Football ‘97: Eastern Washington Eagles
FAST FACTS
Head coach
Mike Kramer (4th season, 13-20 at EWU; 13-20 overall; 4-4 and tied for fifth in the Big Sky Conference last season).
Assistants
J.D. Sollars, offensive coordinator and quarterbacks; Jerry Graybeal, defensive coordinator and linebackers; Paul Wulff, offensive line and strength; Rick Redden, secondary and recruiting coordinator; Rick Olson, defensive line; Ray Williams, wide receivers; Randy Hendrick, tight ends; Rich Rasmussen, offensive line; Torresy Smith, running backs; Terry Regnier, defensive backs.
Head trainer
Carla Baker
Band members
125, Patrick Winters, advisor; Darren Bloom and Dan Patterson, drum majors.
Cheerleaders
12 (six men, 6 women); Theresa Stone, director.
Top ex-Eagles in the NFL
Ed Simmons, Kurt Schulz, Tom Ackerman, Kevin Sargent, Trent Pollard.
QUESTION MARKS, EXCLAMATION POINTS
Question marks
Can quarterback Harry Leons come back from off-season knee surgery and regain the confidence he exhibited in leading the Eagles to a 4-1 start last fall?
Will Mike MacKenzie continue the improvement he showed during spring ball and emerge as a bonafide backup to starting running back Rex Prescott?
How much and how soon will the Eagles’ latest recruiting class - considered one of the strongest in recent memory and boasting running back Elijah Baker, Washington’s prep Player of the Year last fall - contribute?
Exclamation points
Along with 36 letterwinners, including 14 starters, Eagles welcome back six highly touted prospects - defensive backs Julian Williams and Maurice Chambers, offensive linemen Mark Skodje and Jeremy Taylor and defensive linemen Dan Oblenis and Dario Romero - who sat out last season after failing to meet NCAA academic requirements in high school.
Dream schedule features seven homes games and includes a pair of “tune-up” NAIA opponents in Rocky Mountain (Sept. 6) and Eastern Oregon (Sept. 13), who should serve as little more than fodder as the Eagles reacquaint their talented Prop 48s to game-type conditions.
Kramer said he even likes most of the officiating crews that have been assigned to call Eastern’s games.
WHAT’S IN, WHAT’S OUT
What’s in
Refurbished weight room, courtesy of the Seattle Seahawks.
Depth at quarterback, which means Kramer should have the luxury of redshirting highly touted freshman Scott Mitchell.
Former football coach Dick Zornes as athletic director - again.
What’s out
Running back Joe Sewell - after rushing for 2,119 yards in only two seasons as a starter.
Long overtimes, hopefully, because of a new NCAA rule that rewards only two-point conversions following scores that occur after the second overtime period.
Eastern’s reputation as one of the softest defensive teams in the Big Sky Conference.
TALE OF THE TAPE
The fastest
Overall: Wide receiver Jeff Ogden and cornerback LeVar McCary, 4.36 seconds in the 40-yard dash last spring.
Offensive lineman: Jim Buzzard, 4.95.
Defensive lineman: Steve Mattson, 4.87.
Running back: Mike MacKenzie 4.48.
The strongest
Overall: Linebackers Derek Strey and Jerrad Jeske bench-pressed 425 pounds during testing.
Combined: Defensive tackle Chris Scott bench-pressed 405 pounds, squatted 545 and power-cleaned 340.
The toughest
Derek Strey and Jim Buzzard.
Best blocker
Kevin Peterson.
Toughest to block
Chris Scott.
Best cover man
Ole Olesen.
Biggest shoes
Size 17 1/2, worn by 6-foot-7, 270-pound backup offensive tackle David Andres.
Players by state
Washington 83, California 6, British Columbia 2, Idaho 1, Oregon 1.
Most impressive stat
Eastern had a chance in the final minutes last fall to beat eventual Big Sky champion Montana, runner-up Northern Arizona and third-place finisher Weber State.
Least impressive stat
The Eagles lost all three games by a combined nine points.
Academic All-Star
Steve Mattson, pre-med major, 3.68 GPA.
OFFENSIVE DEPTH CHART
Pos. No. Player Ht., Wt. Year
LT 51 Lance Knaevelsrud 6-4, 255 So
79 David Andres 6-7, 270 Jr.
LG 58 John Kane 6-3, 265 So.
59 Aaron White 6-0, 255 Jr.
C 73 Kevin Peterson 6-1, 260 Sr.
57 Aaron Best 6-0, 275 So.
RG 62 Justen Wochnick 6-2, 280 Jr.
71 Jeremy Taylor 6-2, 280 Fr.
RT 77 Jim Buzzard 6-3, 260 Sr.
78 Tim Gutmann 6-5, 255 Fr.
QB 14 Harry Leons 6-2 1/2, 211 Sr.
18 Griffin Garske 6-4, 217 So.
TB 33 Rex Prescott 5-7, 170 Sr.
