GREENVILLE, N.C. — Dominique Lindsay and Giavanni Ruffin each ran for two touchdowns while East Carolina’s defense hung in against Houston’s powerful offense to help the Pirates beat the No. 18 Cougars 38-32 in the Conference USA championship game Saturday.

Dwayne Harris also had a big day with 123 yards receiving and a 22-yard touchdown catch. He also had a 69-yard kickoff return to set up East Carolina’s first touchdown, helping the Pirates (9-4) beat the mistake-prone Cougars (10-3) for their second straight league title.
East Carolina is the first team to win consecutive C-USA titles since the league went to divisional play in 2005.
Case Keenum had a big day for Houston, completing 56 of 75 passes for 527 yards and five touchdowns. Most of those went to James Cleveland, who had 19 catches for a title game-record 241 yards and three scores.