NFL Tickets
Flying under the radar as one of the teams in the nation that has the ability to surprise some people, the East Carolina Pirates are looking like a serious threat to make a run at a top bowl game. Sure, they still have a long way to go, but the Pirates are quickly becoming a team that nobody wants to face.
The SMU Mustangs have had the exact opposite luck as the Pirates, starting the season 0-4 with one of the worst offenses in the entire nation. It has been a long season already for the Mustangs and we aren’t even halfway through the year.
East Carolina has one of the best unknown quarterbacks in the nation. Okay, so Shane Carden isn’t unknown to the hardcore college football fan, but for the casual fan who knows nothing about the Pirates, he is someone you want to keep an eye on. The senior stud leads the sixth-ranked passing offense in the entire nation with 1,469 yards and 11 touchdowns to go along with three picks while completing 62 percent of his passes. Justin Hardy and Isaiah Jones both lead all receivers with 29 catches apiece; Hardy has 359 yards and two touchdowns while Jones has 323 yards and three scores. Cam Worthy is close behind those two with 302 yards and a touchdown on 11 catches while Trevon Brown leads the team with four touchdown catches with 11 snags and 206 yards. The run game ranks 46th in the nation behind Breon Allen‘s 346 yards and three touchdowns.
The Mustangs have had one of the least effective offenses in all of college football this season, ranking 111th in passing yards, 126th in rushing yards and dead-last in the nation in points per game. Southern Methodist is led by junior quarterback Garrett Krstich who has taken over in the team’s third game, taking a majority of the snaps lately for the Mustangs. Krstich has passed for a less-than-impressive 279 yards and an interception while completing a mere 50 percent of his passes. Der’rikk Thompson leads all receivers with 12 catches for 191 yards while Stephen Nelson is the next closest receiver with 11 catches for 100 yards. Nate Halverson is the only wide out with a touchdown catch this season on eight catches for 82 yards. Kevin Pope leads the run game with 101 yards on 30 carries and no scores.
Defensively, the Mustangs have been even worse than they have been on offense — if you can even believe that. Southern Methodist ranks dead-last in the nation in points allowed per game with over 50 and second-t0-last in total yards allowed per game with 551. East Carolina, on the other hand, ranks 44th in the nation in total yards allowed per game while also ranking 67th in points allowed per outing. The crowd at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium will be rocking for this one-sided matchup.
The Mustangs will travel to East Carolina to take on the Pirates at 12 p.m. EST on Saturday, Oct. 4. The game will be broadcasted on ESPNU.
PREDICTION: SMU 14, East Carolina 42
Want to see the Pirates host the Mustangs in week six? Check out ScoreBig for tickets.
Connor Muldowney is a columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @Connormuldowney, “Like” him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google. You can also reach him at [email protected].
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