Greenville, N.C. — East Carolina has picked Blake Harrell to be its head football coach.

Harrell has served as interim head coach since Oct. 20 and helped the Pirates to a 4-1 record during that time. His promotion came in an announcement from Director of Athletics Jon Gilbert.

“We are excited to announce Blake Harrell as the next head coach of the ECU Football program,” Gilbert said. “I am confident Blake is the ideal fit to lead our program. We could not be more excited for Blake, his wife Jessie, and their three girls Kennedy, Kingston, and Aspen. Over the last four regular season games, I asked Blake to support our student-athletes in an interim role, and he excelled in that job in all areas. He clearly demonstrated his dedication to our student-athletes, coaches, and staff, and we all witnessed his contagious energy and enthusiasm for the job. His leadership, communication skills, strong rapport with our players, and a commitment to building a championship program make him an excellent fit.

“Over the last several weeks, Blake laid out a detailed vision of his approach in leading this program. There’s no doubt we will play an aggressive and exciting brand of football and will build a roster that will strive for excellence on and off the field. I am looking forward to working with Blake as we successfully navigate the evolving landscape of college athletics with Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) prevalent and the addition of revenue sharing being instituted soon.”

ECU is bowl eligible and can move to 8-4 with a win against Navy in Greenville on Friday.

Harrell was previously the defensive coordinator and has been with the program since Jan. 2020.

“This is a tremendous honor to lead the East Carolina Football program,” Harrell said in a statement. “Pirate Nation is second to none and our family is fortunate to call Greenville home. The passion everyone has for East Carolina athletics can be seen daily. We look forward to continuing our journey with this team and are excited about playing inside Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium this weekend and recognizing our senior class.”

Former head coach Mike Houston was fired after a 55-24 loss at Charlotte. Houston was hired after the 2018 season.

In 2004, Harrell coached at Fuquay-Varina High School after graduating from Western Carolina University.

Source: wralsportsfan.com