INDIVIDUAL NOTES ⢠Senior quarterback Dominique Davis threw for ...
INDIVIDUAL NOTES Senior quarterback Dominique Davis threw for 169 yards to move past Jeff Blake (1988-91/5,133) and into fifth on the East Carolina career record list with 5,301. David Garrard (1998-2001) is the all-time leader with 9,029 yards. o Davis is also fifth in career completions with 539. James Pinkney (2003-06) is the Pirates’ record holder with 687. Davis completed a career-low 13 passes. His previous low was 18 against Southern Miss Nov. 9, 2010. o Davis had connected on 30 or more throws in five of the last six games and entered the contest ranked third among FBS quarterbacks in completions per game (33.3). Davis failed to throw a touchdown pass, or account for a TD, for just the second time in his career and second time this season (Virginia Tech). Davis’ second-quarter interception gave him eight-straight contests throwing a pick. He tossed a career-high tying three interceptions during the game. Due to three sacks, Davis netted -23 yards after a net of -26 yards in the first four contests, giving him a total of -49 ground yards this season. Senior outside receiver Lance Lewis caught five passes to move ahead of Chis Johnson (2004-07/125) and into seventh on the program’s all-time receptions chart with 128. Former teammate Dwayne Harris (2007-10) leads the way with 268 grabs. o Lewis entered the game leading Conference USA, and standing 10th nationally, with 8.5 receptions per game Lewis also jumped into ninth on the East Carolina reception yards leader board with his 73-yard game, giving him 1,549 in his career. Harris tops that category as well with 3,001 yards. Davis’ 48-yard completion to Lewis in the first quarter was the offense’s longest play of the year and the first of 40 or more yards since Lewis hauled in 51 and 48-yard receptions against SMU on Nov. 26, 2010. Sophomore quarterback Rio Johnson made his East Carolina debut, replacing Davis in the third quarter. Redshirt freshman inside receiver Torian Richardson caught his first career passes in the fourth quarter with 10 and 11-yard grabs. Sophomore running back Torrance Hunt established career highs with 12 carries for a team-best 65 yards. o He also caught his second and career passes with third and fourth-quarter receptions. Sophomore inside linebacker Kyle Tudor and sophomore defensive end Lee Pegues made their first career starts. o Tudor booked a career-best 13 tackles in the contest. True freshman inside linebacker Brandon Williams made his East Carolina debut in the second quarter, wiping out a potential redshirt year. Williams tallied six tackles, including one for a loss, in the contest. Freshman inside linebacker Jeremy Grove tallied 14 tackles after beginning the game ranked second in the country in stops per game with 13.0. He was the only freshman among the nation’s top 50 tacklers. o Grove became the first ECU player to have 10 or more tackles in the first five games of the season (12/SC, 12/VT, 15/UAB, 13/UNC, 14/UH) since Pernell Griffin in 2001 (24/WFU, 15/TUL, 13/W&M, 17/SYR, 22/UNC). Freshman inside linebacker Jake Geary, experiencing his first action on defense after previously playing only on special teams, booked a career-high five tackles. Geary and senior outside linebacker Cliff Perryman booked their first career sacks, knocking Keenum for 12 and one-yard losses, respectively. Sophomore free safety Damon Magazu matched his personal best with eight tackles. Senior kicker Michael Barbour’s first-quarter 54-yard field goal was the second-longest FG in program history and the longest without the use of a tee. Jeff Heath made a 58-yarder Nov. 6, 1982, against Texas-Arlington. o The field goal also gives Barbour a make in his last 13 games with an attempt. WITH THE LOSS With the loss, ECU has … o Won 11 of the last 15 Conference USA games o Won six of the last 10 C-USA road games o Won eight of the last 13 games against C-USA West Division members The loss drops East Carolina to 1-4 on the season. The Pirates had been 3-2 or 2-3 through five games since 2005. The last time ECU was 1-4 was in 2004. East Carolina falls to 6-5 (.545) against Houston with the teams splitting the last four meetings. It was just the Pirates’ second loss at UH with the other a 34-24 setback Nov. 6, 2004. The loss sends ECU’s Conference USA record to 1-1 after opening the league season the last two years at 2-0. From 2005-08, the Pirates were 1-1 through the first two C-USA contests. The defeat drops East Carolina to 29-24 (.547) in road Conference USA contests since joining the league in 1997.
