Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Eastern Washington
Wildcats return to action to host Eastern Washington Saturday
10/4/2022 2:00:00 PM | Football
Two nationally-ranked teams will kickoff Saturday at 6 p.m. at Stewart Stadium. It will be the annual Homecoming game for the undefeated Wildcats.
• Coming off a bye week, the Weber State football team returns to action and is back at Stewart Stadium. The undefeated Wildcats host Eastern Washington Saturday in a nationally-ranked matchup. The Wildcats and Eagles will kickoff at 6 p.m. at Stewart Stadium in the annual Homecoming game at Weber State University.
Media coverage
Saturday's game will be televised throughout Utah on KJZZ TV and will be streamed on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Dave Fox, Alema Harrington and Tony Parks will call the action.
The Weber State radio coverage will be on KLO 103.1 FM "The Wave" with Steve Klauke and former Wildcat head coach and athletic director Jerry Graybeal on the call.
Live stats available at WeberStateSports.com and the Weber State Wildcats app.
Weber State posts a perfect 4-0 record in September
Weber State is off to a 4-0 start for the first time since 1998. It's also the just the second time the Wildcats have ever posted a 4-0 record in the month of September.
WSU opened the season with a home win over Western Oregon, then beat FBS Utah State 35-7. The 'Cats defeated Utah State 44-14 on September 17, and are coming off a 17-12 win at UC Davis on September 24 to begin Big Sky Conference play.
In the win over UC Davis, Weber State lost the turnover margin by three and allowed the Aggies to total 417 yards of offense, but the WSU defense made key stops when needed to secure the win.
The win also set a new school record as the seventh-straight road win for the Wildcats. The seven wins is also the longest active road winning streak in the country.
Wildcats ranked seventh in the nation
Weber State is now ranked seventh in the country in both the AFCA Coaches poll and the Stats Perform poll. The Wildcats are one of four teams in the Big Sky in the top seven in the country with Montana ranked third, Montana State fourth and Sacramento State fifth. This week's opponent, Eastern Washington, is ranked 21st in the coaches poll and 24th in the Stats poll.
Defensive domination
Through four games, the Weber State defense is still ranked as one of the top units in the nation. The Wildcats rank in the top 10 in the nation several defense categories.
Weber State is still first in the country in interceptions with 10, despite not getting an interception in the win over UC Davis. The Wildcats are still the only team in all of FCS football with 10 interceptions this season.
Weber State also ranks second in the country in third down defense, holding opponents to 22.1 percent of conversion on third down. The 'Cats are also second in the country in scoring defense at 9.5 [points per game, second in red zone defense at .455 and second in team pass efficiency defense.
WSU is fourth in the nation in turnovers games with 12.
The Wildcats rank seventh in the nation in rushing yards, allowing 84.8 yards per game. Weber State has not allowed a rushing touchdown yet this season, one of three teams in all of FCS to do so.
Weber State also ranks ninth in the country in total defense, allowing 281.5 yards per game.
Individual rankings
Individually, several Wildcats also rank high in the country and the Big Sky Conference. Maxwell Anderson is tied for first in the country with four interceptions and he ranks third in passes defended.
Eddie Heckard is second in the Big Sky in pass defended with five.
Junior Haze Hadley is 12th in the country in punt returns, averaging 13 yards per return.
On offense, Bronson Barron is second in the Big Sky in passing at 230.8 yards per game. He has thrown for 923 yards and seven touchdowns in four games and also ranks second in the conference in total offense at 247.5 per game.
Ty MacPherson ranks fourth in the conference in receiving yards at 78.3 per game and is eighth in the nation in receiving touchdowns with five.
Another 100-yard rushing day for Josh Davis
Weber State senior Josh Davis totaled 100 yards rushing in the win over UC Davis. It was the 13th time Davis has rushed for at least 100 yards per game for his career, and Weber State is a perfect 13-0 in those games.
Through four games, Davis is fourth in the Big Sky in rushing at 76.5 yards per game.
He continues to move up in the WSU career record books. He is third in career rushing yards and needs 123 more yards to pass Nick Chournos for second all-time. Davis is also sixth in career all-purpose yards and needs 99 more yards to pass Tim Toone for fifth all-time. Davis is a two-time All-American and has played in 44 career games at Weber State.
Kyle Thompson named to Fred Mitchell Placekicker Award Watch list
Wildcat sophomore placekicker Kyle Thompson has been named to the watch list for the Fred Mitchell Award, presented each year to an outstanding placekicker for excellence on the field and in the community. He is one of 10 players in all of FCS football named to the September performance list.
