There was no game in college football scheduled between 7:30 and midnight but mother nature gave us a little AAC after dark with a 5-hour weather delay. From a neutral standpoint it was worth the wait.
The over 5-hour delay seemed to get to Houston early, As the committed 3 penalties for 25 yards on ECU’s opening drive and the Pirates put a field goal on the board for an early 3-0 lead. The highlight of the 27-point first quarter was a 98-yard kick return for a touchdown by Houston’s Marcus Jones, and Houston led 17-10 after one. The story of the second quarter was the defenses, as the only score was set but by a Jayce Rogers strip of Tyler Snead that set up a 14-yard touchdown from Clayton Tune to Nathaniel Dell and the Cougars took a 24-10 lead into the locker room.
After both defenses standing tall the Pirates score twice in less than a minute to tie the ball game at 24 with 5:43 left in the ball game. After a couple of missed field Goals by Houston kicker Dalton Witherspoon the game went to OT. On the first play of OT Houston running back Alton McCaskill who had been held to 35 yards on 11 carries went 25 yards for the score. Houston came up with a huge fumble on ECU’s possession to win the game 31-24. The ECU defense played the best they’ve played all year holding the Cougar offense to just 3.9 yards per play. But It wasn’t enough to pull off the upset. The Pirates host the Bulls of South Florida on Thursday night.