Off-field drama seems settled at Eastern

Eastern Illinois is an FCS school that went through a few FBS headaches this summer.

On Aug. 17, EIU suspended three players -- senior running back Chevon Walker, senior defensive end Colin Luczynski and junior offensive lineman Eric Rettke -- for repeated violations of team policies.

Then, coach Bob Spoo and the school spent the rest of August handling a Champaign, Ill., TV station's report that as many as 20 players faced suspensions for failed drug tests.

No new suspensions have been announced. The last time the subject was addressed by Spoo, who's entering his 24th season at Eastern, was Aug. 18. He didn't disclose any news about preseason drug tests.

"We drug test like every other school in the country," Spoo told the Charleston (Ill.) Times-Courier. "We haven't suspended anyone other than the three who were dismissed last week for violation of team policy."

The Panthers , ranked No. 16 in the FCS coaches poll, have other personnel issues, specifically at running back, going into their season opener Saturday against No. 9 Iowa at Kinnick Stadium.

EIU added Toledo transfer Jake Walker last week. On the same day, the school announced Mon Williams will be sidelined up to three weeks with a sprained knee suffered two weeks ago. Williams rushed for 870 yards and nine touchdowns last season for the Panthers, who finished 8-4 and appeared in the FCS playoffs with former Iowa quarterback Jake Christensen leading the way.

Walker played nine games as a true freshman two years ago at Toledo, rushing for 67 yards on 16 carries. Last season, he saw three games with seven rushes for 18 yards. He was eventually granted a medical redshirt.

Walker played at American Heritage High School in Delray Beach, Fla., rushing for 1,001 yards and 22 touchdowns on 91 carries as a senior. He had 908 yards with 15 touchdowns as a junior.

When he left Toledo, Walker was listed No. 3 on the depth chart. He could be the guy for the Panthers on Saturday.

"We'll see how he progresses," Spoo told the Times-Courier. "A lot of things are similar but he's got to learn the terminologies and formations."

Sophomore Brandon Large, who transferred in from Scottsdale (Ariz.) Community College, appears to have nailed down No. 1 quarterback. In EIU's latest scrimmage, Large completed 13 of 16 passes including an 18-yard TD.

Large, a 6-foot-4, 204-pounder from Mesa, Ariz., took the EIU offense 80 yards on 13 plays and was 8-for-8 for 61 yards with the capper going to wide receiver Erik Lora.

"If definitely felt good to get out there and move the ball down the field," Large said after the scrimmage. "We were taking what the defense gave us and slowly moving the ball down the field."

Large is in charge of EIU's push with the "pistol" offense. It's an abbreviated shotgun system where the quarterback and running back are staggered in the backfield. Ohio State messed around with it in 2008, but showed it less in '09. Indiana is the Big Ten leader in the pistol, trying to take advantage of the talents of quarterback Ben Chappell and sophomore running back Darius Willis.

"Not as fast as I've wanted it to," Spoo said about the pistol. "This means we have to work a little bit harder. There's all that timing that goes with that offense, a lot of motions and timing. We're getting there and I like what we're seeing."

The Panthers return seven starters on defense, including a pair of talented cornerbacks, Rashad Haynes and C.J. James. James was a first-team all-Ohio Valley Conference pick with five interceptions last season. Haynes was a second-team pick with 11 pass breakups.

Defensive end Perry Burge, a 6-2, 235-pounder, had seven tackles for loss and five sacks last season.

The linebackers return intact . The starters  -- Nick Nasti, Corey Leman and Gordy Kickels -- combined for 208 tackles and ranked first, second and third on the team in tackles last season.

Last season, Eastern's shot at the FBS went down in flames 52-3 at Penn State. This season, the Panthers shot comes week 1 in Iowa City.

"I'm so pumped right now, I just got goosebumps when you asked me the question," junior defensive end Nathan Galan said during the team's media day. "It's something we're looking forward to, Iowa City. We can shock a lot of people."

They certainly can.