The Panthers will host Ohio Valley Conference foe Austin Peay for Family Weekend. The Panthers enter the game with an overall record of 2-2, but are 1-0 in the OVC for the first time since their 2009 championship season.

On offense, Austin Peay boasts one of the most productive running games in the OVC. Senior running back Wesley Kitts ranks among the leaders in the conference in rushing yards, averaging 105.8 yards per game. He ranks 20th in the nation in yards per game and ranks fifth in the OVC.

“I think (Kitts) is a heck of a player,” head coach Dino Babers said. “He is a bigger guy, and they turn around and hand him the ball 25-to-30 times a game. When you hit him, he’s not going to go down. You have to hit him or hold on (to him) till help comes and you can drag him down.”

With Kitts providing Austin Peay with a power running game, it prefers a slower, more physical style of play that is capable of wearing down a defense. Although Kitts has been productive in the running game, the Panthers have not seen the results translate into points, averaging just over nine points a game, resulting in a 0-4 start to the season.

Despite the Governors’ slow start, the Panthers know the OVC is a league in which upsets can happen at anytime.

“You can’t overlook a team, especially in the OVC,” junior quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo said. “It’s one of those leagues where anyone can beat anyone and there are always surprises here and there. We are looking at them just like any other team, and we are going to make this one count and look to start out 2-0 in the conference.”

The Panthers are also looking to make a statement on defense as they will look to keep their opponents under 40 points for the first time in the last three games.

“With our offense scoring quick, it provides us with more reps as a defense on the field,” said Nick Beard, a red-shirt junior defensive back. “For us to hold an opponent to 21 points would be huge progress. We aren’t going to shut any team out, and they aren’t just going to lay down and let us push them over, but I believe our defense is coming together and we are starting to click.”

The Governors’ tendency to run the ball provides Eastern with a contrasting style of play as the previous teams they have played have preferred a pass-heavy offensive game plan that resulted in Eastern being able to execute its preferred up-tempo style of play.

“It’s going to be a major contrast,” Babers said. “We give those guys the utmost respect, and really, their style of football is the most dangerous. It’s the one we don’t know, and it’s hard for us to recreate (their offense) in practice. It’s a difficult task for us, and we will have to cross our ‘T’s and dot our ‘I’s to be right.”

Although the Governors will look to slow the game down, the Panthers will look to do the exact opposite on the offensive side of the ball.

The Panthers bring in one of the most prolific offenses in the OVC, ranking at the top in nearly every offensive statistic. They rank first in scoring offense, total offense, passing yards and touchdowns.

Eastern’s up-tempo offense is led by Garoppolo. He also ranks near the top in every passing statistic in the conference as he ranks in the top three in total passing yards, passing yards per game and touchdowns.

Although the Panthers are the highest scoring team in the OVC, they are just now starting to grasp the newly implemented offense.

“We all just started learning this new (offense) during the spring and in fall camp, and it’s really starting to click now,” Garoppolo said. “We are finally getting a flow with (the offense) and getting that up-tempo speed.”

The Panthers will have the chance to move to 2-0 in the conference and record their third win overall for the first time since the 2009 season when they host Austin Peay at 1:30 p.m. Saturday at O’Brien Field.

“It would mean everything (to get that third win),” Garoppolo said. “Getting three wins in a season is more than we have had in the last two years, so we are going in the right direction and we will see what happens.”

Jordan Pottorff can be reached at 581-2812 or jbpottorff@eiu.edu.