The Game Vitals
Game Time – 4:05 CT
Opponent – Eastern Washington at Roos Field in Cheney, WA
Game Notes – UND
TV – None
Online Streaming – Big Sky TV
Spread – Eastern Washington -24 O/U 60
Eastern Washington Breakdown (7-2 record)
— Offense = Shotgun-Pistol, Spread, 3-4 receivers, 1 running back
— Defense = 4-3
— Last Meeting: 2013 – EWU won 35-14 in Grand Forks
Eastern Washington is coming off a devastating, last second loss to Northern Arizona. They let NAU drive down the field in only three plays and score a TD to win the game 28-27 to hand EWU their first FCS loss of the season. They are still ranked #6 in the country but are not nearly the same team without Vernon Adams at QB. That ranking is based on Adams playing, which he will not be this weekend.
Offensively, the Eagles are a fairly balanced offense operating out of a shotgun/1 RB setup. They employ 3-4 receivers at all times and do use a TE at times. EWU is averaging an impressive 43 pts/game and 550 yards of total offense. 325 yards of that is through the air. This is a high-octane no-huddle offense that will try to score as quickly as possible by spreading teams out and playing sideline to sideline. They run alot of flare passes to the RB’s and sweep handoff’s to get their playmakers in one-on-one situations.
With Adams out, QB Jordan West has taken over and done a decent job at the controls but they are not nearly has dynamic as they were. West is a taller QB at 6’4″ and acts much more like a pocket QB than Adams. He will take off running but only a few times per game. West is 62-105 for 758 and 7 TD’s and 1 INT in his three games at starting QB for the Eagles.
The running backs and wide receivers for the Eagles are electric, to say the least. They will be the best group that UND has faced this year and it’s not even close. RB #22 Quincy Forte has returned from injury and is the home-run hitter for the Eagles. He has 629 yards and 5 TD’s thus far on 2014. EWU will try and get him the ball going wide via handoff or swing pass and let him race the defense to the sideline, looking for a crease to develop. In the passing game, the Eagles have two outstanding wide receivers in #10 Cooper Kupp and #11 Kendrick Bourne. They have combined for 96 receptions and 1,385 yards and 19 TDs. Thoso two go 6’2″ and 6’3″, respectively, giving defenses trouble not only with their above-average speed but size also.
Defensively, EWU plays a 4-3 defense. They are giving up 33 pts/game on the season and are not an overly dominant group by any means. From what we have seen they can be run on, which UND will obviously try to do again this week. Their defense is led by All-Big Sky LB #39 Ronnie Hamlin, who is having another great season for the Eagles. #91 Samson Ebukam is another disruptive force on the defensive line with 6 sacks and 9 TFLs.
North Dakota (3-5) Keys to the Game
- The UND defense needs to get back in the saddle this week and lead the effort. This unit played poorly last week at SUU and has a chance to redeem itself this week vs. a better offense. Too many gaps were left unfilled and tackles missed last week. EWU is going to spread them out and make them tackle one-on-one. Will they be up to the challenge this week? This EWU is very similar to Montana State’s offense and UND had decent success vs. the Bobcats, especially on the ground.
- We are starting to get the feeling that true freshman QB Keaton Studsrud is going to travel on the trip and be prepared to play, if needed. With Ryan Bartels still dinged up from last week’s SUU game, UND has had to prepare a backup plan just in case. Nobody will know who is really starting until warmups on Saturday. If Studsrud does play, look for an extremely simple game plan, being he has ran the scout team all season and has had limited exposure to the offense.
- With the QB situation up in the air, UND needs to run the clock offensively. Run the ball, hit short-intermediate routes, run the ball, and then do it again. We believe that UND will take their shots deep with Dev Ferguson as they have in the past but they need that clock to run while they got the ball when facing a high-octane offense like EWU.
This is another tough road game for UND. They have not won a game away from the Alerus Center this season. With the QB situation as it is this one will be another game where a lot of things need to go right for UND. There is something about that red turf and when EWU gets back home they are a completely different team.
The Prediction
Eastern Washington 28
North Dakota 16
