I moved to Greenville in 1989. This is like Warner Brothers losing Mel Blanc. The game will never sound the same.

Tremendous loss. I feel like I've lost a close friend

...cold comfort, but it'd have been worse had he transferred, which is what I was actually worrying about, and it's also why I disagree w/ your theory (respectfully!) He'd have had the new, watered down American (sorry; it's true) for breakfast, lunch and dinner next year. I'm not blaming Mitchell, Blake Proehl, Tyler Sead and JuQuan McMillen, all HUGE early departures over the past couple of years, but then it feels like they just disappear, and you never see 'em on the NFL stage, adding to the frustration. Between that and the portal, college coaches can NEVER rest.

Don’t disagree. I do wonder if almost always being wary of the o-line collapsing in front of him played a major part in his decision-making. It’s no secret that more times than not, KM turned chiken$#!t into chicken salad despite the failure of the o-line. KM took a pounding almost every game. I believe he decided to go while he is healthy, and I wish him well. This is NOT an indictment of the o-line, which did up their game at times during almost every contest, just i/m/o, not much upside for KM to stay in this day and time. Good luck, KM.

Nothing that's said about KM's departure makes a difference, of course, and I appreciate its understated treatment here, but the word "catastrophic" comes to mind. That he'd have been on the 2023 Heisman Watch list is almost a certainty.

For all of the heart and soul that Hoton Ahlers invested into ECU football, his final performance is richly deserved. The next step for the program is for it to find its way into the rankings, and to be there at the end for the conference championship. (In terms of conference prestige, the American would've been better off sticking with the 8 remaining original members alone.) The critical factors for next year are Mason Garcia's ability to fill the void that HA's departure creates, Keaton Mitchell staying put in Greenville, and overhauling the secondary. (Last night would've been much closer had McCall not gone down, though I don't see a different final result.) With Mitchell, Harris back and Gunn's continued development, I would expect the Pirates backfield to be the best in the conference by far.

Holton is the man who dads want their kid to be one day! Great leader! Hope he decides to Coach, we need that kind of Man teaching our children! Thank you Mr.Ahlers!

There are those in Pirate Nation who will take the time to find faults in the Pirates victory over CC last night. From the venue, the “Birmingham Bowl”, to the apparent lack of discipline (11 penalties) of the Pirates, you can choose to find fault. I choose to celebrate! The Pirates put an exclamation point on their 7-5 season, which included its’ share of disappointment. There will be, and in deed, should be a thorough critique of, “The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly”, that was 2022 Pirate football. For now, I say thank you to HA for his toughness, resilience, and leadership. For all of the players who “bought in” to a culture and pushed on, thank you. I think there are plenty of reasons to look forward to 2023, but for now, I just say, “Thank You”!!!

Thanks, Sammy Great report, love your work.

Welcome home. I hope you have a good spring and get the chance to compete for a starting gig. The Pirates need A LOT of help upgrading their coverage capabilities. Remember, CBs require a very short memory and the ability to immediately step up again. Don’t just “get acquainted” this spring. Seize it. Make it yours. Best of luck!!!

Thanks, Sammy

Let’s hope he has some cover skills. ECU needs some people on the back end who can actually cover receivers one-on-one to allow options for five rushers to make an opposing qb get rid of the ball. Whether Coach H or the DC want to admit it, the Pirates are almost always overmatched in the secondary by any decent qb/receiver combo. As close as the Pirates were to a 10 or 11 win season, they were equally close to a 5 win season. The offense can’t always bail out a porous secondary.

...agreed that this should be taken as a "must win", but the opening line has ECU by 7.5, meaning that in some sense, the value of a Pirates win is not a whole lot more than just treading water.

So many positives here fellas. Regional matchup, I'm actually pretty excited about it. Coastal has been pretty solid in case you haven't noticed. Nat Championship in Baseball too. Should be a fun game and well attended. Warmer destination, and actually a pretty fun town to visit. We have come so far from where we were.... Has everyone forgotten the low point of Aggies' coming to G'vegas and winning? I never will. We compete now and the future looks bright with Houston at the helm. He is building a solid program and we are foolish to do anything other than recognize it and get behind him and our Pirates!!! Let's Go!!! Blessing to have the opportunity!!

This is a must win game, to be taken seriously. ECU was ahead of TCU at the point when we lost to TCU in Mobile in '99. We were ahead of Marshall when we lost to the Herd in 2001, S. Florida had no real bowl history when they beat us in 2006. We beat Boise St. in 2007 and they have not run really run far past us nor has UL-Lafayette though they beat us in 2012, plus we kept Ohio behind us by winning in 2014. W had our chances to prove it to the SEC in 2009, 2010, 2015. Interestingly we lost 2 bowl games in 2010. ECU is much better than that. We must take this game very seriously to keep Coastal in the rear view mirror.