EIU running back M.J. Flowers piled up 280 yards of total offense and scored three touchdowns Saturday in the Panthers’ 45-38 victory against Western Illinois. (Photo by Sandy King, EIUPanthers.com)
By Barry Bottino
CHARLESTON — Eastern Illinois tight end Alex Ginnever wore two things well Saturday at O’Brien Field – a large, blue plastic chain with his No. 87 on it, an accessory via his parents — and a smile as wide as his shoulder pads.
Ginnever and the Panthers – for the first time in eight weeks – wore the look of a winner after their 45-38 Big South-Ohio Valley Conference Football Association victory against Western Illinois.
The Panthers (2-7 overall, 1-4 Big South-OVC) snapped a six-game losing streak and ended a streak of five losses in a row to WIU (3-6, 2-3) dating back to 1995, the last time they were in the same conference together before this season.
“The joy in coaching is you get to watch the guys celebrate,” EIU head coach Chris Wilkerson said. “Just to watch them in the locker room sing and dance for a few minutes, that warms my heart. They work really hard.”
Ginnever had six receptions for a career-high 100 yards, including 46 yards after the catch, and grabbed his first two career touchdowns from quarterback Pierce Holley. He was part of an offense that piled up 534 total yards, the most for EIU in a game since 514 against Eastern Kentucky in 2018.
Eastern was 10-for-14 on third down Saturday, piling up a season high in points.
“That’s been a focus in our games, continuing drives,” Ginnever said. “Just get the ball to me, I’ll get my yards and keep the drive going.”
Eastern broke a 17-17 halftime score on a 64-yard Holley pass to running back M.J. Flowers, who piled up 280 yards of total offense and three touchdowns. His 194 rushing yards on the day included a 65-yard run that kicked off a two-play, fourth-quarter scoring drive.
“I did a little bit of everything, I guess you could say,” Flowers said while looking over the postgame stat sheet. “Being able to be used by the coaches in all aspects of the game on offense shows their trust in me. It’s big for me.”
Holley, who was coached at EIU last season by new WIU head coach Joe Davis, threw for 338 yards and five touchdowns. He threw three touchdowns in the second half, when Eastern racked up 326 yards on only 29 plays (11.24 yards per play).
Eastern built three different 14-point second-half leads, but WIU quarterback Nate Lamb (29-for-43, 309 yards, three TDs) answered three times, beginning with 4-yard TD run with 7 seconds left in the third quarter.
With 8:01 left in the game, Lamb’s 29-yard pass to Christian Anaya in tight coverage was good for a touchdown after the WIU receiver initially was ruled out of bounds. Less than 4 minutes later, Lamb connected with Effingham’s Tristan Duncan on a 4-yard scoring pass.
Aided by an intentional grounding call against Holley, Western got the ball back with 1:53 left and drove 61 yards to the EIU 24. The Panthers halted two passes into the end zone in the final seconds.
Eastern played nearly three quarters without its top cornerback, junior NiJhay Burt, who was ejected for targeting on the first play of the second quarter after his hit on WIU receiver Eli Aragon was reviewed.
“We can’t control how those things are interpreted,” Wilkerson said. “Somebody else (freshman Isaiah Houi) had to step up and they did it.”
Postgame reunion
After the game, Davis was greeted by more than a dozen EIU players with handshakes and hugs.
“I’ll always cherish my time here at Eastern,” said Davis, who was part of an eight-win EIU season in 2023. “I had a great two years here. I recruited a lot of those players and had great relationships. We built something pretty special here last year, and a lot of those players and coaches had a lot to do with it.”
Game changers
14:51, 2nd quarter: Burt was ejected for targeting after a big hit on WIU receiver Eli Aragon.
6:58, 4th quarter: Ginnever caught a 10-yard scoring pass from Holley immediately after Flowers ripped off a 65-yard run.
0:00, 4th quarter: Eastern’s defense stopped two consecutive passes into the end zone by Western to preserve the win.
What it means
Eastern won its first game since Sept. 7 against Indiana State and achieved its first Big South-OVC win of the season.
Prime Time Panthers
Prairie State Pigskin chooses the top three Eastern Illinois players in the game:
Holley, QB: The Panthers’ QB completed 19 of 27 passes for 338 yards and five touchdowns.
Flowers, RB: Among his 280 total yards, the sophomore caught two TD passes, rushed for another score and gained 194 yards on the ground.
Ginnever, TE: His six catches yielded a career-high 100 yards. He also caught the first two TDs of his EIU career.
What’s next?
Eastern hits the road for a Big South-OVC game Saturday, Nov. 9 at Gardner-Webb. Kickoff is at 12:30 p.m.
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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