My thought has always been that Coach Houston should get back to a bowl next year in order to retain his position. His overall body of work at ECU has been mixed, at best. 6 - 6 is a VERY modest goal on an absolute basis, but relative to where his tattered offense stands today, it is difficult, yet that is what accountability is all about.

I hope by “immediate turnaround” you mean 6-6 or 7-5, as a very respectable mark. The Pirates have a long way to go, and a short time to get there - as the song goes. Seeing real progress toward what will eventually result in major success is a reasonable expectation. Expecting a miracle season coming out of the 2023 debacle isn’t reasonable, although like you, I too hope for that miracle. Coming out of the gate in 2024 with a disciplined, cohesive offensive unit, that continues to make gains through the season is a high mark. It goes without saying that Pirate Nation expects the defense to at least maintain its level of performance in ‘24… if the coaching staff can keep it intact.

...not trying to be negative, but a 3 - 5 year plan in response to a 2 - 10 season after being at the helm for 5 full seasons at a very handsome salary does not get it done; Coach H. owes the institution an immediate turnaround.

No doubt Coach Baker will bring infectious youthful energy to go with the results everyone mutually wants - it happened with Lincoln Riley and Coach Ruff recognized that going into it. No reason not to expect a similar outcome over a 3-5 year plan. Merry Christmas Pirates.

Jeter was recruited as a 3-star Q. We know nothing about him because he never saw the field, but maybe that in itself says something. ...will be interesting to see how this plays out, but there's a LOT of work ahead for Coach over a short timespan to get his boss off the hot seat. If the D can manage to stay largely intact, then there's hope.

I like the expressed urgency. It implies the willingness to fit the talent on hand into a system which will allow for whatever level of aggressiveness the unit can handle. Also, the recognition of needing a leader at qb, not necessarily the most talented, is key. I hope Baker can find that someone in the portal, and convince him to come to ECU; like Russell Wilson going to Wisconsin back in the day. Of course, Wilson proved to be very talented… so finding someone with the smarts AND talent would be huge. I know it seems like the Pirate offense needs a complete overhaul, but I think the right concepts could achieve reasonable success in short order.

Excited!!! Go Pirates! Believe in Houston!! Good coach , better person !!

Can you please discuss what QB’s are expected to be available nationwide when the transfer portal opens up? Also which ones ECU has a chance of landing? Thanks! Tim Slavin

The only selling point ECU has for potential offensive talent is the “you can play now” mantra. However, what skill players want to come into a situation where the QB is a big maybe. I don’t question Flinn’s desire or guts, but unless the playbook changes, he doesn’t have the talent. Garcia is the RPO man, because he possesses a true run threat, coupled with the cannon that can really keep a secondary honest. However, at this point, I wonder if he stays. Not being a part of the action at all down the stretch has to be crushing him. I hope something breaks his way, if not at ECU, then elsewhere. The OC hire has to be someone who can come in without a set playbook, evaluate what he has on hand, and put the best combination of eleven players he can on the field. Because of this year’s disaster, there will be no honeymoon. The Pirates have to keep the potential returning talent on defense in the house. Adding a true edge rusher would take some pressure off the DC, with respect to always needing a scheme to create pressure on the offense. If the Pirates can return the injured underclassmen to the defensive field, the experience gained by the young guys could pay huge dividends.

well said, 2 wins in 2024 may be a high hurdle of achievement based on all the factors you cite. We will have a lame duck coach, a 2nd or 3rd rate OC that just needs a paycheck and is unwanted elsewhere, a TBD QB who will have to learn a brand new system (as will the rest of whatever offensive talent we can muster). On the defensive side of the ball I can't blame any talented underclassmen who jump to the portal. Overall the defense played their butts off this year with zero support from the offense and a mixed bag special teams effort. Gonna be a LONG 2024.

If there was any doubt about D. Kirkpatrick’s fitness to be fired (which there shouldn’t have been), then he put it to rest when he handed his last game away with that thoroughly unnecessary, inexplicable, asinine failed trick play call late in the 4th, with the game being all but on ice for the Pirates. What’s arguably worse than the Debacle of 2023 that ECU has just completed is that there’s no reason today to expect better next season. While ECU maybe has three or four individual offensive players who are decent and should be able to help them to win, there’s no evidence that they have a true foundation upon which to build, unless maybe Jeter can be that; but one would think that if he can, then he’d have seen the field this year. Since he didn’t, is he another Q flop? Regarding the OL, while ECU was FINALLY able to run vs. Tulsa, the Tulsa defense has an extremely low ranking, so little should be taken from that; on balance, the OL did not improve over the season. After 5 seasons, Coach Houston has a .413 winning percentage, not nearly commensurate with his $2.3M yearly take. He’s put himself squarely on the hot seat with an offensive wasteland in tow looking at 2024 (no. 128 out of 130 in the nation), needing a complete overhaul in a major hurry, sufficient for a bowl at minimum, failing which he should be released. That insecurity alone will likely make it very difficult to secure a quality Offensive Coordinator, and added to it is the very legit question of defensive players and the (sparse) offensive talent portal defections to avoid another season of futility.

