East Carolina @ Connecticut preview

Last Meeting ( Oct 29, 2016 ) Connecticut 3, East Carolina 41

East Carolina will have Thomas Sirk back under center when it visits Connecticut in the American Athletic Conference opener for both teams Sunday. Sirk sat out with a concussion as the struggling Pirates watched No. 13 Virginia Tech score the final 57 points in a 64-17 loss.



The Huskies were also hammered last week, falling at Virginia 38-18 as the Cavaliers' Kurt Benkert threw for a program-record 455 yards. "There were some good things that happened (against Virginia) but there were a lot of bad things,” Connecticut coach Randy Edsall told reporters. East Carolina defeated the Huskies 41-3 last season as the home team won for the third straight time in the series. Sunday's game was originally scheduled for Nov. 4, but moved as part of a shake-up to get UConn's postponed game with South Florida back on the schedule.
TV: Noon, ET, ESPNU. LINE: UConn -4.5

ABOUT EAST CAROLINA (0-3): East Carolina raced out to a shocking 17-7 lead against Virginia Tech last week before collapsing and the Pirates have been outscored 154-51 so far, also losing to James Madison and West Virginia. Sirk, a dual-threat in the backfield, passed concussion protocol before last week's game but the team elected to hold the Duke graduate transfer out another week. “Coming off what could have been a concussion (at West Virginia) and me going through the protocol and making sure I passed everything, just made a decision that I didn’t want to jump in there too soon and maybe be out three or four games or maybe the rest of the season, so I think it was a smart move,” Sirk told reporters.
ABOUT UCONN (1-1): Bryant Shirreffs was 18-for-26 passing for 227 yards and led the Huskies with 90 yards rushing on 14 carries against the Cavaliers. The Huskies have gotten very little out of senior running back Arkeel Newsome, who was one of the nation's leading all-purpose backs last season. Newsome has rushed 14 times for 17 yards on the season and has five catches for 85 yards without a touchdown.

EXTRA POINTS
1. UConn has lost seven straight games against FBS schools with its last victory coming against Cincinnati at home in October 8, 2016.
2. Huskies RB Nate Hopkins rushed for 130 yards and scored three touchdowns in the team's season opener against Holy Cross but gained only 34 yards on 10 carries without a score against Virginia.
3. East Carolina S Tim Irvin left last week's game with an ankle injury but will play Sunday.

PREDICTION: UConn 20, East Carolina 17