UCA ready for heat
Central Arkansas wide receiver Desmond Smith (above) and the Bears received exactly what they wanted in their first-round victory in the FCS playoffs — a trip to the Inferno. UCA marched its way to the second round with a 31-24 victory over Illinois State to set up today’s 3 p.m. Central game at Eastern Washington’s Roos Field, affectionately known as the Inferno.
CONWAY — Central Arkansas received exactly what it wanted in its first-round victory in the FCS playoffs — a trip to the Inferno.
UCA marched its way to the second round with 24 fourth-quarter points last Saturday in a 31-24 victory over Illinois State to set up today’s 3 p.m. Central game at Eastern Washington’s Roos Field, affectionately called the Inferno because of its red artificial turf.
UCA Coach Steve Campbell said he is more concerned about the Eagles than the color of their field. Eastern Washington is the playoffs No. 2 seed, ranked behind only North Dakota State, winners of the last five FCS championships. Eastern Washington was the FCS champion in 2010, the season before North Dakota State’s current run began.
“Eastern Washington is very, very good,” Campbell said. “Our guys feel good about our chances, but there’s no doubt this will be a very difficult challenge for us.”
UCA is very familiar with oddly colored football fields. Its Estes Stadium field in Con- way is often referred to as the Stripes because of its pattern of purple and gray intervals.
Eastern Washington Coach Beau Baldwin said he thinks rare field colors might work to a home team’s advantage.
“I love our field, and the guys love it,” Baldwin said. “And probably like Central Arkansas, you love that other teams might hate it. You appreciate that.”
Eastern Washington (10-1) ranks second in the FCS in total offense, averaging 541.3 yards a game. UCA (10-2) is 19th with an average of 439.4,
but the Bears hold a statistical defensive advantage. Their defense ranks 14th in yards allowed with an average of 320.1 a game. Eastern Washington has given up an average of 443.6, which ranks 105th.
“There aren’t any bad teams left,” Campbell said. “Everyone you play from here on out is really good.”
UCA’s defense will focus first on Eastern Washington sophomore quarterback Gage Gubrud, who leads the FCS in total offense, and senior wide receiver Cooper Kupp, who holds FCS career records for receptions (402), receiving yards (6,061) and touchdowns (66). No one at any NCAA level has matched Kupp’s career totals.
“Jerry Rice, you know, he had Nintendo numbers, and this guy broke his records,” Campbell said.
Rice, a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, set the former records when he played for FCS Mississippi Valley State.
Though UCA’s offensive numbers fall short of Eastern Washington’s, it has come from a more diverse field of rushers and pass catchers.
Five players rushed and nine caught passes in the Bears’ victory over Illinois State.
“They have players every- where,” Eastern Washington senior safety Zach Bruce said.
Senior receiver Desmond Smith leads UCA with 67 catches for 869 yards and 8 touchdowns. He also led the way with six catches and two touchdowns against Illinois State. Senior Jatavious Wilson led UCA with 75 receiving yards in the first round of the playoffs but left the game with a second-half hamstring injury.
Bruce said UCA did not appear to lose anything when junior receiver Brandon Cox replaced Wilson for three fourth-quarter receptions.
“Wilson is a great player, really explosive, and they use him in a lot of ways, but I know Cox is the guy they put in, and it was like they didn’t miss a beat,” Bruce said. “They have a lot of guys we have to account for.”