The Wisconsin football team is playing an uncommon opponent in Week 2. Eastern Michigan is coming to Camp Randall to take on the Badgers on Saturday night at 6:00 pm. Since the Eagles are a relatively unknown opponent, I thought it’d be beneficial to point out some of their top players who will likely be showing up frequently throughout the game.
Here are three Eastern Michigan players to know heading into the game on Saturday.
QB Ben Bryant – #8
This name should sound familiar if you follow Wisconsin’s recruiting news. Ben Bryant was a 3-star quarterback out of La Grange, Illinois in the class of 2018. Bryant was actually committed to the Wisconsin football team. He committed to the Badgers in December of 2016. Then Georgia offered him a scholarship in May. Two days later, Bryant de-committed from Wisconsin.
He eventually committed to Cincinnati and was there until the end of last season, when he entered the transfer portal and ended up at Eastern Michigan.
Last week, Bryant split snaps with junior quarterback Preston Hutchinson. Bryant attempted 10 passes, completing eight for 126 yards. Hutchinson, on the other hand, completed 7-of-12 passes for 63 yards and an interception. It wouldn’t surprise me if Bryant got a majority, if not all, of the snaps against Wisconsin on Saturday. Bryant showed he can be an efficient quarterback, completing 80% of his passes for 12.6 yards per attempt.
He also had seven rushing attempts for 18 yards on the ground.
RB Darius Boone Jr. – #27
Darius Boone got the majority of the carries for the Eagles in Week 1. He carried the ball 22 times for 107 yards (4.9 ypc) and a touchdown. He was also caught a pass out of the backfield for eight yards.
Last season, Boone ran the ball 44 times for 254 yards and two touchdowns. He was second on the team in carries behind quarterback Preston Hutchinson.
I would expect Boone to continue to be the bell cow back for the Eagles against the Badgers. If the Badgers can shut Boone down, that would add a lot more pressure to the Eagles’ passing game.
LB Terry Myrick – #32
Myrick is going to be the best player on the Eagles’ defense. He is a 6-0, 220 lb linebacker who is active in both the run and pass defense for Eastern Michigan. He is the type of player who is always around the ball.
He leads the Eagles in tackles, tallying six total tackles in Week 1. He also added a sack, which ties him for the lead on the team. Joe Rudolph and the offensive line are going to have to keep tabs on Myrick or he could be in the backfield making plays.
Last season, he led the Eagles in total tackles with 67 in six games; 15 more than the next defender. I would expect to see hear Myrick’s name a lot on Saturday night while the Badgers are on offense.