HOLTON AHLERS

Desmond Ridder threw two touchdown passes and No. 4 Cincinnati completed a perfect regular season by beating East Carolina 35-13.

Cincinnati wide receiver Michael Young Jr. holds the ball up as he scores a touchdown during the first half of the team's NCAA college football game against East Carolina, Friday, Nov. 13, 2020, in Cincinnati. 7 Cincinnati rout East Carolina 55-17 on Friday night. In Cincinnati's three-point victory over East Carolina last year, the Pirates scored 43 points and piled up 638 yards. Ridder's 16-yard scramble on third-and-12 set up Jerome Ford's 24-yard touchdown run, and Tre Tucker's 45-yard touchdown reception highlighted a 28-point second quarter. BIG PICTURE:East Carolina: Linebackers Bruce Bevins and Dre Terry were ejected for targeting within about five minutes in the second quarter.

head coach Charlie Strong of the South Florida Bulls paces during warm-up before the game against the Marshall Thundering Herd in the Gasparilla Bowl at Raymond James Stadium on December 20, 2018 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by JulioGREENVILLE, N.C. - South Florida and East Carolina look to even their records Saturday afternoon when they meet up in Greenville, N.C. LINE: USF -2"We ran out of time," East Carolina first-year head coach Mike Houston told reporters afterward. "We just couldn't convert enough there in the second half. "The second half should give our guys confidence that they can compete," Houston said.

GREENVILLE, N.C. South Florida and East Carolina look to even their records Saturday afternoon when they meet up in Greenville, N.C. LINE: USF -2"We ran out of time," East Carolina first-year head coach Mike Houston told reporters afterward. "We just couldn't convert enough there in the second half. "The second half should give our guys confidence that they can compete," Houston said. We've got to go out and we've got to play together and do the things we do on the practice field.

Now, coming off a bye, the Knights have a chance to rebound and win their 19th straight home contest against East Carolina on Saturday night. ABOUT EAST CAROLINA (3-3, 0-2 AAC)Quarterback Holton Ahlers has thrown just six touchdowns on the season to five interceptions, though he had his best game of the year in the team's most recent contest against Temple. Wide receiver Gabriel Davis has been on the other end of eight scores, tied for eighth best in the nation. The Knights rank third in the nation in total offense despite being 120th of 130 teams in time of possession. PREDICTION: UCF 55, East Carolina 16More college football scoresCopyright 2019 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit - All rights reserved.

Head coach Scottie Montgomery of the East Carolina Pirates looks on in the second half against the Virginia Tech Hokies at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium on September 16, 2017 in Greenville, North Carolina. (Photo by Michael Shroyer/Getty Images)GREENVILLE, N.C. - Teams looking to regroup following blowout losses to begin the season square off Saturday when FCS member Gardner-Webb visits East Carolina. "This is not a losing football team," Ahlers, who has lost six of the seven games he has started for East Carolina, told the media. East Carolina has lost two straight games to teams from the FCS after winning 25 straight against such programs. PREDICTION: East Carolina 37, Gardner-Webb 20More college football scoresCopyright 2019 by WDIV ClickOnDetroit - All rights reserved.