Vikings are no pushover
PORTLAND – Even with showdowns against 20th-ranked Northern Arizona and seventh-ranked Montana up next, the Eastern Washington football team faces what could be a make-or-break game.
The Eagles (2-2, 1-0 Big Sky Conference) are at Portland State (2-1) tonight at 6 at PGE Park in the Big Sky opener for the Vikings.
“This game is very important,” senior offensive tackle Michael Roos said. “Going 2-0 in league, I don’t remember the last time we did that. I don’t think we’ve done that since I’ve been here.”
To get there the Eagles have to beat a team the media and coaches picked to finish last after going 4-7, 1-6, last season.
“Portland State is already considered the surprise team in the league by some people, but not by me,” Eastern coach Paul Wulff said. “They have some very good football players and are one of the best teams in the league. It will be a big challenge for us to go on the road and compete against them.”
It was 2000 when EWU started league play 2-0 and finished 5-3, the last winning season in the conference. And even that year started a disturbing trend. Like in the trio of 3-4 Big Sky seasons since, the 2000 team lost to teams picked to finish lower, effectively erasing any hope of making the I-AA playoffs. That year it was Sacramento State, picked to finish fourth, at home, and then Cal State Northridge, picked sixth, on the road that dashed the hopes of an Eastern team picked second.
This year the Vikings could be the spoiler for the Eagles, who were again picked second.
Following an easy 38-0 win over Division II Western State, PSU played what was probably an uninterested Fresno State team closer than Washington or Kansas State, losing 27-17. Then the Vikings manhandled McNeese State, the No. 12 I-AA team.
“I’ve been here a lot of years and that’s one of the best defensive efforts we’ve ever had here,” 12th year PSU coach Tim Walsh said. “It was a matter of good people doing good things.”
The Vikings held the Cowboys to 320 yards, 114 on the ground, and came up with five turnovers in a 35-14 win.
PSU has 11 takeaways, leads the conference in total defense (274.7 yards) and is ranked fourth in I-AA in passing efficiency defense. They have not allowed a TD pass all year and have four interceptions, earning a No. 25 ranking in the ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll.
“I asked coach about (the defensive improvement),” Roos said. “They all got bigger, stronger and faster in the off-season. They have a lot of guys back on defense and they’re playing well together.”
Eight starters returned from a porous defense that ranked near the bottom of the league, including first-team all-league linebacker Joey King, a junior from Ferris, who leads the team in tackles.
“They have a transfer from Kansas (Chuck Jones) at defensive tackle so they have two 300-pound defensive tackles that are really good players,” Wulff said. “They’ve been playing a system now and it looks like they’re all playing the system well, playing with great emotion, flying around and getting a ton of turnovers.”
That presents a huge challenge for Eastern’s league-leading offense (441 yards per game). Quarterback Erik Meyer once again leads the league in passing efficiency, Darius Washington is the rushing leader (116.8 yards per game, six touchdowns) and Eric Kimble is near the top in receiving (22 catches, 16.6 average, three TDs).
“Erik Meyer is the most productive quarterback we have seen,” Walsh said. “They do good stuff on offense. I voted for Eastern to win the conference this year and knew they would be good.”
The way the Vikings have lit up the Eagles in recent years, the defense can’t dwell on last year’s 42-16 win. In the five games prior to that, the Vikings averaged 34.6 points and won four times. Their key weapon is senior running back Ryan Fuqua.
The Eagles will be without senior defensive back Josh Artis, who hurt a knee late in last week’s victory over Idaho State.