EWU football practice at mercy of wind

There’s a lot of uncertainty in the air these days around the Eastern Washington football program, and it has nothing to do with Xs and Os. As fire-driven smoke settled in Cheney on Monday morning, the Eagles were forced to cancel practice – and wait for the winds to shift. “That makes it tough,” EWU coach Beau Baldwin said after he sent the players to breakfast and hoped for the best. Fortunately, air quality improved in time for the Eagles to practice Monday afternoon and again that night at Roos Field. Players and coaches will be back today, conditions permitting. For Eastern and other sports teams, that means an Air Quality Index below 150; above that, and strenuous outdoor exercise is discouraged. The index was 179 on Monday morning, but dropped below 150 in the afternoon. Still, the uncertainties are nettlesome, coming only 11 days before the season opener Sept. 5 at Oregon. On Friday afternoon, the Eagles were forced indoors as the Air Quality Index topped 200. On Saturday, skies cleared and several hundred fans cheered on the team at its first scrimmage. Sunday’s air quality was poor, but no practice was scheduled. By Monday, Baldwin was looking at contingency plans should the bad air linger through the week. “We’ve already made some calls,” Baldwin said. “But it’s not like a hurricane where you know you have to leave.” And where would the Eagles go if conditions deteriorate? Eastern’s indoor track is just that: a track enclosing a surface that’s more suitable for tennis than football. As of Monday, poor air conditions extended at least 150 miles in every direction, and the only suitable indoor facilities are occupied by the Washington State and Idaho football programs. In a worst-case scenario, the Eagles could move en masse to another city, but “six hours from now the weather could change,” Baldwin said. Notes: After watching film, Baldwin said he was pleased with Saturday’s scrimmage, and attributed the “choppiness and sloppiness” to the situational nature of the competition. He said that quarterbacks Jordan West, Gage Gubrud and Reilly Hennessey “made good decisions for the most part.” … No final decisions have been made on redshirts, but Baldwin said several true freshmen have made a case to play this fall. They include running backs Sam McPherson and Malcolm Williams Jr., defensive linemen Jim Townsend and Keenan Williams and linebacker Ketner Kupp.