An apparent snub from the Big East hasn't seemed to register with coaches and players in the East Carolina football program. Their focus is understandably elsewhere. The Pirates are all in for a crucial game in Conference USA.

ECU's pending showdown with Southern Miss is the type of game for which players spend hours in the offseason lifting weights and running. It's the kind of game that makes coaches put in extra hours recruiting, looking at film and refining game plans.

It's a game that makes fans glad they've already got their tickets.

The winner of the 4 p.m. matchup on Saturday at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium in Greenville will get an inside track in the Conference USA East Division race. Currently, the teams are tied atop the division standings with 3-1 records. The winner will go forward with control of its own fate in terms of reaching the C-USA championship game on Dec. 3.

The Golden Eagles (7-1 overall) certainly appear formidable. Since its only loss, 26-20 at Marshall on Sept.10, USM has reeled off six straight wins and risen to No. 24 in the USA Today coaches poll and No. 25 in the Bowl Championship Series standings. Southern Miss is road tested, having posted impressive triumphs at Virginia (30-24), Navy (63-35) and just last week at Texas-El Paso (31-13).

USM is favored in Las Vegas by 8.5 to 9.5 points over the Pirates.

ECU's three previous meetings with Top 25 teams this season — South Carolina (lost 37-56), Virginia Tech (lost 1 0-17) and Houston (lost 3-56) have not gone the Pirates way — but a three-game winning streak has given ECU (4-4) some needed confidence and momentum.

The Pirates and Golden Eagles were doing battle long before becoming members of Conference USA. The series dates back to 1951 when East Carolina sustained a 40-0 thrashing in Hattiesburg. The historical tendencies don't favor the Pirates. Southern Miss leads the series 26-10 and is a remarkable 14-3 in Greenville.

Pirates coach Ruffin McNeill, who was in the Pirates program from 1976 to 1979, has first-hand experience as a player in the rivalry.

"We have to make sure we're mentally and physically prepared," McNeill said. "All games are big and this is a significant game because it's a conference game and it helps the team that wins this game contend for the conference championship."

The Pirates have won the last two against the Golden Eagles, using a blocked conversion kick return by C.J. Wilson in a 25-20 triumph at home in 2009 on their way to a second straight C-USA championship. ECU came back from a 20-0 first quarter deficit to deal Southern Miss a 44-43 loss at home last season.

Lance Lewis caught a pair of 46-yard touchdown passes from Dominique Davis in the Pirates' 2010 comeback. Jonathan Williams had an 89-yard kickoff return for a score. Michael Bowman caught the winning 32-yard touchdown pass.

If the Pirates need motivation other than the implications in C-USA, they've never beaten USM three straight times in the series. East Carolina's back-to-back wins in 1973 and 1976 were followed by a 17-16 Southern Miss win in Hattiesburg in 1978. After the Pirates won in 1994 and 1995, the Golden Eagles took a 28-7 win in Greenville in 1996.

Lewis doesn't want to be faced with another come-from-behind scenario as the Pirates were able to pull off on the road last year.

"We've got to start fast," said ECU's career leader in touchdown receptions. "Last year, they put points on us faster than we could blink. We can't have that happen again because they've got a good offense and a good defense, too. It's going to be a good game. If we start early, it's going to be a great game."

Davis, who finished 18 of 36 for 305 yards with four touchdowns and three interceptions at USM last season, knows the importance of this year's game.

"It's a game we need to get to the conference championship," said the ECU quarterback. "They're very physical and they blitz a lot. They play hard the whole game. You can't let up for one play. It's pretty much the same defense and the same scheme. We'll focus on us like we do every week and execute."

Eagles flying around

Southern Miss is definitely located in football country about equal distance from Tuscaloosa (182 miles) and Baton Rouge (167 miles), the respective homes of Alabama and LSU, who will play "the game of the century" at Alabama on Saturday night.

Those aren't the distances that concern Golden Eagles coach Larry Fedora, whose team returned from a 2,250-mile round trip to UTEP before preparing for a 1,700-mile round trip to play the Pirates.

"I put a lot of thought into all of this a long, long time ago when the schedules came out and how we wanted it to play out," Fedora said. "So, we've had a plan all the way up to it, as far as knowing what time we would get back from El Paso and what time we're playing this Saturday and working everything off of that."

Fedora said practice time was adjusted.

"We cut back (Sunday) night and did some things a little easier, gave them some more rest time and all those things to get the players back fresh," said the Eagles coach. "But, we'll expect to go in there Saturday ready to roll."

Defensive changes for the better

East Carolina allowed opponents 478.77 yards per game in 2010, ranking 120th and last in the Football Bowl Subdivision in total defense.

This year, despite a demanding schedule, the Pirates are yielding 378.75 yards per game and are 56th in the FBS in total defense. ECU has changed personnel and scheme, factors that drew comment from Fedora.

"They are doing quite a bit more (this year compared to last)," said the USM coach. "They've gone to a three-down front for one thing. They are doing a lot more with their defense. Last year, they were four-down, quarters coverage, didn't change a whole lot. They just played base defense. This year, there is a lot more movement, a lot more guys moving around on the field with their front, with their backers, with their secondary, everywhere. So, it makes it a little bit more difficult."

Dress for the weather

It seemed that many ECU fans were not prepared for the cooler conditions that pervaded Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium during a 34-13 win over Tulane last Saturday and they headed for the exits early.

The National Weather Service is projecting a temperature reading of 58 degrees at kickoff this Saturday with winds six to seven miles per hour out of the northeast. The thermometer will probably drop into the lower 50s with the winds remaining six to seven mph out of the northeast by game's end.

Pirate fans should dress accordingly so they can go the distance in comfort.

State Line Power Rankings™

1. South Carolina ... Gamecocks ascend to the top spot in the SEC East they relinquished after losing to Auburn.

2. Clemson ... Tigers tumble against Georgia Tech and take their first loss.

3. North Carolina ... Tar Heels use big plays and five turnovers to subdue Wake Forest.

4. Wake Forest ... Deacons face major regrouping task with Notre Dame coming to town.

5. East Carolina ... Pirates need to continue winning ways in big C-USA matchup with Southern Miss.

6. Duke ... Blue Devils battled Virginia Tech close with no cigar.

7. N.C. State ... Seminoles smack Wolfpack, which needs a quick turnaround against UNC-Chapel Hill.