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Eastern Illinois football opens the 2024 season on August 29 at Illinois, the first of two games this season against Big Ten Conference schools.
 
The Panthers enter the 2024 season with a veteran quarterback in Pierce Holley, one of the first times in recent years EIU has opened the season with a veteran under center.
 
Holley was a second team All-Big South/OVC Football selection last season after transferring into the program from Georgetown.  He passed for 2,741 yards with 17 touchdowns leading EIU to an 8-3 record.  The passing yard total ranked seventh on the EIU single season record book list and was 15th in the FCS last season. 
 
Those solid numbers led to Holley being named the preseason Big South/OVC Offensive Player of the Year this season and listed on the preseason watch list for the Walter Payton Award.
 
"Pierce's knowledge of the playbook (and football in general) has been fun to coach. His football IQ along with his arm talent make him a special player in our offense. His work ethic and competitive drive have made him a Captain in the eyes of his teammates. The work he's put in has set himself up for an exciting senior campaign," said Kyle Derickson, EIU's offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
 
EIU carries five additional quarterbacks on the roster with varying levels of experience.  Kevin Conway and Blainey Dowling both return from last season's roster with Conway having appeared in one game during the 2022 season.  EIU added transfer Joey Sprinkle who played last season at St. Ambrose University and two freshmen quarterbacks in Connor Wolf and Jacob Rosenstiel.
 
" We've got a young room after Pierce and those QBs have very different strengths and weaknesses. From understanding the playbook better to developing more arm strength, the QB room is growing everyday while learning from their own mistakes and each other's," said Derickson.  "Having a QB like Pierce takes the pressure off the rest of the room to "hurry up and be great now" and should lead to dividends in the future. The depth isn't set yet and should be competitive for the next couple weeks, but Blainey Dowling is currently taking the 2nd team snaps."