Midway through the regular season, Isaiah Perez was ready for a week without a football game.
It gave the Eastern Washington team captain more time with his wife and three daughters, and it gave him a chance to look back at the Eagles’ first six games to see what they might do better the rest of the way.
“I feel like it was very helpful,” the redshirt junior defensive tackle said. “We got an extra week to study film and really break down (Idaho) and focus on ourselves for a week, get guys mentally prepared.
“We’re ready for the home stretch, and hopefully we’ll win some big games at the end of the season.”
This weekend, the Eagles (2-4, 1-1) are facing the 24th-ranked Idaho Vandals (2-4, 0-2), who have won the last three matchups in the all-time series.
Perez said he puts some of the blame for last year’s loss on his shoulders, when the EWU defensive line wasn’t able to make plays in key spots.
“I’m there on the defensive line, and I wasn’t able to make stops on those plays,” Perez said. “I put those really heavily on myself.”
Here are three factors to keep an eye on after the Eagles and Vandals kick off at 4 p.m. Saturday at Roos Field in Cheney:
1. Does Eastern Washington’s front contain Idaho’s rushing game? The Vandals have gained nearly as many yards on the ground as they have through the air this season – four Big Sky teams, including EWU, have actually gained more yards rushing than passing – and in last week’s 49-33 home loss to Northern Colorado the Vandals still ran for 203 yards.
They did so in a variety of ways, with running backs Nate Thomas (15 carries, 64 yards) and Elisha Cummings (7 for 40) as well as quarterback Rocco Koch (10 for 81). It was the most significant action of the season for the redshirt freshman Koch, a graduate of Curtis Senior High School, which happens to be the same school EWU head coach Aaron Best graduated from, in 1990.
The wild card in Idaho’s offense is whether redshirt sophomore Joshua Wood plays after missing last week’s game. When healthy, he is one of the best dual-threat quarterbacks in the Big Sky (346 rushing yards, 927 passing yards this season).
Eastern has been better against the run this year, but it has also been gouged twice: by Montana State (293 yards) and by Boise State (328). Their other four opponents have gained between 130 and 151 yards rushing.
2. Does an EWU receiver break loose? Through six games, Eastern has yet to see a receiver go over 100 yards in a single game, with redshirt junior Miles Williams’ 78 yards against Western Illinois standing as the team high this season.
The lack of a clear go-to receiver – redshirt senior Noah Cronquist leads the team with 212 yards – means the Eagles are spreading the ball around, but it also suggests that no one has shown the ability to take over a game yet.
But Idaho was vulnerable against the pass against the Bears, who had two receivers with at least 120 yards, and EWU’s best passing day – 272 yards in that game against Western Illinois – came with Nate Bell, the expected starter this week, playing quarterback.
3. Who makes a big play on special teams? Eastern’s ability to block kicks may not have won them games so far this year – all four have come in the team’s four losses – but they have certainly made their opponents pay attention.
Perez has two of the blocks so far this year: a field goal at Incarnate Word and a field goal at Montana State. One more this season would tie the single-season team record. Three more in his career – he already has three – and he would match the team’s career record.
That sort of play could make a big difference on Saturday. So would a big kick return, as the Eagles got last year in Moscow.
Idaho ranks in the bottom half of the league in kickoff and punt coverage; the Eagles are in the top three returning both. No doubt that is something the Eagles will look to exploit.
