yards in a game all season was Washington State, which collected 812 against California. The coach at Washington State? Leach, Riley’s mentor, who has been running the spread offense for years.

It’s the kind of head-turning production that gets an offensive coordinator noticed. His connection to Leach and the spread offense doesn’t hurt, either.

“Lincoln certainly has the pedigree,” wrote one Power Five athletic director who was asked about Riley’s emergence as a coaching prospect.

By now, it isn’t a question of whether Riley will get a chance to move up to a Power Five conference and eventually into a head coaching job. It seems only a matter of when and where.

A year ago, Riley’s name reportedly came up in job searches at Texas, Notre Dame and North Carolina. This year, it was Kentucky.

“I like Lincoln,” said ESPN analyst Anthony Becht, who worked two East Carolina games this season, including the North Carolina blowout. “I think he’s done an outstanding job.

“I think it suits him well right now to be an offensive coordinator, and I think he’s a good enough play-caller where he could go anywhere and be productive at being an offensive coordinator. … And if you can grow, get that experience, maybe one day become a head coach.”

Riley knows that is where he is headed. But he is also careful.

“I told myself that if I’m lucky enough to get opportunities, I don’t want to jump at the first one,” he said in mid-December as he sat in his small office next to Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium on the East Carolina campus. “It’s not a deal where I’m looking to leave. If there’s something that’s life-changing, there’s something you’ve got to look at.”

To understand why he is going places, you have to understand where Riley began.

“He was like, literally, my right-hand guy,” said Leach, who remains a close adviser to Riley. “He was in all of my meetings. He and I together would watch and break down film. Even though he was a young guy, he was smart and insightful. We’d watch film, we’d break down opponents, put the script together, put practice together, the whole thing. He’s just a brilliant guy. And still is. He’s one of those guys who will think of stuff before you think of it.”

When a position came open on the Texas Tech staff, Leach hired Riley as a receivers coach—raising more than a few eyebrows around Lubbock.

Riley was just 23 years old at the time.

“He was probably the youngest full-time coach in America at the time—if not, then one of them,” Leach said. “And everybody’s like, ‘Well, what are you doing?’”

Leach calls it one of the best hires he has ever made. And Riley had to be thinking pretty highly of himself, too, after the start he had with the Red Raiders. His star receiver, Michael Crabtree, opened his career with 17 touchdown receptions in his first six games as a freshman.

“And I’m just sitting there thinking, all these guys think this is hard; this is easy,” Riley said with a laugh. “My guy’s catching three touchdowns every game. I’m the greatest receivers coach who ever walked on the planet.”

That was until Crabtree challenged the young assistant one day late that season before a game at Baylor. Riley said Crabtree had broken a relatively minor team rule, and as punishment he ordered Crabtree to roll around in a sandpit at the training facility. No sweaty football player in full pads likes to roll around in sand.

Including Crabtree.

“He said, ‘I’m not going to roll in the sand,’” Riley recalled. “And I fired back at him with probably a couple of choice words and said, ‘Yes you are.’ He said, ‘I’m not going to do that.’ I said, ‘Well, fine, if you don’t roll in the sand, you’re not playing. We’re not taking you to Waco.’ He said, ‘Fine.’”

Riley stormed off the field and went back to his office. Then he peeked out his window and looked over at the sandpit. There was Crabtree, rolling around.

“It showed you’ve got to—especially with guys like that, especially me being a young coach at the time—they’ve got to know where the line is, and you’ve got to defend that line,” Riley said.

Crabtree won his first of two Biletnikoff awards as the top college receiver that season, while Riley began to establish himself as one of the top offensive minds on the team.

“He was just years ahead as far as his ability to be a coach,” Leach said. “He was kind of a natural that way.

“He was an honest guy with great integrity and in this business there’s a snake or two slithering around. He was just very smart, clear-minded, great at communicating with players.”

Leach wasn’t the only one who noticed the potential of the young coach. In December, 2009, Leach faced national criticism for his handling of an injured player and was fired shortly before Texas Tech was to face Michigan State in the Alamo Bowl. Ruffin McNeill, the Texas Tech defensive coordinator at the time, was made interim head coach for the game.

With Leach gone, McNeill needed someone to call plays during the bowl game. He made Riley, all of 26 years old, his offensive coordinator.

