GREENVILLE, N.C. (Interstat) — Emory Williams threw for two touchdowns and ran for another, and East Carolina pulled away in the second half for a 28-12 victory over Rice in an NCAA Football Bowl Division game on Saturday at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium. An announced crowd of 33,968 saw the Pirates improve to 3-2 while the Owls fell to 1-5.

Williams, a 6-foot-5, 220-pound quarterback from Milton, Fla., completed 19 of 31 passes for 143 yards and added six carries for 23 yards. He accounted for three of East Carolina’s four touchdowns. Noah Perez made four extra points and missed a 38-yard field goal for the Pirates.

East Carolina opened the scoring with 9:15 remaining in the first quarter when Williams completed a short pass to the right to R. Joseph Jr. for 22 yards. The pass was caught at the Rice 18 and taken into the end zone, and Perez added the extra point. Rice answered in the second quarter when Tommy Bauchiero made a 45-yard field goal with 2:41 left. The Owls took a 9-7 lead early in the third quarter when Tyvonn Byars rushed up the middle for a 23-yard touchdown with 12:47 remaining. Bauchiero’s extra-point attempt failed.

East Carolina regained the lead with 4:37 left in the third quarter on Williams’ 6-yard touchdown pass to Joseph Jr. Perez kicked the extra point. The Pirates then pulled away in the fourth quarter. TJ Engleman Jr. ran right for a 43-yard touchdown with 14:06 remaining, and Williams ran right for a 12-yard score with 12:47 left. Perez made both extra points. Perez later missed a 38-yard field goal with 2:50 remaining, and Bauchiero closed the scoring with a 44-yard field goal with 30 seconds left.

Rice’s defense kept the Owls within striking distance for much of the game. Combs’ 11 tackles led the unit, and Botts provided pressure with two sacks. Harnetiaux, Akui and AJ Brown each reached nine tackles, while Mutombo, Clemmons and Benjamin each had four. The Owls forced East Carolina to punt on several possessions, but the Pirates’ offense found a rhythm after halftime. East Carolina scored three touchdowns in the second half, including two in the fourth quarter. Rice’s only touchdown came on Byars’ 23-yard run in the third quarter. The Owls added field goals of 45 and 44 yards by Bauchiero. East Carolina’s defense limited Rice to field goals for much of the game. Rice’s Durkin punted eight times for 332 yards, while East Carolina’s O’Halloran punted five times for 223 yards.

Gael Ochoa completed 2 of 4 passes for 48 yards for Rice. Jacurri Brown completed 2 of 10 passes for 21 yards and ran 19 times for 19 yards. Joseph Mutombo, Aquantis Clemmons and Jamir Benjamin each made four tackles for Rice. Dillan Botts had five tackles and two sacks. Austin Harnetiaux, Koa Akui and AJ Brown each made nine tackles. Stone Combs led Rice with 11 tackles. Jordan Clark caught four passes for 69 yards. Carson Morgan ran five times for six yards. Max Mosey ran three times for 16 yards and returned a punt 25 yards. Colin Leahey ran seven times for 19 yards. Tyvonn Byars led Rice with 14 carries for 111 yards and one touchdown.

Tomas O’Halloran punted five times for 223 yards for East Carolina. Noah Perez made four extra points and missed a 38-yard field goal. Jordan Miles and Dominick Moody each had one tackle for East Carolina. Luca Akirtava had one tackle for Rice. Charlie Durkin punted eight times for 332 yards for Rice. Tommy Bauchiero made field goals of 45 and 44 yards and had an extra-point attempt fail. Seth Clarke and Braden Bays each recorded one quarterback hurry for Rice. Jo Chavez, Jerrick Harper, Ahran Ogbor, Christopher Clark-Jolivet, Kyren Condoll and Payton Matthews each had one tackle for Rice. Ashton Levells-Mitchell had one tackle for East Carolina. Beau Barton, Bailey Fletcher, Caden VerMaas and Matthew Aribisala each had two tackles for Rice. Jayden Cupitt, Daveon Hook and Robert Rooks each had three tackles for Rice. Jason Dickerson caught two passes for 20 yards for East Carolina. DJ Johnson Jr. had eight tackles for East Carolina. Kevon Merrell Jr. had nine tackles and one sack. Crews Law had 10 tackles. Josh Benton appeared for East Carolina. Kyler Pearson returned one kickoff for 3 yards and three punts for 5 yards. Dawson Quarterman had one reception for five yards. Landon Sides had one reception for 10 yards. Ismael Smith Flores had two receptions for 13 yards. Jeremiah Melvin had one reception for 13 yards. Kamaurri McKinley had five tackles.

The loss dropped Rice to 1-5 and continued a difficult stretch. Earlier this season, the Owls lost 16-14 to Texas-San Antonio, 38-24 at Fresno State, 28-21 to Western Michigan and 52-0 at Notre Dame before beating Houston Christian 31-3. East Carolina moved to 3-2 after earlier wins over North Carolina Central 42-9 and Old Dominion 20-17 and losses to Appalachian State 27-24 and Alabama 48-10. Rice’s upcoming schedule includes a home game against Tulsa, road games at Florida Atlantic and North Texas, a home game against Tulane, a road game at Temple and a home game against Army. East Carolina’s upcoming slate includes road games at UAB and Memphis, home games against Temple and South Florida, a road game at Charlotte, a road game at Army and a home game against Florida Atlantic.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of East Carolina 51, Rice 19. Interstat’s ELO system had projected East Carolina with a 94.9 percent probability to win. Rice had been installed as a pregame favorite with a spread of +10. The total score was 40, and the over/under line was 46.5.