TEAM NOTES The 53-point loss was the largest Conference USA defeat in program history and the seventh biggest overall setback. Houston took a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. In the last two games, the Pirates have been outscored 28-0 in the first frame after holding a 21-7 first-quarter advantage through the first three contests. The Cougars also led 35-3 at the half. ECU has been outscored 63-6 in the opening half the last two games. o The Pirates’ 32-point deficit at the half was the largest for East Carolina since trailing Southern Miss 35-0 at the break Oct. 23, 2004. Houston also outscored the Pirates 21-0 in the second half. This season, ECU has been outscored 97-47 after the break. East Carolina did not score a touchdown for the first time since Nov. 5, 2009, against Virginia Tech. It was the program’s first C-USA contest without a TD since falling at Southern Miss 21-3 Nov. 15, 2008. Entering the game, the Pirates ranked last in the country in turnovers per game with 4.3 and turned it over four times in the contest with four interceptions. o East Carolina has 21 giveaways on the season. o ECU had not tossed four interceptions in a game since Oct. 13, 2007, at UTEP. ECU’s three-and-out on the opening possession of the game was the team’s first since the fourth frame against Virginia Tech, a span of eight quarters. The Pirates were held to 45 yards in the opening quarter, their fewest yards in the first frame all season. Houston limited East Carolina to 21 yards rushing, the 10th fewest in program history. Following one of ECU’s four turnovers, the Pirate defense did not allow a Houston score. This season, on 11 of East Carolina’s 21 turnovers, the Pirates have not allowed the opponent to score. Houston also started four drives inside East Carolina territory and did not score on two of those possessions. In the last four games, foes have started on the Pirate side of the 50-yard line 11 times and scored three times. The Cougars are the first opponent this season to score on all its trips inside the redzone as UH went seven-for-seven. For the year, East Carolina has kept opponents from scoring six times when they were inside the redzone. During the 2010 season, ECU only prevented redzone scores nine times. o ECU entered the contest ranked 13th among all FBS programs in redzone efficiency defense, allowing foes to score just 70.0% of the time. East Carolina failed to cause a turnover in back-to-back games. It is just the second time since 2005 an opponent has been turnover free in consecutive contests (North Carolina and Southern Miss/Oct 2 &9, 2010). The Pirates sacked Houston quarterback Case Keenum two times. It is ECU’s second game of the season with multiple sacks after recording just four multi-sack contests in 2010. o ECU also recorded a pair of quarterback hurries to bring its total to 15 this season after tallying just four in the last six games of 2010. Houston returned the first ECU punt of the game 54 yards and ended the contest with 54 yards. In the previous three contests, the Pirates had limited opponents to -10 yards on punt runbacks. Houston rushed for 215 yards and five ground scores. In the last 10 contests, East Carolina has surrendered 2,493 rushing yards and 38 touchdowns (249.3 ypg/3.8 TD/game). The Cougars also threw three touchdown passes. In the last two games, the Pirates have surrendered seven aerial scores after allowing just one in the season’s first three contests. The Pirates’ offensive line surrendered nine sacks after allowing just two in the previous two tilts. o The line entered the game ranked 58th at the FBS level in sacks allowed per game (1.8). With its first-quarter field goal, ECU extended its streak to a school-record 173 games without suffering a shutout. OTHER Team Captains: Offense: Dominique Davis, Justin Hardy; Defense: Emanuel Davis, Jeremy Grove; Special Teams: Rahkeem Morgan Up Next: East Carolina continues its three-game road trip next Saturday with a 7:00 p.m. ET kickoff at Memphis (1-5). A year ago, the Pirates downed the Tigers 49-27 in Greenville behind a 28-point opening quarter. Dominique Davis led the way for the offense, accounting for five touchdowns – throwing for three and rushing for two.