“I like guys who came up through the ranks, cause they understand the how and the whats and (are) not afraid to get elbows and knees dirty,” McNeill said. “Then I watched how he performed, how he worked. When he became a full-time coach, I recruited with him a lot, so I knew how he worked there. During the bowl practices, a lot of times if Mike was not there, Linc would call (plays) in practice.

“So when I found out that day, it was no hesitation it was going to be Lincoln.”

After Texas Tech won the game 41-31, McNeill interviewed for the head coaching job. His plan was to make Riley the offensive coordinator. But Texas Tech instead hired Tommy Tuberville. McNeill and Riley were suddenly jobless and about to go their separate ways.

That was until East Carolina, McNeill’s alma mater, offered him the head coaching position. Among the first calls he made was to Riley.

“Are you coming?” McNeill asked.

Here’s how little Riley knew about the Pirates when he said yes: “I didn’t even know at the time what city East Carolina was in,” he said.

It didn’t matter. At 26, Riley was an offensive coordinator at an FBS program.

“Age has never been a problem for me,” McNeill, 56, said. “I’m old enough for everyone.”

It wasn’t age that had Dwayne Harris looking sideways at his new OC when they first met in 2010. Harris was a receiver at East Carolina and already a pro prospect. He didn’t know a whole lot about the guy who would run the offense in his senior season.

"When I first met Linc, I was like, 'Is this the guy who’s going to be calling the plays?'" Harris recalled. "What does he know about football? I’m like, 'Has this guy ever played football before?' Looking at Linc, he’s real skinny, looks like he’s really uncoordinated, looks like he doesn’t know how to do anything. But he’s smart, though. That was one thing. He’s real smart when it comes to calling plays."

Under Riley’s spread offense, Harris set team records with 101 receptions and 1,123 yards receiving that season. When he was done, Harris was drafted in the sixth round by the Dallas Cowboys. He is now a return specialist.

Both of those records have since been broken at East Carolina by Justin Hardy, a receiver who, along with senior quarterback Shane Carden, have come to exemplify what Riley has built at East Carolina. Hardy was an overlooked prospect from nearby Vanceboro, North Carolina, who had no Division I offers to play despite a massive pair of hands and impressive game tape that was somehow ignored by the top programs in the state.

"That was my taste of (how) the recruiting out here is different," Riley said. "It’s not saturated; there’s definitely more hidden gems. If you do your homework, you will find some people that other people have missed or not even seen. That was my first taste of that. If Justin Hardy with his tape was in Dallas-Fort Worth, he has 20 offers. In North Carolina, he had zero."

Without even a scholarship to offer, Riley convinced Hardy to walk on as a freshman. And then he gave Hardy some advice.

He told Hardy to be like Mike—Crabtree, that is.

"I watched a lot of film on Crabtree when [Riley] first got here, learned the things he did," Hardy said. "Just seeing what he did, why he was so successful at Texas Tech and try to carry it over here."

Hardy earned a scholarship the following year and now owns just about every receiving record at ECU. Against Tulane earlier this season, Hardy passed Oklahoma’s Ryan Broyles to become the all-time leading receiver among FBS programs. Hardy goes into his final game for the Pirates with 376 receptions for 4,381 yards.

Carden, a Houston product who was ignored by major Division I programs, has set the ECU single-season and career records for most passing yards with 11,564. He also has a school-record 84 touchdown passes.

On the way to rewriting all of those records at East Carolina, Riley’s offense has helped raise the profile of a program that is perennially overshadowed by the ACC behemoths that dominate the sports landscape in North Carolina.

Among the milestones along the way: A 55-31 victory at North Carolina in 2013, a 28-21 win at then-No. 17 Virginia Tech this past September and that 70-41 shellacking of the Tar Heels a week after beating the Hokies.

The Pirates were ranked in the AP Top 25 for the first time since 2008, rising as high as No. 18 in October before falling out in the second half of the season.

The Birmingham Bowl will offer one more chance to add to the East Carolina record books for Carden, Hardy and Riley. After that? Hardy—the prospect nobody else wanted—is likely to go in the second or third round of the NFL draft. Carden is a third- or fourth-round prospect.

