With the N.C. State behind them and Gardner-Webb coming up in the home opener on Saturday, an emotional ECU head coach Mike Houston addressed the passing of his father on Tuesday in his home town of Franklin, North Carolina. He was able to see him last night.
He also reviewed the N.C. State contest and this week’s plans for the Gardner-Webb game.
Practice could be altered by the Weather as soon as Wednesday and most likely for sure by Thursday but by then, ECU will be in walk through mode and would like practice in Minges Coliseum as the weather dictates.
Athletic director Jon Gilbert says he fully expects the game to be played on Saturday based on current weather models for Hurricane Dorian and says to expect a crowd in the 30,000 plus range.
The Pirates are coming off of a convincing 34-6 victory by N.C. State and ECU will look to get on the winning side of things against a Gardner-Webb team that lost 49-28 at Charlotte last Saturday.
The Bulldogs have a number of key players including junior inside linebacker Darren Reynolds who is an FCS All-American candidate. Nose guard Josh Ramseur is another good one for Gardner-Webb.
Offensively, quarterback Jordan Smith completed six passes for 60 yards and a touchdown in last week’s loss while running back Jayln Cagle at 6-0 199 ran for 84 yards on 19 carries and scored a pair of touchdowns.
We also caught up with ECU defensive end Kendall Futrell, wide receiver Blake Proehl and punter Jonn Young who react to the passing of Coach Houston's father, they recap the N.C. State game and they preview Gardner-Webb week as coverage begins here on PirateIllustrated.com.
