This Friday, the (5-3) East Carolina Pirates will travel to Provo, UT to take on the (4-4) BYU Cougars in the ninth week of the 2022 college football regular season. Kickoff will be at 8:00 PM EST inside LaVell Edwards Stadium. We have two great offenses going head-to-head in this one, as I am expecting a show on Friday night!
The ECU Pirates are coming into this one after taking down UCF, 34-13. They rolled over the Knights in that game, as they were feeling it on both sides of the ball. They finished with 458 total yards of offense and the defense forced four turnovers.
The BYU Cougars are entering this one after dropping their third straight game. Last week, they fell to Liberty, 41-14. They struggled to move the ball on offense and they allowed Liberty to rack up 547 total yards of offense. They will have to be better on the defensive side of the field at home if they want to avoid another l oss.
The East Carolina Pirates have now won three of their last four games, as they are trending in the correct direction. They also dismantled the UCF Knights last week, as they will look to stay hot in this game. On offense, the Pirates are scoring 33.3 points per game and averaging 472.6 total yards. This is the 40th most points scored per game and the 21st most yards. They have shown that they can consistently move the ball up and down the field. They are averaging 309.3 passing yards per game, which is the 16th most in the nation. They will start Holton Ahlers at quarterback, as he has thrown for 2,435 yards this season and 18 touchdowns. Isaiah Winstead is also the leading receiver for this team, as he is averaging 13.7 yards per catch and he has scored three touchdowns this season. ECU has also shown that they can move the ball on the ground. They are averaging 163.4 yards per game, which is the 60th most in the country. They have leaned on their passing attack this season, but they still can run the rock. Keaton Mitchell has been the leading back for the Pirates this season, as he has scored eight touchdowns and run for 587 yards. Last week, he ran for 105 yards and two touchdowns.
On defense, the Pirates have been able to hold their own the past month. Last week, they only allowed the Knights to score 13 points and they forced four turnovers. This season, the Pirates are surrendering 23.1 points per game and 395.1 total yards. This is the 49th least amount of points given up per game and the 86th most yards. They have struggled against the pass, as they are currently allowing 280.5 yards per game. This is the 119th most in the nation, as their secondary has continued to struggle. ECU has been better against the run, though. They are only allowing 114.6 rushing yards per game, which is the 26th least in the country. Julius Woods has been the leading tackler for the Pirates, as he has recorded 46 tackles and two forced fumbles this season. They also gave up 45 points to Memphis two weeks back, as the Tigers threw the ball all over them.