It was a long night for the Pirate faithful in Greenville as the East Carolina (0-1) football team was never able to find its footing offensively and defensively had difficulties stopping a James Madison (1-0) team that gained over 600 yards of offense on its way to a 34-14 victory at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

The Dukes were able to get inside of the red zone multiple times in the first half but were unable to convert. JMU head coach Mike Houston was proud of how his team played through these setbacks. "My fear was we were playing so well but we were making critical mistakes so your fear is you play well and lose the game. I was glad that our kids didn’t get frustrated and didn’t get down, kept plugging, kept their heads down and I think their character and resiliency is what really stuck through in the first half."

It was a close game that was only a 7-0 affair at the half, but James Madison was able to lay it on in the second half, rushing for over 300 yards and outscoring the Pirates 27-14 over the final two quarters.

"It’s very disappointing. For some of our first-time starters, their nerves were much bigger than we thought. We put them in scrimmage situations to get to this point and we just didn’t respond. I thought our offensive line play was poor," stated ECU coach Scottie Montgomery after the game.

Although Western Alamance's Darius Pinnix scored his first career TD on a six-yard run in the third quarter to make it a one-possession game, the Pirates were unable to capitalize on this momentum and allowed the Dukes to rattle off three more scores before former Havelock standout Derrell Scott scored his first career rushing TD in the fourth quarter. By this time, it was too little, too late for the Pirates to recover.

James Madison’s 614 total yards are the sixth most by an ECU opponent in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. Their 424 rushing yards are the eighth most allowed by ECU in school history, while it is the fourth most ground yards by an opponent at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.

"I thought our defensive line did some really good things and created some spots for our linebackers to get off the spot but we had a poor game all the way around. 600-plus yards of offense to our 300-plus yards of offense, but it was about how many plays they had and how many plays we had and what they did with their plays," Montgomery mentioned after the game.

The Pirates had their five-game win streak snapped in season openers as well as their 25-game winning streak against FCS opponents. The Pirates how now lost twenty-three straight games when scoring 20 or fewer points.

East Carolina returns to the gridiron next Saturday in Morgantown, West Virginia to take on a Mountaineer team looking to challenge for a Big XII title.

10. Independence at Vance

Independence, winners of seven straight state titles a few years back, appears to back to their old ways under coach Bill Geiler.  Vance, two years removed from a state semifinal appearance, is in its first year under coach Keith Wilkes.

9. East Lincoln at Bandys

East Lincoln has scored 35 and 61 points in their first two games of the season, including a win over 4A Hopewell last week.  Bandys has yet to give up any points this season and is looking to ride its defense to another victory.

8. Orange at Carrboro

Carrboro has won each of their first two games by an average of 25 points.  Orange hasn’t given up a point in either of its first two games.

7. Maiden at Hickory

This Catawba County rivalry features two teams who are 1-1, facing tough losses in Week 1, and rebounded with wins last week.  Each team features a new head coach looking for their teams to make a statement in non-conference play. 

6. Pinecrest at Cox Mill

Cox Mill has scored 53 and 35 points in their first two games respectively without giving up a point on defense.  Pinecrest is coming into the game at 1-1, losing only to title contender Jack Britt.  Pinecrest won last year’s matchup 40-8 and the Chargers are looking for revenge.

5. Cummings at Western Alamance

These two Alamance County rivals have split their last two matchups.  Cummings is looking to compete for a conference title and has state title aspirations.  Western Alamance is seeking to return to their success of the last decade, where the Warriors made four straight title game appearances.

4. Burns at Mooresville

Coach Matt Beam’s Burns Bulldogs have been one of the most consistent 3A programs in western North Carolina over the last five years.  Mooresville shook off a loss to West Rowan in Week 1 to beat South Mecklenburg 35-14 last week.  Both teams are looking to build on regional final appearance from last year.

3. Thomasville at Andrews, T.W.

Thomasville has one of the toughest non-conference schedules in the state.  While 0-2, the Bulldogs look to rebound against the Red Raiders, who are coming off a win over 4A Ben Smith last Friday night.

2. Southern Nash at Bunn

The Southern Nash schedule did the team no favors by having them open up the 2012 season with three games on the road.  But, the Firebirds won their first two games and are looking to start 3-0 again for the fourth straight year.  But, standing in their way are the Bunn Wildcats, looking to bounce back after a tough loss last week to R.L. Fike.

1. Middle Creek at Fuquay-Varina

These two teams battled last year for the Tri-Nine conference title, each finishing 7-1 in conference play.  The Bengals and the Mustangs faced off against each other twice last year.  Middle Creek got the win in Week 3 last year in a thrilling 48-47 overtime win.  The two teams met again in the second round of the 4AA playoffs, with the Mustangs winning again.  These two teams have fought battles over the last few years and this week should be no different.