GREENVILLE, N.C. — Zah Frazier had two interceptions and UTSA posted 456 yards of offense, but East Carolina rallied from a 10-point deficit for a 30-20 victory in the American Athletic Conference opener for both teams on Saturday afternoon at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium.
The Roadrunners (2-3, 0-1) built a 13-3 first-half lead but the Pirates scored 24 unanswered points and held off a late UTSA rally to improve to 3-2 on the season.
Frazier became the fifth Roadrunner to record two interceptions in a game and the first since Clayton Johnson in 2017 to help UTSA extend its streak of consecutive games with a takeaway to 15. Martavius French paced the defense with eight tackles, including six solo stops and one tackle for loss, while Jamal Ligon became the second UTSA player to reach 300 career tackles after logging five, including a sack, to go with a forced fumble and one quarterback hurry.
Offensively, UTSA passed for 286 yards and rushed for 170. Brandon High Jr. led the ground game with 92 yards and a touchdown on just seven attempts, while Willie McCoy caught four passes for 91 yards. Owen McCown completed 24 of 49 passes for 251 yards and a TD and Chris Carpenter led all receivers with six catches for 61 yards.
The Pirates struck first, converting a UTSA turnover near midfield into a 21-yard field goal by Noah Perez that was set up with a 35-yard pass from Jake Garcia to Yannick Smith.
The Roadrunners responded with a field goal of their own, as Chase Allen split the uprights from 23 yards to cap a 70-yard drive that was highlighted by a Willie McCoy 66-yard reception.
UTSA took a 10-3 lead after Oscar Cardenas hauled in a TD pass on a third-down-and-goal attempt from the 5-yard line late in the opening quarter. That score was set up by a 35-yard reception from Kevorian Barnes on a screen pass from Eddie Lee Marburger, who entered the game for one play after McCown lost his helmet.
Allen pushed the advantage to 13-3 in the second quarter to cap a 14-play, 75-yard march that took more than seven minutes off the clock.
ECU pulled within three points in the final minute of the first half when Garcia scored on a 3-yard quarterback keeper.
The Pirates took their first lead of the day on their opening drive of the second half, as Winston Wright Jr. got loose on the right sideline for a 40-yard score. Perez’s PAT made it 17-13.
ECU used another long pass completion to extend the lead to 24-13 late in the third quarter when Garcia found Anthony Smith open down the right sideline for a 53-yard score.
The Pirates tacked on another field goal from Perez, this one from 42 yards that made it 27-13 with 11:51 left to play.
UTSA cut the deficit to seven when Brandon High Jr. broke free on a 66-yard touchdown run on a fourth-and-one play. Allen’s extra point put the score at 27-20 with 10:38 remaining.
Garcia threw for 294 yards and a pair of TDs on 17-of-35 passing, while Rahjai Harris rushed for a team-high 60 yards on 25 carries.
The Roadrunners will have next weekend off before returning to league play with a road game against Rice on Saturday, Oct. 12.
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