Linebacker Aidan Harrison, in his first start, returned an interception for a touchdown in WIU’s victory against Charleston Southern last weekend. (Photo by GoLeathernecks.com)
By Barry Bottino
Before the season, Western Illinois head coach Joe Davis and defensive line coach Ashton Derico set some expectations.
“We got challenged,” defensive end Jalen Riven said. “Make it difficult for the quarterback and really apply some pressure. As we got through Week 3, we still didn’t have a sack. We just said, ‘We’ve got to make it happen.’”
In the past two weeks, WIU’s defense has six sacks and growing confidence that more are to come. Riven leads the team with two, while three other players have one sack each.
“I know the feeling now,” Riven said. “I need that (again.)”
Western (2-3 overall, 1-0 Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association) and the revived pass rush take a two-game winning streak into its Homecoming game at 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 12 against UT Martin (3-3, 1-1) at Hanson Field.
Along with two sacks last weekend in a 31-20 victory in its league debut against Charleston Southern, Western also grabbed two interceptions. A first-quarter pick by middle linebacker Aidan Harrison turned into a 38-yard interception return for a touchdown. For his efforts, Harrison earned Big South-OVC Defensive Player of the Week honors in his first career start.
For Davis, last weekend’s play in Charleston, S.C., was a familiar sight.
“I told Aidan on the sideline afterward, ‘Man, you’ve done that to us in practice multiple times,” Davis said. “I wasn’t surprised he made that pick.”
Seeing it in a game, however, was a different story.
“I’m looking for more of our practice to translate into Saturdays,” he said. “We put our players in a lot of competitive situations in practice. I’ve seen our defense do some pretty special things. We just haven’t seen that consistently enough on Saturdays.”
Junior linebacker Ryan Crandall said the defense’s next step is creating more turnovers.
“Forcing fumbles, getting the ball loose is a real big thing on any defense,” he said. “That’s been a big point (of emphasis) not only from the coaches but from the players.”
For the season, Western has two interceptions and no forced fumbles.
Saturday’s opponent brings a run game to Macomb that averages more than 150 yards a game and has produced a conference-best 11 rushing touchdowns.
“Knowing that those plays are coming and what we’ve got to do comes down to doing your job as an individual, everybody doing their 1/11th,” Crandall said.
With back-to-back wins after a 27-game losing streak, WIU’s confidence is on the rise.
“Collectively, what it’s done for us is showed us we really can win on this level,” Riven said. “It definitely changes the morale of the team. Everybody’s on board.”
This week’s opponent
UT Martin’s Skyhawks have won three of their last four games after an 0-2 start, which included losses to FBS Kansas State and Big South-OVC leader Southeast Missouri. … Martin running back Patrick Smith is one of only 16 players nationally to be averaging over 100 yards a game. In the last five games, Smith has surpassed 100 yards four times, including a career-best 148 yards against SEMO. … Safety Oshae Baker has started since his freshman season and set the school record earlier this season with his 32 career pass breakups. … Quarterback Kinkead Dent, an Ole Miss transfer, is passing for just 119 yards a game, but has an 11-3 record as Martin’s starter over the past two seasons. “The bottom line is he’s a winner,” head coach Jason Simpson said. “He played a solid game, very efficient (last week in a 35-17 win against Gardner-Webb).” … Turnovers have been a plus for Martin’s defense this season. The Skyhawks rank 11th in FCS with seven interceptions and 26th in the nation with nine total turnovers gained. … Since 2006, Martin is the winningest team in the conference with an 88-49 record, which equates to a 64.2% winning percentage. … After not practicing last week, WRs DeVonte Tanksley and Trevonte Rucker combined last weekend for six catches and 69 yards. “I think that would be very comforting for our offense” to have them play against WIU, Simpson said.
Kickoff: 3 p.m.; TV: ESPN-Plus; Radio: Q981fm.com
Key matchup to watch
UT Martin RB Patrick Smith vs. WIU run defense: The 5-foot-9 Smith, a Vanderbilt transfer, ranks second in the conference with 100.7 rushing yards a game and has scored a league-high nine touchdowns. The Leathernecks rank 122nd in rushing defense among 123 FCS teams at 270.4 yards allowed per game.
What’s at stake?
A victory would give Western a three-game winning streak and a 2-0 start to its first season in the Big South-OVC.
Quick hits
The WIU passing game leads the conference in offensive efficiency with a 138.9 rating. Led by starting quarterback Nathan Lamb, Western is completing 66% of its passes and has scored seven touchdowns through the air. Davis said the Leathernecks still have an extra step to take in the passing game, though. “I’m pleased with the efficiency. Nate is a very accurate passer,” he said. “I still think we’re missing a lot of big plays. To hit explosive plays in the pass game requires protection, requires quarterback timing and requires wide receivers to be able to make some plays down the field. I’m still waiting for that.” … Kicker Antonio Chadha connected on a 48-yard field goal and four extra points last weekend against Charleston Southern to win co-special teams player of the week in the conference. … Davis said senior linebacker Diego Neri, who was a starter, will miss the rest of the season with a broken foot. With Harrison at middle linebacker, senior Juan DelaCruz has moved to boundary linebacker. … WIU senior running back Cameren Smith ranks third in the conference with 89.2 rushing yards a game. Sophomore wide receiver Eli Aragon is third-best in receiving yards a game at 69.8. Crandall and fellow linebacker Mike Newman rank fifth and sixth, respectively, in tackles per game with 8.4 and 8.3. Davis said Newman missed last week’s game with a concussion and might be available this week. … In 2022, the two teams played for the second time ever, as non-conference opponents. Martin beat Western, 42-25, on Sept. 1.
Barry Bottino is a co-founder of Prairie State Pigskin and a 19-year veteran of three Illinois newspapers. He has covered college athletics since 1995.
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