If any team in America did not need a wake-up call, it was East Carolina.

The Pirates were the only Conference USA team to carry a preseason Top 25 ranking into their opener. Last season, they were twice caught off-guard in upset losses to UAB and Memphis. Those defeats cost them the conference title that has eluded them in five seasons of being one of C-USA's best programs, but with 15 starters back, they figured to be more vigilant.

	East Carolina and QB David Garrard won't be going undefeated.

And this was the season in which their title of North Carolina "State Champions," was to get some bite. After winning more games than any Division I-A program in the state since 1994, the Pirates finally got the game they wanted -- an Oct. 6 matchup against North Carolina in Chapel Hill -- the teams' first meeting in 20 years.

"This year," senior quarterback David Garrard said at C-USA's preseason media day, "we cannot have any lapses."

Well ...

Who better to deliver a wake-up call than Wake Forest?

The Deacons, 20-point underdogs at East Carolina's Dowdy-Ficklin Stadium, used a high-power, no-huddle offense to rack up nearly 500 yards and a 21-19 upset of the Pirates last Saturday, spoiling what shaped up to be a chance at an unbeaten season for ECU and putting yet another black mark on C-USA's early-season fortunes.

For a young league in a hurry, it has been a painfully slow start. ECU loses to Wake Forest. Cincinnati has a chance to beat Purdue, but penalties get in the way. TCU never threatens Nebraska. Then, Monday night, Memphis tantalizes the conference with a 10-0 lead into the third quarter against No. 19 Mississippi State, only to lose 30-10.

But ECU's coaches aren't about to begin bemoaning the league, even if a team that finished eighth in the ACC last season did beat a championship contender.

Pirates coach Steve Logan says that Wake Forest is for real. And offensive coordinator Doug Martin says ECU is too, despite the slip. The Pirates had not allowed a point in their last seven quarters against ACC opponents (N.C. State and Duke) coming into Saturday's game, and had a chance to tie the game with 3:48 left when Garrard was stopped on a two-point conversion try.

"I'm not going to lie, that loss hurt," Martin said. "There were a lot of hurt coaches and players in our locker room after that game. We fully expected to win that ballgame. But all you can do is give Wake credit. They have a lot of returning players and they came in with a good scheme and were very well coached. We just didn't make the plays we needed to make."

	“	It's going to be hard to put this behind us, but that's what we have to do. ”
		— Pernell Griffin, East Carolina linebacker

Said senior linebacker Pernell Griffin, who made a school-record 24 tackles (13 unassisted) in the game: "It's going to be hard to put this behind us, but that's what we have to do."

Martin said several factors will motivate the Pirates to bounce back quickly. One is that they haven't suffered back-to-back losses since 1998. They'll face C-USA opponent Tulane in New Orleans on Saturday.

"One of our bedrock foundations is that we do not lose back-to-back games," Martin said. "And I think starting conference play will get our kids' attention. We've had a lot of success, but we still haven't won a conference championship, and our goal is to get to the Liberty Bowl. We're also playing for our pride and the state championship of North Carolina, and we need to keep winning to do that. Really, the only thing we have lost is the chance to go undefeated."

But did they also lose some luster for C-USA amid a handful of high-profile losses by other league teams? Rival coaches don't think so.

"Obviously, we'd all feel better if we won all those out-of-conference games," first-year Memphis coach Tommy West said. "But I think it all goes back to how young we are as a league. This is our fifth year. When you look at how we're doing against league's that have been around for a whole lot longer, I still think we're gaining ground."

Around Conference USA

Army
Second-year coach Todd Berry named senior Chad Jenkins the starting quarterback heading into Saturday's opener against Cincinnati at West Point. Jenkins completed 46.4 percent of his passes last season for two touchdowns and seven interceptions. "With all of the injuries and changes we had to make last year, we had more of a pitching staff than a group of quarterbacks," Berry said. "We're hoping to have some better luck and get some continuity this year. Chad has matured a great deal and really progressed in our system." ... The Black Knights are the last C-USA team to open their season. ... Army has beaten Cincinnati both times the teams have played at West Point in C-USA play.

Cincinnati
Of an illegal procedure penalty that wiped out a 26-yard pass play that would have put the Bearcats at the Purdue 6-yard line in the final minute of Sunday's 19-14 loss to Purdue, Cincinnati coach Rick Minter said, "We just have to let it go." He chalked up the play, on which running back Ray Jackson was sprinting to his position when he saw that the Bearcats had only 10 players on the field, to "human error." ... The good news, according to Minter, was that the Bearcats came up short because of mental errors, and not a lack of talent. "Mental errors we can fix," he said. ... Senior quarterback Adam Hoover, who got the starting job just days before the game, completed 21 of 35 passes for 220 yards and 2 TDs. ... Wide receiver LaDaris Vann caught both touchdown passes and had nine catches for 102 yards.

