The league has five bowl ties, but it’s far from certain that it will be able to fill them.

ECU (4-3, 3-1 C-USA) is in good position to grab one of the bids.

The Pirates continue to beat the teams they’re supposed to beat, which bodes well for Saturday night’s game at Alabama-Birmingham (1-5, 0-2).

The Pirates are in contention in the East Division thanks to their defense, which is allowing just 23.9 points per game.

They have followed each win with a loss thus far, but the losses were to South Carolina, North Carolina and division-leading Central Florida.

They need a victory to stay close to UCF (4-2, 2-0), which is a heavy favorite against Memphis (1-5, 1-1).

West Division leader Tulsa (6-1, 4-0) became the conference’s first bowl-eligible team when it took out UTEP last week. It’s conceivable the Golden Hurricane could have three 1,000-yard rushers by season’s end. Ja’Terian Douglas has 533 yards, Trey Watts has 507 and Alex Singleton has 432. Singleton also is second in the country in touchdowns (13).