That leaves Riley. How soon before he follows the others out the door and into the spotlight as a head coach or offensive coordinator at a more high-profile program? He isn’t saying.

"I want to be a head coach one day, but I don’t know if I’m necessarily in a hurry to be one," he said. "That’s a career goal for me at some point. The key is—the thing that’s been stressed to me—making the right move is important, but avoiding making the wrong move, that’s the biggest thing.

“And making sure that if I move on at some point, that it’s in a situation that’s as good as I’ve had here.”

The AAC’s East Carolina Pirates will head to Legion Field this Saturday to tangle with the SEC’s Florida Gators in this season’s Birmingham Bowl. Kickoff is slated for noon (ET), and the game will be broadcast nationally on ESPN.

The Pirates’ first season in the AAC after jumping ship from Conference USA would have to be considered a moderate success with an overall straight-up record of 8-4, including a 5-3 record in conference play. They were just 5-7 against the spread after failing to cover in seven of their last eight games. The total went “over” in three of their final four outings.

Florida’s shaky 6-5 record (both SU and ATS) cost former head coach Will Muschamp his job, but the Gators came very close to knocking off Florida State in their season finale in a 24-19 loss as seven-point road underdogs. They ended the year by covering in four of their final five games, and the total went over in three of those contests.

East Carolina vs. Florida Betting Storylines

East Carolina gave another SEC team, South Carolina, all it could handle early in the season in a 33-23 loss as a 14.5-point road underdog, and then it proceeded to knock off Virginia Tech and North Carolina, out of the ACC, the following two weeks. The Pirates were one of the higher-scoring teams in the nation this season with an average of 37.2 points a game. Defensively, they did have their issues at times, allowing 54 points in a loss to Cincinnati and 32 points in a season-ending loss to Central Florida. Overall, this unit was tagged for an average of 25.7 points a game.

Quarterback Shane Carden threw for the second-most yards in the country this season with 4,309 yards on 551 attempts for a completion rate of 65 percent. He tossed 28 touchdowns while getting picked off just eight times. His favorite target was Justin Hardy, who caught 110 passes for 1,334 yards and nine scores. Overall, the Pirates were ranked third in the nation in passing yards per game (367.3).

The Gators’ overall program has slipped rather steeply over the past few seasons, and they have become an afterthought in the SEC title race. They closed out play in the conference with a 23-20 loss to South Carolina as 6.5-point favorites at home. Florida was an even 4-4 SU in the SEC this season, with the only notable victory coming against Georgia in a 38-20 romp as a 12-point road underdog.

The defense held up fairly well over the course of the year, and while it did get tagged for 42 points by both Alabama and Missouri in double-digit losses, the Gators ended the season ranked 22nd in the country in points allowed (21.2). On the other side of the ball, Florida racked up an average of 30.5 points behind a solid running game. It averaged 189.5 yards a game behind the legs of Matt Jones. He rushed for 817 yards and six touchdowns while averaging 4.9 yards a carry.

 

East Carolina vs. Florida Betting Odds and Trends by Doc’s Sports

Point Spread: Florida -6.5

Total Line: 56

The betting trends on Doc’s Sports have the Pirates covering in five of their last six games as underdogs. They are 3-5 ATS in their last eight bowl games, and the total has gone over in seven of their last nine games played at a neutral site.

The Gators are 4-1 ATS in their last five trips to a bowl game, and they are 10-4 ATS in their last 14 neutral-site games. The total has gone over in six of their last eight bowl games.

This will be the first meeting between these two teams in recent memory. The total has stayed “under” in six of the last eight Birmingham Bowls (when it was known as the Compass Bowl).

Birmingham Bowl Picks: East Carolina vs. Florida Betting Predictions

Both of these teams have shown the ability to not only put some points on the board but also the ability to give them up in bunches against some of the better competition they have faced. Florida can’t be all too thrilled heading into this game in the middle of a coaching change, while East Carolina would love nothing more than to beat a team from the SEC. The result is a high-scoring affair that goes over the current 56-point total line.

Take: Central Florida vs. Florida OVER 56; Noon Saturday, Jan. 3

Many were surprised last weekend when the unranked East Carolina Pirates defeated the then No. 17 ranked Virginia Tech Hokies, but they probably shouldn't have been.

