The No. 23 East Carolina Pirates (3-1, 1-0 C-USA) have quickly asserted themselves as one of the most dominant teams in Conference USA this season.
ECU defeated nationally ranked teams in two consecutive weeks (then No. 17 Virginia Tech and then No. 8 West Virginia) to start its season and didn’t drop its first loss until Saturday to North Carolina State 30-24 in overtime.
"You hate to lose," head coach Skip Holtz said in a press conference. "Especially to an in-state rival in a very emotional game which was as close as it was."
Holtz said the Pirates had opportunities on both sides of the ball to stop the Wolfpack but didn’t capitalize on them.
"Obviously the offense, being in the red zone a couple times late, had a chance, but our defense had the opportunity to stop them, too," Holtz said.
The Pirates new turn their attention to a Houston team they do not underestimate despite the Cougars’ 1-3 record.
"Houston… has lost their last two games by three points each," Holtz said. "They are a very explosive, offensive football team. I’ve really been impressed with how Kevin Sumlin has come, and they really haven’t missed a beat offensively."
Holtz said Houston’s three returning starters on the offensive line gives it an edge in experience.
"I believe they’ve thrown the ball over 200 times, about 240 times and have only given up five sacks. That’s about one sack in every 50 plays, which is a very nice job," he said.
Holtz also gives credit to sophomore quarterback Case Keenum and senior tight end Mark Hafner for leading the Cougars’ fast-paced offense.
"(Keenum) is very talented, has a quick release and has a great grasp on what they’re doing," he said. "Their tight end (Hafner) is their lead target…. He’s more like a big receiver than a big, bulky tight end. He runs very good routes."
To counter the Cougar brand of football, the Pirates look to cover the deep pass in a game of wide-open terrain.
"You can use the nickel package and maybe even a little bit of the dime package, where you take a defensive lineman out and put an extra defensive back to cover down," Holtz said. "You lose some pass rush, but you gain a little bit in your pass coverage."
However, the Pirates’ line of defense will be hurt by injuries to senior defensive backs Jerek Hewett and Leon Best.
"Both Jerek Hewett and Leon Best will be very limited in practice this week, which is a bit concerning, considering what we’re about to walk into with the passing game of Houston," Holtz said.
To counter on the offensive side of things, Holtz is looking for freshmen wide receivers Darryl Freeney and D.J. McFadden to step up their game.
"The more you throw the ball, the more guys you have running around," he said. "But we’re going to need to continue to develop our depth, especially at the wide receiver position."
