Northern football returns from bye week with trip to Eastern Oregon

With the bye week now over, the Montana State University-Northern football team will get back in action with a road game against Eastern Oregon University in La Grande this Saturday. The rebuilding Lights faced much adversity already this season, so MSU-N head coach Jerome Souers believes the bye has recharged the Lights for the latter half of the season.

"We rested up during our bye week. We did a lot of rehab and worked through some things and we're hopeful that we have some legs and are a little fresher," Souers said. "The mentality and the attitude has been outstanding. There's no quit in our guys and they continue to fight."

The EOU Mountaineers are tied with the Lights for last in the Frontier Conference with an 0-6 conference record. The Mountaineers have also suffered a 33-7 loss to Whitworth to make their overall record 0-7 this fall. Outside a 25-23 loss to Carroll College, the Mountaineers have struggled as they have lost all their games by an average of 26.8 points a game.

Throughout the season, the Mountaineers have shifted through quarterbacks to find their leader on offense. The leading pass for EOU this season is Carson Bohning who has completed 40.8 percent of his passes for 330 yards, one touchdown and seven interceptions in four games. But Tanner Sweek got the start in their last game where he went 8-for-20 for 80 yards and four interceptions against Rocky Mountain College.

As an offense, the Mountaineers are averaging 234.1 yards and 9.6 points a game. Despite the lack of offense, there are still some weapons that could give the Lights some trouble. Wide receiver Malachi Spurrier leads the team with 24 catches for 402 yards and two touchdowns this season. On the ground, running back Anthony Peterson leads the team with 208 yards on 3.4 yards a carry.

The EOU defense is not much better allowing 402.4 yards and 36.4 points a game. Linebacker Zak Donato leads the team with 55.0 total tackles while defensive lineman Gabriel Shukle has 2.5 sacks. In the secondary, Josh Mendoza has been a playmaker with four interceptions this year.

With a winless opponent this weekend, the Lights will be looking to take advantage for their first win under Souers. But they will need their players to produce on offense in order to have a shot.

Just like the Mountaineers, the Lights have gone back and forth at quarterback trying to create a spark on offense. Brenden Medina leads the Lights in passing as he has completed 49.2 percent of his passes for 225 yards and three interceptions. Kaymen Cureton has also gotten plenty of time behind center as he has completed 40 percent of his throws for 206 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.

As a unit, the Lights offense has struggled averaging 81.8 yards and 3.0 points a game this fall. It has been especially hard moving the ball on the ground with 4.7 rushing yards a game. Mason Dionne leads the Lights with 91 yards on 1.5 yards a carry this year. In the receiving game, Devin Shelton leads the team with 89 yards on six catches.

The Lights have also had their struggles on defense allowing 467.0 yards and 49.7 points a game. However, there have been some bright spots for the Lights. Safety Hunter Riley leads the team with 56.0 total tackles while also recording two forced fumbles and an interception. Linebacker Dylan Wampler is having another strong year with 47.0 total tackles, 4.5 sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss. With the struggles of both teams this year, Souers is interested to see these teams match up.

"They're kind of unknown," Souers said about the Mountaineers. "We have two teams that are very similar to each other and you have a lot of young guys still figuring the game out."

The Lights head into this game with an 0-6 record looking for their first win under Souers. As they return from their bye and head into the final four games of the season, Souers wants to see continued improvement this weekend as the Lights rebuild the program.

"We have to look for improvements in pad level, improvements in tackling, improvements in throwing and catching and doing the right things that a good football team does," Souers said. "You have to be resilient when things aren't going right and you have to find that focus that will enable you in the worst conditions to execute."

The MSU-N football team will kick off on Saturday at 2 p.m. against Eastern Oregon University at Community Stadium in La Grande, Oregon.