“Playing East Carolina is a lot tougher game than maybe picking up one of those bottom Big Ten teams,” Spurrier

— The Crown Club 👑 (@CrownClubCLT) September 17, 2014

Last Saturday marked the third straight victory for the Pirates against an ACC opponent, all coming on the road. This weekend, the Pirates will get a visit from in-state rival, the North Carolina Tar Heels. 

Last season, the Pirates defeated the Tar Heels 55-31 to win their first game in Chapel Hill since 1975. ECU quarterback Shane Carden was a big part of the victory as he threw for 376 yards, three touchdown passes and ran for three scores. The Pirates offense gained 603 yards against the Tar Heels and they are fully capable of doing the same thing again this year. 

This season, Carden ranks ninth in the NCAA in total offense with 354.7 yards per game. Not only do the Tar Heels have to worry about Carden, they also have to worry about Justin Hardy and the rest of the East Carolina receivers.

Hardy has caught 289 receptions for 3,314 yards and 27 touchdowns during his career. NFLDraftScout.com has Hardy rated as their sixth-ranked senior receiver. Isaiah Jones and Cam Worthy are the other receivers who can pose problems for the Tar Heels on Saturday.

North Carolina's defense has forced nine turnovers in two games, but they have yet to see a trio of receivers like East Carolina's. The Tar Heel defense will have their hands full trying to limit Hardy, Jones and Worthy, who have all produced at least 200 yards receiving this season.

If the Pirates are going to defeat the Tar Heels, their defense will have to contain an excellent Tar Heel offense led by quarterback Marquise Williams. 

Starting RG Landon Turner will miss the ECU game due to injury, according to UNC. Turner is UNC's most experienced offensive lineman.

— InsideCarolina (@InsideCarolina) September 15, 2014

In two games in 2014, Williams has 424 passing yards and he also leads the Tar Heels in rushing with 115 yards. Junior guard Landon Turner will miss Saturday's game due to an undisclosed injury which leaves the Tar Heels with four underclassmen on their offensive line.

True freshman UNC guard Jared Cohen will make his first start against an East Carolina defense that ranks 34th in the nation in rush defense. 

When looking at the East Carolina's nonconference schedule at the beginning of the season, it looked like they could have a 1-3 record before playing their first conference game. Now the Pirates are 2-1 and are three-point favorites on Saturday according to Odds Shark. ECU could have their best season in school history, but only if they defeat the Tar Heels on Saturday.

This East Carolina team is solid on both sides of the ball, so that’s why many experts are picking them to defeat the Tar Heels.

 

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State bragging rights will be on the line this Saturday afternoon at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium when the ACC’s North Carolina Tar Heels tangle with the AAC’s East Carolina Pirates. Game time is set for 3:30 p.m. (EDT), and the contest will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU.

North Carolina comes into this matchup 2-0 straight up after posting wins over Liberty and San Diego State, but it failed to cover against the spread, according to Cover’s betting trends, in either game as a double-digit favorite at home. The Tar Heels now have to go on the road. They are 3-7 ATS in their past 10 games away from home.

The Pirates followed up a tough 33-23 loss to South Carolina as 14-point road underdogs in Week 2 with a stellar performance: Last Saturday, East Carolina was a 9.5-point underdog playing on the road yet came away with a 28-21 win over then-No. 17 Virginia Tech, capturing the betting public’s full attention. East Carolina is now 7-1 against the spread in its past eight games.

North Carolina at East Carolina Betting Storylines

North Carolina came into the new season ranked No. 23 in the AP Top 25 preseason poll. While it has won both of its games by a combined 31 points, its stay in the rankings did not last long. Part of the reason is a defense that allowed 29 points to Division IAA Liberty and 27 points in a tight four-point victory against San Diego State.

The offense has done its part with a total of 87 points so far behind a balanced attack between the pass and the run. Tar Heels quarterback Marquise Williams has thrown for 424 yards and four touchdowns in his first two games while completing 67.2 percent of his 58 passes. However, his biggest contribution has been on the ground, with 115 yards and two scores on 18 rushing attempts. North Carolina has the offensive firepower to stand toe-to-toe with the Pirates as long as its defense can get off the field.

