'We love the pressure': Wildcats prepare for struggling but competitive E. Washington

OGDEN — For many teams and individual players, a bye week brings both positives and negatives. While a week off from the intensity of a game is welcome, it can cause a loss of momentum or focus, especially for an undefeated team like Weber State.

As the Wildcats continue to prepare for their homecoming game this week against No. 24 Eastern Washington, quarterback Bronson Barron believes his team has the mentality necessary to come out and play hard, no matter how much time has passed since the last game.

When the Wildcats visited the Eagles last year, Weber State was the team that couldn't really afford a loss; this year, the roles have seemingly reversed, and Barron explained why.

"The focus, the trust, and the accountability held within our locker room, the players, was completely different than it was last year," Barron said. "... Obviously, we know our coaches are gonna hold us accountable, but it's been a lot different this offseason within the players."

That altered mentality has helped Weber State start off the season strong with a perfect 4-0 record, which includes a win against FBS opponent Utah State. Meanwhile, Eastern Washington has struggled this season and comes into this game at 1-3, but two of those losses come from FBS powers Oregon and Florida.

While the trajectory of these teams may appear completely different, Barron and the Wildcats aren't taking anything for granted. The Eagles are still ranked in the Stats Perform FCS Top 25 and had a narrow loss to Big Sky conference foe Montana State.

"We have all the respect for E-Wash," Barron said. "We know they're a great team; they're a great program, and we know it's gonna be a dogfight with them every year, you know, like it was last year and we're expecting that same thing this year.

"The record might not show how good E-Wash is, but look at the schedule. I mean, you have two FBS games with Oregon and Florida. We know how good E-Wash is and we have a ton of respect for them, and realize that we have to prepare the same way for them as we would a Utah State, or any other team."

Last year, when Weber State went up to Cheney to play Eastern Washington, the Eagles were undefeated at 7-0 and the Wildcats were 2-4. But in that game, head coach Jay Hill's team put together one of its best games of the season and came out on top 35-34, handing the Eagles their first loss of the season.

Eastern Washington will most certainly remember that game and come into Ogden with thoughts of revenge.

For Hill, the bye week came at a good time for his program. It offered his team a chance to get better health-wise and allowed an extra week of prep for an opponent that shouldn't be overlooked, especially on the offensive side of the ball.

"It's an extra week of preparation for a tough offense," Hill said. "I mean, this offense over the last 10 years has probably averaged 500 yards and high-40s in points. So they know what they're doing offensively; it just gives you a little more time to prepare and get route structures down and get your players hopefully seeing what they need to see on Saturday."

Though Eastern Washington is nowhere near averaging those stats this season, Hill's point remains that Eagles head coach Aaron Best knows how to run an offense and have his team ready to play. The Wildcats defense, however, has been one of the brightest and most talked about parts of this year's team.

The most points the Wildcats have surrendered this year was 14 in a game against Utah Tech; and in that game, Weber State's offense put up 44 points. While having such a stout defense has helped win most of these games, the offense with Barron at the helm continues to grow into a dominant force of its own. Only a sophomore, Barron has played well and continues to trend upward, and Hill has noticed.

"I think he's doing a good job of taking what's given to him and not really trying to force too much down the field," Hill said. "He throws it down the field when it's there; he throws it underneath when it's there. I really believe that's the key to quarterback play is don't make stuff up; don't try to force something that's not there.

"There's going to be enough plays throughout the course of the game that if you just take what they give you and trust what we're calling, that there's gonna be plays there to make."

With an extra week of preparation, Hill's Wildcats are anxious to get back on the field and compete. While maintaining a perfect record may seem daunting to players, Weber State's team is up for the challenge.

"If you look too far into the future, then yeah, you'll feel that pressure (of staying undefeated)," Barron said. "But the big thing for us as a program is week by week. The best thing of being 4-0 right now is the opportunity to be 5-0.

"If there is pressure, we love the pressure."

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