Houston
Houston lost another heartbreaker to Rice, as the Owls rolled up 354 yards on the ground and never trailed. ... Junior quarterback Kelly Robertson made his starting debut, completing 22 of 47 passes for 192 yards and two touchdowns with an interception. It was Robertson's first game since 1997. The 23-year-old junior transfer spent the last three seasons playing baseball at Western Kentucky. ... The Cougars are off this week before back-to-back games against Georgia and Texas. ... Athletic director Chet Gladchuk resigned on Tuesday and announced that he will become athletic director at Navy. Larry Leckonby, who was serving as senior associate AD, was named the interim AD.

Louisville
Junior quarterback Dave Ragone not only won C-USA offensive player of the week honors after passing for a career-high 368 yards in a 36-10 win over Kentucky, he passed the legendary Johnny Unitas into the No. 10 spot on Louisville's all-time career passing yardage list. ... Senior wide receiver Zek Parker had a career-high 184 yards receiving and ranks fourth nationally in receiving yards. ... The Cardinals beat Kentucky for the third straight time, the first time since the in-state rivalry was renewed in 1994 that either team has won three straight. ... Sophomore defensive end Dewayne White had 13 tackles, including three for a loss and a couple of pass break-ups. ... Louisville plays Division I-AA Western Carolina on Saturday. ... Senior running back Tony Stallings saw limited action with Kentucky after having fluid drained from his right knee during the week. He is expected to be available this week. ... Louisville has forced nine turnovers in two games, after creating 38 a year ago.

Memphis
Defensive tackle Albert Means, around whom a controversy is swirling in Alabama, played his first game at Memphis in Monday's loss at Mississippi State, registering a pair of tackles a pass breakup and a sack. ... The Tigers will have a quick turnaround before Saturday's game against visiting Chattanooga. ... West said the team came away fairly healthy, "but we're pretty beat up from a physical game, so we're going to have some guys who have to sit for a couple of days before they go." ... West has opened up the offense at Memphis, but said it will take time to convert to a more effective passing game. The Tigers managed just 10 first downs and 162 net yards in the loss. The Tigers used three quarterbacks -- Travis Anglin, Danny Wimprine and Neil Suber -- who combined to complete 10 of 16 passes for 76 yards.

Southern Miss
Jeff Bower had to replace seven starters on defense, but the Golden Eagles were still able to keep Oklahoma State out of the end zone in a 17-9 win. Senior rover Chad Williams and junior defensive lineman Terrell Paul were the leaders. Williams ended a pair of potential scoring drives -- one with a forced fumble and another with a sack that took Oklahoma State out of field-goal range. ... Quarterback Jeff Kelly was sharp, hitting 20 of 27 passes for 277 yards and a touchdown, with 198 yards passing in the first half. ... Playing with a sprained knee, wide receiver Kenneth Johnson caught seven passes for 92 yards. ... Junior cornerback Corey Yates suffered a knee injury against Oklahoma State and is questionable for the Eagles next game, at Alabama on Sept. 15.

Texas Christian
The Horned Frogs rebounded from their season-opening loss at Nebraska by beating North Texas 19-5 for head coach Gary Patterson's first career victory. ... Kicker Nick Browne was busy. A midfielder on the Frogs' soccer team, he flew from a game in Nashville, Tenn., to Dallas, then drove to Denton, Texas, where he tied a school record with four field goals in TCU's win. He then boarded a plane and flew back to Nashville for a Sunday soccer game. He won C-USA special teams player of the week for his effort. ... The safety allowed by TCU in the first quarter was their first given up since 1991, a span of 112 games. ... TCU will face Southern Methodist in Dallas on Saturday. The teams have met every year since 1989.

Tulane
Tulane met LSU for the first time since 1996, losing 48-17 on Saturday. It was an improvement from the 70-35 beating the Green Wave took at BYU in their opener, but the youthful team continues a major struggle on defense. ... Fourteen freshmen played against LSU, and 16 have seen action in the first two games of the year. ... Quarterback Patrick Ramsey's 343 yards passing were the most ever for a Tulane passer against a ranked opponent. It was the 14th time he has thrown for more than 300 yards. ... Senior wide receiver Terrell Harris caught six passes for 95 yards and has caught at least one pass in 20 straight games. ... After back-to-back road losses, Tulane will now play three straight at home. The home team has won each of the four previous meetings in the series, including last season's 37-17 ECU win.

UAB
The Blazers will play for the second time ever against a Top 10 opponent when they face fifth-ranked Florida State on Thursday night. ... Not only are they dealing with the Seminoles, but with a sordid suit filed by the family of a 15-year-old student against many of the team's players, head coach Watson Brown and one of his assistants. The suit alleges that the girl became involved with drugs, alcohol and sexual relations with many of the athletes named in the suit, as well as a UAB police officer, and names Brown and others as administrators who knew of the situation but did not notify the parents. Brown said the suit was a distraction for him during UAB's 41-13 win over Division I-AA Montana State last Thursday, the day the suit was filed. ... UAB held Montana State to minus-1 yard rushing on 17 attempts.

Eric Crawford covers Conference USA for the Louisville Courier-Journal.