On a cold Saturday afternoon, Northern Colorado welcomed Eastern Washington to Nottingham Field for the program's 11th matchup that saw the Eagles win 43-15.
In a season that has already seen the Bears lose games with big margins, the team entered Saturday’s contest after a 52 point loss to UC Davis. Eastern Washington themselves have not had the season they usually experience as the Eagles entered the day with a 2-7 record. The matchup was set to be a test for the Bears and one where another victory could be possible.
Any hope and belief the Bears had was diminished in just the first quarter and a half after Eastern Washington were able to hit the endzone on the teams first four drives. The first three touchdowns came via the air by quarterback Kekoa Visperas and then backup quarterback Jared Taylor scoring the fourth on the ground.
The defense for the Bears were not their usual self, as the squad allowed 529 total yards. The Eagles earned most of those yards on the ground finishing with 339 rush yards and a program high 64 carries. Malik Dotson led the charge finishing with 125 yards while Taylor finished with 90. Visperas added on to the total yards in the air by throwing for 179 on 13-of-20 passing.
After the game, head coach Ed Lamb commented on the defensive effort and how Eastern Washington were able to take advantage of the Bears by using double moves to confuse the secondary and create big play opportunities.
“Difference in the game was we needed to play really solid defense. We didn’t play solid defense. We gave up really big plays and had eye issues…we didn’t make Eastern Washington work all the way in.” Lamb continued on by saying that the mistakes are correctable and the players understand what needs to be done to fix them.
On the Bears side of the ball, Peter Costelli returned as the starter after being out with an injury that he sustained when the Bears played Colorado State. His presence in the game allowed UNC to try to take chances and air out the ball more which wasn’t seen much with the other quarterbacks.
Costelli finished with 275 yards passing (13-for-26) and two touchdowns, which is the most a Bears quarterback has thrown this season since Kia’i Keone threw for 247 against Montana State.
The longest play for the Bears and in the entire game came at the start of the second half when Costelli hit receiver Carver Cheeks on an RPO screen that went for 75 yards. After that, UNC failed to get close to the end zone or push the ball into enemy territory.
Cheeks, who started the season as a safety for the Bears, led all receivers with 136 yards. Lamb spoke highly about the young star praising his hard work, nailing down the playbook and how he believes that Cheeks is a cornerstone piece for the future of the team going forward.
“He bet on himself and asked for permission to move [positions]...we knew what we were getting when we recruited him as a football player. He’s a guy we’re banking on building this program around," Lamb said.
UNC ended the game with 323 yards with most of it coming in the air by Costelli. The running game was not there for the Bears as the team finished with a season low of 48 yards. Jacquez Robertson was the teams leading rusher with 17 yards. Caden Meis and Darius Stewartwere tied behind with 14 apiece.
With Saturday's loss, it has been almost two years since UNC has won a game at home with the last coming against Northern Arizona on Nov. 12, 2022. The Bears won that matchup 21-20 after icing the game by scoring on a 24 play drive.
UNC falls to 1-9 on the season while Eastern Washington advances to 3-7. The Bears will now prepare for the final home game of the season next week on the 16th when Northern Arizona fly to town. Kickoff is set to be at 12 p.m. MST and will stream live on ESPN+.
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