UAB and ECU Renew Conference Series After 13 Year Break

By Steve Irvine

October 14, 2026 - BIRMINGHAM, AL

There’s a lot of unknown for both UAB and East Carolina as they prepare to play a football game against each other for the first time since the Pirates beat the visiting Blazers 63-14 in 2013.

For the record, the head coaches in that 2013 game were UAB’s Garrick McGee and East Carolina’s Ruffin McNeil and the teams were members of Conference USA. Obviously, there has been a ton of change since the most recent meeting. But unknown is often a familiar feeling in today’s college football world.

"I think when you talk about playing an opponent repeat years, there's so many factors that go into it,” UAB head coach Alex Mortensen said. “There's the coaching part of it. When you play a team — like take, you mentioned Navy — they've kind of been the same on defense for some time. So there is some carryover and there's a repeat history there where you have some familiarity. And then sometimes you play teams, you might play them every year, but they're totally different because the coaching staff changes and then these rosters are getting churned up significantly every year. So it’s almost like you're playing a new team.”

Last week’s Battle for the Bones rivalry loss at Memphis is a perfect example. UAB and Memphis renewed the rivalry when the Blazers joined the American Conference in 2023. They’ve played three years in succession, including the upset victory over the Tigers at Protective Stadium in 2025. But there was very little carryover from the Memphis teams of 2025 and 2026. Basically, Mortensen and his staff prepared to play a new team.

“I think sometimes you can make a little too much of it if you're playing someone — like take ULM,” Mortensen said of game that UAB won 24-20 on Sept. 12. “They had two new coordinators on each side of the ball and a bunch of new players. So that's like totally different situation. It's like you might as well be playing a different team and that's kind of how this game is.”

East Carolina head coach Blake Harrell has been with the program since becoming the defensive coordinator/inside linebackers coach in 2020. He took over as the interim head coach on Oct. 20, 2024 after Mike Houston was fired and was elevated to permanent head coach after leading the team to wins in the next four games. But he is working with a pair of new coordinators this season and a bunch of new players. Defensive coordinator Jordon Hankins is in his first year at ECU after spending five seasons at Memphis and offensive Jordan Davis came over after three seasons at North Texas.

“I'll say this, you turn the film on, coming off watching Memphis, who's got good players,” Mortensen said. “(You) put this film on and go, 'Wow, they've got a good roster.' It's very clear that they've got really good players on defense, especially on their defensive front. Coach Harrell being a defensive coach, I'm sure has put a great emphasis on that. And then with Coach Hankins being there too on defense, we had to coach against him last year and they've had one of the best defenses in the league at Memphis. So there is some carryover, but gosh, you're mixing and matching coaches, players. It's kind of like you really, I think, have to start pretty fresh on it."