For the first time since 2016, Eastern’s football team will compete against Western Illinois. This rivalry is one that hasn’t lasted long within the football programs, but it is one that everyone takes seriously.

The Leathernecks have won the two games they had against the Panthers in 2015 (33-5) and 2016 (38-21).

Another aspect that makes this game interesting is the return of former offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Joe Davis.

After the 8-3 season Eastern had last season, Davis left the program to become the new head coach for the Leathernecks.

Under Davis, Western Illinois has a 3-5 overall record with a 2-1 record in the Big South Ohio Valley Conference, getting the program’s first win since 2021 over McKendree. Western also recorded wins over Charleston Southern University and Tennessee Tech University.

Davis said he learned a lot from Eastern’s program and is excited to come back to Charleston to hopefully record another conference win with the Leathernecks.

“I loved working for Coach Wilkerson,” Davis said. “I consider him a great friend and mentor still. I know what that program is all about. They’re all about the right things, and I learned a lot there in two years.”

Eastern’s head coach Chris Wilkerson said he’s excited to play against the Panthers’ former offensive coordinator.

“Coach Davis has done a phenomenal job so far at Western,” Wilkerson said. “He flipped the roster and has certainly flipped their culture. Offensively, they’re one of the hottest teams in the FCS. They’re playing at a very high level right now, so we’re going to have our hands full.”

Davis coached graduate quarterback Pierce Holley during the 2023 season, and Davis said Holley is a quarterback he enjoyed working with while he was at the program.

“[Pierce] is a very talented player,” Davis said. “I recruited him out of the portal what seems like yesterday, and now he’s finishing his second year at Eastern. I’m very aware of what Pierce is capable of, and he’s an absolute master of the operation of the offense. When you have a quarterback like that, regardless of record, regardless of score, you’re never out of it.”

Knowing he’s competing against his old coach, Holley respects Davis but isn’t going to make any changes to how he prepares for games.

“Obviously, he was my coach, and we worked together for a long time, but we are still going to prepare the same,” Holley said. “That doesn’t really change what we’re going to do.”

Because Davis has been with the program from December of 2021 to December of 2023, a lot of the players on the current roster know the significance and impact Davis made on the program.

Redshirt senior offensive lineman Sebastian Pares said it’ll be a good challenge to compete against this Western Illinois team, but the Panthers are still seeing this game as an opportunity to add another win to their 1-7 record thus far.

“I feel like a lot of people have respect for Coach [Joe] Davis, but at the end of the day, we’re playing football, so it doesn’t matter who we’re against,” Pares said.

Along with Holley, Davis also said redshirt sophomore running back MJ Flowers was a player he saw develop into the player he is now while Davis was with Eastern’s program.

“[MJ] doesn’t complain and just works,” Davis said. “I was able to see [MJ] develop into a much more complete back and certainly you see that this year, taking his game to another level in terms of carrying the football, catching the football, pass protection. Those types of things.”

Flowers said he has respect for Davis, but this rivalry between Western Illinois makes this game personal, and he’s wanting to get the win over the Leathernecks and for the running backs to put up high numbers.

“Every week, we’re learning more,” Flowers said. “I think that playing against Western this week, we got some good looks that we think we can capitalize on, so we’re looking forward to a big game for the running backs.”

Hoping to get some momentum to finish out the next four games, the Panthers are putting different players on the field as injuries start to rack up within the program.

Like most teams in the conference, injuries have hit the Panthers hard. Losing key targets in Eli Mirza, Terrance Gipson, DeAirious Smith, and Anthony Manaves, multiple people within the wide receiver room and tight end room have stepped up.

Junior tight end Alex Herrera scored his first touchdown as a Panther against the UT Martin Skyhawks last week.

With all of the injuries the team has suffered, Herrera says its important for the guys to step up and complete their assignments.

“Injuries hit us hard,” Herrera said. “We’re losing a lot of guys, but we have the next man up mentality, and we’re seeing how it goes from here.”

Along with Herrera, redshirt sophomore Alex Ginnever and redshirt junior Joe McNab also played against the Skyhawks. Herrera believes the tight end room has been improving throughout the season so when any of their numbers are called, everyone is ready to go out on the field.

But not only have the tight ends been performing well on the field, Herrera believes this has all started with the closeness and chemistry the players have bought into since summer camp.

“I think we’ve really just come together,” Herrera said. “Everyday, it’s a competition. We love each other, and that’s why we push each other every day to try to get better.”

With this game being a rivalry game, there is a lot of tension, but at the end of the day, both teams want to add another win to their records.

Eastern is hosting Western Illinois during Family Weekend. Kickoff is scheduled for 2 p.m. at O’Brien Stadium.

Zaria Flippin can be reached at 581-2812 or at zhflippin@eiu.edu.