news-record.com

MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Quarterback Patrick Pinkney ran for two touchdowns to help East Carolina beat Memphis 38-19 Tuesday night.

Dominique Lindsay ran for 139 yards for the Pirates (5-3, 4-1 Conference USA), who warmed up for a game against No. 14 Virginia Tech by rolling up nearly 500 yards on one of the country's worst defenses.

"Last night in the hotel room (Giavani Ruffin) and I talked about what we were going to do tonight," Lindsey said of his road game roommate. "We knew that the offense was going to be leaning on the run and we talked about how we needed to take care of things out here tonight."

The Tigers, who rank 106th in total defense, fumbled twice to set up early scores for East Carolina.

Will Hudgens completed 33 of 48 passes for 313 yards and two touchdowns for the Tigers (2-6, 1-4), who turned the ball over four times.

Pinkney completed 14 of 27 passes for 216 yards and a touchdown, and was picked off once. His only carries were scoring runs of 23 and 3 yards, and he wasn't sacked.

Ruffin ran for 87 yards and a late third-quarter touchdown that helped the Pirates pull away and take over the lead in C-USA's East Division.

"It was great to have him back out there because he's such a warrior," East Carolina coach Skip Holtz said. "Giavani Ruffin came out really strong for us, too. That's what we envisioned when we brought him here — a big back that could get tough yards for us."

The Pirates still have to face Southern Miss Nov. 28 in a game that will probably decide a spot in the championship game. East Carolina also has to travel to Tulsa and get past UAB at home.

Before that, they'll face the Hokies, who have the nation's eighth-ranked pass defense — a much stiffer test than the Tigers provided.

Memphis allows 400 yards per game on average and has turned the ball over 19 times in eight games.

Two fumbles on consecutive possessions put the Tigers in a big hole early.

Chris Hobbs lost the handle on a first-quarter punt return and Justin Brockmeyer recovered at the 10. Two plays later Dwayne Harris dove into the end zone on an 8-yard run from a direct snap out of the wildcat formation.

On the first play of the second quarter, a fumbled lateral to running back Curtis Steele was scooped up by safety Levin Neal at the Pirates 30. Eight plays later, Pinkney dashed in from the 23 and East Carolina was up 21-3.

Hudgens found Carlos Singleton for a 14-yard touchdown pass before halftime and the Tigers opened the third quarter with a field goal, but Ruffin and Pinkney scored quick TDs late in the quarter to put the game out of reach.

"East Carolina does a really nice job of being a team that doesn't make mistakes to lose the game," Memphis coach Tommy West said. "We couldn't be that team to beat that team."

East Carolina 14 7 14 3 — 38
Memphis 3 7 3 6 — 19

ECU—Pinkney 3 run (Hartman kick)
Mem—FG Reagan 26
ECU—Harris 8 run (Hartman kick)
ECU—Pinkney 23 run (Hartman kick)
Mem—Singleton 14 pass from Hudgens (Reagan kick)
Mem—FG Reagan 45
ECU—G.Ruffin 19 run (Hartman kick)
ECU—Freeney 31 pass from Pinkney (Hartman kick)
Mem—Rucker 43 pass from Hudgens (kick blocked)
ECU—FG Hartman 48
A—4,117.

TEAM STATISTICS

First downs — ECU 25, Mem 23
Rushes-yards — ECU 47-275, Mem 25-84
Passing — ECU 222, Mem 313
Comp-Att-Int — ECU 15-28-1, Mem 33-49-1
Return Yards — ECU 7, Mem 18
Punts-Avg. — ECU 5-53.0, Mem 4-51.0
Fumbles-Lost — ECU 0-0, Mem 4-3
Penalties-Yards — ECU 9-89, Mem 7-49
Time of Possession — ECU 33:13, Mem 26:47

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS

RUSHING
East Carolina — Lindsay 22-139, G.Ruffin 14-87, Pinkney 2-26, Harris 3-19, Rogers 5-6, Team 1-(minus 2).
Memphis — Steele 15-79, Pitts 6-22, L.Smith 1-2, Hudgens 1-(minus 2), Calhoun 1-(minus 6), Team 1-(minus 11).

PASSING
East Carolina — Pinkney 14-26-1-216, Jordan 1-1-0-6, Team 0-1-0-0.
Memphis — Hudgens 33-48-1-313, Team 0-1-0-0.

RECEIVING
East Carolina — Freeney 5-116, Harris 5-56, Bodenheimer 1-14, Bryant 1-13, Gidrey 1-9, Lindsay 1-8, Taylor 1-6.
Memphis — Calhoun 9-91, Singleton 9-70, Rucker 5-89, Onarheim 2-21, Joachim 2-16, Farr 2-10, B.Hall 2-4, Ray 1-7, Steele 1-5.