“We’ve got a tough trip to Idaho. It’s a tough place to play in the Kibbie Dome,” defensive coordinator Jack Curtis said.

This past Saturday, the Eagles faced off against the Citadel Bulldogs. The Bulldogs’ offense struggled to gain momentum from the first series to the last series. Defensive lineman Ross Alexander intercepted a pass on the third play and linebacker Patrick Flowe recovered a fumble on the last play. The Bulldogs’ offense was held to 13 points. Once again, the Eagles’ defense showed why they’re a force to be reckoned with, especially heading into Sun Belt Conference play. This upcoming Saturday, the Eagles will face off against the Idaho Vandals. Defensively, the Eagles are playing with unrivaled tenacity and the attitude of Super Bowl Champions.

Linebacker, Antwione Williams had the best game he’s had so far this season agianst the Bulldogs, recording nine total tackles. As expected, Williams was evoking his charismatic leadership amongst his teammates and successfully led the Eagles’ defensive battle. “I pride myself in running around, hitting hard and always being by the ball. No matter what positon we are in, I want my teammates to look to me as a senior leader,” he said. Williams is averaging eight tackles per game. Williams went on to credit the defensive line with his standout performance by mentioning, “Without the defensive line, we wouldn’t be able to make plays.”

The Eagles’ defense is resting easy with the defensive line upfront; they’re big and athletic. Their performance has enabled the linebackers and the secondary to make more plays with less distractions. In addition to the starting defensive linemen, there has been a solid rotation giving way to younger players to step up. Freshman defensive end Logan Hunt led the defensive line in tackles with five. “You come to practice, work hard and improve every week. We are going to push ourselves to the limits to get ready for the Vandals,” defensive lineman Darrius Sapp said.

This upcoming Saturday, the Eagles’ defense will look to continue making their mark as a shutdown unit. In addition, this is the first Sun Belt Conference game of the season and there’s a lot of hype surrounding the Eagles in regards to winning the Sun Belt again. The Vandals’ offense is led by sophomore quarterback, Matt Lienhan. In the Vandals’ last game, he went 25-34 passing for 334 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. In the backfield, senior running back, Elijhaa Penny, rushed for 99 yards with an average of 5.2 yards per carry. On the outside, senior wide receiver, Dezmon Epps, recorded 139 receiving yards and junior tight end, Trent Cown, recorded 107 yards receiving and one touchdown. The Vandals’ offense has been mediocre passing the ball and one of the worst in the nation rushing the ball. With that being said, the Eagles’ defense is more than capable of traveling through three time zones and taking care of business in Moscow, Idaho at Kibbie Stadium this Saturday.