Issue date: 12/8/09 Section: Sports

Eastern senior quarterback Bodie Reeder turns to hand the ball off during the game against Southern Illinois on Nov. 28 in Carbondale.(Eric Hiltner/The Daily Eastern News)

Coming off his worst season as head coach of the Eastern football team since 2003, Bob Spoo knew things needed to change.

But while the two most noticeable changes the team made came at quarterback and running back, the Panthers were successful in 2009 thanks in large part to improvements on the defensive side of the ball, a unit that saw little to no personnel change.

While the unit lost Ke'Andre Sams, Donovan Johnson and Pierre Walters from the 2008 season, all their replacements were in-house.

This gave the Panthers' defense a full unit of experience that helped lead them to an outright Ohio Valley Conference Championship.

Statistically speaking, the Panthers improved only minimally from 2008.

The offense bumped from 22.7 points per game to 23.5, while the defense went from allowing 23.4 points per game to 21.2. But a lot of the individual performances factored into the improvement from the 2008 season to 2009.

The Panthers' defense doubled its sack total from a year ago, going from 12 to 24, and while the interception number decreased by one, junior cornerback C.J. James became a ball hawk in the secondary.

James finished with a team high four, two of which were returned for touchdowns.

The improvements from an individual aspect are proven by the honors bestowed upon them by the OVC.

The Panthers returned only one all-conference performer in senior center Chaz Millard, but after winning the conference title, the OVC honored eight total Panthers as All-OVC performers, as well as Spoo as conference coach of the year.

Among the honorees were two of the most well-known newcomers, quarterback Jake Christensen, a graduate student who transferred from Iowa, and junior running back Mon Williams, a transfer from Florida.

Those two both made second team All-OVC and joined offensive linemen Millard, senior Chris Campbell and sophomore Willie Henderson on the All-OVC team.

The defensive players who received honors were senior defensive tackle Trevor Frericks, sophomore defensive end Perry Burge, James and fellow junior cornerback Rashad Haynes.

Senior kicker Austin Signor was also named to the team.

Of course, with an experienced unit comes the need to replace players at season's end, and that's what the Eastern coaching staff will focus on as it hits the recruiting trail in the coming months.

With Christensen gone, they will have to determine if red-shirt freshman Doug Reynolds or sophomore Brandon Large are ready to be handed the reins at quarterback or if another option is possible.

Likewise, three offensive linemen, including Millard, who has anchored the line for the past four years, will need to be replaced.

On the defensive side of the ball, senior safeties Adrian Arrington and Seymour Loftman will need to be replaced.

Arrington missed the last month of the season with an injury and junior Bobson Mercier filled in.

Mercier will likely be the most likely candidate to fill that role next year, while sophomore Carlos Reyna is the most likely candidate to replace Loftman.

The Panthers look to return all their starters at cornerback and linebacker, but up front they will lose Frericks and senior Andre Lima.

Junior Spyros Bazigos was part of the rotation up front throughout the season and should be expected to take over in a more permanent role next season.

Finally there is the kicker.

The Panthers have had the luxury of having Signor's big leg for the past two years, but with him gone the kicking game becomes a question.

Freshman Jason Baker has yet to be seen in action so the Panthers will have to determine whether he can take over permanently for the big-legged Signor.

There is also the future of Spoo to consider.

The 22-year head coach is still under contract but many speculate when he will hang 'em up for good. Spoo has yet to comment on what the future holds for him.

Collin Whitchurch can be reached at 581-7944 or cfwhitchurch@eiu.edu.

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