Up front, the Pirates are extremely inexperienced. According to Ruffin McNeill, ECU has the third fewest returning starters on the O-line in the nation. Aside from sixth-year senior Doug Polochak (6-4, 303, Sr), ECU starts four sophomores up front. Tech dominated an inexperienced line last week, and I would expect something similar this week, but probably not as lopsided. Last year, the Hokies sacked Davis three times, which is tough to do against any line in this type of scheme. Expect a lot of contain from the defensive ends, keeping Davis in the pocket and forcing him to run up the middle, if needed, into the teeth of the Tech linebackers.

However, the focus of the Tech defense should be ECU's wide receivers. Gone is NFL draft pick Dwayne Harris, and in steps Lance Lewis (6-3, 209, Sr). Last week, Lewis caught 13 balls for 108 yards and 2 touchdowns. He set the ECU single-season record with 14 touchdowns last season. There's a lot of depth at the position, which is needed for a team that runs a base 4-wide set. Seven different players caught a pass last week, including Justin Hardy (6-0, 181, Fr). He was Davis' second favorite target, hauling in 11 balls for 91 yards and a TD in his first collegiate action. The key for the Pirate offense is to get the ball to the receivers quickly in space and let them make the plays. South Carolina stopped that last week, holding ECU to 7 yards per completion.

The Pirates need him to be good, because they don't have a lot of experience elsewhere. Prior to last week, none of ECU's four running backs had seen extensive playing time at the D-1 level. ECU doesn't run the ball a lot, but if they do it will primarily be dives out of the shotgun or read option plays. Reggie Bullock (5-9, 176, Jr) is a transfer from junior college and was touted as the C-USA Newcomer of the Year entering the season. He'll get a bulk of the carries.

To help change the tone in Greenville, Ruffin McNeill switched from a 4-3 alignment to a 3-4, which gives the Pirates more speed on defense and better fits their personnel. Despite having more speed, ECU is still extremely young in the front seven. The Pirates two-deep defensive line features just two upperclassmen, with one being a backup. Defensive end Derrell Johnson (6-1, 263, So) was the only player to record a tackle for loss and sack against South Carolina, indicating the Pirates still weren't able to get a big push up front. The key will be how much pressure this unit gets while battling an experienced and cohesive Tech O-line.

At linebacker, the Pirates follow a similar theme of quality talent, but little experience. Cliff Perryman (6-1, 224, Sr) has the most experience of the unit, but is currently listed as a co-starter with Marke Powell (6-3, 222, Jr) at outside linebacker. At the other OLB slot, transfer Chris Baker (6-3, 238, Jr) made his first appearance with the Pirates since coming from Juco and is listed as a co-starter with Justin Dixon (6-1, 252, So). Expect all four to see legitimate action Saturday. In the middle, Daniel Drake (6-0, 237, Jr) and Jeremy Grove (6-1, 230, Fr) led the team in tackles last week with 14 and 12, respectively. Both are raw and probably won't see as much action with the Hokies trying to get the ball to the outside and not favoring the middle as much as South Carolina.

The secondary has the most experience with three senior starters. Cornerback Emanuel Davis (5-11, 182, Sr) was a preseason first-team All C-USA selection this year, but was suspended for the South Carolina game due to his June arrest for "intoxication, disruptive in public and resisting a public officer." At the field corner, Derek Blacknail (5-11, 175, Sr) is in his second year as starter, but made this transition from boundary to field in the offseason. Bradley Jacobs (5-10, 210, Sr) makes up the final third of the senior secondary trio. The strong safety forced two fumbles against Tech last year in his first full season as a starter. Damon Magazu (5-11, 199, So) is the new starter at free safety. He was one of just three true freshmen to see action last season.