CHENEY, Wash. — The Eastern Washington football team is preparing for one of its toughest tests of the season, a trip to Eugene to face Oregon on Saturday.
Three days after being on the losing end of a shellacking in Atlanta at the hands of an impressive Georgia team, the Ducks received the news that they had been dropped from #11 in the AP top 25 to unranked.
Eastern will have to face an angry, motivated Oregon team on Sunday. Even though Oregon figures to be a heavy favorite in this game, the Eags are not showing any intimidation ahead of the matchup.
"We know this team has athletes and playmakers, but we do as well. We have guys out there who are going to fly around and make plays. We are confident in our preparation," EWU redshirt sophomore defensive end Brock Harrison said.
It is a great opportunity for this year's EWU squad to match up with a power five team and see how they stack up.
"I don't care which school you come from because I am going to come and compete with you no matter what. For our team, a lot of us say we want to go to the NFL. Well we are going to have to beat these dudes if we want to go to the NFL," EWU sophomore wide receiver Nolan Ulm said.
The Eags will be led into Autzen Stadium by the Big Sky offensive player of the week in new starting quarterback, sixth year senior Gunner Talkington. His five-touchdown performance in week one against Tennessee State may have surprised some people, but it did not come as a surprise to his team.
"I texted him after the game, I was just so happy for him. It has been a long time coming and it is just the beginning for him. It meant the world to me. When he was scoring out there, I felt like I was scoring, so it was awesome," Ulm said.
"He played darn near flawless. He was a competitor and a poised leader. A guy stays in our program for five years with few true competitive snaps and he is voted a team captain. That says something right there, these guys believe in (Gunner)," EWU head coach Aaron Best said.
Coach Best is aware of the feeling going up against a big power five school, but he believes this year's team is up to the task.
"It does mean more when you play a power five BCS opponent. When you have a team full of competitors, they are going to compete regardless of who they are playing against," Best said.
The Eags and Ducks will kick off at 5:30 PM on Saturday evening. The game can be seen on the PAC-12 Network.
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