CHENEY, Wash. — Home field was well defended on senior day for Eastern Washington football as they sent its senior class off with a win. EWU defeated Northern Colorado, 27-7, on Saturday afternoon behind another full defensive effort. The Eagles improve to 4-3 in the Big Sky and 5-6 overall this season, while the Bears drop to 1-6 in conference and 3-8 overall.
"There were takeaways and fourth down stops, including one early in the game. We've improved a lot, as a team, since the game in Bozeman," head coach Aaron Best said. "We have put ourselves in a position to finish the season 5-3 in the Big Sky. The 5-3 in conference is important in one of the tougher leagues in the FCS. We found ways to get over the top. I wish we could have converted more of those turnovers into points, but I'll take 27-7."
The game started back-and-forth, as UNC took the lead in the second quarter. The Eagles quickly answered with a touchdown to go back in front. Eastern carried the lead for the rest of the game, as the offense continued to produce and the defense remained strong.
The Eastern defense showed up, grabbing five interceptions in the game. Jaylon Jenkins made his fifth interception of the season and Jonathan Landry made his second. Drew Carter, Isaac Redford and JoJo Maxey-Johnson each snagged their first career interceptions.
Overall, the defense allowed 326 total yards to UNC, with 195 passing yards and 135 rushing.
Jake Schakel made his first start on Roos Field, passing for 299 yards, on 31-of-41(75.6%) passes, with two touchdowns and one interception. Miles Williams finished with a game-high 94 receiving yards on six receptions.
"[Jake] keeps his eyes downfield. He doesn't avoid the rush when he doesn't need to. It's still a small sample size, but the rush doesn't necessarily affect him," Best said of Schakel. "He's more athletic than he gives off. He's an unassuming person and quarterback, where he's not going to be the biggest of the bunch. His preparation is second to none; he has prepared like a starter every week this season. He takes the position very seriously and puts a lot on his shoulders. He will continue to grow with more experience."
In pregame, EWU honored 20 seniors with a group including, Bryce Lucas, Jheison Saunds, Jaden Price, Fletcher Gibson, Riley Rudolfo, Brandon Thomas, Tariq May, Aidan Corning, Dylan Conner, Talon Betts, Wesley Garrett, Landon Cooper, Read Sunn, Landon Ogles, Noah Cronquist, Malik Dotson, Jared Taylor, Trevor Thurman, DaJean Wells and Nolan Ulm.
"It means everything, for [the seniors, to get the win at home, especially for the guys on the defense," Best explained. "They've stayed the course, knowing they were seeing things the outside world didn't see to put everything together. Maybe not all the way together, but strive together to achieve that and play complementary football. It makes it that much sweeter for them to realize. We've won games on defense that season and I don't know the last time we could say that."
Scoring Summary
EWU moved the ball on its first drive as Jake Schakel found Noah Cronquist for a 35 yard catch. Schakel then found Miles Williams for 28 yards and Eastern went into the redzone. After a high snap moved the Eagles back, Soren McKee salvaged the drive with a 38-yard field goal to take the lead.
UNC managed to pick off Schakel and return it inside Eastern territory and a penalty moved them closer. The Bears then scored on a 12 yard pass and went up 7-3 with 14:50 on the clock in the second quarter.
Eastern had the response to the UNC touchdown, as Kevin Allen III drove the drive with runs of 11 and 12 yards. In the redzone, Schakel found Cole Pruett for the 12-yard touchdown to put the Eagles back in front. EWU had retaken the lead 10-7 and 11 minutes left in the half.
Schakel was slinging the ball around in the quarter, completing passes to Landon Cooper for 14 and 15 yards, creating another red zone opportunity. To cap the drive off, Schakel found Nolan Ulm in the endzone for a 14-yard touchdown. EWU extended its lead to 17-7 with 3:07 remaining.
Near the end of the half, Schakel had the Eagles moving again, completing 6 passes, including a 16-yard pass to Miles Williams. Going for the points, McKee converted a 22-yard field goal and extended the lead to 20-7 at half.
Starting in the third quarter, Eastern mixed passing and rushing plays to fuel another drive down the field, with Marceese Yetts taking the carries and Schakel distributing the ball around. At the 1-yard line, Allen power-ran the ball in and the EWU lead grew to 27-7.
Eag Notes
- Eastern's 5 interceptions is the most since Oct. 31, 2009 vs. Portland State when the Eagles had 5.
- The team's combined for 7 points in the second half, with Eastern scoring the only touchdown.
- Nolan Ulm caught his first touchdown of the season and his first since 2024 vs. Monmouth. He now has 11 career receiving touchdowns. Ulm had 5 catches for 35 yards in the game.
- Cole Pruett caught his third touchdown of his career and second this season. Pruett had 3 catches for 24 yards against the Bears.
- Kevin Allen III scored his third rushing touchdown of the season. He finished with 31 rushing yards on 9 attempts.
- Read Sunn led the Eagles with 10 tackles, making 2 solo. It is Sunn's fourth game this season with 10+ tackles.
- Soren McKee made two field goals for the eighth time in his career.
- Senior Jheison Saunds posted a career-best 5 tackles in the game. Trevor Thurman posted 4 tackles in his final game on Roos Field, while DaJean Wells had 1 solo tackle and a pass breakup.
Up Next
Eastern Washington will play its final game of the 2025 season next Saturday (Nov. 22) against Cal Poly with kickoff at 2 p.m. Pacific Time.
2025 EWU football tickets are now on sale! Join Spokane County's team for all five home games at Roos Field in Cheney starting as low as $99. Group tickets, fundraising options and single game tickets are also available. For more info, visit goeags.com/fbtickets or contact the EWU Ticket Office at 509-359-6059 or tickets@ewu.edu.
Join the Eagle Athletic Fund for as low as $50 per year! Support Eagle student-athletes on and off the field while enjoying exclusive EAF perks such as season ticket and tailgating priority, invitations to special events, exclusive access, and more. Visit goeags.com/eaf for more information.
ABOUT EASTERN WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ATHLETICS
Eastern Washington University Athletics sponsors 14 intercollegiate sports, six for men and eight for women, both as learning opportunities for its most athletically talented students and as an enhancement to student and community life. Eastern is affiliated with Division I of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) and is a member of the Big Sky Conference, an association of 10 regional schools with comparable enrollments and academic goals.
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