Pirates stun Memphis 31-27 in an instant classic at Dowdy-Ficklen
East Carolina has played some wild ones in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium over the years, but Saturday night’s 31-27 win over Memphis instantly jumped near the top of the list. It was chaotic, emotional, and flat-out electric. In the end, the Pirates punched their ticket to their seventh win of the season behind a massive fourth-quarter push, a red-hot Katin Houser, a rising star performance from London Montgomery, and one unforgettable moment from a previously unknown receiver.
Yes, the Pirates beat the Tigers. And honestly… they beat the zebras too.
Memphis wasn’t ranked anymore, but ECU didn’t care. The Tigers rolled into Greenville with serious stakes in the American Conference title race. The Pirates answered by playing some of their best complementary football all season, and by sheer force of will, they found a way.
Mangrum’s moment: the play they practiced all week
With the Pirates trailing 27-24 and the season hanging in the balance, ECU dialed up a look they had repped over and over in practice. The Pirates were without star wideout Yannick Smith for most of the game.
Peyton Mangrum delivered the biggest catch of his career a 31-yard strike from Houser with under two minutes left to put ECU in front for good.
Peyton Mangrum:
“We actually hit the same play in practice this week.”
“Katin is a really good QB. He trusts me to throw me the ball and that means a lot to me as a player to throw the ball to me down 3 with 2 minutes to go.”
Houser continues his rise
Houser continues his late-season surge, going 23-for-34 for 332 yards, one touchdown, one turnover, and total command of the offense down the stretch. That turnover almost cost the Pirates the game, but Houser didn't let that change the final drive.
A balanced, resilient receiving group
Despite not having a touchdown until the final drive of the night, the wideouts were having them selfs a game.
Brock Spalding: 5 catches, 88 yards
Desirrio Riles: 3 catches, 62 yards
Yannick Smith: 3 catches, 50 yards
Anthony Smith: 7 catches, 62 yards
Defense stands tall late
Memphis came in averaging nearly 40 points per game. ECU held them to 27 and tightened up in the biggest moments of the game.
The Pirates finished with:
74 total tackles
7 tackles for loss
2 sacks (both from Zion Wilson)
1 interception
And the crowd, especially the Boneyard, played a real part.
Zion Wilson:
“When we saw that — all of them running to one spot and swinging their shirts — it really flipped a switch to help us win the game. Shoutout to the boneyard man.”
Blake Harrell’s postgame energy said everything
Harrell let the emotion out after the win, and no one blamed him.
Blake Harrell:
“That’s worth a big hell yeah, ain’t it. I’m so proud of our kids.”
“We had lulls in the 2nd half, and to look up and see the students rallying. That’s what we did in the 2nd half.”
“I was thinking about taking my shirt off, too. What a special place it is here.”
This is the same energy Pirate fans felt in the Coach Ruff era, and I think we are led by a soon-to-be ECU great.
The final drive: season-defining.
ECU went:
quick strike to move the chains
Montgomery is grinding out tough yards
Spalding finding space over the middle
and finally, Houser to Mangrum for the win
It was the drive of the season — maybe of the Harrell era so far.
Final: ECU 31, Memphis 27
The Pirates improve to 7-3 in dramatic fashion.
Students are pouring into the field.
Shirts were swinging.
Players are celebrating with the crowd.
Dowdy-Ficklen is turning into chaos in the best possible way.