East Carolina vs. Coastal Carolina picks and best bets for Birmingham Bowl

The East Carolina Pirates and Coastal Carolina will look to close out the season with a victory as they get set to play in the Birmingham Bowl from Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Alabama. The game will kick off at 6:45 p.m. ET on Tuesday, December 27th. Chanticleers QB Grayson McCall entered his name into the transfer portal but will play in this game, and head coach Jamey Chadwell left to take over the Liberty Flames job.

Current lines at DraftKings Sportsbook

Spread: East Carolina -7.5
Total: 63
Moneyline: East Carolina -305, Coastal Carolina +255

Key players that have opted out, injuries for Birmingham Bowl

Eastern Carolina

TE Ryan Jones - Out (personal)
RB Rahjai Harris - Out (knee)
OL Avery Jones (transfer)
DB Shawn Dourseau (transfer)
DE Elijah Robinson (transfer)
TE Ryan Jones (NFL Draft)

Coastal Carolina

QB Bryce Carpenter - Out (suspension)
S Dre Pinckney - Out (lower body)
C Willie Lampkin (transfer)
DE Josaiah Stewart (transfer)
CB Manny Stokes Jr. (transfer)

Weather

Partly cloudy skies. High of 45 degrees. 5 MPH winds.

The Pick: Coastal Carolina +7.5

It felt like the motivation wasn’t there for the Chanticleers in their Sun Belt Championship loss to the Troy Trojans, and that likely had a lot to do with the rumors swirling about their head coach headed elsewhere. This game obviously means a lot to McCall because otherwise he wouldn’t be playing like most transfers around this time. Look for the Chanticleers to put together a strong effort and stay within a touchdown.