East Carolina joined the AAC this season after an extended stint in Conference USA, and it has immediately positioned itself as one of the top teams in the conference following its close call against the Gamecocks and its upset of Virginia Tech. A victory this Saturday could put the Pirates in position to possibly crack the Top 25 if enough higher-ranked teams lose.

East Carolina has done a great job getting out of the gate quickly, and the key to last Saturday’s upset was a 21-point first quarter that paced the win. Quarterback Shane Carden continues to impress with 1,031 yards passing in his first three games. He has thrown seven scoring strikes while completing 63.3 percent of throws. Justin Hardy has been on the receiving end of 23 balls for 267 yards, but Cam Worthy is the deep threat with an average of 27.5 yards per catch.

North Carolina at East Carolina Betting Odds and Trends by Doc’s Sports

Pointspread: East Carolina -3

Total Line: OFF

According to Covers’ betting trends, the Tar Heels are 7-3 ATS in their last 10 games but just 6-13 ATS in their last 19 games following a SU win. The total has stayed “under” in 10 of their last 14 games overall.

The Pirates are a perfect 5-0 ATS in their last five home games and 4-0 ATS in their past four games against a team from the ACC. The total has stayed under in five of their last seven games against the ACC.

Head-to-head in this in-state rivalry, the favorite is 4-1 ATS in the past five meetings, and the total has stayed under in three of the last four games.

                                                             

College Football Picks: North Carolina at East Carolina Betting Predictions

I went against the Pirates last week, but I am not going to make that mistake again. This team is solid on both sides of the ball and highly motivated to keep knocking off teams from the ACC. They hammered North Carolina 55-21 last season as 12.5-point road underdogs. While the Tar Heels may have revenge on their minds, they are walking into a very difficult situation to actually get a win. Lay the three points and stick with East Carolina to make in two in a row over its rivals.

Take: # 332 East Carolina (-3) over North Carolina - 3:30 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 20

An unstoppable running game and an opportunistic defense led the 21st-ranked South Carolina Gamecocks to a hard-fought win over East Carolina, 33-23, on Saturday night. 

You can check out the stats from the game here. You can find grades and analysis for both teams below.

Position Unit	First-Half Grade	Second-Half Grade
Pass Offense	A	D
Run Offense	B-	C-
Pass Defense	B+	C
Run Defense	C	F
Special Teams	B	C
Coaching	B+	C

East Carolina Pirates Grade Analysis

Pass Offense: Shane Carden was good in the first half, not so good in the second half. South Carolina's pressure forced Carden into some bad decisions in the third quarter, and that proved to be the difference in the game. Senior quarterbacks must make better decisions with the ball than Carden did in the second half.

Run Offense: The Pirates ran well, they just didn't run enough. Of course, ECU's offense is designed to throw the ball a lot, but when something is working, you should stick with it. The Pirates ran for 132 yards on 21 carries. They should have run the ball more, specifically with Breon Allen.

Pass Defense: The Pirates did a good job against Dylan Thompson and South Carolina's talented receivers, but they didn't get to the passer enough. More pressure would have likely led to bad decisions by Thompson. Cornerback Josh Hawkins was all over the place for ECU. 

Run Defense: ECU was thoroughly dominated up front. In the second half, South Carolina was routinely getting six or seven yards per carry. The Gamecocks held the ball for over 10 minutes in the game-clinching drive late in the fourth quarter. East Carolina had no answer for Mike Davis.

Special Teams: Pirates kicker Warren Harvey connected on three of his four field-goal attempts. He did, however, have one blocked. The Pirates couldn't get anything going in the return game, either. ECU's only punt of the night went for 52 yards. 

Coaching: Play-calling was an issue for the Pirates on Saturday. When the momentum was turning because of turnovers, the Pirates refused to run the ball. Defensively, ECU did a good job in the first half, but struggled to commit more defenders to the run game in the second half. In the end, though, the talent disparity is what lost this game for East Carolina, not coaching. 

Position Unit	First-Half Grade	Second-Half Grade
Pass Offense	C	B
Rush Offense	B+	A+
Pass Defense	D	A
Run Defense	B-	B+
Special Teams	B+	A
Coaching	B-	A

South Carolina Gamecocks Grade Analysis

Pass Offense: Thompson's overall stat line was solid, but his play was erratic. Especially in the first half. Thompson was 10-of-20 to start the game and missed several throws high and wide. South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier is hard on his quarterbacks, and if Thompson doesn't play better moving forward, he will be benched.

