If you look back at our AAC expert picks for Week 4, you can tell that I was little worried about East Carolina.
Yes, I’m the only genius that picked the Pirates to stumble against a North Carolina team that had so much promise heading into the season. My reasoning? It was simply the perfect scenario for a letdown.
A team scores a monumental road victory over the No. 17 team in the nation, and then has to turn around and prepare to play yet another quality opponent from a power conference.
It’s a challenge that many teams over the years have been unable to conquer.
But clearly, the Pirates are not one of those teams. ECU picked up right where it left off in its win over Virginia Tech by obliterating the Tar Heels 70-41 in Greenville, racking up a whopping 789 total yards in the process.
It was the complete opposite of what I expected. I thought that the Pirates would sleepwalk through the game and find themselves with their backs against the wall. That wasn’t even close to the case. Quarterback Shane Carden and company put the foot on the gas early and never let up for a single second.
Carden contributed 438 yards through the air, throwing for four touchdowns in leading this team to its second straight victory over an ACC opponent. With that type of feat, you know that these are happy times for the Pirates right now.
But can this continued domination really continue? It can, and will.
If you expect ECU to slow down at any point in the near future, then you had better think again. Although the Pirates are entering a bye week, there is no doubt that they’ll pick up right where they left off when they play their next game on October 4.
The opponent? SMU. Yeah, you might as well go ahead and chalk up another 70-spot for Ruffin McNeill’s team there.
The onslaught won’t stop there, though. After tangling with the Mustangs, ECU gets South Florida, Connecticut, and Temple. Approximately zero of those games stand out to me as significant challenges for this squad. None of these teams will be able to counter what the Pirates are offering.
Carden is in complete control of the offense, and is playing some of the best football of his career. He’s spreading the wealth around to all of his offensive weapons, and that’s causing some major issues for opposing defenses.
SMU, South Florida, Connecticut, and Temple aren’t going to be the teams that stop this, either. The next big challenge that ECU will face? A Thursday night trip in Novermber to take on Cincinnati in primetime.
If the Pirates can manage to keep the momentum going and win that game, then finishing the season at 11-1 would be a realistic possibility.
So, ECU fans, I’m truly sorry. You won’t catch me picking against your team anytime in the near future.
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