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Eastern Illinois (3-3, 2-1 OVC) at Jacksonville State (3-2, 2-1 OVC)
O'Brien Field (10,000)   •   Charleston, Ill.
October 13, 2012   •  1:30 pm   •   TV: WEIU / OVCDigitalNetwork

THE GAME
Eastern Illinois committed a season high five turnovers which proved to be costly during a 51-37 loss at UT Martin handing EIU its first Ohio Valley Conference loss of the season on Saturday.  This week EIU is hosting Jacksonville State for the Panthers annual homecoming contest.  EIU is 47-39-8 all-time in homecoming games but have lost two straight.  EIU has never played JSU for its homecoming game.

The Panthers are playing at O'Brien Field for the fourth time this season and so far have excelled as the home team.  EIU is 3-0 on the season at O'Brien Field averaging 54.7 points and 587 yards of total offense per game.  Jimmy Garoppolo has thrown 15 of his 20 touchdown passes at home.  EIU's defense has allowed 30.7 points per game at home, nearly two touchdowns below their season average.

Jacksonville State has won two straight OVC games to enter with a 2-1 OVC record.  They are among five teams currently tied for second in the league with a 2-1 record.  JSU is 28th in the nation in run offense at 191.8 yards per game.

THE SERIES
Eastern Illinois and Jacksonville State will meet for the 10th time on Saturday with the Gamecocks holding a 5-4 all-time series lead.  The two schools have only met as OVC members starting in 2003 when JSU joined the conference.  The annual winner of the game has gone on to win or share the OVC regular-season championship seven times (EIU 4, JSU 3).  JSU was won two straight in the series including last year's 28-21 win in Alabama.

• Jimmy Garoppolo was named to the mid-season watch list for the Walter Payton Award.  Garoppolo is currently No. 2 in the nation in total offense and passing yards per game.  Tony Romo is the only EIU or OVC player to ever win the award (2002).

• Erik Lora continued his string of 100+ yard receiving games as he hauled in 17 passes for 215 yards to give him six straight games with 100 yards receiving.  The last FCS player to accomplish that was Elon's Arron Mellette with seven straight games last season.

• Erik Lora's 17 pass receptions moved him into second place on the EIU single season list with 72.  He needs four pass receptions to set the school record.  He has 145 for his career (73 in two other combined seasons) which ranks 6th all-time at EIU.

• Erik Lora's 17 pass reception day is the second highest single game total in school history.  Lora set the EIU and OVC record with 21 receptions against Murray State on Sept. 22.  So far this season Lora has had three games with ten or more receptions.

• Prior to this season an EIU player had only caught 12 or more passes in a game eight times with Willie White previously holding the school record at 15.  So far in 2012 it has happened four times with Erik Lora on the receiving end for 12 or more passes in three games and Chavar Watkins catching 12 passes in one game.

• Erik Lora's 215 yards receiving at UT Martin marked just the seventh time an EIU player has had 200 or more yards in a game.  Lora has now done it twice including his school record 269 yards against Murray State.  Frank Cutolo is the only other EIU player to have multiple 200 yard games with two during the 2001 season.

• Erik Lora's 215 yards receiving gave him seven 100 yard games for his career moving him into fourth place on that career list.  He now has 1,799 career yards moving into 9th on the Panthers career list.  His 1,001 yards this season are 5th on the EIU single season list.

• Chris Wright added to his career receiving yards total as he is now 6th on the career list with 2,060 yards.  Wright has 115 career receptions and needs one more to move into the EIU career top ten.

• Chris Wright caught his sixth touchdown of the season at UT Martin and the 27th of his career.  Wright now ranks second on the EIU career list in touchdown receptions and 7th in total touchdowns scored. 

• Jake Walker rushed for a career high 182 yards at UT Martin.  It was Walker's second 100 yard game of the season and the fourth of his career.  It was tied for the 29th best single game rushing total in school history.

• Jake Walker had two rushing touchdowns at UT Martin giving him seven this season and 17 for his career.  It was Walker's second straight game with multiple rushing touchdowns and the fourth multiple rushing touchdown game of his career.

• Jake Walker continues his climb towards the EIU career top 15 for rushing totals.  Walker needs 249 yards to catch Ken Werner for 15th at 1,536 yards.  The top 14 rushers in EIU history all finished with more than 2,000 yards for their careers.