32 Mike MacKenzie 5-11, 195 Jr.
TE 96 Tyson Knaevelsrud 6-4, 225 So.
95 Scott Johnson 6-6, 265 So.
WR 81 Joe Mitchell 6-3, 200 Sr.
86 Romaine Smith 6-4, 200 Fr.
WR 88 Jeff Ogden 6-0, 187 Sr.
12 Rahmal Leonard 5-11, 165 Fr.
WR 7 Steve Correa 5-10, 175 Sr.
13 Rich Naccarato 6-3, 174 So.
Ret. 7 Steve Correa 5-10, 175 Sr.
2 Maurice Perigo 5-9, 170 Sr.
PK 17 Josh Atwood 6-2, 200 Jr.
35 Tom Zurfluh 6-0, 185 Sr.
Holder 88 Jeff Ogden 6-0, 187 Sr.
DEFENSIVE DEPTH CHART
Pos. No. Player Ht., Wt. Year
LCB 25 Ole Olesen 5-8, 150 Fr.
6 Shantell Frankson 6-0, 170 Jr.
RCB 1 LeVar McClary 5-6, 140 So.
9 C. Jean Baptiste 5-11, 170 Fr.
FS 2 Maurice Perigo 5-8, 170 Sr.
5 Julian Williams 6-0, 205 So.
SS 21 Jimmy Lake 5-11, 185 Jr.
22 Travis Reed 5-11, 170 Fr.
WOLB 28 Justin Guilory 6-11, 217 Sr.
43 Jeff Pilkington 6-3, 195 So.
MLB 92 Derek Strey 6-3, 230 Sr.
44 Greg Belzer 6-1, 270 Fr.
SILB 38 Jerrad Jeske 6-1, 225 Sr.
46 Britt Lentz 6-3, 205 So.
LE 85 Steve Mattson 6-4 1/2, 257 Sr.
60 Josh Martin 6-2, 235 Fr.
LT 99 Chris Scott 6-2, 250 Sr.
50 David Alcala 6-2, 265 Fr.
RT 90 Avont Grant 6-0, 255 Jr.
68 Jonas DeWeber 6-2, 255 Jr.
RE 91 Ed Harris 6-4, 255 Sr.
94 Jeff Allen 6-3, 220 Fr.
P 35 Tom Zurfluh 6-0, 185 Sr.
17 Josh Atwood 6-2, 200 Jr.
Snapper 59 Aaron White 6-0, 225 Jr.
57 Aaron Best 6-0, 275 So.
1997 SCHEDULE (All times Pacific. All home games in CAPS.)
Date Opponent Time Comment
Sept. 6 ROCKY MOUNTAIN COLLEGE 6:35 p.m. NAIA school may give
Eastern a cupcake as an
appetizer.
Sept. 13 EASTERN OREGON STATE COLLEGE 6:35 p.m. Seconds, anyone?
Sept. 20 at Portland State 6:05 p.m. Vikings are eligible for
the Big Sky championship
this time around.
Sept. 27 WEBER STATE 6:35 p.m. Chance to avenge last
year’s 22-20 defeat in
Provo, Utah.
Oct. 4 at Montana State 11:35 p.m. Eagles have won last
six meetings.
Oct. 11 CAL-STATE SACRAMENTO 1:05 p.m. Hornets are 0-5 in the
short-lived series.
Oct. 18 at Montana 12:05 p.m. Could be as important
as any game in Eastern’s
history.
Oct. 25 IDAHO STATE 1:05 p.m. Homecoming, a Fox TV
telecast and a beatable
opponent.
Nov. 1 IDAHO AT ALBI STADIUM 1:05 p.m. Vandals help celebrate
college football’s
return to Spokane’s
Albi Stadium.
Nov. 8 at Northern Arizona 5:05 p.m. If Montana stumbles,
this could decide the
conference title.
Nov. 15 CAL-STATE NORTHRIDGE 1:05 p.m. Matadors have reloaded
nicely under their new
coach.
GAME DAY
Stadium
Woodward (capacity: 7,000).
From I-90: Take Cheney-Four Lakes exit and continue toward Cheney for approximately five miles. Take right on Betz Road (EWU signs will point the way), which turns into Washington Street and runs along the east side of Wooward.
Tickets
$55 reserved season (includes premium reserved seating for Nov. 2 game against Idaho at Albi Stadium); $10 single-game reserved ($12 and $16 for Idaho game); $8 adult, $4 student and senior single-game general admission ($10 and $6 for Idaho game); $75 family season general admission (two adults, three children); $20 family single-game general admission.
Television
Fox Sports will provide live coverage of Eagles’ Oct. 25 homecoming matchup against Idaho State. Kickoff is scheduled for 12:35 p.m.
Radio
KKPL 630 AM in Spokane, with Larry Weir calling the play-by-play. , DataTimes ILLUSTRATION: 2 Color Photos