Run Offense: Davis is a serious Heisman contender. Davis, who some thought may not play this week, changed the game once he entered it. Davis routinely made guys miss and broke several tackles. Brandon Wilds is very good, but the Gamecocks will go as Davis goes. The offensive line can run block as well as anyone in the nation. 

Pass Defense: The Gamecocks struggled to defend ECU star Justin Hardy. Hardy finished the game with 10 catches, but only 133 yards. They did a good job of not letting him get too many yards after the catch. USC was bad in the first half, but the two third-quarter interceptions were the difference in this game.

Run Defense: The Gamecocks weren't bad against the run, as they committed more defenders to stopping the pass and rightfully so. Outside of one big run, USC did a good job overall of defending the run. Defensive coordinator Lorenzo Ward knew the way to beat ECU was to defend the pass first and worry about the run later. 

Special Teams: Elliott Fry is automatic. USC's kicker connected on all four attempts, and Spurrier has a lot of confidence in his young kicker. For a team that plays a lot of close games, Fry is a weapon. Just like ECU, the Gamecocks punted only one time. Shon Carson had a big return to open the game, but little else. 

Coaching: Spurrier and Ward both adjusted in the second half. Everyone knows Spurrier loves to chuck it deep—and often—but he did a good job of sticking with the run. Also, he called several short passes to get Thompson into a rhythm. Ward's defense was completely different in the second half. 

In 2012, East Carolina head coach Ruffin McNeill and his Pirates played the South Carolina Gamecocks in Williams-Brice Stadium but lost 48-10. Now, with an offense that is much better than the one that took the field two years ago, the Pirates not only have a chance to make it a closer game—they have a chance to defeat the Gamecocks. 

Unlike East Carolina's last visit to Columbia, South Carolina, the Pirates have a prolific offense. Their offense is very similar to that of the Texas A&M Aggies, which put up 680 yards against the Gamecocks in Week 1. The Pirates offense is led by three-year starting quarterback Shane Carden.

	NCAA Ranking
Overall	25th
Passing	92th
Rushing	11th

The senior had a superb junior season, as he set a school record with 4,139 yards passing last year. He also threw for 33 touchdowns against 10 interceptions and completed over 70 percent of his passes in 2013. Carden and the ECU receivers, led by Justin Hardy, could give the South Carolina secondary fits. 

Last season, Hardy had 114 receptions for 1,284 yards and eight touchdowns. Not only do the Gamecocks have to worry about Hardy, but they'll also have to game-plan for Isaiah Jones, who had 10 receptions for 150 yards and a touchdown last week against the North Carolina Central Eagles. 

ECU doesn't just pass the ball all over the place; they also like to run the football as well. Last week against the Eagles, running backs Marquez Grayson and Anthony Scott combined for 14 carries for 139 yards.

The Pirates can score, but the major area of concern is their defense. ECU only returns four starters from a defense that finished 33rd in the country last season in total defense, 38th in turnovers gained, 43rd in pass efficiency defense and 49th in scoring defense. East Carolina doesn't have to play perfect defense, but if it can slow down the South Carolina offense enough, much like Texas A&M did, the Pirates have a chance to upset the Gamecocks on the road.

This weekend starts a tough three-game stretch for East Carolina. After they play South Carolina, the Pirates travel to Blacksburg to play the Virginia Tech Hokies on Sept. 13 and then return home to play the North Carolina Tar Heels on Sept. 20. 

Even though Odds Shark lists the Pirates as 16.6-point underdogs on Saturday, ECU is very capable of upsetting South Carolina on the road. Texas A&M gave the Pirates the blueprint to defeat the Gamecocks last week. Now it is up to the Pirates to execute it. 

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John Jacobs III on Saturday was asked the sum up this week in one word.

“Eventful,” Jacobs III told Bleacher Report during a telephone interview from Greenville, North Carolina. “I had a lot of things going on.”

To get a clear understanding why the past few days had been “eventful” for Jacobs III, the quarterback for Shawnee High, look no further than what transpired late Monday night in Oklahoma City, hours before the Wolves were to participate in a three-day team camp.

