Eastern Illinois quarterback Cole LaCrue was named the Ohio Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Week on Monday, two days after his best collegiate start. (Photo by EIUPanthers.com)
By Barry Bottino
CHARLESTON — On Monday morning — two days after the best start of his collegiate career — Cole LaCrue earned Ohio Valley Conference Offensive Player of the Week honors.
How did the Eastern Illinois redshirt junior quarterback get there? Some introspection, plenty of work and a chip on his shoulder after a disappointing 2025 season.
“Preparation has been a big thing for me this year,” LaCrue said after throwing for 267 yards and three touchdowns in Saturday’s 42-35 loss to Indiana State. “I watched the tape from last year. I had to look myself in the mirror and by very vulnerable.”
Despite running for a school QB record 193 yards and three TDs in the 2025 opener against Dayton, LaCrue threw four touchdowns and seven interceptions while completing 55% of his passes. He ran for more than 50 yards in only two other games last fall.
On Saturday, the passing game helped lead a fourth-quarter rally.
His 267 yards, 20 completions and three passing TDs were all career highs.
“I heard the noise that I’m not a passing quarterback,” he said. “That I can’t throw a football. I took that personally and I wanted to prove that (I could). I’m glad that this game displayed that.”
EIU head coach Chris Wilkerson said the changes in LaCrue are noticeable.
“Cole is growing as a passer every single day,” Wilkerson said. “He’s continuing to grow. Our wide receivers are growing. The offense continues to grow.”
The offense, and LaCrue, were especially effective in the second half, when EIU rallied from a 35-7 deficit.
EIU’s quarterback has completed at least 58% of his passes in every game this season. Last year, he reached that plateau only twice in games with more than 10 passing attempts.
LaCrue said ensuring that the running and passing games can thrive is the ultimate goal.
On Saturday, he rushed for 65 yards and a touchdown for an EIU team that committed its first turnover of the season after 10 clean quarters.
“The best quarterbacks in college are field generals,” he said. “If the passing game is working, it’s going to open up my legs. It showed (against Indiana State).”
OVC honors Nickson
Linebacker Ja’Wuan Nickson was named OVC co-Defensive Player of the Week on Monday.
He led all players with 10 tackles in Saturday’s game, including 1.5 tackles for loss. His fourth-quarter interception with less than 5 minutes remaining led to an Eastern touchdown.
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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