After Dayton bottled up the Eastern Illinois offense in the first half Thursday, the Panthers’ players – and head coach Chris Wilkerson – focused on keeping their poise. (Photo by Sandy King, EIUPanthers.com)
By Barry Bottino
CHARLESTON – Facing a 7-3 deficit at halftime Thursday against FCS non-scholarship Dayton, Eastern Illinois’ trouble spots were evident.
Miscommunication on defense, missed connections in the passing game and Dayton big plays through the air.
When the Panthers gathered in the locker room, head coach Chris Wilkerson shared calm messages, and the team followed suit.
“Nobody was pouting or down about the score,” Wilkerson said. “We just kept preaching, ‘Next play. Next person up.’ Nobody had a long face about substitutions or about playing less or playing more. We really did a nice job at halftime of not panicking. The guys maintained their poise and we were able to wear them down in the second half.”
The Panthers recovered to score 21 second-half points and wear down the Flyers with 336 rushing yards in a 24-14 season-opening victory.
With 53 new players on the roster, Wilkerson said communicating calmly was key during halftime.
“When you have a team and a locker room full of more than 50% of the guys that are new, I told the staff that I – from time to time – will get pretty emotional,” Wilkerson said. “I’m competitive, like the players. I really tried to make a conscious effort to maintain my poise. If you’re going to ask them to maintain their poise, then you’ve got to do your part as a coach.”
What Wilkerson saw during the first half wasn’t of great concern, for several reasons.
“I very purposely said, ‘Guys, it’s a one-score game. There are some very correctable things. Don’t panic,’” Wilkerson said.
Two long Dayton pass plays in the first half accounted for 96 of the Flyers’ 261 yards via the air. EIU coaches discussed fixes to eliminate the big plays.
Cornerback Christopher Sharp said the halftime message from Wilkerson wasn’t an urgent one.
“Coach basically told us we’ve got to come out here and play,” he said. “There are two more quarters left. It’s only halftime. We know we’re a good team.”
Sharp said he and his defensive teammates took a cue from the offense and quarterback Cole LaCrue, who ran for 126 yards in the first half on his way to an Eastern QB single-game record 193 rushing yards.
“We just picked it up. Guys like Cole were running around the field,” Sharp said. “On defense, we said, ‘We’ve got to help these guys out because we know they’ve got our backs.’”
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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