Jacobs III, the “top dual-threat” high school quarterback in America, according to renowned DeBartolo Sports University quarterback instructor Joe Dickinson, acquired food poisoning and did not participate in the second day of team activities.

“I had McDonald’s for the first time in a year,” Jacobs III said. “I guess I ordered the wrong thing. It’ll probably be another five to 10 years before I eat that again.”

After spending most of the night consuming fluids, Jacobs III returned to action for Wednesday’s scrimmages against several of the top Class 6A schools in Oklahoma.

Although he said he was “about 50 percent” for the brief exhibitions, he appeared to be his usual reliable self once he took the field.

An East Carolina commitment whose skills have drawn comparisons to former Texas A&M and current Cleveland Browns rookie quarterback Johnny Manziel, Jacobs III ran for more than 200 yards during Wednesday’s scrimmages.

His stellar display less than 48 hours after his illness left a favorable impression among several coaches, most notably Shawnee’s Billy Brown. Brown said Jacobs III is “about 90 percent better than last year.

Jacobs, meanwhile, said that while he was pleased with his performance, there are a number of things he must “tweak” as he prepares for his final prep season.

“I probably felt like 50 percent,” Jacobs III, a Dallas native, said. “I got his in the stomach, but I still played good. I need to develop more and focus more on reading defenses.”

Hours after the camp ended, Jacobs III and his father, John Jacobs Sr., boarded a plane for Greenville, North Carolina, where his son made an unofficial visit to East Carolina.

According to Jacobs III, the visit lasted for about eight hours and included a tour of the campus, various athletic facilities and meetings with the ECU head coach Ruffin McNeill and his staff.

Jacobs III and his father were mostly amazed by McNeill, who will be entering his fifth season at ECU this year. A longtime evangelist, Jacobs Sr. is widely known as the founder of The Power Team and The Next Generation Power Force. Also, he played a guest role in an episode of the television series, Walker, Texas Ranger, whose star, renowned actor Chuck Norris, is his close friend.

“I would say he’s one of the best, most humble men in my life,” Jacobs Sr. said of McNeill. “This guy is selfless…a selfless leader. He loves John. They just kept saying how much they believe in John. He said football isn't No. 1. Academics isn't No. 1. Creating an environment is No. 1. He said, ‘If you create a great environment, everything else will fall into place.'”

Jacobs III is expected to make an official visit to ECU in the coming months.

Hours after arriving to Greenville, Jacobs III was the beneficiary of more good news when it was announced that he would join Team USA against The World next month at Texas A&M. The game, which is sanctioned by the International Federation of American Football (IFAF), will feature the top 40 high school football players in the country as well as the top two at each position.

“It felt good,” Jacobs III of his be chosen to play for Team USA. “I felt pretty honored because I know it’s a big deal.”

Jacobs III, who led the state in yards passing (3,550) and yards rushing (1,250) last year and a combined 69 touchdowns his sophomore and junior seasons, is scheduled to graduate from Shawnee in December and enroll at ECU for the spring semester.

He is expected to join the Pirates for spring practices, according to Jacobs Sr., who, unlike his son, described the sequence of events that transpired this week as a moment of “destiny.”

“If you make me use one word, destiny would be it,” Jacobs Sr. said. “Because it seemed like it was God-ordained. He’ll fit perfectly (ECU). He couldn’t play for a better school that will help him get to the NFL.”

That, too, he said, would be an “eventful” moment by way of “destiny.”

Andre Johnson a regular contributor for Bleacher Report. To reach Johnson, email him at memphisgraduate@yahoo.com. Also, follow him on Twitter @AJ_Journalist.

Coaches from non-AQ programs jump to major programs on an annual basis, most of which seemingly come out of nowhere to become the hot name on the coaching block.

East Carolina's Ruffin McNeill isn't one of those coaches.

The 55-year-old East Carolina alum took over the program before the 2010 season, after a successful career as a defensive assistant with Mike Leach at Texas Tech.

During his four years at his alma mater, he's led the Pirates through two rebuilding years and back into Conference USA prominence.

The Pirates topped Ohio 37-20 on Monday afternoon in the Beef O'Brady's Bowl, marking their first bowl win since a 41-38 victory over Boise State in the 2007 Hawai'i Bowl. Vintavious Cooper rushed 25 times for 198 yards and two touchdowns; quarterback Shane Carden completed 29 of 45 passes for 273 yards and one touchdown in the victory.

