Team captain Mark Aitken (2), shown here returning a blocked field goal for a touchdown last season, has seen lows and highs of Eastern Illinois football during his three years in Charleston. (Photo by EIUPanthers.com)
By Dan Verdun
CHARLESTON – Watching film has become quite a bit more fun and entertaining for Eastern Illinois football this season.
In fact, one of the team mottos is “Flipping the Script,” according to safety Mark Aitken.
“We’ve talked about that the whole year, and I feel like that’s exactly what we’re doing,” said Aitken, one of EIU’s five team captains.
Like a favorite TV show, each weekly episode of Panther football has brought something new to the screen.
There certainly have been cliffhanger endings as EIU has played six games decided by seven or fewer points this fall.
Fans no doubt remember the wild finish when previously injured kicker Stone Galloway stepped onto the field and booted a 56-yard field goal to cap a comeback victory against McNeese.
Or perhaps viewers prefer the two-point conversion run – with a little help from his friends – by quarterback Pierce Holley to nip Bryant in overtime.
Yet, not every Saturday brought a storybook ending.
After all, there was the one when the Panthers’ two-point bid failed in a home loss to UT Martin, which has since clinched at least a tie for the Big South-OVC crown. And the time when Southeast Missouri batted down Holley’s pass into the end zone allowing the Redhawks to escape with a 35-28 decision.
Still, there have been far more feel-good chapters both at O’Brien Field as well as at far away (or not so far away) locations.
How much has EIU “flipped the script”?
Should the Panthers win Saturday at Robert Morris, EIU will quadruple its win total from a year ago.
As things stand, Eastern has a 7-3 overall record and is 4-2 in the Big South-OVC. Those seven victories are the most since 2015, which is also the last time EIU qualified for the FCS playoffs.
Every team has mottos, mantras and taglines, but how have the Panthers practiced what they’ve preached?
“We talked about just focusing on the process,” second-year head coach Chris Wilkerson explained. “I said at the beginning of the year at (Big South-OVC) media day that typically when there’s a change in leadership and a change in culture your biggest improvement can be seen from year one to year two.”
Aitken viewed the growth as a blending of the two seasons.
“Honestly, the script flipped right after our last game against UT Martin last year,” he said.
In that November road game, EIU lost a 34-31 nailbiter to the 25th-ranked team in FCS.
“That helped us believe,” Aitken said.
And it carried over to this season.
“What really opened our eyes the most and showed us that we could really do this were those first couple of out-of-conference games,” Aitken said of victories over Indiana State, Illinois State, McNeese and Northwestern (La.) State.
“It gave us the confidence because it was something we hadn’t done before,” Aitken said. “There’s no second guessing.”
Panthers of the past
Wilkerson has been here before. After all, he was a Panther defensive lineman nearly 30 years ago when rumors swirled that head coach Bob Spoo would be fired as EIU, coming off a three-win season, stumbled to a 2-5 start in 1994.
Many teammates have credited Wilkerson with being both a vocal leader and leader by example that rallied the Panthers. EIU won its final four games that season to post a 6-5 record and save their head coach’s job.
A year later, the Panthers went 10-2, won a share of the Gateway Football Conference title and earned a playoff invitation.
Wilkerson began his coaching career as a graduate assistant under Spoo, a man who became far more than just a boss. You don’t have to walk very far around the EIU football offices to see and feel the effects Spoo has had – and continues to have – on Wilkerson.
“Obviously we only won two games last year, and we’re at seven now but we still have another opportunity next weekend,” Wilkerson said. “In the end, we’re really still focused on just trying to be the best versions of ourselves.
“There are so many things to correct, but these are great young men. I’m fortunate enough to have a great staff with great support here. It’s been fun being home. Certainly we have a lot of work yet to do, but we’re excited about the future of Eastern Illinois football.”
For now, though, the future can wait.
Aitken and his teammates are relishing in this turnaround season.
“This season means a lot to me because it just shows what hard work and coming together as a team can do,” the Chicago native said. “It’s more powerful than anything.
“There’s nothing like coming together for one main goal and being able to accomplish it because the game is not done with one or 10 people. It takes all 60 or 70 guys doing their jobs to make everything work.”
Dan Verdun is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin. He has written four books: NIU Huskies Football, EIU Panthers Football, ISU Redbirds Football and SIU Salukis Football.
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