ECU at Rice: Final Game Day Predictions
East Carolina opens American Athletic Conference play at Rice on Saturday in Houston, Texas. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET (6 p.m. CT) inside Rice Stadium, with the game set to be televised on ESPN+.
ECU comes in at 1-3 overall. This will be the first conference game in 2023 under fifth-year head coach Mike Houston. The Pirates defeated Gardner-Webb 44-0 last weekend to wrap up non-conference action. Rice comes in at 2-2. The Owls lost 43-29 at USF a week ago in their conference opener, losing starting quarterback JT Daniels to an injury in the process. Daniels is questionable heading into this week’s game. Rice, which defeated Houston earlier this year in overtime, enters the game at 2-2 (0-1).
With it being game day, it’s time for our final picks as always from the Hoist The Colours staff, featuring publisher Stephen Igoe, and contributors Cason Remaley and Griffin Myslewiec.
STEPHEN IGOE (2-1 on predictions this season)
The Daniels situation makes this a tough one to predict, as I really do think his presence or not could be a deciding factor in this football game. Either way, we will find out a lot more about this ECU defense, but especially if he plays. ECU’s staff went out and recruited a lot of transfers and developed a lot more lengthy defenders this offseason for these types of games, especially after struggling so much against pass-first teams in 2022.
ECU can still win this game, regardless of whether or not Daniels plays. But the Pirates will likely have to score points, perhaps into the 30s. Can they do that? That’s the ultimate question, even with a potentially vulnerable Rice defense.
Overall, I’ve got very mixed feelings about this contest. I think it’s a close to a toss up that will come down to a handful of plays. But I just have a feeling the Pirates get it done, and start AAC action 1-0.
ECU 31, Rice 28
CASON REMALEY (2-1 on predictions this season)
I will be the first to say, I was very wrong last week with my prediction. The Pirates stunned me with an offensive explosion, scoring a season-high 44 points. The defense played great, forcing the first shutout in some time. This was a major confidence boost for the Pirates and could not have come at a better time as they are headed to Houston to face the Rice Owls today. The Pirates have had some challenges this week in terms of preparing for Rice because of the uncertainty of JT Daniels. This is the 3rd road game this season for the Pirates, and they have not fared well in those games. I think the health of Alex Flinn is also a concern and could see Mason Garcia getting some reps early. If the defense can hold up like they did last week and can keep giving the offense a short field they have a chance to win. But in the end, I think the Pirates drop another one on the road.
Rice 35, ECU 20
GRIFFIN MYSLEWIEC (2-1 on predictions this season)
The 2023 ECU Pirates can indeed play good football. Was it against an FCS team? Yes. But all that matters is that this team got the first win out of the way and won’t have a winless season looming over them for conference play.
I think this is a very favorable conference opening matchup for the Pirates. The Owls of Rice have already opened up their time in the American Conference with a loss to USF and their former 5-star QB, JT Daniels, is still listed as questionable. Without him I believe this team lowers a lot of its value and ability on the offensive side of the ball. But let's not act like the Pirates have given us 2 good halves of football against an opponent with more than 3,400 students yet. I do think the momentum from the GW game will help, especially defensively for ECU, and the USF loss really hurts Rice.
Look, if ECU figures it out I do think they can pull out a win, but unfortunately I'm very nervous they haven't figured anything out. Beating the only FCS opponent on your schedule does boost the confidence but how far does it get you fundamentally? While I do think Daniels availability majorly affects the outcome of this game, I may regret doing this again but…
