Eastern Washington’s challenging schedule continues at unbeaten Weber State

It was just about a year ago at this time when Weber State’s football season was on the edge of a precipice.

The Wildcats had by then one resounding victory, over Dixie State, but they had three losses to go with it: to Utah of the Pac-12, to FCS No. 2 James Madison and to No. 12 UC Davis.

All of a sudden, Weber State could hardly afford a loss, and ultimately the Wildcats did lose twice more – to Montana State and Portland State – and failed to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2016.

So it is with some coincidence this weekend that the Eastern Washington football team heads to Ogden, Utah, to play Weber State with its own back against the wall after a 1-3 start.

“Coming into this season, we looked and we saw what was ahead of us,” EWU receiver Jakobie James said Tuesday. “You look at it and it’s a pretty tough schedule. But you never back down.”

With a home game the following weekend against unbeaten and fifth-ranked Sacramento State, Eastern is in a position similar to that of Weber State a year ago, in which its playoff resume could perhaps absorb one more loss, and maybe even two. But the Wildcats recognize the situation well enough themselves that they expect a dogfight Saturday evening when they host the Eagles in a crucial early season Big Sky matchup.

“We actually had that conversation as a team, where it’s just that the roles are flipped and we can’t allow ourselves to overlook them,” Weber State sophomore quarterback Bronson Barron said Tuesday. “The record might not show how good E-Wash is, but look at the schedule: They have two FBS games with Oregon and Florida.

“We know how good (Eastern Washington) is, and we have a ton of respect for them.”

The Eagles, still ranked 24th in the FCS Stats Perform Top 25, are looking to beat Weber State – 4-0 overall and ranked seventh in the Top 25 – for the first time with Aaron Best as their head coach. The Wildcats are the only Big Sky team Best hasn’t defeated since taking over as head coach before the 2017 season.

Last year in Cheney, the Wildcats ended the Eagles’ 20-game home winning streak with a 35-34 victory on Oct. 23, one week after Weber State had lost to Montana State.

In that game against Weber, Eastern fell behind by two touchdowns in the fourth quarter but rallied to pull within one point after Dennis Merritt’s touchdown with 2:51 to go. But the Eagles missed the point after, and Weber State held on for the victory.

The next week, Eastern lost to Montana State, and while it still reached the playoffs, the pair of losses – or at least one of them – cost Eastern a first-round bye in the postseason.

Weber State coach Jay Hill watched the film of that game in Cheney earlier this week and was reminded of the elusiveness of Eric Barriere, whom he dubbed “Houdini” on Tuesday in talking to the media.

But Gunner Talkington doesn’t look all that different through four starts, Hill said.

“Eric Barriere was a quarterback in a long line of very successful, good quarterbacks that went through that system, so we’ve got to be ready for the next guy,” Hill said, referring to Talkington. “And he’s playing very well, and we’re going to have to play well to take care of him and the offense. He’s got weapons around him, so we know what we’re up against.”

Talkington took care of the football Sunday against Florida, completing 24 of 37 attempts for 250 yards and one fourth-quarter 28-yard touchdown to James, the redshirt sophomore receiver. On the year, he has completed 62.3% of his throws for 886 yards, 11 touchdowns and three interceptions. He’s done that against two FBS defenses and against Montana State, the fourth-ranked team in the FCS.

But the task gets no easier in Ogden. Weber State has allowed just 38 points in four games and has ceded an average of 281.5 yards per game. Weber’s is a defense that has benefited from staying healthy and also from a wealth of veteran experience.

“(Last year), we were in a situation where we had a ton of returning starters and we had great veteran guys, and then all of a sudden three or four games in, you’re hammered and we’re beat up,” Hill said. “A lot of those guys that we were relying on so heavily were not there. This year, it’s the guys that stepped up or that were able to get healthy who are now playing for us, and this year we have phenomenal leadership.”

Weber State, too, is coming off a bye, whereas the Eagles are coming off a flight delay that meant they didn’t get back to Cheney until about 4 a.m. Monday.

Yet Best called it “just another set of challenges” and emphasized Tuesday that the team can’t feel sorry for itself.

“It’s not going to affect the outcome of the game unless we allow it (to),” Best said.

He also emphasized that the Eagles played much better against Florida than they did against Oregon, which was especially true of the offense. Eastern gained 411 yards against Florida, more than twice what it did against Oregon (187).

On defense, though, the Eagles will be without at least one starter on Saturday in cornerback Darrien Sampson, who is no longer listed on the team’s depth chart. Also removed was listed starting linebacker Ahmani Williams, who had yet to play this season. Sophomore Conner O’Farrell replaces Williams; redshirt sophomore Marlon Jones Jr., previously listed at nickel, will take Sampson’s place, and senior safety Keshaun King will slot in at nickel.

The Eagles also played last week without starting tackle Joshua Jerome and linebacker Jaren Banks, although both are listed as starters this week.