One of the questions entering the season for the Eastern football team was how quickly transfer quarterback Jake Christensen would develop chemistry with his wide receivers.

It takes time for any quarterback-receiver relationship to build, especially when a quarterback enters camp late (as Christensen did), and when so many of the receivers are young (as Eastern’s are).

But Christensen seems to have developed quick chemistry with many of his receivers, most notably sophomore Lorence Ricks.

Ricks has become the primary deep threat for the Iowa transfer, connecting on three passes for 101 yards in Saturday’s 23-14 victory over Southeast Missouri. The duo also connected on a 48-yard pass play that was negated by an Eastern penalty.

On the season, Ricks is second on the team with eight receptions and first with 181 yards. He is the only Panther receiver with more than 100 yards on the season, and also leads the team, averaging 22.6 yards per catch and 60.3 yards per game.

“(Ricks) is a tall, athletic kid. He’s probably our fastest guy and he’s starting to get that experience and starting to learn how to get open,” said Christensen, who has completed a pass to 11 different receivers this season. “He’s been doing it week-in and week-out, so he just needs to keep doing that and hopefully I’ll be able to keep getting the ball to him.”

The 6-foot-1, 171 lb. Ricks said he spent extra time working with Christensen, and he’s helped him execute better on the field.

“During fall camp I would stay after practice and we would do extra workouts,” Ricks said. “We’ve built a good chemistry between us and we’re making things happen.”

Getting to the quarterback

After accumulating just 17 sacks in all of 2008, the Panthers continue to succeed in the sack department early in 2009.

Freshman Artavious Dowdell recorded his team-leading second sack of the season in the team’s victory over Southeast Missouri. It was the team’s eighth sack on the season overall, amounting in 56 yards lost.

Dowdell – who is primarily a pass-rusher and does not play every down – is not an average-sized defensive end. The Eastern Media Guide has him listed at 210 lbs., but Eastern defensive coordinator Roc Bellantoni said he is closer to 225 lbs.

Bellantoni said he has been pleased with Dowdell’s progress as a true freshman, but admitted if it weren’t for the summer strength and conditioning program, he might not be part of the team.

“He put on a lot of weight and he’s doing really well,” Bellantoni said. “He has a chance to be a special player.”

Bellantoni compared Dowdell to former Eastern defensive ends Donovan Johnson and Pierre Walters when they first joined the team. Johnson had a team-high six sacks in 2008 and Walters is now in the NFL with the Kansas City Chiefs.

“He’s a playmaker,” Bellantoni said. “He can definitely rush the passer and he’s starting to figure out the run game. We were hoping he’d be this good, but any time a true freshman’s making plays out there, it’s kind of a surprise. He’s opened some eyes.”

Injury update

Junior linebacker Nick Nasti will sit out his second-consecutive game Saturday with a sprained knee. Junior Sean Campbell will once again start in his place and junior Alain Marcelin and red-shirt freshman Perry Maynard will also see action.

Red-shirt freshman James Cooper, a reserve defensive back who also sees time on special teams, will also sit out this week.

Bellantoni said Cooper would be out for a couple of weeks with a banged up shoulder.

Sophomore safety Nick Martinez, who has been out since the first week of training camp with a concussion, will participate in helmets-only practice today and while he won’t be available in Saturday’s game against Austin Peay, Bellantoni said he hopes to have him back for the Oct. 3 game against Eastern Kentucky at O’Brien Field.

Collin Whitchurch can be reached at 581-7944 or cfwhitchurch@eiu.edu.

Freshman defensive end Artavious Dowdell goes after SEMO quarterback Matt Scheible during Eastern’s 23-14 win over the Redhawks Saturday.(Karolina Strack/The Daily Eastern News)

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