Keys to the Game Saturday, October 3, 2015 By Kevin Monroe

East Carolina at Southern Methodist

4 pm | Gerald J. Ford Stadium (32,000) | TV: ESPNN

By Kevin Monroe
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East Carolina comes into today's game at Southern Methodist with a hard-to-decipher 2-2 record. After opening at home with a with a win over FCS opponent Towson in a game that was a lot closer than expected, the Pirates traveled to Gainesville and outplayed expectations in a close loss to the Florida Gators. It has been that type of season through four games. SMU has had similar ups and downs after going toe to toe with Baylor for a half and then losing to FCS foe James Madison last week.

Both ECU and SMU have a lot to prove. Who will show up and get the much needed win? To bring a win back from Dallas, the Pirates will need to follow this script:

STAY FOCUSED

Observers of the Pirates, from media to fans, have directed much of their attention during the past week to what a great victory ECU had over Virginia Tech last Saturday. It was an important win over a Power 5 opponent, but this week is a new week and SMU isn't thinking about what the Pirates did last week. The Mustangs have a goal to beat ECU in an American Athletic Conference game and have been game-planning all week to do just that.

The Pirates must move on from last week's glory and come into this game focused solely on what they have to do to defeat the Mustangs on the road. A lack of concentration by any one player on any one play might mean the difference in the game.

MAKE WAY FOR THE RUNNING BACKS

In game one vs. Towson, the Pirates ran the ball very well with Chris Hairston. ECU has recorded less than 100 yards total from the running back position over the three-game span since then.

The good news is the Pirates were able to get a running game going last week against the Hokies – but the running game came from the quarterback position. Both Blake Kemp and James Summers had rushing touchdowns. Summers ran for 169 yards, averaging around 10 yards per carry.

Tech had no answers for the QB run, but now that it's on film SMU will have some defensive adjustments ready for it. The Pirates will have to block better up front and the quarterbacks will need to carry out their fakes in order to find a way to give the running backs some space.

FINE TUNE THE QB PLAY

It's too early to say that ECU has a quarterback controversy. Both Kemp and Summers are trying to find their way after being forced to step up after designated starter Kurt Benkert went down with a knee injury.

Kemp has had his ups and downs. In his debut against Towson he was accurate and protective of the football, but he had a fumble and a pick in each of the next three games.

Summers played very little in the early contests but had his coming out party against the Hokies last week. That being said, he wasn't forced to throw the ball much and hasn't had the pressure of playing as the starter yet.

Both guys seem to get along well and ECU will probably need both of them to play well if they are going to be successful this season.

BOTTOM LINE

This is a big game for both teams. The Mustangs need a win because they had a bad loss last week against James Madison and their season is heading in the wrong direction. The Pirates need this win to get their first back-to-back victories and to fuel their conference aspirations.

ECU will win this game if it comes in focused, gets some production from the running back spot and gets solid play from its quarterbacks.  It should be a fun one to watch. The Mustangs have some good talent on offense and can score at any moment, but so can the Pirates.

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PAGE UPDATED 10/03/15 04:11 AM.