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East Carolina University - AthleticsCollege Prowler3.46
Comparable Schools' Athletics Grades:
Quick StatsAthletic Division
NCAA Division I
Conference
Conference USA
School Colors
Purple and gold
School Mascot
PeeDee the Pirate
Men Playing Varsity Sports
343 - 2 %
Women Playing Varsity Sports
228 - 1 %
College Prowler Take
ECU baseball has been worth following in recent years, and the football record is improving under the new coach. Despite chronic losses, however, fans still wear purple and gold, drive around with Jolly Roger flags waving from their vehicle windows, go tailgating, and attend games. ECU’s Pirate has also changed faces over the years, from a retro, stern expression to cute, cartoonish PeeDee to the current, more sinister pirate. Fortunately, the mascot costume still presents the huggable version of PeeDee instead of a scary, ship-robbing terrorist.
A lot of money contributed to ECU is earmarked for athletic programs, but the wins are not proportional to the funding the sports receive. Our facilities are impressive, partly because of donations from wealthy local supporters. Thanks in part to local citizen Bill Clark, the new baseball stadium is named for a former coach, Keith LeClair. The Greenville and eastern North Carolina communities are very supportive of ECU’s athletic programs, especially football and baseball, even if the teams are not having winning seasons. Rather than a celebration of skill, however, games are more an excuse to party. Some students are avid club and IM players, but others graduate without ever even attending a single game or working out at the Rec Center. New students should not arrive at ECU expecting a winning season or a losing season, but they should be optimistic and have fun anyway.
Students Speak Out
Love your school more than free food? Hate your school more than term papers?
Somewhere in between? Show the world what YOU think of YOUR school:
Anonymous says:  |
Baseball is the best sport at ECU!...
Baseball is the best sport at ECU! They have a cool new stadium. A lot of people were unhappy when they built it, though, because now the fans can’t just sit outside the park, tailgate, and still see the game. There’s a big hill there now, so spectators actually have to go inside the park. That was mean. I’m glad I don’t live in the neighborhood near the stadium, too, because it’d be so loud almost every night in the spring. At least the baseball team wins! Everybody loves to watch winning teams play. |
Anonymous says:  |
I went to a football game a couple...
I went to a football game a couple of years ago because a group of my friends were going. It was way too cold to be out at a game that night, but it was supposed to be an important game, because if ECU lost, everybody knew the coach was going to be fired. Well, they were losing really badly, and a drunk guy below us in the stands started yelling out in the direction of the coach at the time, ‘You’re fired! You’re so fired! You and your purple jumpsuit are fired!’ Security came and took that guy away. Guess who lost. Yep, ECU did. Now we have a new coach, and at least we’ve won a few games! |
Anonymous says:  |
Freeboot Friday is awesome! The...
Freeboot Friday is awesome! The Friday before every home football game, Freeboot Friday is held downtown in the public parking lot on the corner of Fifth and Evans streets. It’s a really fun event, and seeing everyone interact there—students and members of the community—betters my opinion of Greenville. |
Anonymous says:  |
Look for the vehicles of the real...
Look for the vehicles of the real ECU enthusiasts on game weekends. I’ve seen a car, one of those old pimpmobile kinds of cars, around town that is painted in that old gold color of ECU, and it has purple pirates on the sides. Several times, I’ve seen an RV that is all painted up with purple and gold, and there’s a pirate on the tire cover on the back, too. I can’t quite fathom the level of dedication that would drive someone to paint their car or RV like that, but I guess I admire it. They must have had a fantastic experience in their days as ECU students. |
Anonymous says:  |
Club sports really should not be...
Club sports really should not be overlooked at ECU. We’re tough, too, and we compete just like the big varsity teams, except we don’t have the same degree of funding—sometimes none—and we are usually better. We actually win. Try that, varsity teams! |
Interested in East Carolina?
FactsMen's Varsity Sports
- Baseball
- Basketball
- Cross country
- Football
- Golf
- Swimming and diving
- Tennis
- Track and field (indoor and outdoor)
Women's Varsity Sports
- Softball
- Swimming and diving
- Tennis
- Track and field (indoor and outdoor)
- Volleyball
Intramurals
- Basketball (men’s, women’s)
- Bowling
- Dodgeball
- Flag Football
- Kickball
- Soccer (indoor)
- Soccer (men’s, women’s)
- Softball (women’s)
- Volleyball (women’s)
- Wiffleball
Club Sports
- Badminton
- Baseball (men’s)
- Basketball (men’s and women’s)
- Equestrian
- Fencing
- Field hockey
- Figure skating
- Frisbee (men’s and women’s)
- Golf
- Ice hockey (men’s)
- Inline Hockey
- Isshinryu karate
- Lacrosse (men’s and women’s)
- Rugby (men’s and women’s)
- Running
- Scuba
- Skiing and snowboarding
- Soccer (men’s and women’s)
- Softball
- Style of Motion Break Dancing
- Swimming
- Tae Kwon Do
- Tai Chi
- Tennis (men’s and women’s)
- Volleyball
- Waterskiing and wakeboarding
Athletic Fields
- Blount Sports Complex
- Blount Sports Complex
- Student Recreation Center
- Student Recreation Center
- The Fields at North Campus Crossing
School Spirit
As far as sports are concerned, no matter how bad the teams are and how much students complain about the sports teams, there are still fans (usually alumni) who will paint themselves purple and gold or wear all sorts of tacky purple and gold apparel, like a purple suit coat, yellow shirt, and purple and yellow striped tie. Sometimes the Pirate pride that accompanies athletics programs at ECU is almost frivolous, like the yards and yards of custom carpet in the club level at the football stadium, the surreal area where the carpet is purple with pirate hats all over it. Pirate pride is sometimes a mask to collect money from students, especially the unsuspecting orientation students, for Student Pirate Club membership. Joining the Student Pirate Club is a good way to meet other students, but new students should not be fooled by the cheery recruiters who may make the SPC sound better than other student organizations.
Getting Tickets
Signing up to be in the Student Pirate Club automatically gets your tickets for basketball and football games. It is something everyone should sign up for, so you don’t have to wait in the long lines, or worry about the football games being sold out, because some of them are.
Most Popular Sports
Football is probably the most widely popular sport, but baseball is running a close second because they have actually had consistent wins recently. Basketball is popular, too, and sometimes the women are better than the men. Of course, the popularity of ECU’s varsity teams depends on their win/loss record, but even that does not necessarily discourage the fans. Basketball has begun to emerge as a popular sport due to the team's recent success.
Most Overlooked Teams
In general, the club sports are overlooked at ECU, yet they are sometimes more deserving of attention and have better records than the varsity teams. The club rugby teams are especially serious about the game and serious about celebrating their wins. Do not anger a rugby player, male or female. Softball is also a very overlooked.
Best Place to Take a Walk
The Mall is beautiful, especially in the early morning or late afternoon. Fifth Street is pleasant, except during rush hour, and it is wonderfully shaded by the large trees that line both sides of the street. The Greenway system, which begins at Elm Street Park and ends at Greensprings Park, provides a quiet trail for walking, running, or biking, and expansion plans have been presented to the City Council. The Town Common features a river walk along the Tar River, five blocks from campus, down near the Willis Building and Town Creek Bridge.
Most Recent Contributing Author
Name: Samantha Mandel
Hometown: Matthews, NC
Major: Biology Fun Fact: Samantha can make an extremely weird shape with her mouth, kind of like a "fish face," that no one else she has met is able to do. Contributing Author Internship  College Prowler is actively seeking talented students to be "Contributing Authors," and assist with updating
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