EASTERN ILLINOIS HEAD COACH DINO BABERS
A New ERA of Eastern Illinois football began on December 9, 2011 as Dino Babers was hired as the Panthers head football coach replacing 25-year veteran Bob Spoo.  Babers had been an assistant coach at EIU in 1987 as a member of Spoo's first Panthers coaching staff.  After one season as an assistant at EIU Babers moved on to coach at nine other programs, most recently as the receivers and special teams coach at Baylor.  Last season he was on an offensive staff that helped coach Robert Griffin III to the Heisman Trophy while ranking as one of the nation's most explosive offenses.  Baylor beat Washington in the Alamo Bowl as Babers coached in his 12th bowl game as a coach.  In addition to his time at Baylor, Babers has coached at UCLA, Pittsburgh, Texas A&M, Arizona, San Diego State, Purdue, Northern Arizona, UNLV, Eastern Illinois, Arizona State and Hawai'i.  He was the assistant head coach at UCLA while serving as the offensive coordinator at Texas A&M and Arizona.  Babers has coached numerous players who have played in the NFL including 27 wide receivers who have made NFL rosters.  A native of San Diego, Calif., Babers attended Hawai'i where he was a four-year starter (1979-80, 82-83) earning his degree in 1984.  He earned a master's from Arizona State in 1988.  EIU beat Southern Illinois 49-28 in Babers opener as the Panthers head coach.

JACKSONVILLE STATE HEAD COACH JACK CROWE
Jack Crowe is in his 13th season as the head coach at Jacksonville State having guided the Gamecocks to being a consistent title contender in the Ohio Valley Conference.  Crowe has compiled a 84-54 record with JSU and boasts a 56-18 mark in OVC games since JSU joined the conference in 2003.  A 1970 graduate of UAB, Crowe has a career record of 98-84 which also includes head coaching stops at Arkansas and Livingston.  With the retirement of Eastern Illinois Bob Spoo following the 2011 season, Crowe became the longest tenured active coach in the OVC.

SCOUTING JACKSONVILLE STATE
Jacksonville State brings a physical style of play where they focus on running the ball on offense and stopping the run on defense.  The Gamecocks average 191.8 yards per game on the ground to rank 28th in the nation.  DaMarcus James is the top rusher this season at 101.6 yards per game with five touchdowns.  Alan Bonner is the top receiver with 22 catches for 305 yards.  The run defense has not been as strong this year ranking 99th in the FCS.  JSU's top tackler is Rashad Smith with 42 tackles and 2.5 tackles for loss.  The team has five total sacks on the season.

ON THIS DATE IN EIU HISTORY
October 13, 2001 - J.R. Taylor rushed for 241 yards scoring both of Eastern Illinois touchdowns as the Panthers beat Southeast Missouri 12-0 in a Homecoming game played in a windy, steady rain.  Of note in the game is the fact that EIU All-American quarterback Tony Romo did not attempt a pass in the contest as all of EIU's 57 plays on offense were runs.

LORA CHASING OVC TOP TEN RECEIVING LISTS
Junior wide receiver Erik Lora needs just four receptions to tie Jerry Wright (1984) for the school record with 76 receptions.  On Saturday at UT Martin, Lora moved into a tie for 9th on the OVC single season receptions list with 72.  Earlier this season Lora broke the OVC record for single game receptions with 21 against Murray State.

OVC SINGLE SEASON TOP TEN RECEPTIONS
1. Efrem Hill  (Samford).....92 (2003)
2. Harvey Tanner (Murray State).....88 (1967)
3. Willie Ponder (Southeast Missouri).....87 (2002)
4. Marcus Harris (Murray State).....84 (2010)
5. Glenn Krupa (Southeast Missouri).....77 (1992)
6. Reggie Swinton (Murray State).....75 (1996)
7. Mark Ledford (Morehead State).....74 (1983)
8. Aaron Marsh (Eastern Kentucky).....73 (1967)
9. ERIK LORA (EASTERN ILLINOIS).....72 (2012)
     Tyrone Butterfield (Tennessee State).....72 (1998)
     Juan Hill (Tennessee State).....72 (1996)

FCS SINGLE SEASON RECORD FOR RECEPTIONS
1. Terrell Hudgins (Elon)....123 (2009)

GAROPPOLO MOVES UP RECORD BOOK
Jimmy Garoppolo moved up to third in career total offense at EIU on Saturday at UT Martin.  In the coming games Garoppolo will be chasing several more moves up the EIU career record book list as well as landing in the single season top ten in several categories.  Garoppolo moved into the EIU single season top ten for touchdown passes and completions at UTM.  Garoppolo is poised to move up in several more categories against Jacksonville State.

