Two Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) programs in Eastern Washington University and Southeastern Louisiana University will face off in 2023 and 2024, the schools jointly announced on Thursday (June 30).
 
The Eagles will host the Lions on Sept. 16, 2023 in Cheney, Wash., at Roos Field before making the return trip to Hammond, La., on Sept. 14, 2024 at Strawberry Stadium. It will be the first all-time meeting between the foes, and EWU owns a 6-7 overall record against Southland Conference opponents.
 
"The ability to agree upon a home and home matchup with an upper echelon FCS program such as Southeastern Louisiana is something we look for annually," said head coach Aaron Best. "Engaging in tougher non-conference games at the FCS level will undoubtedly better prepare our program for the rigors of our Big Sky Conference schedule."
 
Like Eastern Washington, SLU advanced to the second round of the FCS Playoffs in 2021, and the squads also boast the two most recent Walter Payton Award winners. SLU's Cole Kelley won in 2020-21 and Eric Barriere was awarded in 2021. Both finished runner-up to each other in the year that they did not win.
 
The Lions made their fourth trip to the postseason in 2021 and the third to the second round, finishing 9-4 overall and 6-2 in conference play. Eastern Washington made its 15^th appearance, finishing the season 10-3 overall and tied for third in the Big Sky Conference with a 6-2 record. The squads are currently both ranked in the Athlon Sports and HERO Sports Preseason Top-25 polls. EWU is ranked No. 15 in Athlon Sports and No. 20 in HERO Sports, while SLU comes in at No. 19 and No. 20, respectively.
 
"We've been taking steps each season as our program grows to compete consistently on the national level and to continue that growth, we have to compete against quality FCS opponents. Eastern Washington is consistently in the national championship picture, which is where we want to be," added Southeastern's head coach Frank Scelfo. "We're excited for this home-and-home series and an opportunity to test ourselves against an elite FCS program."
 
This completes the 2023 schedule for the Eagles, which can be found below. Eastern Washington has also secured a 2025 matchup with Boise State in Boise, Idaho.
 
FUTURE SCHEDULES (Dates, Times, and Opponents are Subject to Change)
 
2022 Season
9/3/22 - Tennessee State
9/10/22 - at Oregon
9/17/22 - Bye
9/24/22 - Montana State
10/1/22 - at Florida
10/8/22 - at Weber State
10/15/22 - Sacramento State (Homecoming)
10/22/22 - at Cal Poly
10/29/22 - Portland State
11/5/22 - at Idaho
11/12/22 - at Montana
11/19/22 - Northern Colorado
 
2023 Season
9/2/23 - vs. North Dakota State (US Bank Field, Minnesota)
9/9/23 – at Fresno State
9/16/23 – Southeastern Louisiana
9/23/23 – at UC Davis
9/30/23 – Idaho
10/7/23 – Open
10/14/23 – at Idaho State
10/21/23 – Weber State
10/28/23 – at Portland State
11/4/23 – Cal Poly
11/11/23 – at Montana State
11/18/23 – Northern Arizona
 
2024 Season
9/14/24 – at Southeastern Louisiana
9/28/24 – Montana
10/5/24 – Open
10/12/24 – at Sacramento State
10/19/24 – UC Davis
10/26/24 – at Idaho
11/2/24 – Montana State
11/9/24 – Northern Colorado
11/16/24 – Idaho State
11/23/24 – Northern Arizona
 
2025 Season
9/27/25 - at Montana State
10/4/25 - Portland State
10/11/25 - Open
10/18/25 - Idaho
10/25/25 - at Weber State
11/1/25 - Sacramento State
11/8/25 - at Montana
11/15/25 - Northern Colorado
11/25/25 - at Cal Poly
at Boise State: TBA
 
2026 Season
9/26/26 - at Idaho State
10/3/26 - Weber State
10/10/26 - Open
10/17/26 - Montana State
10/24/26 - at Portland State
10/31/26 - Cal Poly
11/7/26 - at Idaho
11/14/26 - at UC Davis
11/21/26 - Northern Arizona
At Washington: TBA
 
2027 Season
9/25/27 - at Montana State
10/2/27 - UC Davis
10/9/27 - Open
10/16/27 - Idaho State
10/23/27 - at Northern Arizona
10/30/27 - Idaho
11/6/27 - at Sacramento State
11/13/27 - Montana
11/20/27 - at Northern Colorado