The East Carolina Pirates and the Memphis Tigers are set to square off in an American Athletic matchup at 7:30 p.m. ET Oct. 15 at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. Given that these two teams suffered a loss in their last game, they both have a little extra motivation heading into this matchup.
East Carolina suffered a bitter loss last week, failing to capitalize on an early lead against the Tulane Green Wave. The Pirates took a hard 24-9 fall against Tulane. No one had a standout game offensively for East Carolina, but WR C.J. Johnson led the way with one touchdown.
Meanwhile, Memphis entered their contest against the Houston Cougars last Friday without any home losses -- but there's a first time for everything. Memphis lost 33-32 to Houston. The Tigers were up 14 to nothing at the end of the first quarter but couldn't hold on to the lead. The losing side was boosted by RB Gabriel Rogers, who threw one touchdown.
Special teams collected 14 points for Memphis. K Chris Howard delivered a perfect 4-for-4 game.
East Carolina is the favorite in this one, with an expected 5-point margin of victory. Those burned by picking them against the spread last week might want to keep in mind that the team has not yet dropped back-to-back games against the spread this season.
East Carolina is now 3-3 while Memphis sits at 4-2. A couple defensive stats to keep an eye on: The Pirates enter the game with only four rushing touchdowns allowed, good for 23rd best in the nation. As for the Tigers, they come into the matchup boasting the 25th fewest rushing yards allowed per game in the nation at 109.7. Looks like the running backs might have a tough go of it.