An Update From AD Jon Gilbert

Pirate Nation:
 
I hope you had a great holiday season! Our student-athletes will be returning to campus to begin the spring semester next week and our department is preparing for a busy six months.
 
The Pirates closed out 2022 in style with a resounding 53-29 Birmingham Bowl win against Coastal Carolina and our first-ever win against Wichita State on the hardwood New Year's Eve. In our first sporting event of 2023, the women's basketball team went on the road and defeated conference foe Memphis last night. The action continues tonight at Minges Coliseum as our men's team battles UCF at 7 p.m. We have $8 tickets available. Would love to have a full house.
 
We have a lot of positive momentum as we begin 2023 and are thankful for our fans who support ECU Athletics and the Pirate Club.
 
NIL Important Focus Ahead
If you are following collegiate athletics, you are aware of the Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) legislation that was passed by the NCAA in 2021. This legislation allows our student-athletes to receive compensation for use of their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL).
 
I have noted numerous times in this space on how the collegiate landscape continues to change and NIL is one of the most discussed topics right now. We fully support our student-athletes maximizing their NIL opportunities and have set up a support system to ensure all NCAA rules are followed. It is imperative that we empower our student-athletes and provide the necessary resources and education as they navigate through the process.
 
You can find all the important NIL information here.
 
ECU Athletics launched the SABRE program in 2021 in partnership with The Miller School of Entrepreneurship to prepare our student-athletes with a collection of resources to capitalize on the opportunities that now exist for them. The goal of SABRE is to provide the necessary tools in numerous areas including financial literacy, personal branding, content management, social media strategies, taxes, compliance and numerous other areas.
 
The rules prohibit ECU Athletics from directly representing student-athletes, but we will continue to provide the necessary educational resources.
 
ECU Athletics plays a significant role in the Greenville community and surrounding region and the support our Pirates receive is second to none. The support stretches far and wide and we need all of Pirate Nation to support our student-athletes. If you are an individual or business, please consider ways you can engage our student-athletes with NIL opportunities.
 
The Team Boneyard Collective was launched last summer by a group of ECU alumni, donors, fans and former athletes and is a platform individuals and businesses can use to engage our student-athletes for use of their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL). Team Boneyard has collaborated with numerous Pirate student-athletes over the past seven months, providing compensation for unique opportunities that benefit them from their name, image and likeness. You can find more information about the collective here.
 
We are well positioned heading into a revamped American Athletic Conference beginning in Fall 2023. Six new schools will enter the conference, and we must be a leader in an extremely competitive environment.
 
Pirates In Action At Home
The Pirate women's swimming and diving team will be back in action this weekend at Minges Natatorium. ECU will host Liberty on Jan. 7 and host a tri-meet with Old Dominion and William & Mary (Jan. 14) in Greenville. Admission is free to both events.
 
Back-To-Back Freshman Of The Week Honors For Amiya Joyner
Congratulations to women's basketball freshman Amiya Joyner on being named the American Athletic Conference's Freshman of the Week in consecutive weeks. Joyner, a native of Farmville, became the first Pirate in school history to accomplish the feat.
 
You can check out Amiya and her teammates on Sunday when they host Tulane at 2 p.m. in Minges Coliseum.
 
1,000th Career Broadcast For "Voice Of The Pirates"
Longtime "Voice of the Pirates" Jeff Charles will handle play-by-play duties for his 1,000th basketball broadcast for ECU tonight in Williams Arena at Minges Coliseum. He has handled football and men's basketball radio play-by-play duties at East Carolina for nearly three decades. Please join me in congratulating Jeff on this historic achievement.
 
Football Season Tickets On Sale February 1
Season tickets for the 2023 campaign will go on sale beginning February 1. The priority deadline is set for April 3.
 
We finished the 2022 season with 15,835 season tickets sold, a 15 percent increase from the year before. We sold the most tickets in Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium history for the season opener (51,711) and set a single-game record in the opener for student tickets distributed at 13,100.
 
Pirate Nation really stepped up and made a difference. As a staff, we have discussed internally getting to 16,000 season tickets sold in 2023. We know this is possible, but we need everybody to be a part of this journey. It is imperative that we reengage former season-ticket holders, recruit new individuals and bring the atmosphere in Dowdy-Ficklen to another level.
 
I am convinced this can happen.
 
The Pirates have made tremendous strides under head coach Mike Houston in the past four years with two consecutive bowl appearances, a first since three straight from 2012-14. The win over Coastal Carolina locked up the eighth win of the season - the most wins since 2014.
 
It is always bittersweet to see the young men leave our football program whether it is entering the transfer portal or following their dreams to the NFL. Every situation is different, and those individuals will always be Pirates.  
 
I hope to see you around campus at one of our upcoming athletic events.
 
Go Pirates!
 
Jon