Among the many quality mid-major football programs in the South, the East Carolina Pirates stand out from the pack. It’s long been difficult to find cheap East Carolina football tickets, as the Pirates are a proud program that’s unafraid to test themselves against the big boys. ECU has produced over a dozen All-Americans in its history and has become no stranger to competing for bowl bids or conference championships. With a lot of history and yearly matchups against power-conference opponents, last-minute East Carolina football tickets are always in high demand.

The Sensational 70s

East Carolina football rose to prominence for the first time in the 1970s. Sonny Randle took over the program in 1971 and led the Pirates to Southern Conference titles in 1972 and 1973 before moving onto Virginia. He was followed by Hall of Fame coach Pat Dye, who coached ECU to a 48-18-1 record in six seasons. Dye’s tenure included another Southern Conference title in 1976 and a win in the Independence Bowl in 1978, making East Carolina one of the most overlooked programs of the 1970s.

90s Magic

East Carolina hit some hard times in the 1980s, but the Pirates rose to prominence again in the 90s. Head coach Bill Lewis spent just three seasons at ECU but led the Pirates to an 11-1 season and a win in the Peach Bowl in 1991. East Carolina finished the season ranked in the top-10 for the first time in program history. He passed the torch to Steve Logan, who proceeded to take ECU to five bowl games over his 11 seasons while also helping the Pirates gain entry into Conference USA.

American Pirates

In 2014, East Carolina took another step forward when they joined the American Athletic Conference. Largely considered the best of the non-power conferences, the AAC has proven to be a great challenge for the Pirates. However, East Carolina has always survived rough patches and gone on to become a proud program. There is little doubt the Pirates will one day become a force to be reckoned with inside the American Athletic Conference.