Barrierre returns to form in 45-13 win over NAU

CHENEY - Maybe Eric Barriere also caught that notion expressed on broadcast of Eastern Washington's opening week spring football loss to Idaho: That the defenses were ahead of the offenses at this early juncture.

Because the Barriere of old emerged, threw for 413 yards on 29-of-49 passes and three touchdowns in a 45-13 Big Sky Conference spring season football victory over Northern Arizona March 6 at Roos Field. It was the first game on the stadium's new AstroTurf installed last summer.

Perhaps showing some rust from months of being away from actual game conditions, the All-American Barriere and Pre-Season Big Sky Conference MVP was good but maybe not great in an opening week 28-21 loss to Idaho. But his favorite target last Saturday - Andrew Boston - who didn't play against the Vandals in the Kibbie Dome, came up with eight catches for 120 yards.

"It was nice having Andrew Boston back making plays and over 100 yards," head coach Aaron Best, himself back after missing the Idaho game with a positive COVID test, said. "His leadership and his ability be able to catch the ball and get up field really helped in that department."

Barriere targeted 10 different receivers, and is now a perfect 12-0 as a starter at Roos Field. His finish on Saturday was much better that the start.

The teams finished the first quarter tied on a pair of field goals but Eastern would explode for 21 second-quarter points. First, Barriere connected with freshman tight end Blake Gobel for a 3-yard score and 10-3 lead with 12 minutes, 22 seconds to go in the half. The Eagles would never trail in the game.

NAU got a 21-yard Luis Aguilar field goal to trim it to 10-6 at 10:00 but Eastern struck back in quick fashion with a three-play, 65-yard drive. Barriere found Anthony Stell Jr. down the left sideline for a 54-yard catch and run score and 17-6 lead just a minute later.

After Aguilar missed his next field goal try of 36 yards with 4:12 remaining in the half, Eastern began yet another swift 6-play drive. It finished with a Barriere to Freddie Roberson 32-yard play and a 24-6 lead with 2:26 to go in the half.

Eastern turned to the ground game in the second half where amongst Tamarick Pierce's career-high 105 rushing yards were a pair of touchdowns. His first, from 18 yards out, came in the third quarter with 2:29 to play in the third quarter made it a 31-6 game.

NAU (1-1) finally found the end zone moments into the fourth on a 38-yard George Robinson run but Pierce, a 4-yard run at 10:34, and Micah Smith's 1-yard score with 3:50 remaining capped it for the Eagles who evened their record at 1-1.

"We sometimes get so accustomed to offensive fireworks at Eastern and sometimes there aren't as many fireworks," Best said reflecting on the Idaho game which he had to watch from Cheney, but praising the defense.

"But this is the second time two weeks in that our defense has allowed us to rely on some different things," Best said.

Junior linebacker Chris Ojoh finished with a career-high 12 tackles, a pass broken up and a quarterback hurry for EWU, and he also was in on one of EWU's sacks. Another junior Mitchell Johnson had eight tackles 1 1/2 sacks and a quarterback hurry.

While Eastern lost the turnover battle with two lost fumbles and an interception, their defense came up with stops on three of four fourth-down conversion tries by the Lumberjacks, effectively zeroing out the stat - plus NAU missed a field goal.

Eastern had 607 yards of total offense, 398 of that in the first half and its defense limited NAU and noted Oklahoma State transfer quarterback Keondre Wudtee to just 344 total yards. Wudtee struggled with misses short and overthrows in the usual windy conditions found in Cheney before retiring in favor of freshman Jeff Widner.

Eastern plays on the road at Idaho State on March 13 at 3 p.m. at Holt Arena in Pocatello. After that, the Eagles have a scheduled bye on March 20.

Paul Delaney is a retired former Free Press Publishing reporter and can be reached at pauldelaney53@comcast.net.