CBSSports.com's Bruce Feldman shared his thoughts on McNeill leading his team to a bowl win.

Good for Ruffin McNeill ... one of the nicest ppl in coaching about to get #ECU a 10-win season.

— Bruce Feldman (@BFeldmanCBS) December 23, 2013

The Pirates have won 18 games over the last two seasons, shared the East division title in 2012 and just posted their second double-digit win season in program history.

That sounds a lot like a coach on the rise.

He certainly has earned consideration for bigger jobs. So why isn't McNeill getting them?

He seems content in Greenville, N.C., and certainly has ties to the community. Plus, at 55 years old, his age could be a hindrance to an athletic director whose eyes are wide for a long-term solution.

That's a shame too, because once he finally nailed down that head coaching job at ECU, he proved that he had what it took to be successful. If he was 10 years younger, would he be a hot commodity on the coaching circuit?

He'd be one of the hottest.

But building a legacy as a player and a coach at your alma mater isn't a bad consolation. He has the momentum for the program heading in the right direction as it enters a new era in 2014—its first in the American Athletic Conference.

Will East Carolina be AAC favorites? With McNeill at the helm and Louisville on to greener pastures in the ACC, don't be surprised to see momentum stay on McNeill's side.

Follow @BarrettSallee

The Ohio Bobcats took some lumps late this season and, while they earned a bowl berth, they're big underdogs against the Pirates of East Carolina in the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl for December 23 at the Trop in St. Petersburg.

There's not much difference between Conference USA and the Mid-American Conference, but East Carolina, the runner-up in C-USA's East Division, is favored by two touchdowns over Ohio, the third-place team in the MAC East.

Point spread: East Carolina opened as 13-point Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl favorites; the total was 63.5. (Line updates and matchup report)

Odds Shark computer prediction: 41.9-29.0 Pirates

Why the Pirates can cover the spread

East Carolina is an experienced bunch, with 18 starters back from a team that went 8-5 last year. The Pirates own wins this year over North Carolina and North Carolina State. One of their losses was a close five-point decision against Virginia Tech.

ECU won five in a row during the second half of the season, averaging 50 points per game in the process, before running into a buzz saw at Marshall in the season finale.

Still, at 9-3 this program is playing in a bowl for the seventh time in the last eight seasons. East Carolina likes to throw it around, and why not? Quarterback Shane Carden completed 71 percent of his passes this season, 32 for touchdowns, and WR Justin Hardy caught 105 balls for over 1,200 yards.

The Pirates can also run the ball a bit with RB Vintavious Cooper, who's five yards short of a thousand. Defensively, East Carolina ranks 30th overall in FBS and 15th versus the run.

They haven’t lost when getting 14 points since 2002.

Why the Bobcats can cover the spread

Ohio only returned 12 starters from a 9-4 team of last season, but with some key people back, the 'Cats were still expected to contend in the MAC East. Ohio started 6-2, one of those losses coming at Louisville in the season opener, but fell asleep in November and lost three lopsided games in a row.

But the Bobcats recovered to beat UMass in the season finale by four touchdowns. By the numbers, Ohio is average on offense, but they do possess some semblance of balance, rushing for 136 YPG and passing for 239 YPG.

And defensively the Bobcats rank in the top quarter in the country against the pass. So maybe they've got a fighting chance against ECU's air attack, but the Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl odds are stacked against them.

Smart Pick

East Carolina was on a very nice run until that loss to Marshall and probably deserves to be favored by more than two touchdowns for this game. The Pirates possess a very potent passing game, led by a QB with a career TD/INT ratio of 55/20, and they own a couple of victories over BCS schools.

Ohio, on the other hand, looked very bad during that late-season losing streak, getting outscored 123-16, which should be cause for concern for bettors. USA Today's Sagarin ratings say C-USA and the MAC are very similar in quality, but this is a mismatch. Give the points and take East Carolina.

Trends:

• Favorites are 4-1 ATS in first five Beef 'O' Brady's Bowls
• OVER is 6-1 past seven East Carolina games

Note: All spread and odds data powered by Odds Shark—follow on Twitter for injury updates and line move updates.