TULSA, Okla. – Tulsa erased a 14-point halftime deficit and held on to defeat East Carolina 34-30 in an American Athletic Conference contest Friday night at Chapman Stadium.
The Pirates (1-4, 1-3 AAC) very nearly recorded back-to-back league road victories for the first time since joining the AAC in 2014, but the Golden Hurricane (3-1, 3-0 AAC) escaped the upset bid and remained at the top of the conference standings.
Junior quarterback Holton Ahlers notched a career-high 38 completions on 50 attempts to finish the contest with 330 yards and three touchdowns while Zack Smith was 19 of 37 for 253 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions for Tulsa.
Continuing a bright start to his young ECU career, true freshman running back Rahjai Harris recorded his third-straight 100-yard rushing performance – racking up 118 yards on 21 attempts. He also pulled in a receiving touchdown. Sophomore receiver Tyler Snead also surpassed the 100-yard plateau for the second time this year, ending up with 16 catches for 108 yards and a touchdown. T.K. Wilkerson was the leading rusher for the home side to the tune of 89 yards on 18 carries while Keylon Stokes contributed a team-best 90 receiving yards and a touchdown.
East Carolina finished with the upper hand in total offense, out-gaining the Golden Hurricane 456-428, but Tulsa's second-half offensive surge resulted in a 175-126 advantage in rushing yards. The teams combined for 23 penalties and six turnovers while the Pirates held onto the ball for 35:09 to easily out-pace their hosts.
After Tulsa forced ECU to go three and out on its first offensive drive, the Pirates returned the favor as Warren Saba intercepted an errant Smith throw at the East Carolina 41-yard line and scampered 17 yards to set the Pirates up in Golden Hurricane territory. Harris ripped off a 20-yard run on the first play of the drive and Ahlers capped it off two plays later by finding Snead from 16 yards out to put ECU ahead 7-0 early.
The teams traded possessions over the next several minutes before Tulsa dented the scoreboard with its first points – a Zack Long 35-yard field goal that made it 7-3 with 3:35 remaining in the opening stanza.
As the second quarter commenced, East Carolina found itself with the ball deep in its own territory. However, Ahlers marched the offense right down the field and hit paydirt on the 10th play of the possession with a 25-yard touchdown toss to sophomore receiver C.J. Johnson that extended the Pirate advantage to 14-3 less than five minutes into the period.
ECU ended up pitching its first second-quarter shutout of the campaign and carried a 17-3 lead into the locker room at the break when senior placekicker Jake Verity connected from 46 yards away with 1:58 on the clock. Shawn Dourseau preserved the Pirates' 14-point edge by intercepting Smith at the East Carolina seven-yard line on the last Golden Hurricane offensive play of the half.
A stout East Carolina defense out-gained Tulsa 226-109 overall in the first half, limiting the home team to 59 passing and 50 rushing yards. Comparatively, the Pirates racked up 149 yards through the air and 77 on the ground. The teams combined for a quartet of turnovers (two apiece) and committed 14 penalties, including nine by ECU for 76 yards.
Harris nearly eclipsed the 100-yard mark in the first two quarters alone, ripping off 75 yards on 12 attempts while Snead posted eight catches for 56 yards and a touchdown. Ahlers was supremely efficient, completing 18 of 20 pass attempts for 149 yards and two touchdowns against no interceptions.
Tulsa seized the momentum out of the half, eventually rallying all the way back to knot the score. After Verity gave East Carolina a 20-10 lead via a 22-yard field goal with 9:15 on the clock, the Golden Hurricane netted 10 unanswered to forge a 20-20 deadlock. Wilkerson ran for a 13-yard touchdown and Long was good from 21 yards as the Pirates regained possession with 4:07 to go in the third.
ECU seemed poised to regain the upper hand early in the fourth quarter, driving all the way down to the Tulsa three-yard line. However, the Pirates could not convert on a third-down attempt and Verity's short field goal try was blocked.
Jireh Wilson came up with a huge defensive play as the quarter got going, ripping the ball away from JuanCarlos Santana to set East Carolina up with great field position at the Tulsa 35. The Pirates were forced to settle for a Verity 38-yard field goal, taking the lead back at 23-20 with 12:34 to play. The Golden Hurricane converted two key third downs on the ensuing drive and answered with a 39-yard Smith to Santana touchdown connection to vault back on top.
The Pirates looked to assume the lead for good when Ahlers hooked up with Harris for a four-yard touchdown as the clock ticked under five minutes. However, Tulsa had the answer on its final possession as Wilkerson crossed the goal line from a yard out with 29 seconds left.
East Carolina gave itself one last chance for the knockout blow. A 36-yard Keaton Mitchell kickoff return put the Pirates at the Golden Hurricane 44. ECU would drive down to the Tulsa 29-yard line and had two shots at the endzone. Following an incompletion on a quick pass to the sideline, Ahlers heaved the ball into the endzone and it fell just through Johnson's hands and out of bounds before time ran out.
The Pirates return home to Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium Saturday, Nov. 7, for an American Athletic Conference matchup with Tulane. The game is scheduled for 12 noon and will be streamed through ESPN+.
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October 31, 2020 at 01:37PM
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ECU Falls Just Short At Tulsa - East Carolina University Athletics - ECUPirates.com
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