Rahjai Harris raced 86 yards for the go-ahead touchdown with 1:33 remaining and Dontavius Nash intercepted with 44 seconds left as a 26-21 East Carolina win over N.C. State in the Military Bowl on Saturday took its place in series lore.
Harris ran for a career high 220 yards on 17 carries in his last college game.
The matchup was as heated as ECU’s 32-14 win in Raleigh in 1987, which resulted in the suspension of the series because of physical hostilities in the aftermath and it equaled the drama of a 37-34 Pirates triumph in the Peach Bowl to cap the 1991 season.
Emotions overflowed and there were numerous confrontations that resulted in eight players being ejected with 38 seconds to go as ECU was in the process of running out the clock. The Pirates had three players disqualified, according to an announcement from referee Jon Noli.
Umpire Rod Tucker received a welt under his left eye.
“We’ve got to be smarter in that situation,” said ECU coach Blake Harrell, who took over as interim coach on Oct. 20 and was named to take the post officially in late November.
Offensive coordinator John David Baker put together a bowl package with more running from quarterback Katin Houser. who had 84 yards on 13 keepers. Houser ran 19 yards for the game’s first score with 4:44 left in the first quarter to complete a 75-yard drive after a fourth down stop by the Pirates on the first series of the game.
ECU, a 7-point underdog, took a 10-0 lead when Noah Perez kicked a 24-yard field goal with 7:17 left in the half. The Wolfpack pulled within 10-7 when freshman quarterback C.J. Bailey hit Dacari Collins for an 8-yard TD with 1:58 before halftime.
Perez connected from 42 yards with six seconds showing to give the Pirates a 13-7 lead at the break.
ECU had the first possession of the second half and drove 75 yards to extend its lead to 20-7 on a 4-yard carry by Houser.
State resorted to some trickery to take a 21-20 lead in the fourth quarter. The Pack picked up a first down on a fake punt on a series that culminated with a 15-yard scoring strike from Bailey to Justin Joly with 13:04 to play.
A flea flicker off a reverse resulted in a 33-yard TD pass from Bailey to Hollywood Smothers with 9:49 to go.
Houser was picked off twice by Tamarcus Cooley before the defense forced a punt that provided possession at the ECU 14. On 3rd-and-10, Harris lined up to the right and took an inside handoff around the left side. He made a moved at midfield before outrunning pursuit to the end zone.
ECU went for a 2-point conversion, but Casey Kelly couldn’t hang on to Houser’s pass.
State moved from its 42 to the ECU 38 before Nash made a diving pick after Bailey was pressured by Elijah Morris.
ECU overcame the absence of some key personnel that had opted for the NFL draft or the transfer portal.
“We’ve been talking the past three months about playing together, playing with effort and playing with energy,” said Harrell on the Pirate radio network. “Nobody plays harder than the Pirates. That’s what we wanted to do today.
“We set the tempo for that early and we finished in the fourth quarter.”
The Pirates had an apparent scoop and score called back after Bailey was stripped near midfield with about two minutes to go. Officials ruled that Bailey’s forward progress had been stopped before he lost the ball, although he was not down.
After a punt and two incompletions, Harris took off for the game winner.
“Just insane,” Houser said. “We got off to a good start and then had a lull in the second half. Rahjai finished that run and sealed the deal.”
The American Athletic Conference improved to 5-1 in bowl season while the Atlantic Coast Conference slipped to 1-9.
Houser completed 18 of 29 for 147 yards.
Jhari Patterson had eight catches for 30 yards. Yannick Smith had three receptions for 56 yards. Former State player Anthony Smith had three catches for 32 yards.
Defensive back Omar Rogers led ECU with eight tackles, including three solo stops.
Bailey completed 19 of 26 for 230 yards with three scores and the outcome-sealing interception.
ECU (8-5) had a 473-428 lead in total yards. The Pirates were 12 for 16 on third down conversions compared to five of 12 for the Wolfpack (6-7).
Harris passed on personal credit for the thrilling run that brought joy to the Pirate faithful among a crowd of 23,981 at Navy-Marine Corps Stadium. Ironically, the venue was the site of ECU’s only scoreless game since 1997 during a 2-10 season in 2023.
Despite intermittent rain, there was light from above — especially for Harris.
“When I grew my relationship with God, everything got better,” Harris said. “I also give everything to Pirate Nation.
“I got my degree from here and I give everything to them. We just have to leave this place better than we found it, and that’s what we did tonight.”
The Pirates and the Wolfpack are scheduled to line up again in the 2025 season opener in Raleigh on Aug. 30.
ECU trimmed State’s lead in the series to 19-14.
More photos from the game:
Congratulations to the Pirates for overcoming themselves, and finishing off the season with a bang! Typical of the season, the Pirates had to mix some bad play in with the good. Fortunately, there was more good than bad. So happy for RH. What a way to finish your career with the Pirates. No question about it, this is Blake Harrell’s team, now. Whether the Pirates can successfully navigate the minefield that is today’s college football remains to be seen.
As to the ugliness that marred the ending of the game, there has to be serious consequences for the players who disrespected their schools. For me, #61 for the Pirates should be dismissed from the team. A replay showed him being the cause of an injury to a game official.
The ugly ending aside, what a great way to end a tumultuous season.
Get a life.
What a memorable and well deserved ending to a tumultuous season for the Pirates; congrats and well deserved most especially to Rahjai Harris, whose dedication to his craft was rewarded in Annapolis after climbing the mountain of his ACL injury. He was trending upward the latter part of the season, as was the OL in front of him, and I was actually expecting him to have a big game, though not necessarily the utterly legendary game that he played.
The defense too was monstrous once again.
Thank God for Harris’ 86 yard signature run most especially given the referees’ MONUMENTAL miscall of the ECU scoop and score shortly before it, an inarguably blown call of game reversing proportions at the time. CAN SOMEONE PLEASE TELL ME WHY THAT WAS NOT REVIEWED?? THE WHISTLE HAD NOT BLOWN WHEN THE STATE FUMBLE OCCURRED.
Coach Harrell has plenty of work before him to rebuild the roster for next season, but Houser would seem to have done enough at least to have the Q spot locked down, and I like the way the OC exploited his running ability yesterday, also a huge difference maker in the game; but mostly there’s lots of hope that Coach has restored a winning culture. Go Pirates!!