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Sunday, October 21, 2007 11:07 PM CDT
This EIU quarterback can come back, too
BY BRIAN NIELSEN Sports Editor
bnielsen@jg-tc.com
Surely, Bob Spoo was not advocating falling behind by 13 points in the second half.
Eastern Illinois’ football coach did not want to have some fans ready to leave the game in the third quarter rendering this a lost season or put his own 69-year-old nerves to the test.
He is not one for unneeded drama any more than his former quarterback Tony Romo two weeks earlier threw five interceptions and lost a fumble before rallying the Dallas Cowboys to a victory and doing a happy you-mean-there-were-only-five-interceptions/it-seemed-like-seven postgame interview on Monday Night Football.
But somehow Spoo had the foresight to bring that up in Saturday’s pregame speech to his Eastern Illinois team.
“Coach Spoo used the comparison to Tony Romo,” EIU’s current quarterback Bodie Reeder said. “He was talking to the whole team not just me. He said he had five picks and a fumble two weeks ago and still drove his team to a win in the last series.”
Reeder made sure he was not trying to put himself in the category of the guy honored as a distinguished alumnus at Eastern’s Homecoming even though Romo could not be present because this job that requires he work weekends.
But some of the same principles applied after Reeder helped Eastern’s come-from-behind 29-23 Ohio Valley Conference win over Tennessee-Martin Saturday at O’Brien Stadium.
“Give credit to him,” Spoo said. “He threw his first pick. He fumbled. He got dinged a little bit. Yet he bounced back.”
Reeder and Eastern certainly had moments when any hopes for an Ohio Valley Conference championship or NCAA postseason berth could have been kissed goodbye.
Reeder’s lost fumble ended an EIU drive from its own 14 to the Tennessee-Martin 30-yard line and turned the momentum toward the Skyhawks who drove for a 13-7 lead in the second quarter.
After running back Ademola Adeniji’s fumble to start the third quarter led to UT-Martin’s second opportunistic touchdown drive and a 20-7 score, Reeder threw Eastern’s first interception of the year ending a streak of 218 pass attempts without such a turnover.
“It was going to happen,” said Reeder, who had thrown 142 passes as a Panther before this interception.
“I wasn’t going to go all year without getting picked. It was over and I could go on.”
Accordingly, Reeder tossed his second touchdown pass to Micah Rucker of the day to cap an 80-yard drive and then after a UT-Martin turnover at the Skyhawks’ 25-yard line found tight end Jordan Campanella for an 11-yard TD with Tyler Wilke’s extra-point kick putting the Panthers ahead.
But after Tom Hansen’s 33-yard field goal regained UT-Martin its lead at 23-23 with 3:09 remaining, Reeder, the quarterback who had made an encouraging EIU debut in September before fumbling a snap that finalized a 24-21 loss to Illinois State and the quarterback when the Panthers lost to 28-21 game to Eastern Kentucky, suddenly was on the spot again before the home crowd.
“I don’t know if that drive had a lot to do with me,” said Reeder who finished 17-for-26 passing for 189 yards. “I’d like to take credit for it but it was just a screen, a hitch pass and the offensive line did a great job on the running game.
“That was a good testament to our team will.”
However you want to dissect that six-play, 62-yard, one-minute, 29-second possession capped by Adeniji’s go-ahead 3-yard touchdown run with 1:36 remaining, Reeder and the rest of the Panthers were celebrating a comeback win.
However you want to describe this latest EIU heart stopper – a down-to-the-last-play-1-yard-away-from-losing to a now 1-7 UT-Martin team a week after a 27-24 escape from what was OVC cellar dweller Murray State or a thrilling win over last year’s OVC co-champion and still talented Skyhawks – the Panthers at 5-3 overall and 4-1 in the OVC still are in the league championship picture.
“This is a wonderful win for us,” Spoo said. “It keeps our hopes alive.”
“It takes a lot out of you. whether it’s by one of 50, a win is a win. It keeps us alive.”
Plus, even if it is way overboard to start comparing this quarterback to the one who is starring in the NFL, the Panthers have the confidence that this team doesn’t quit easily either.
Brian Nielsen is sports editor of the Journal Gazette/Times-Courier. Contact Nielsen at bnielsen@jg-tc.com or 238-6856.
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