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Sep. 25—You could definitely say that Eastern Washington’s football program had “it” going on this century, with a national title in 2010 and perennial playoff teams behind strong quarterback play.
The Eagles don’t seem to have it right now.
Since a 57-41 road playoff loss to Montana in the 2021 FCS playoffs, in which Eagle QB Eric Barriere memorably threw 80 passes, Eastern is 8-18. The latest loss came 49-16 Saturday at FBS Nevada, not that it mattered much to Montana coach Bobby Hauck.
“They’re got a good team over there again,” Hauck said Monday of the 1-3 Eagles. “I’ve been watching them the last day and a half, they play really hard, and I think they’re really good in the kicking game, in particular.”
That might make the Eagles dangerous as they play host to the Montana Grizzlies Saturday, in the Big Sky Conference opener for both teams. On the other hand, the No. 4 Grizzlies seem due to win for the first time on the red turf of Roos Field. They’re 0-7 on it to this point.
Hauck noted that the Eagles play three quarterbacks these days; one of them, Michael Wortham, continues to be their main kickoff returner. Meanwhile Kekoa Visperas has completed 82 of 104 passes this season, with 811 yards, six touchdowns and no interceptions. He was 15 of 22 for 116 yards at Nevada (Jared Taylor is the third QB).
Eastern is running the ball more with Malik Dotson and the excellently named Tuna Altihir, which is a little different. The main issue seems to be run defense, although at No. 84 in the country, the Eagles aren’t as bad as some (Western Carolina is 102, for example, and Utah Tech is 123rd out of 123 FCS teams).
But Nevada, under former MSU coach Jeff Choate, ran for 320 yards on 45 carries Saturday.
“Clearly, we’re playing down a level of competition and they’re playing up a level of competition, I get that,” Choate…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/big-sky-griz-try-break-130100992.html
Author : Daily Inter Lake, Kalispell, Mont.
Publish date : 2024-09-25 13:01:00
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