AT
Date: 11/02/2024
Time: 2 PM CT
Location: O'Brien Field, Charleston, IL
TV: ESPN+
Game notes and info from EIU: https://eiupanthers.com/news/2024/10/29 ... ekend.aspx
Current Weather Prediction: Partly cloudy and 62 at kickoff and pretty much the same all afternoon through the game. 7-10% chance of precipitation and about a 8 mph wind out of the ESE (mostly across the field, sideline to sideline, not endzone to endzone).
EIU's Record: The Panthers are 1-7 this season and 0-4 in the OVC, although to be fair, their strength of schedule has been pretty tough so far...19th in the FCS and 10th out of teams not in the MVFC. They opened the season falling 45-0 to FBS Illinois, then picked up their only win so far hosting Indiana State (27-20). They then headed back on to road for another Big Ten matchup at Northwestern, losing 31-7 before doing their annual game with Illinois State, also losing 31-7 in Normal. Getting into the conference games, they hosted Lindenwood, losing 28-25, then #13 Southeast Missouri, falling 38-27. They finally took their first road trip out of state when the traveled to Tennessee State and lost 41-17, then went to UT Martin and dropped that one 52-17. This weekend will be their Family Weekend.
Also, now that we're into the season quite a bit, we can start comparing common opponents:
- Illinois State - EIU lost by 24, WIU lost by 17
- UT Martin - EIU lost by 35, WIU lost by 28
- Lindenwood - EIU lost by 3, WIU lost by 11
Players to Know:
- Grad QB Pierce Holley is averaging 254 ypg passing with 9 TDs and 10 INTs for a 120.2 qb rating. He has also run for 1 TD, but isn't much of a running threat in general, having a net -72 yards on the season.
- SO RB MJ Flowers is the top runner, averaging 66.5 ypg with 5 TDs, and has 29.6 receiving yards per game with 1 receiving TD
- SR WR Cooper Willman averages 67.88 ypg with 4 TDs, but had a pretty good game last week against UT Martin when he had 11 catches for 143 yards and 1 TD
- SR LB Anthony Shockey leads the team in solo (40), assisted (27), and total (67) tackles
- SR DL Nicholas Oliveira-Chace is the biggest threat behind the line with 6 tackles for loss including 4.5 sacks and 3 QB hurries
- JR DB NiJhay Burt leads the team with 3 interceptions along with a forced fumble and 46 total tackles (36 solo)
- JR SAF Kaelin Drakeford has forced 2 fumbles and 1 INT in addition to 47 tackles (26 solo)
Normally I'd list all the players from Illinois or near us, but with where they're located, obviously a huge number of their players are from the Chicago area, with a few from the more eastern side of "central Illinois"...Mahomet, Monticello, Mattoon, Decatur, Charleston, etc. You can peruse the roster at your lesure if you are curious: https://eiupanthers.com/sports/football/roster?view=2
There are a few players from more of our "neck of the woods", however, including:
- WR Cooper Willman and OL Alejandro Arellano both from Sterling, IL
- Safety Makhi Wilson from Bettendorf, IA
- OL Noah Howard from Clinton, IA
- and a number of guys from the STL area including RB Chris Caldwell (O'Fallon, IL, by way of UW-Whitewater and Western Kentucky), DB Christopher Sharp (STL), DB Allen Brown III (STL), and DL Trevon Piggee-Blake (DTL)
Assuming our defense can make a stop or two (which I'm hopeful for since their QB isn't as much of a running threat as Lindenwood's, nor do they have any RBs quite like LU's Steve Hall) we should stand a pretty decent chance in this game. In terms of conference-only games, Lindenwood has the #3 offense and #6 defense (rankings are out of 9 teams). EIU is #8 and #9 in those two stats respectively (and WIU is #4 and #7).
EIU is 8th in rushing offense and 2nd in passing offense, but only 5th in passing efficiency.
WIU is 9th in rushing defense and 3rd in passing defense, but 7th in passing efficiency defense.
On the other side:
WIU is 6th in rushing offense and 3rd in passing offense; 2nd in passing efficiency.
EIU is 4th in rushing defense and 8th in passing defense; 9th in passing efficiency defense.
Looking at those stats, I think we're pretty evenly matched when EIU has the ball. When we're on offense, we'll probably have a bit of trouble running the ball, but Lamb should be able to have a pretty big day airing it out against one of the worst passing defenses in the conference. Overall, I think our O will look similar to the game against Lindenwood, but our defense should have a slightly easier time, so this is absolutely one we can win.
Also, if you're heading to the game in Charleston and planning on sitting on the visitor's side, remember to bring binoculars because you'll be looking across not only the light blue track, but also the long/triple jump running paths. It's about 112 feet from the first row of seating to the sideline on the east side...at Hanson Field, that number is 80 feet on our east side and 77 feet on our west side.
Scott Lawson - Board Admin
