Inside Game Day Saturday, November 28, 2015 By Al Myatt

Another Senior Day heartbreaker

Al Myatt
©2015 Bonesville.net
All rights reserved.

Audio: Coach Ruff postgame...

Postgame photo gallery...

GREENVILLE — Cincinnati provided some unwanted deja vu as East Carolina was trying to nail down a bowl bid and send its seniors out in style Saturday at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

For the second straight year, a play as time expired was the difference maker in a loss on Senior Day for the Pirates.

Andrew Gantz was once again a villain for ECU.

Gantz hit a 47-yard field goal with 15 seconds left last year in Cincinnati to put the Bearcats ahead 48-46. The final margin was 54-46 in 2014 as a gadget play by the Pirates led to a game-ending fumble return by Cincinnati for a score.

Central Florida spoiled Senior Night for ECU last year with a Hail Mary for a 32-30 win as time ran out.

The difference a year ago was that the Pirates had already secured bowl eligibility. The season continued with a 28-20 loss to Florida in the Birmingham Bowl.

At 5-7 overall and 3-5 in the American Conference after Gantz hit from 42 yards for a 19-16 Cincinnati win, it doesn't appear that a postseason trip is in store for the Pirates.

"We talked about it a little bit on our (AAC athletic directors) call this week," said ECU AD Jeff Compher. "It's possible that some 5-7 teams will get bids. I don't know where we would fit in on that process. I would say it's possible but unlikely."

There are 80 postseason slots for teams in the Football Bowl Subdivision.

The Bearcats, regrouping from a 65-27 loss at South Florida last week, took control of the matchup by controlling the line of scrimmage as the game progressed.

There was a lot of emotion as East Carolina bid farewell to 18 seniors.

The Pirates took a 3-0 lead on the game's opening possession after a 39-yard kickoff return by Trevon Brown.

ECU drove from its 39 as far as the Cincinnati 1-yard line before settling for a 20-yard field goal by Bobby Plowman with 11:17 left in the first quarter.

The Pirates pushed the lead to 10-0 on a 10-yard scoring pass from Blake Kemp to Davon Grayson with 6:55 left in the opening period. The play was initially ruled an incompletion with pass interference but it was overturned for a touchdown after review. The TD followed a three and out by the ECU defense.

The 94-yard scoring drive included a 13-yard run by Anthony Scott, an 18-yard completion to Grayson, a 13-yard keeper by Kemp and a 17-yard pass to Isaiah Jones, who finished with 12 catches for 124 yards.

ECU had a 182-67 lead in total yardage in the first quarter.

An 8-yard pass from Gunner Kiel to Shaq Washington completed a 13-play, 90-yard drive for the Bearcats with 10:47 left in the first half. The Bearcats missed the extra point, leaving ECU with a 10-6 lead until Cincinnati went ahead 13-10 on a 1-yard scoring run by wildcat quarterback Mike Boone with 7:28 left in the third quarter.

The Bearcats took a 16-10 lead on a 50-yard field goal by Gantz with 26 seconds left in the third quarter.

Cincinnati outgained ECU 129-34 in the third quarter, outrushing the Pirates, 80-7.

ECU tied the score at 16 as it used James Summers, primarily a running quarterback, on a 2-yard touchdown pass to Bryce Williams in a fourth-and-goal situation with 10:36 remaining. The 78-yard drive accounted for the bulk of ECU's 113 yards in the second half.

Plowman missed the extra point to leave the score knotted after 15 yards were tacked on for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on Summers. He apparently reacted as Silverberry Mouhon of the Bearcats was disqualified for targeting.

Cincinnati had 20 minutes, 59 seconds of possession in the 30 minutes of the second half.

"They've got size up front and mass up front," said Pirates coach Ruffin McNeill. "That's an NFL line they've got."

ECU, on the other hand, was missing starters Dontae Levingston, Quincy McKinney and Christian Matau from its offensive line.

"The whole key to the game the second half was we were able to run the ball," said Cincinnati coach Tommy Tuberville. "They had 44 snaps in the first half and I told the offense if we don't get control of the ball in the second half we couldn't win the game.

"We had to be able to run the ball. They had 44 in the first half and had just 25 in the second half. That was the difference in the game."

Kemp completed 33 of 50 passes for 315 yards and one touchdown. The Pirates played turnover free.

Mike linebacker Zeek Bigger was disappointed at the outcome of his last game, as seniors Shane Carden, Justin Hardy and that group were a year ago.

"That's how football is sometimes," Bigger said. "It's like life. You have to keep fighting."

E-mail Al Myatt.

PAGE UPDATED 11/29/15 01:43 PM.