BYU is headed to East Carolina this weekend in search of a 3-0 start — and a bit of belated revenge.
The Cougars haven’t defeated the Pirates in 10 years, having dropped each of the past two matchups in embarrassing and devastating fashion.
In fact, East Carolina is one of just three current Group of Five programs that hold an all-time winning record against BYU (minimum two games played), along with Nevada and Boise State.
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Additionally, while the Cougars are 34-4 in night games since 2019, one of those four losses came against the Pirates.
This current ECU squad should be BYU’s most formidable challenge thus far in the young campaign. It will be Bear Bachmeier’s first experience playing on the road as a college quarterback, along with the first time Jay Hill’s defense will face a truly potent offense in 2025. The stakes are high.
Here’s a look back at the previous clashes between the Cougars and Pirates before they face off Saturday.
2015: BYU wins 45-38 in Provo
The first meeting between the Cougars and Pirates was definitely the craziest.
East Carolina came out swinging with two first-quarter touchdowns, with the second coming on a blocked Jonny Linehan punt. BYU responded with 28 straight points and eventually led 38-21 after 45 minutes of play.
Starting quarterback Tanner Mangum suffered a hamstring injury, however, and was replaced by Beau Hoge early in the fourth quarter. Hoge immediately struggled, allowing the Pirates to score 17 unanswered points and tie the contest at 38 with a few minutes remaining.
Mangum then came back into the game and orchestrated a 10-play, 75-yard drive ending with an Algernon Brown touchdown in the final seconds to give the Cougars the win.
Brown ran for 134 yards and three touchdowns on the night, with Mangum throwing for 332 yards and three scores of his own.
Devon Blackmon led BYU in receiving with nine catches for 142 yards, future All-Pro Fred Warner snatched an interception on defense and Linehan even picked up a first down with the first fake punt attempt of his storied career.
2017: East Carolina wins 33-17 in Greenville
BYU and East Carolina were each sitting at 1-6 at the time of this matchup as two of the worst teams in the country, but there was a sliver of hope that the Cougars could salvage their season in Greenville.
Yes, BYU was riding a six-game losing streak, but four of the losses had come against Power Five opponents and the other two against solid rivals in Utah State and Boise State. Some believed the lighter back half of BYU’s schedule could right the ship for the Cougars, especially against a Pirates defense that was allowing 50 points and 600 yards per game.
Nope.
BYU managed only 17 points — with seven coming in garbage time — against the previously putrid ECU defense, falling 33-17 to clinch the program’s fifth losing campaign since 1972.
“In a season filled with humiliating setbacks, this one may have been the most humiliating,” wrote Deseret News sportswriter Jeff Call at the time. “In fact, this was one of the program’s most humiliating losses in decades.”
The Cougars and Pirates were tied 10-10 at halftime, only for ECU to score 23 unanswered points in the second half to officially sink BYU’s season.
A year before becoming a star under Mike Leach at Washington State, Pirates backup QB Gardner Minshew entered the game in the fourth quarter and torched the Cougars to the tune of 121 yards and two touchdowns.
BYU did put up a season-high 421 yards of offense, but it meant nothing considering the lack of points scored.
Tanner Mangum threw for 319 yards with two touchdowns and a pick, while Aleva Hifo caught nine passes for a career-best 148 yards.
If not for BYU’s 16-10 debacle at home against UMass 28 days later, falling to ECU would have been the Cougars’ signature loss of 2017.
2022: East Carolina wins 27-24 in Provo
Similar to 2017, BYU entered its 2022 encounter with the Pirates on a major losing skid.
The Cougars were in the midst of a winless October, having gone 0-3 against Notre Dame, Arkansas and Liberty as their severe defensive woes were put on full display.
The defense continued to be problematic against East Carolina, as running back Keaton Mitchell torched BYU for 176 rushing yards on 21 carries.
But the Cougars ran for 244 yards of their own, and Jaren Hall connected with both Puka Nacua and Chase Roberts for touchdowns to keep things tight.
Everything came down to a Pirates fourth-and-8 situation with 40 seconds remaining, where BYU defender Kaleb Hayes was flagged for pass interference to gift ECU a new set of downs and set up a game-winning 33-yard field goal as time expired.
It was the most demoralizing loss of the year for the Cougars, who clinched a brutal 0-4 October and fell to a startling 4-5.
But BYU wouldn’t lose again in 2022, upsetting Boise State on the road a week later to begin a season-ending four-game win streak.
Perhaps the heartbreaker against ECU sparked BYU’s hot finish. Either way, the 2025 Cougars would certainly like to plunder the Pirates this Saturday to remain unbeaten this year — and settle the series score.
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