TEAM NOTES The 53-point loss was the largest Conference USA defeat in program history and the seventh biggest overall setback. Houston took a 14-0 lead in the first quarter. In the last two games, the Pirates have been outscored 28-0 in the first frame after holding a 21-7 first-quarter advantage through the first three contests. The Cougars also led 35-3 at the half. ECU has been outscored 63-6 in the opening half the last two games. o The Pirates’ 32-point deficit at the half was the largest for East Carolina since trailing Southern Miss 35-0 at the break Oct. 23, 2004. Houston also outscored the Pirates 21-0 in the second half. This season, ECU has been outscored 97-47 after the break. East Carolina did not score a touchdown for the first time since Nov. 5, 2009, against Virginia Tech. It was the program’s first C-USA contest without a TD since falling at Southern Miss 21-3 Nov. 15, 2008. Entering the game, the Pirates ranked last in the country in turnovers per game with 4.3 and turned it over four times in the contest with four interceptions. o East Carolina has 21 giveaways on the season. o ECU had not tossed four interceptions in a game since Oct. 13, 2007, at UTEP. ECU’s three-and-out on the opening possession of the game was the team’s first since the fourth frame against Virginia Tech, a span of eight quarters. The Pirates were held to 45 yards in the opening quarter, their fewest yards in the first frame all season. Houston limited East Carolina to 21 yards rushing, the 10th fewest in program history. Following one of ECU’s four turnovers, the Pirate defense did not allow a Houston score. This season, on 11 of East Carolina’s 21 turnovers, the Pirates have not allowed the opponent to score. Houston also started four drives inside East Carolina territory and did not score on two of those possessions. In the last four games, foes have started on the Pirate side of the 50-yard line 11 times and scored three times. The Cougars are the first opponent this season to score on all its trips inside the redzone as UH went seven-for-seven. For the year, East Carolina has kept opponents from scoring six times when they were inside the redzone. During the 2010 season, ECU only prevented redzone scores nine times. o ECU entered the contest ranked 13th among all FBS programs in redzone efficiency defense, allowing foes to score just 70.0% of the time. East Carolina failed to cause a turnover in back-to-back games. It is just the second time since 2005 an opponent has been turnover free in consecutive contests (North Carolina and Southern Miss/Oct 2 &9, 2010). The Pirates sacked Houston quarterback Case Keenum two times. It is ECU’s second game of the season with multiple sacks after recording just four multi-sack contests in 2010. o ECU also recorded a pair of quarterback hurries to bring its total to 15 this season after tallying just four in the last six games of 2010. Houston returned the first ECU punt of the game 54 yards and ended the contest with 54 yards. In the previous three contests, the Pirates had limited opponents to -10 yards on punt runbacks. Houston rushed for 215 yards and five ground scores. In the last 10 contests, East Carolina has surrendered 2,493 rushing yards and 38 touchdowns (249.3 ypg/3.8 TD/game). The Cougars also threw three touchdown passes. In the last two games, the Pirates have surrendered seven aerial scores after allowing just one in the season’s first three contests. The Pirates’ offensive line surrendered nine sacks after allowing just two in the previous two tilts. o The line entered the game ranked 58th at the FBS level in sacks allowed per game (1.8). With its first-quarter field goal, ECU extended its streak to a school-record 173 games without suffering a shutout. OTHER Team Captains: Offense: Dominique Davis, Justin Hardy; Defense: Emanuel Davis, Jeremy Grove; Special Teams: Rahkeem Morgan Up Next: East Carolina continues its three-game road trip next Saturday with a 7:00 p.m. ET kickoff at Memphis (1-5). A year ago, the Pirates downed the Tigers 49-27 in Greenville behind a 28-point opening quarter. Dominique Davis led the way for the offense, accounting for five touchdowns – throwing for three and rushing for two.