I suppose it’s only fitting that the Pirate offense should finish the way it did. On a day in which it managed over 400 total yards while having three turnovers, and another possession taken away by a fumbled punt return, the offense shook a little more salt into the wound with a last-play fumble. Actually, the last two offensive plays by the Pirates were typical of the season as a whole. On a third and 1-1/2 - 2 yds to go, DK calls for the RPO with Harris running into the mosh pit at the middle of the line for no gain. It was not an aggressive RPO call that would put Tulsa under some pressure, rather more like a, “if we get it fine, if not, punt” sort of calls. Given the relative success Flinn had when he rolled out, one might think you could have put Tulsa under a little more pressure while instructing Flinn to be extra careful. But no, the Pirates appeared happy to punt the ball away and count on the defense. And, it worked. Having an otherwise mediocre performance, the defense came through when it counted most. Now, with only 3 minutes and change left to play, DK decides to run some Wildcat… and the rest is history. If you had run the Wildcat a couple of times during the game with proper execution, then anybody could understand using it again. Another questionable play call, in a year full of unanswered questions for the offense. Nice to see the solid rushing attack, and it didn’t look like RPO to me. GOOD LUCK to the seniors, and thanks for all of your efforts. I wish DK well, but I am not unhappy he is moving on…

This has been a tough year to say the least. I did not really expect us to have 8 or 9 wins, but I certainly expected 5 or 6. It appeared to me we have some talented players, but for some reason we just did not play well. A lack of experience? I do not know but thank God we had a decent defense. Good Lord willing, things will get back on track next season. ECU_VOL

Another issue that has gotten little attention (probably because it must compete with many other issues) is observations that I've been hearing that the receivers, besides pass catching issues, are simply unable to get separation, so when a pocket forms, and it definitely does, now and then, there's just nowhere reasonable for Flinn to put the ball. Would that be lessened if Flinn was better? Yes, but still... ...and yet another kind of scary question that keeps rattling around in my brain is why Jeter hasn't taken the field, especially since his redshirt protection is no longer an issue (and is very arguably a much smaller issue these days anyway, given the Portal effect.) Is it a Mason Garcia II situation? Yes, the future holds many questions and a boatload of work for DK's heir, but as far as I'm concerned, this should be Mike Houston's one and only do-over; he needs to remain on the hot seat.

The reason DK is being dismissed is not the bad record, per se. It’s the process which has played out this season for the offense, resulting in the dismal record to date. His inability, or intransigence - take your pick - to make major changes to the concepts he and his staff attempted to install, resulting in repeated inept performances, which proved to be the last straw. Mike Houston is a loyal guy, and perhaps to his own detriment, allowed this season to play out in order to give DK a chance to put a decent product on the field. The Pirate offense has multiple problems. The first, and foremost i/m/o, is the failure in talent evaluation. The O-line’s failure to noticeably improve on their run game blocking through the season, regardless of shuffling the personnel, does not bode well for the future. No one expected 200 yards rushing per game this year, given the necessity of integrating so many new players into the system. However, last Saturday’s continued failure to provide even the semblance of a run game exhibits a chilling lack of progress. Yet, throughout the year, game after game, the same RPO fiasco returned to the field. Certainly, every opponent has a say in what plays out on game day, but at some point, you have to accept the fact you’re the biggest problem, not your competition. Without a legitimate threat in the run game, the Pirate version of RPO consistently operated behind the chains, putting a lot of pressure on inexperienced quarterbacks and receivers to continuously move the sticks. When your opponents don’t have any respect for your ability to run the ball, they will live in the offensive backfield, putting constant pressure on the qb. Combine this with Garcia and Flinn being mostly inaccurate, and receivers dropping catchable passes, you get the inevitable poor results. My big complaint, why keep doing the same thing over and over? I don’t care how good it looks in practice, if you can’t get your unit to bring “it” to the game. Dumb it down to basics, if that’s what it takes to give the team a chance to win. The Pirates have good running backs, why couldn’t you try a play-action, quick hitting run concept? Pirate Nation would have appreciated the efforts, even if the record didn’t change. At least you tried.