Eastern Eagles spring into action at Roos Field

Perhaps it was the warm weather, but the Eastern Washington football players had a pronounced spring in their steps as they walked on to Roos Field on Thursday afternoon.

Four months ago, they were trudging off the field after a season-ending loss to Portland State, which – bad as it seemed at the time – may have stoked their competitive fires during the winter.

“Honestly, it was one of the best offseasons that we’ve had,” said linebacker Miquiyah Zamora, the first of 90 players on the field. “A lot of people took it upon themselves to hold people accountable.”

At Eastern, failure is seldom the fuel that drives the train, but that’s how some players viewed a 6-5 season that followed three straight Big Sky Conference titles.

“I feel like a lot of guys realized that you have to put in the work in the offseason to get to where we want to be during the season,” Zamora said.

For coach Beau Baldwin, the late-season letdown made it easier than usual to hit the reset button. “Sometimes it’s harder coming off multiple years where things went well,” he said.

The big storylines during the next month are the uncertainties at quarterback and the offensive line, the maturation of the defense and the addition of two new assistant coaches. But as far as Baldwin is concerned, every unit is a “work in progress,” even a wide receiver corps that should be among the best in the nation.

“Every year, you have to be willing to know that you’re starting over,” Baldwin said.

Change was everywhere on a field that was covered in snow just three days earlier. As Baldwin spoke with reporters, offensive line coach Aaron Best was 20 feet away, working with a group that lacks experience but not size or athleticism.

At midfield, new assistant Troy Taylor was working with five quarterbacks, at least three of whom figure to compete for a starting spot this fall.

“He’s awesome and brings a lot of energy,” said quarterback Reilly Hennessey of Taylor, a former star at Cal who left a successful career in California to seize a new opportunity in Cheney.

Then again, so did new defensive line coach Eti Ena, who last year held the same position at Big Sky rival Cal Poly. At the far end of the field, Ena was putting 16 players through their paces.

Said Baldwin, “Whenever you hire a couple of new coaches, they’re going to bring in some new ideas. And not to get into any details, you’re going to see some things out there that look a little different.”

“Now we get a chance to see how guys respond to it,” Baldwin said.

Notes

The Eagles got some bad news last week, as wide receiver Shaq Hill – who missed most of last season with a torn ACL – suffered a knee injury that will keep him out of spring ball. Baldwin termed Hill’s status as “solid,” adding that “I feel confident that it won’t be something that keeps him from playing this fall.” … Eastern practices again on Friday; pads come next week for afternoon sessions on Tuesday and Thursday heading into a scrimmage on April 9.