Pirate fans share same love

East Carolina University Athletics come across fans of all ages. Fans have come and gone throughout the years but two fans have been there since their youth and they are Ronald Vincent and Marvin Jarman.

Vincent, who is better known as “RV,”and Jarman have been friends for decades. The two met when Jarman’s brother played baseball with Vincent. They are now in their 70s and still are the best of friends because of their love for ECU athletics.

Their friendship began with sports in Greenville and has consisted of it ever since. Vincent grew up in Greenville, right off 14th Street and has attended ECU sporting events for as long as he can remember. Jarman, who was born in Colorado, has only missed two ECU football games in the past 45 years.

“I’ve been going to East Carolina games since I was about eight or nine years old,” Vincent said. “I’ve only missed two football games ever in this stadium.”

The memories they have with ECU athletics are numerous, so many Greenville natives have shared stories about Vincent and Jarman, whether that be talking to them during an ECU basketball game or at a local little league game. ECU athletics can look into the stands on game day and find both Vincent and Jarman cheering for their Pirate football team.

Attending ECU sporting events for decades there have been countless memories, but there is one that is most memorable for the two friends; the Peach Bowl in 1991. The Peach Bowl took place in Atlanta, Georgia when ECU had a 17-point fourth quarter comeback win against North Carolina State University, who was ranked ninth in the country at the time, to prevail 37-34. The largest crowd in Peach Bowl history at the time (59,322) was present to witness the comeback including Vincent and Jarman.

Both Vincent and Jarman have been supporting ECU athletics from the start. They said they have enjoyed seeing the Pirates play and that a lot of friendships have been made over the years because of that.

Vincent has seen ECU being built from the ground up while being raised on 14th Street as a child where he claims there were no dorms or anything, just cornfields and tobacco patches.

From watching ECU sports at age nine to watching ECU sports in their seventies, Vincent and Jarman have seen a lot of changes over the years not only with facilities and arenas but also with the type of competition the Pirates face now compared to back in their early days. With all of the changes in competition and facilities through the years, and to see the construction on the football stadium, has been shocking to Vincent.

“We’ve gone from playing very small colleges and I never would’ve believed that we’d be playing the teams we’re playing and competing with,” Vincent said. “So to see all of this and what they’re doing to the stadium, I never would’ve believed it.”

Although Vincent and Jarman have seen ECU athletics change drastically through the years, there is one thing that has not changed and that is their undying love for ECU athletics.

After seeing and hearing about the arrival of new head coach Mike Houston, they, along with other Pirate fans, are ready to see how the football team does in the upcoming fall season.