East Carolina arrived at the halfway point of the season with mixed reviews.
Mixed as in, do you want to keep watching or not?
Not many programs are allowed the benefit of starting over, but the Pirates are one of them. They are lucky to have such a passionate fan base that is willing to believe in something each year.
That doesn’t happen everywhere, and if the Pirates aren’t careful that eternal optimism may turn into cynicism. ECU started over both on the field and in the eyes of fans this season. The promise of something better meant the Pirates were allowed to flub up one season, if those changes were indeed on the way.
While just about everyone was angry and upset during a long, trying season in 2023 that produced just two wins, that same group came around quickly as the Pirates initiated a reboot that had all the right components.
A new offensive coordinator, two new quarterbacks and a stable of new receivers injected a lot of optimism into the program. A defense filled with experience eased any worries about that side of the ball.
Feelings were positive in the offseason as the anticipation of something new and exciting awaited. I don’t remember a spring game with such a clamoring to catch even just a glimpse at the reworked, up-tempo offense.
That optimism didn’t diminish during a 2-0 start, despite wins against Norfolk State and Old Dominion coming amid a rash of turnovers. Looking back, that was the first sign that maybe everything wasn’t as smooth as it could be.
ECU followed those wins with consecutive losses after holding double-digit leads. It was a collapse of the most frustrating kind. Then a conference-opening win over UTSA followed and everything felt right again.
Then Saturday happened.
The 55-24 loss to Charlotte shook the foundation and reverberated through Pirate Nation.
What happened to ECU football?
An incredible amount of turnovers, coupled with an offense that has struggled to stay on the field for longer than a couple of minutes, finally caught up to the Pirates. The defense ran out of gas, it seemed, and eventually shied away from playing its trademark hard-nosed football.
No more big hits between the tackles. Instead, green grass awaited any Charlotte running back.
The reason why those who care about ECU football were so discouraged after Saturday’s blowout loss is because ECU should have been good. Most thought the Pirates would be good. And that’s what makes it more frustrating. They were multiple two-touchdown leads away from entering last week’s game against Charlotte undefeated.
Instead, they sit at .500. (3-3, 1-1 AAC) at the halfway point in the season licking their wounds at the bye week. And it doesn’t get any easier as unbeaten Army awaits on the other end of the idle week.
As a Chicago White Sox fan, I stopped watching baseball this summer because my team beat the fan out of me. They produced the worst record of any team in the modern era, and I had enough.
After flipping on a playoff game the other night, I realized that I watched the fewest games I’ve ever watched.
Baseball has been a companion sport for me all my life. On in the background, in my morning routine of checking scores and stats, on my TV at night. But the White Sox made me not care this season.
Them being the worst team ever had something to do with it, probably.
But it’s not a good feeling no matter the cause.
ECU has the benefit of a caring fan base. Yet with each loss, that fan base checks out slowly. Like I did with the White Sox.
The season is far from over. There’s an entire second half to play.
There are plenty of games remaining to make a meaningful run and earn bowl eligibility. But the first half didn’t instill much confidence that this would be a smooth journey. Instead, it’s looking like another uphill battle.
Despite the preseason schedule-watchers salivating at a weak schedule, no game on the docket is an easy win, and the 49ers proved just that last weekend.
We don’t even know which quarterback will emerge from the bye week.
Here’s to the Pirates figuring it all out in a week.
Local News
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