ECU picks up big transfers in both football and basketball

East Carolina’s football and basketball teams both picked up big transfers Saturday. That’s big, as in the size of 6-foot-6, 280-pound defensive end Gaelin Elmore and 7-foot rebounding machine Usman Haruna, both of whom will be eligible to contribute right away for the Pirates next season. Coach Scottie Montgomery’s football program also picked up a second graduate transfer Saturday when former Clemson running back Tyshon Dye committed to play for the Pirates.Dye rushed for 109 yards and a touchdown on 21 carries for the national champion tigers last season. A former four-star recruit, his career at Clemson was slowed by a back injury as a freshman. The 5-foot-11, 215-pound Georgia native chose ECU over Miami after attending the Pirates’ spring game last month.Elmore, a graduate transfer from Minnesota who like Dye will have one year of eligibility remaining, will provide a major boost to a pass rush that was a major Achilles heel for ECU last fall. He played in 38 games, with nine starts, during his three seasons with the Gophers, picking up 39 tackles, 9.5 tackles for loss, four sacks and four fumble recoveries. He announced his choice on his Twitter account, choosing the Pirates over Arizona. Haruna, meanwhile, will help fill a void in the low post for coach Jeff Lebo’s basketball team created by the graduation of Andre Washington and the transfer of Deng Riak. A native of Nigeria, Haruna played the past two seasons at Bismark State, a junior college in North Dakota. Known primarily for his rebounding, he set a school record last January by pulling down 29 boards in a game. He averaged 11.1 rebounds while scoring 9.3 points per game as a sophomore last year. Like Elmore, he announced his decision to attend ECU via Twitter. In addition to the Pirates, he was also pursued by Memphis, Charlotte, VCU and others.