East Carolina Pirates at BYU Cougars Preview
The East Carolina Pirates are evolving. Maybe it is a matter of necessity rather than truly by choice, but the Pirates are being seduced by the dual-threat quarterback. And why not? The mobile quarterback opens a new avenue of attack and can erase mistakes that might otherwise have occurred. Will East Carolina continue to explore this new James Summers world. There is only one way to find out, and that happens tonight in Utah.
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The Pirates face the BYU Cougars. The Cougars were ranked earlier in the year when they beat Boise State, but now their record matches that of ECU. The Cougars are close to the inventors of the spread offense that ECU uses, and both teams have leaned on their passing games for much of their offense. That makes the two teams play similarly, or at least they did before the days of Summers.
Opponent: BYU Cougars (3-2)
Date: October 10
Time: 7:30 PM
TV: ESPNU
Venue: LaVell Edwards Stadium
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X – Keep the Boys Fresh
The first thing to note about playing in Provo, Utah is the huge altitude difference. East Carolina plays most of its games at near sea level. Now they are going to be a mile high. It is a bit of adjustment, so the Pirates will need to keep an aggressive substitution pattern to meet any fatigue issues.
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Y – Make the opposition one dimensional
The Cougars have had some tough running backs over the years, and the Pirates need to task their defense with stopping Adam Hine. The Pirates had trouble with the Navy running game in particular and BYU has enough talent at running back to consider more ground attacks. If the Pirates’ front seven can squash that then BYU will be forced to try and match ECU without recourse to the run.
Z – Balance
If the last two games are any indication, Summers will see the field for the Pirates. His appearance has been a morale boost. He also offers the run element that is a novelty to the Pirate offensive philosophy. Playing Summers allows the play calling to keep the Cougars guessing as to what will happen next. Blake Kemp will be an instant heads up to BYU that the run is off the table.
Prediction: 31-28 East Carolina