Holton

Ahlers

Ahlers (6'3/228) will come back for his fifth season to the Pirates. He said during the midseason he wasn’t sure if this year would be his last or not, but ultimately decided not to walk on Senior Day, and now will return for his senior year. He is allowed to play for a fifth year because all players did not lose a year of eligibility due to the Covid-19 pandemic. He’s the only quarterback in program history to pass for 10,000 yards and rush for 1,000.

Ahlers (6'3/228) and the Pirates struggled all day with consistent execution. After taking a 3-0 lead in the first quarter, Ahlers established drives deep into Bearcats territory, but they couldn’t finish. The majority of the issues were ball placement and navigating the pocket. Ahlers was rushed and pressured all afternoon. It was on full display with the Pirates down 21-6. They drove down into the red zone, but Ahlers was unable to connect for a touchdown, mainly due to placing the ball in inopportune places for the receiver to catch the football. Overall, this was a winable game for the Pirates, but they weren’t able to stay consistent. They will await their bowl opponent.

This was a heck of a football game. Ahlers was as accurate as you can be on Saturday, and the southpaw gunslinger was also able to make plays down the field while also showing off some scoot in his rushing ability. The three touchdowns are great -- and important, as you can tell from the score -- but the biggest play was a 46-yard pass to Tyler Snead that set up the game-winning field goal. ECU now has seven wins on the season, and looks like a program on the rise. They get a chance to show how much they’ve improved on Friday against undefeated Cincinnati.

Ahlers (6'3/228) got ECU on the board late in the first quarter on a two-yard touchdown run to tie the game at 7-7, but failed to throw for a score in a game that was largely dominated and ultimately won by ECU’s rushing attack. We’ve seen games like this out of Ahler before, where he plays more of a game manager role than that of a quarterback who is ready to air it out. He has only surpassed 300 passing yards twice this season, as he and the 6-4 Pirates will travel to Annapolis to take on the Midshipman in Week 12.

This was an easy game for the Pirates, as they had their way with Temple’s defense. Ahlers (6'3/228) identified early that the Pirates would be able to feast over the middle of the field and it worked. His first touchdown pass was a 33-yard pass to Ryan Jones with a beautiful arc and touch and they put the game away in the second half by throwing slant after slant to move the chains. The Pirates look to get over the .500 mark next Saturday as they take on a Memphis team that upset SMU today.

While Ahlers (6'3"/228) was average through the air, he was able to tally 78 rushing yards on 11 carries. Most of the night, the passing game felt out of sync with their only touchdown through the air came on a drive where Ahlers had more incompletions than completions. Having thrown for 10 touchdowns and six interceptions on the season thus far, this was the epitome of Ahlers’ season. East Carolina hosts Temple next Saturday.

This was a bizarre day for both of these teams. This game was delayed for nearly five hours due to lighting and didn’t end till after midnight on Sunday. With all that, the Pirates still had some fight in them. Down 24-10 in the fourth quarter, they would stage a late comeback. Ahlers (6'3/228) would call on his own number and rush for a one-yard touchdown then he would pass one to Audie Omotosho to tie this game at 24 and send it to overtime. Unfortunately, they would come up short in the first overtime. East Carolina will take on Central Florida next Saturday.

Ahlers (6'3/228) and the Pirates didn’t find the end zone until late in the third quarter when Ahlers connected with wide receiver Audie Omotosho on a 27-yard touchdown to put ECU up 13-10. It would be the only touchdown ECU would manage on the day, as Ahlers was sacked three times on the afternoon. Now sitting at 3-3 on the season, Ahlers and the Pirates will look to rebound against Houston on October 23rd after their bye week.

Ahlers (6'3/228) had the Green Wave on the ropes early, orchestrating a 31-7 halftime lead. Tulane was able to rattle off 16 points in the third quarter, but the Pirates outscored Tulane 21-6 in the fourth quarter to seal the deal. This was also just the second game this season that Ahlers didn’t throw an interception for the now 3-2 Pirates. They take on the Golden Knights of UCF next Saturday afternoon.

A thrilling comeback for ECU, as the Pirates trailed this game 38-21 with a little more than a minute left in the third quarter. While Ahlers (6'3/228) is largely responsible for that comeback, he’s also one of the reasons they were down by three scores in the first place, as he didn’t have much accuracy in this contest. Still, he orchestrated three fourth-quarter touchdowns, and the Pirates get a big win to move to 1-2 on the season. Ahlers is going to have some massive passing totals in this offense, and should have another one against Charleston Southern next weekend.