GREENVILLE, NC – Athletics Director of the University of East Carolina Jon Gilbert announced today the football match against Marshall on September 12 at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.
The Pirates and Thundering Herd hope to reschedule the game in 2020 at a set date.
“We are disappointed that we cannot host Marshall for our season opener, but our top priority remains the health and safety of our student-athletes, coaches, staff, fans and our community,” said Gilbert. “Mike Hamrick and Marshall have been great to work with as we work to re-schedule the game.”
The Pirates are now scheduled to open the 2020 season on Saturday, September 26 against UCF at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium according to a modified schedule of the American Athletic Conference also released Thursday.
ECU Athletics will continue to work with university, local and state health officials to determine capacity for home competitions.
“We expect to have fans in the stadium by 2020 and will implement safety measures and COVID-19 protocols in conjunction with local health officials,” Gilbert said. “This remains a fluid situation and we can not wait to be all together again at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium rooting for the Pirates. The support of Pirate Nation means everything to our athletic department and we continue to ask for your patience and “We need to continue to look out for each other and stay safe as we go through this pandemic.”
If state guidance allows limited capacity, seats will be distributed based on priority in the Pirate Club. Season ticket holders will receive an email early next week to select their options for the 2020 season.
In addition to the UCF game, the AAC announced that the East Carolina game in Cincinnati was moved from November 12 to November 14.