CAREER LISTS
Total Offense... needs 577 yards for 7,000 for his career
Passing Yards... needs 40 yards to move into 3rd
Pass Completions... needs 18 to move into 3rd

SINGLE SEASON LISTS
Passing Yards... needs 15 passing yards to move into Top 10
Total Offense... needs 47 yards to move into Top 10

• Jimmy Garoppolo threw for 428 yards at UT Martin on Saturday for his second straight 400 yard passing game.  It was the 6th highest single game total in school history and his second best effort.  Garoppolo tied Tony Romo with nine career 300-yard passing games.

• Jimmy Garoppolo needs one more consecutive 400 yard game to tie Sean Payton for consecutive 400-yard games in a career.  Payton had three straight in 1984.  Payton had five 400-yard games for his career including a school record 509 yards.  Garoppolo has two 400-yard games and three other players have one 400 yard game (Anthony Buich, Jeff Christensen, Tony Romo).

• EIU set a school record for first downs in a game with 38 at UT Martin.  The Panthers are currently second in the nation averaging 29 first downs per game trailing only Old Dominion with 33 per game. 

• EIU ran 103 plays on Saturday at UT Martin marking the third time this season that the Panthers have run more than 100 plays in a game.  They set a school record with 106 plays in a double overtime loss at Illinois State.  EIU combined with Murray State to set the FCS record for plays in a game with 210 as EIU ran 100 plays in that overtime win.

• EIU posted its sixth best single game total offense total of 616 yards on Saturday at UT Martin.  It marked the second time this year that EIU has finished with more than 600 yards of total offense.  EIU is second in the FCS at 538.3 yards per game.

• EIU converted on 12-of-20 3rd down attempts for a 60 percent conversion rate on Saturday at UT Martin.  It was the second straight game the Panthers have converted 60 percent of the time on 3rd down.

• Cameron Berra knocked home a field goal at UT Martin making him 5-of-5 on the season.  Berra has made nine straight field goals covering the Panthers last ten games.  His last miss was Oct. 15, 2011 at Murray State.

• Cameron Berra had his streak of 39 straight made PAT's end at UT Martin with one missed and one blocked.  Berra is 77-of-82 on PAT's for his career.

• EIU's shut down the UT Martin running game on Saturday allowing just 69 total yards on the ground.  EIU is 30th in the FCS in run defense allowing just 118.3 yards per game.  The Panthers have not allowed an individual rusher to gain 100 yards this year.

• Senior Artavious Dowdell picked up his league leading 3.5 sack of the season at UT Martin.  With his solo sack he moved into 10th on the EIU career sacks list with 16.  Dowdell is tied with Pat Wertz for the team lead in tackles for loss at 5.5.
• Robert Haynes led the Panthers in tackles finishing with ten at UT Martin.  It was the third time this season that the sophomore linebacker has led EIU in tackles.  It was his second double figure tackle game as he ranks 3rd in the OVC in tackles with 56.

• Freshman Keiondre Gober has become a big play receiver for the Panthers as he hauled in his first pass at UT Martin for 47 yards.  Gober has seven catches on the season for 196 yards and two touchdowns.  Three of his catches are for more than 45 yards.

• Converted wide receiver Jourdan Wickliffe continues to develop as a back-up defensive back.  Wickliffe had six tackles and two pass break-ups at UT Martin.  Wickliffe had ten tackles in his first significant action of the year against Murray State.  He has 20 tackles with three pass break-ups for the season.

• Kamu Grugier-Hill got the first start of his career as the freshman linebacker filled in for the injured LeQuince McCall.  Grugier-Hill finished with four tackles and one tackle for loss. 

• EIU is currently 3-0 at home this season.  The Panthers have won more than 67 percent of their games played at O'Brien Field including seven undefeated seasons.  The last EIU team to go undefeated at home was in 2002.

• EIU will have an open week following this Saturday's game against Jacksonville State.  It will be the first time EIU has had an open date in the regular season schedule since the 2009 season.  Since joining the OVC, EIU is 8-2 heading into open weeks.

• EIU converted a two-point conversion for the third time this season at UT Martin.  The Panthers are now 3-of-5 on two-point conversions this season will all three scores via the pass  (3-of-4 on passing, 0-1 on runs).

EIU TO PLAY TWO GAMES ON FOX COLLEGE SPORTS
EIU will play two games on national television this season as part of the OVC's six game package on FOX College Sports.  EIU will play on the road at Eastern Kentucky on Oct. 27 and host Southeast Missouri on Nov. 10.  Both games are 11 a.m. (central) kickoffs.