Wagner (9-3)
at Eastern Washington (9-2)
Saturday, Dec, 1, 3:05 p.m. PST, Cheney, Wash.
Roos Field (8,600 Red SprinTurf)
Internet: ESPN3
The Records: Eastern Washington enters the second round with a 9-2 overall record. The Eagles tied with Montana State and Cal Poly for the Big Sky’s regular-season title, earning the league’s automatic bid to the playoffs. EWU’s losses came to Washington State of the Pac-12 and on the road at Southern Utah...Wagner earned the Northeast Conference’s automatic bid, and won the league’s first playoff game in history by beating Colgate last week. The Seahawks opened the season with losses to Florida Atlantic, Georgetown and Monmouth, but have won nine straight games.
The Series: First Meeting
The Coaches: Eastern Washington’s Beau Baldwin is 42-18 in his fifth season with the Eagles. He is 52-21 in six season as a head coach, having led Central Washington to a 10-3 mark in 2007. Baldwin was named Co-Big Sky Coach of the Year in 2012. He is 4-1 in the playoffs with a national championship in 2010...Wagner’s Walt Hameline is 214-126-2 in his 32nd season. He also serves as the school’s Athletics Director. Hameline is 1-0 in the playoffs.
Big Sky vs. The Northeast Conference: This is the first meeting between a Big Sky team and a Northeast Conference team in the FCS playoffs. The NEC began receiving an at-large bid to the playoffs in 2010.
Up Next: The winner will take on the winner of Saturday’s game between Appalachian State and Illinois State. If Eastern Washington wins on Satuday, the Eagles will host a quaterfinal game.
Notes: Wagner is in the playoffs for the first time. The school is located on Staten Island, and has an enrollment of 2,000...EWU is 11-0 in games after Nov. 1 since 2010, and 20-3 since 2007...EWU is 15-2 on the red turf, which was installed in 2010. Wagner is 3-2 on the road this season. This is Wagner’s first road game since Nov. 3...Wagner’s nine-game winning streak is its longest since 1981...Wagner QB Nick Doscher is the school’s all-time leader in passing yards (5,975 Yards) and total offense (8,235 yards). He’s thrown 210 straight passes without an interception...Wagner has committed just one turnover during its nine-game winning streak...EWU WR Brandon Kaufman has had at least 100 receiving yards in eight games this season, and 16 in his career...Eastern Washington has trailed in seven of its nine victories this season...EWU QBs Vernon Adams and Kyle Padron have combined for 3,270 passing yards and 24 touchdowns...EWU LB Ronnie Hamlin leads the Eagles with 107 total tackles...Wagner won the 1987 Division III national title...Wagner has played all 12 of its games this season in the Eastern Time Zone...Wagner’s Dominique Williams has 1,268 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns...EWU WRs Brandon Kaufman, Greg Herd and Nicholas Edwards have all been All-Americans during their careers. The trio enter the playoffs with a combined 552 catches for 7,831 yards and 75 touchdowns...Edwards has 208 career receptions, which ranks ninth in Big Sky history.