After a nationally-televised loss, Sacramento State progresses on as they move their attention to this week’s opponent, Eastern Washington.
The Hornets and Eagles have met 26 times over the past 45 years. Historically, the Hornets have struggled against the Eagles, winning only six out of the 26 matchups. In last year’s matchup, Eastern Washington won with a score of 35-28.
In Sac State’s previous game, they faced an undefeated Montana team that capitalized on Hornet mistakes.
The Hornets gave up a score at the end of the first half, which was set up by a muffed punt that significantly shifted the game’s momentum. The defense eventually wore down, allowing Montana to score multiple touchdowns and seal their victory, a 49-35 loss.
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Eastern Washington won a nail-biter in their recent game against Weber State, securing a 23-20 win and marking their third straight win on the season.
The offense scored 23 points in the first half but couldn’t find the end zone in the second. The defense stepped up in the second half by allowing no touchdowns and creating turnovers, including a late-game interception that sealed the win.
The Hornets are sitting at 4-4 on the season and look to get back positive again against the Eagles, who also sit at 4-4 on the season.
Head coach Brennan Marion spoke to his team, stressing the importance of winning football games late in the season, especially as they enter the last quarter of the season heading into November.
“I told the guys this week that those that win in November get remembered,” Marion said. “So we’ve got to do a really good job of starting the season off this week.”
Senior tackle and team captain Aiden Meek spoke about the similarities between last week’s opponent, Montana, and this week’s opponent, Eastern Washington.
“They have some tough looks on their defensive front that are just like Montana. That warmed us up for them,” Meek said. “We’re gonna be ready for it, because I think we handled it pretty well last week.”
On the other side of the ball, the goal for the secondary is to ramp up their play in pass coverage, starting with this weekend’s game.
“We have just got to play fast, physical and smart for four straight quarters. Don’t let our feet off their necks,” sophomore safety Anta’Veon McKenzie said. “Our coach said, ‘one year can change your life.’ We just have to go out with that mentality: win out, and go from there.”
Keys to the game:
The Sac State offense needs to continue to run the leather off the football. They average an effective 234 yards-per-game and have rushed 24 touchdowns, and are about to take on an Eastern Washington defense that is eighth in the Big Sky Conference when it comes to rushing defense.
On defense, it’s the usual. The Hornets need to fly around in the secondary and attack the quarterback at will.
The Eagles have allowed the fourth most sacks this season, while the Hornets lead the Big Sky Conference in sacks with 26. The defensive line should be aggressive in their pursuit of getting to the quarterback.
One issue that seems to be recurring is trying to clean up penalty yardage. The Hornets still lead the Big Sky Conference in penalties, with 72 penalties on the season for 573 yards. They average 71 penalty yards-per-game, which is ninth in all of FCS football.
Meek had one last message regarding Eastern Washington and his mentality going into this game.
“They run most of the same stuff that they ran last year, and they have the same personnel for the most part, so it definitely helps that I have an experience for this game,” Meek said. “I’m looking forward to getting a little redemption from last year.”
Sac State looks to get back over .500 this weekend, as they travel to Cheney, Washington to take on Eastern Washington Saturday at 1 p.m. via ESPN+.