Through four games this season, Thompson is tied for first in the nation with eight field goals made, for an average of 2.0 per game. He is also 12th in the country in scoring at 9.8 points per game. Thompson is a perfect 15 of 15 on extra points this season.
Thompson is also just one field goal away from making the WSU all-time top 10. He currently has 24 career field goals made.
Quarter scoring
Weber State has led after the first quarter in all four games this season. Under coach Hill, Weber State is 36-5 when leading after the first quarter.
Also through four games, Weber State is outscoring its opponents 55-19 in the first quarter and the Wildcats have not given up a point in the fourth quarter. Weber State is outscoring opponents 24-0 in the fourth quarter. The total is 62-9 in the second half. Under coach Hill, WSU is 53-5 when leading after three quarters.
Records watch
Wildcat senior wide receiver Ty MacPherson is now 19th in career receiving yards with 1,702 and ranks 26th in career receptions with 107. On the season MacPherson is fourth in the Big Sky in receiving at 78.3 yards per game and has five touchdowns.
Bronson Barron is 14th in career passing yards with 3,540 yards. Eddie Heckard ranks second in career pass breakups with 27 and Maxwell Anderson is fourth with 22.
Team captains
As selected by their teammates, Weber State has five captains for the 2022 season. This year's captains are junior offensive lineman Noah Atagi, junior cornerback Eddie Heckard, senior wide receiver Ty MacPherson, junior linebacker Winston Reid and senior safety Desmond Williams. MacPherson also served as a team captain during the spring 2021 and the 2021 seasons.
Ninth season for Jay Hill
Jay Hill is in his ninth season as head coach at Weber State and is WSU's all-time leader in career wins with a record of 62-36. His .633 winning percentage is the second-highest in school history and he is 45-17 in Big Sky Conference games, the best overall winning percentage.
Hill has led the Wildcats to four Big Sky titles and five appearances in the FCS Playoffs. He has been named the Big Sky Coach of the Year and the AFCA Region Coach of the Year during his career at Weber State. Later this season he will coach his 100th career game at Weber State.
Coaching staff
New to the Wildcat staff this season is offensive coordinator Mickey Mental. Mental came to Weber State in February 2022 after 13 seasons at Division II Notre Dame College in Ohio, including the last two seasons as head coach. He was 16-2 in his two seasons as head coach and also spent five seasons as the offensive coordinator. Mental also coaches the Wildcat quarterbacks.
Also new to the Wildcat staff is David Fiefia who coaches the WSU tight ends. Fiefia came to Weber State in March after spending the last seven seasons as an assistant coach at Idaho State. He was a four-year running back at Utah State from 2000-03. James Cowser was promoted to a full-time assistant coach and coaches the defensive ends.
Quick hits
Saturday's game will be a Color Rush with Weber State wearing all purple uniforms and Eastern Washington wearing all red...The Wildcats are 27-31 all-time in Homecoming games. WSU lost the Homecoming game last season, which snapped a five-game winning streak...This is the sixth time since 1989 WSU has played Eastern Washington for the Homecoming game...Wildcat sophomore quarterback Bronson Barron was married over the bye week. He married his wife Kennedy on Friday.
About Eastern Washington
The Eastern Washington Eagles enter Saturday's game with a 1-3 record and an 0-1 mark in Big Sky play. The Eagles are ranked 21st in the nation in this week's AFCA Coaches poll and 24th in the Stats Perform poll. EWU has played one of the toughest schedules in the country so far, currently ranked as the third hardest schedule in the Massey ratings.
The Eagles started the season with a win over Tennessee State but then lost at Oregon, at home to Montana State and are coming off a 52-17 loss at Florida on Sunday.
Head coach Aaron Best
The Eagles are coached by Aaron Best who is in his sixth season at Eastern Washington, his alma mater. Best enters Saturday's game with a 42-20 career record and is 30-9 in Big Sky Conference games. He has led the Eagles to the FCS Playoffs three times, including the championship game in 2018 when EWU finished 7-1 in Big Sky play and tied Weber State for the conference titles.
Series history
This will be the 37th all-time meeting between the two schools, who have had some great games over the last several years. Eastern Washington holds a 19-17 all-time series lead over the Wildcats but Weber State has won the last three games played.
This is Eastern Washington's first trip to Ogden since 2018. The Wildcats won in 2017 in Cheney, then beat the Eagles 14-6 in 2018 at Stewart Stadium. In that game, Josh Davis returned a punt 75-yards for a touchdown and the Wildcat defense did not allow an Eastern Washington touchdown.
Weber State knocked off the second-ranked Eagles 35-34 last October in Cheney.
Up next
After Saturday, the Wildcats hit the road for two-straight games playing at Portland State on October 15 and Montana State on October 22. After that, the Wildcats will host three-straight home games.
