Who’s Playing
SMU Mustangs @ East Carolina Pirates
Current Records: SMU 3-2, East Carolina 1-4
How To Watch
- When: Thursday, October 12, 2023 at 7:30 p.m. ET
- Where: Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium — Greenville, North Carolina
- TV: ESPN
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Follow: CBS Sports App
What to Know
The SMU Mustangs and the East Carolina Pirates are set to square off in an American Athletic battle at 7:30 p.m. ET on October 12th at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. SMU is hoping to put an end to a four-game streak of away losses.
Two Saturdays ago, SMU strolled past Charlotte with points to spare, taking the game 34-16.
SMU can attribute much of their success to Jaylan Knighton, who rushed for 150 yards and two touchdowns on only 11 carries. One of Knighton’s best plays was a 95 yard sprint for a TD in the third quarter. Preston Stone also helped with two touchdowns in total.
Meanwhile, East Carolina started off well but failed to capitalize on an early lead against Rice. They took a 24-17 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Owls two Saturdays ago. East Carolina gained 114 more yards than Rice, but the latter made more effective use of their yardage.
SMU’s victory lifted them to 3-2 while East Carolina’s loss dropped them down to 1-4.
While only SMU took care of their fans the last time they played, neither team managed to cover. Looking ahead to Thursday, they are the favorite in this one, as the experts expect to see them win by 11 points. This will be their first time playing as the favorites on the road this season.
Here’s a few offensive stats to keep an eye on ahead of Thursday’ game: The Mustangs haven’t faced much difficulty moving down the field this season, having averaged 433.8 total yards per game. It’s a different story for the Pirates, though, as they’ve been averaging only 300.2 per game. Given SMU’s sizeable advantage in that area, East Carolina will need to limit their effectiveness. Check back here after the action for a full breakdown and analysis of the contest.
Odds
The over/under is set at 50.5 points.
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Series History
East Carolina and SMU both have 2 wins in their last 4 games.
- Nov 28, 2020 – East Carolina 52 vs. SMU 38
- Nov 09, 2019 – SMU 59 vs. East Carolina 51
- Nov 12, 2016 – SMU 55 vs. East Carolina 31
- Oct 03, 2015 – East Carolina 49 vs. SMU 23
