New coach Kris McCullough took over in March after Al Johnson left the Tiger helm after four years. McCullough has been at ECU since 2018 when he started as the Quarterback Coach & Special Teams' Coordinator. He later served as offensive coordinator and was the assistant head coach in 2021.
"We are really excited to get the season rolling. The thing I like most is the brotherhood that each player shares with the team. We need to build trust and know each other has their teammate's back " McCullough said. "Our players had a great camp, and we want to build something special here at ECU. "
ECU has 16 starters back from 2021 which finished the season with a record of 7-4 in the Great American Conference. The Tigers posted their first winning season since 2015.
McCullough is designing a multi-personnel spread offense designed to play at high rate of speed.
"We've got playmakers in many places. Our job is to get it to them as often as we can," he said.
Quarterback Kenny Hirncir, (6-0, 205, Jr., Needville, Texas) will again direct the team on offense. Hirncir had his best season last year by completing 153-of-290 (52.8%) passes for 2,175 yards and 18 touchdowns. His best game came in the season finale 30-28 upset win over Southeastern Oklahoma State. He finished with 423 total yards (363 pass and 60 rush) and scored four touchdowns (two rushing and two passing).
"Kenny has grown as a leader on and off the field," McCullough said. "He knows what everyone's job is. He really does well at improvising. He is a playmaker who can make positive yards even if a play is breaking down."
ECU's top pass-catcher wide receiver JayQuan Lincoln (6-0, 190, Sr., Lawton) returns. Lincoln has caught 74 passes for 1088 yards and six touchdowns. He owns three 100-yard receiving games in his career, including a 117-yard, six-catch effort against Northwestern Oklahoma State.
Add wide receivers Jackson McFarlane (5-10, 190, Sr., Ada), Greg Howell (5-10, 170, Sr., Chicago, Il.) and Jake Berrey (6-5, 210, Sr., Purcell) and the Tigers will have several dependable receivers who should contribute to the passing game. McFarlane has moved up the depth charts in his career and will be a starter after catching twenty-six passes for 262 yards and two touchdowns. Howell was the team's long-ball threat averaging 24.7 yards on 10 receptions. Berrey had seven catches for 125 yards and caught two touchdowns in the victory over Arkansas-Monticello.
Tight Ends Jordan Jacobs and Jackson Allen will battle it out for the starting spot. Jacobs was a backup Tight End a year ago while Jackson Allen is a transfer from Texas A&M Commerce.
RB Miles Davis (5-9, 170, Jr., Lawton) led the team with 559 yards on 103 carries while scoring six touchdowns. He had back-to-back 100-yard rushing games finishing with 163 yards against Oklahoma Baptist and 112 against Southwestern Oklahoma State. He would have had a third but fell short rushing for 99 yards the following week against Ouachita Baptist.
Also in the backfield, ECU will use RB Nemier Herod (5-10, 190, So., Teague, Texas). Herod was impressive in his freshman campaign averaging 5.4 yards per carry. He ended the year with 286 yards on 53 attempts with two touchdowns.
Offensive line should be a strength with all-conference player LT Anthony Wright (6-4, 320, Jr., Midwest City) and RT Colby Thomas (6-3, 290, Aledo, Texas) both expecting to set anchors at the tackle spot. Returning starter Nathanyl Caballero (6-2, 300, Benbrook, Texas) and Montana State-Northern transfer Tristin Willis (6-3, 290, Jr., Mt. Vernon, Wash.) will start the two guard positions. Northeastern A&M transfer Max Johnson (6-2, 300, Jr., Jenks) will be the center.
"Our offensive line has made the most improvement of any group this fall," McCullough said. "They now better know what is expected of each player. They work together as a collective unit and have a lot of pride in what they're doing."
DEFENSE
Defensively, ECU should again be among the better teams in the GAC. Last season, ECU finished fourth in the league allowing only 371 yards per game.
"What I like defensively is our speed. They fly to the football," McCullough said. "We are expecting to create turnovers. They can punch the ball out, and we've practiced the tip-drill extensively."
All four starters return in the defensive backfield including cornerback Jalen Baldwin (5-10, 170, Sr., Houston), SS Cody Alexander, CB Keonte Lusk (5-10, 180, Jr., Everman, Texas) SS Cameron Jones (6-0, 190, Sr., Sulphur), are back. Baldwin was named to the all-conference team after finishing the season with 40 tackles. His five interceptions were the most in the GAC. Baldwin has started every game since his freshman season in 2018. He has 124 career tackles and seven interceptions.
"There's a reason J-Bal was selected as a team captain and voted to wear the defensive No. 1 jersey" McCullough said. "He has been a great leader of this team and the great defense that we have built here at ECU."
Alexander, who transferred from Lincoln University in 2022, is the team's top-returning tackler. He finished second on the team with 65 stops. His best game came against Ouachita Baptist when he finished with 11 tackles, including two for a loss.
Lusk had 38 tackles and was the team leader with eight pass breakups. As a freshman in 2019, he played in 10 games with two starts and finished with 23 tackles. Jones is in his sixth and final season after being redshirted in 2017 and gaining an additional year in 2020 with the cancellation of the year because of COVID-19). He played in eight games and finished with 46 tackles and one interception
Great things are expected from all-conference linebacker Michael Onwuzurike (6-1, 230, So., Allen, Texas) who sparkled as a freshman. He led the team with 8.5 tackles behind the line of scrimmage and 3.5 quarterback sacks. His 54 total tackles were the fourth most on the team. His best game was against SWOSU when he finished with a team-best 12 tackles, two of which were for losses. He also added a sack and forced a fumble in the game.
Also back at linebacker are Ke'Von Curry (6-1, 230, So., Oklahoma City/John Marshall HS) and Devon Roush (6-1, 215, Jr., Manvel, Texas). Curry had 34 tackles last year, seven tackles for loss and one interception. Roush led the team as a true freshman in 2019 with 85 tackles. Last year he finished with 55 tackles and had his best game with 14 stops in the Southeastern finale.
The defensive line features returning starter NT Chamar Cobb (6-0, 280, Sr., Cape Coral, Fla.) and defensive ends Yemi Oyesanya (6-0, 280, So., Norman) and Hayden Miller (6-2, 280, So., Sapulpa) Cobb recorded 21 tackles while Oyesanya was next with 20.
Reece Conner (5-10, 185, So., Foster) will handle punting chores while Navarro transfer Alexis Lopez (5-10, 170, So., Center, Texas) will handle kicking duties. Both will be playing in their first games at ECU.
"I have a lot of confidence in this team. You can see by our record the steady progression we've made in the past few years," McCullough said. "This group has worked hard on the field and in the community. We have put in a lot of hours outside of football trying to make Ada area better. Our hope is that the community will return the same by supporting us at our games,"
ECU opens its 2022 season at home on Thursday, Sept. 1 against Harding University, the GAC favorite and league champion.
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