Baldwin cautions Eagles
Saturday’s opponent, unlike the first two, doesn’t come from a major Football Bowl Subdivision conference – or even from a Football Championship Subdivision league, for that matter.
But the challenge facing coach Beau Baldwin and his winless Eastern Washington University football team in Saturday’s 6:05 p.m. home opener against Division-II Western Washington at Woodward Field is the same as it was against Texas Tech and Colorado.
“The biggest challenge is, again, just trying to come out with the same fire and same energy,” Baldwin said Wednesday, in reference to the Eagles’ matchup against the Vikings (1-1). “I thought the first two weeks we played with a lot of passion, played with a lot of energy, which is what it took for us to put ourselves in position (to win).
“The challenge is that you don’t just turn around and just come out flat, because if we do, they’re going to beat us.”
The Eagles are coming off a bye week that helped them heal, physically and mentally. Baldwin hopes the layoff will help motivate his players for a play-down game against an in-state opponent from a lower division.
“Our guys should be hungry,” he said. “I keep reminding them over and over that we’re still a 0-2 football team. That’s what we are. We got congratulated for a great effort (against Texas Tech and Colorado), but the bottom line is, we still have a zero in the win column, so we better remember that and we better work hard to change it.”
Baldwin said it should also help to play in front of friendly fans Saturday and again next weekend when Idaho State comes in to open Big Sky Conference play.
“It’s nice,” he said about playing at home for the first time. “It just gives us a little bit more time. You don’t feel as rushed on Thursday, because you’re coming back (and not traveling) on Friday, and you’re playing at home. You try not to look at it that way, but, ultimately, you should perform better at home. There should be a home-field advantage.
“It’s just nice to come off two tough road trips and know we’re going to play at home – not just this week, but for two weeks in a row. That’s a good feeling and I’m really looking forward to it.”
Weber braces for Hornets
Weber State (2-1) travels to Sacramento State (2-1) on Saturday to kick off the Big Sky schedule, and WSU coach Ron McBride is eager to see how his high-scoring Wildcats stack up against the vastly improved Hornets.
“Now you gotta prove what you’re all about,” said McBride, whose Wildcats have blowout wins over UM-Western (62-6) and Dixie State (44-7) on their resume – along with a 36-17 road loss to Hawaii. “The rest of it was just kind of getting yourself ready for what you have to get done (in the league.).
“It’s exciting to be going down there, and Sac State is a very good football team. This is the best Sac State team I’ve seen on film since I’ve been here. They do the stuff that good teams do, and they do it correctly. We’re going to go down and play a really good football team, so we’ll see, basically, what we’re made of.”
Bruised Bobcats
Montana State, one of three Big Sky teams to have played two FBS opponents, has a bye this week after suffering serious injuries to several key players in losses to Kansas State and Minnesota.
Safety Michael Rider could miss up to five weeks with a shoulder injury, special teams standout Blayde Becksted is doubtful for the Sept. 27 game against South Dakota because of a sore knee, and defensive end Dylan Kinkelaar is out for the season after suffering an ankle injury.
But Bobcats coach Rob Ash refused to place blame for those injuries on having to play up a division against K-State and Minnesota.
“You can get injured in any game,” he said. “Injuries are a fact of life, and in my career I don’t think I’ve ever seen a correlation between how many guys get hurt and the caliber of the opponent.”
Quick kicks
In its last seven games, dating back to the 2007 season, Weber State has averaged 44.6 points per game in going 5-3 during that span. … Montana set a Big Sky attendance record for a non-conference home game last Saturday when a Washington-Grizzly Stadium crowd of 25,056 – which was also a school record – showed up to watch the Grizzlies roll to a 46-10 win over Southern Utah. The previous record was set in 1991 when Nevada drew 24,123 to its game against UNLV. … With Montana State’s 35-23 loss to Minnesota last weekend, Big Sky teams fell to 0-10 this season against FBS opponents. … Idaho State’s Eddie Thompson leads all FCS pass catchers with an average of 13.5 receptions per game. EWU’s Matt Nichols ranks third in total offense, with an average of 318 yards per game.