2011 Football Championship Subdivision Championship game, Pizza Hut Park, Frisco, TX
Eastern Washington Eagles vs Delaware Fightin’ Blue Hens
Friday, January 7, 2011, 7:00 pm Eastern, TV: ESPN2
Opening Line: Delaware -9
Current Line: Delaware -9 1/2
Opening Total: 46
Current Total: 45 1/2
Money Line: Delaware -360 / EWU +315
The #5 seed Eastern Washington Eagles are making their first ever appearance in the FCS Championship game. They are 12-2 on the season and have won 10 straight games since a 30-7 loss at Montana St. The only other loss for the Eagles was at Nevada to start the season. In the playoffs, Eastern Washington has never had to leave the cozy confines of their home stadium known for its unusual red artificial turf due to upsets. The Eagles beat SE Missouri St 37-17 in the second round after receiving a first round bye. Then they beat North Dakota St 38-31 in overtime in the quarterfinals. Three weeks ago, EWU beat defending national champion Villanova 41-31 at the Eagles home stadium in Cheney, WA. The Eagles won despite being near a double digit under dog to Villanova. The Eagles will take on the also 12-2 Delaware Fighting Blue Hens who are the #3 seed in the tournament. Delaware has losses against William & Mary and Villanova by a total of 8 points. They lost the last game of the regular season at home in overtime to arch-rival Villanova. That game probably cost the cost the Hens the Number 1 seed in the tournament. The also received a first round bye and beat Lehigh 42-20 in the second round. They beat conference rival New Hampshire 16-3 in the quarters and beat Georgia Southern 27-10 in the semifinals. Delaware won the title in 2003 and finished second in 2007. Delaware and Eastern Washington have never played against each other.
Eastern Washington is outscoring opponents 32-25 on the season. The Eagles average 402 yards a game on offense, including 165 rushing yards a game. Yjough the Eagles will be without star running back Taiwan Jones who broke his foot in the Eagles quarterfinal win against North Dakota St. He didn’t play against Villanova in the semifinals. On defense the Eagles give up 376 yards a game, including 136 yards rushing a game. The Eagles have forced 46 turnovers and have a turnover margin of +12. They have forced 30 sacks and given up 22 sacks on the year. They convert 37% on third down and 65% on fourth down. The Eagles struggle in the kicking game having missed 10 out of 22 field goal attempts. The offense is led by quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell who transferred from SMU, which is about 20 miles from the stadium in suburban Dallas where this game will be played. The native Texan has thrown for 3,194 yards, 34 touchdowns and 14 interceptions this season. The loss of Jones will be tough to overcome for the Eagles as he basically was the running game with 221 carries for 1,742 yards, and 14 touchdowns. He also had 24 catches for 3 touchdowns. Mario Brown and Darriell Beaumonte will split the carries in Jones’ absence. They have just over 500 yards and 3 touchdowns combined on the season. Brandon Kaufman is the leading receiver with 67 catches, 1,094 yards, and 13 touchdowns. Jesse Hoffman has 3 kickoff returns for touchdowns on the season, so Delaware would be wise to not kick to him.
Delaware is outscoring opponents 29-12 on the season. The Blue Hens give up average 401 yards a game on offense, including 184 yards rushing. They give up only 277 yards a game on defense including 111 rushing yards a game. They force 38 turnovers a game on defense and have a turnover margin of +24. They convert on third down 47% of the time and 57% on fourth down. They are 18 out of 24 on field goals for the year. The offense is led by quarterback Pat Devlin who transferred from Penn St. He has thrown for 2,812 yards, 22 touchdowns and only 2 interceptions. He also has a rushing touchdown on the year. Andrew Pierce is the leading rusher with 301 carries for 1,513 yards, and 13 touchdowns. He also has 28 catches and 3 touchdowns. David Hayes has 5 touchdown runs and 490 yards. Six Delaware receivers have at least 28 catches and 2 touchdown catches. The top receiver is Nihja White. He has 55 catches for 679 yards, and 6 touchdown catches.
Delaware’s defense is dominant. The loss of Taiwan Jones really hurts Eastern Washington. Even without Jones, the Eagles still put up 41 points against another good defense Villanova in the semifinals. The Eagles offense is more explosive than Delaware’s. I think this will be closer than the oddsmakers think it will be.
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