ANNAPOLIS, Md. — The East Carolina football team kicks off its second season in the American Athletic Conference this weekend against the Naval Academy.

ECU (1-1) welcomes Navy (1-0) into a football conference for the first time in its history after spending 134 years as an independent team.

The Midshipmen are coming off of a bye week, following a Week 1 victory over FCS opponent Colgate, 48-10. The customary triple-option offense by the program worked flawlessly with an abundance of possibilities out of the backfield for Navy last week. The Midshipmen averaged 7.9 yards per carry in the win.

One option is quarterback Keenan Reynolds. The senior is one of the top quarterbacks in the conference, though his team does not use much of an air attack in the option offense. Reynolds is the FBS record holder in career rushing touchdowns by a quarterback with 64. He rushed for 21 yards on 11 attempts with a touchdown.

Navy uses its fullbacks more than any other team in the country, something ECU head coach Ruffin McNeill noted in his weekly press conference on Monday.

“The fullback position is key in this offense and they’ve got two-to-three guys they play there that really cause you to make sure you have your respect on the inside game,” McNeill said. “In preparing for them, everyone on defense must have great eye discipline.”

Chris Swain is at the forefront of the Navy fullback attack. The senior back rushed for 126 yards on 11 attempts, an astounding 11.5 yards per touch, and plunged into the end zone once.

The depth of the rushing attack was shown in Week 1, as 11 Midshipmen carried the ball and eight of those players racked up over 20 yards. Quentin Ezell is another face to watch in the option attack, another fullback. The senior scored two touchdowns against Colgate and rushed for 44 yards on six carries.

McNeill said trying to duplicate the fluidity of the Midshipmen’s triple option in practice is difficult, but he feels that they are prepared enough with the team’s assistants and scout team.

“You try to touch on every opponent, but with Navy, it’s nothing like the live action you’ll see on Saturday,” McNeill said. “Our GA’s (graduate assistants) have done a really good job, yesterday and last night, simulating the offense as close to possible with our scout team.”

Linebackers Montese Overton and Zeek Bigger, along with the rest of the front seven, will be critical to stopping the Navy offensive attack that has lit up Pirate defenses in the past.

The Pirate offense is coming off of an encouraging performance against Florida, especially at the quarterback position, where Blake Kemp completed 34-of-54 passes for 333 yards and three touchdowns. Isaiah Jones also had a career-day against the Gators, the junior reeling in 14 passes for 135 yards and a touchdown.

The rushing attack was completely silenced by the Florida rush defense, as senior Chris Hairston picked up just 15 yards on 17 carries. Though the offensive line was overmatched in the run game, the group provided strong pass protection.

McNeill has seen from the Navy defense what many programs have in the past, an athletic and well-trained group.

“They’re disciplined all around. It reminds me of my time, and your defense becomes as disciplined as the offense,” McNeill said Monday.

Sophomore linebacker Micah Thomas and defensive back Elijah Merchant led the Midshipmen in tackles. However, McNeill most notably highlighted senior defensive lineman Will Anthony as a player to contain to keep the defense at bay.

ECU and Navy will kick off from Annapolis at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday for the pair’s first conference game of the season.