INSIDE SLANT
Ron English came to this program a year ago, with the mantra that his players needed to “embrace the process.” He spoke about what it would take to get Eastern Michigan into the upper echelon of the Mid-American Conference, and how the Eagles had to take the pain before they could expect to see any gain.
After a season-ending 28-21 loss at Akron gave the Eagles an 0-12 finish, the school’s first winless season since 1981, English now needs to convince his players to keep the faith. Though no results were seen in the form of wins, he has to sell his football team on the concept that the tough lessons learned this time around will better equip them for the coming battles.
There are myriad problems here, but the list of major ones seems to always be headed by penalties—the Eagles had 68 of them this season for nearly 600 yards. A team that is struggling can hardly afford to give the opposition that many extra downs and bonus yards.
Turnovers will be another area of focus as the Eagles move forward. Eastern Michigan made 26 of them in 2009, and that was more than enough to consistently put opposing teams on the short field. Additional blunders by the Eagles led to an abundance of big plays by the opposition, frequently putting Eastern Michigan in a big hole before it had a chance to mount any offense.
English received the obligatory vote of confidence from his athletic director, and moves into recruiting knowing he needs to upgrade the talent to have a shot at long-term success here. The party line is that patience will provide English room to make his plan work, but the mention of patience is always followed with a rejoinder that there needs to be a sense of urgency about everything the Eagles do. The current and still winless coach needs to function inside that contradictory box.
NOTES, QUOTES
Game Of The Year: Northwestern 27, Eastern Michigan 24—It is tough to pick an outstanding performance when all 12 outings ended in losses, but in their trip to Evanston the Eagles took an upper echelon Big Ten team to the wire.
After trailing 21-0, Eastern Michigan stormed back and tied the game at 24 with just under three minutes to play. Northwestern needed a frantic drive in the closing moments and a 49-yard field goal with 43 seconds left to steal the narrow win over the Eagles.
Player Of The Year: LB Andre Hatchett—The senior from Indianapolis closed out his college career with another solid performance, and ended his senior season with 113 tackles (55 solo, 58 assisted).
Hatchett had six stops behind the line, a couple of sacks, and an interception. He appeared in 47 games over his career, starting 36 times.
Fast Forward: There were 14 seniors that closed their careers for the Eagles, but this program made a significant investment in youth throughout the season, with hope that will pay off next year.
There were 25 players who saw the first action of their careers in 2009, and 10 of those players were true freshmen for the Eagles. Eastern Michigan had one of the youngest teams in the nation in Division I, and started the second-most true freshmen of any team in the country. Eastern was also one of just 11 programs nationally to start a true freshman at quarterback as the Eagles went with Alex Gillett for the final three games.
Nobody took more lumps than the Eagles did this year, but part of the plan for first-year head coach Ron English was to give his recruits a baptism by fire and prepare them for more productive years ahead. If that formula works, Eastern Michigan will expect to see different results next season.
Recruiting Trail: After a winless season in which it was not competitive in more than half of the games, Eastern Michigan has a lengthy shopping list, with run-stoppers along the defensive line at the top of that ledger. The Eagles also need depth along the offensive line, and a deep threat at wide receiver, among other things.
Jeremy Curry (6-1, 204) is an undersized DE from Illinois who has committed to Eastern Michigan. The Eagles also have LB Desdan Hester from Georgia (6-1, 221), OL Garrett Parker (6-5, 275) from Illinois, and athlete Darrian Lewis (6-1, 170) from California. The early returns suggest that head coach Ron English is looking more outside of the state of Michigan to mine the talent he needs to rebuild this program.
Quote To Note: “I’m not measuring this program by the wins and losses at this time. I’m frustrated by the wins and losses at this time. We want to win every game, but we didn’t play well enough to win those games.”—Eastern Michigan coach Ron English, whose team went 0-12
STRATEGY AND PERSONNEL
Players To Watch In 2010:
QB Alex Gillett—Less than a year removed from his final high school game, the true freshman got tossed into the starting role for the Eagles for the final three games of the 2009 season. Gillett finished second on the team with 484 yards rushing, and completed 68-of-137 passes for 763 yards and three touchdowns, with seven interceptions. The experience he gained will put Gillett in the lead role at the position in 2010.
DB Martavius Cardwell—The sophomore from nearby Flint received national attention when he made 13 tackles in a narrow loss to MAC foe Ball State, and also forced a fumble and had two stops for loss in that game. Eastern Michigan had one of the nation’s top pass defenses all season, and Cardwell, who started 11 games, was a big part of that effort.
WR Kinsman Thomas—The South Carolina product made an impact as a true freshman, starting three games and snagging 15 passes for 275 yards, and a team-best three receiving touchdowns. Thomas seemed to have good chemistry with fellow freshman QB Alex Gillett, giving Eastern the prospect of an impact combination for three more seasons.
Pro Prospect:
• P Zach Johnson had his impact limited by injuries over the past two seasons, but when he was healthy, he was very good—good enough to attract the attention of the pro scouts. If they have a good memory, they will recall that in 2007 a healthy Johnson averaged 42.1 yards per kick on 56 punts, dropping 24 of those inside the 20. In 2006 he was a semifinalist for the Ray Guy Award, punting 65 times for a 40.1 average.
Roster Report:
• RB Dwayne Priest played in all but one game for the Eagles this season, and led the team in rushing with 597 yards on 157 carries.
• OT Bridger Buche, who has two years of eligibility remaining, missed the entire 2009 season with a hip injury but is expected to be ready for 2010.
• C Eric Davis, a junior who was injured in the loss to Northern Illinois and will miss the final three games of the season, is expected back at full strength for spring workouts.
• S Ryan Downard, a junior who was lost for the season when he broke his left arm at practice prior to the Temple game, should be cleared for contact work prior to the start of spring football.
