# 2024 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team

The 2024 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Big South–OVC Football Association during the 2024 NCAA Division I FCS football season. The Panthers were led by third-year head coach Chris Wilkerson and played their home games at O'Brien Field located in Charleston, Illinois. They finished the season 3–9, 2–6 in Big South–OVC play to finish in eighth place.

## Preseason
### Preseason poll

The Big South-OVC Conference released their preseason poll on July 17, 2024. The Panthers were picked to finish second in the conference.
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
| 1 | UT Martin | 61 (5) |
| 2 | Eastern Illinois | 53 (2) |
| 3 | Southeast Missouri State | 51 (2) |
| 4 | Tennessee State | 41 |
| 5 | Gardner-Webb | 40 |
| 6 | Charleston Southern | 27 |
| 7 | Tennessee Tech | 24 |
| 8 | Lindenwood | 18 |
| 9 | Western Illinois | 9 |

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 29 | 8:00 p.m. | at Illinois* | Memorial StadiumChampaign, IL | BTN | L 0–45 | 43,849 |
| September 7 | 6:00 p.m. | Indiana State* | O'Brien FieldCharleston, IL | ESPN+ | W 27–20 | 7,222 |
| September 14 | 6:30 p.m. | at Northwestern* | Martin StadiumEvanston, IL | BTN | L 7–31 | 10,631 |
| September 21 | 6:00 p.m. | at No. 17 Illinois State* | Hancock StadiumNormal, IL (Mid-America Classic) | ESPN+ | L 7–31 | 9,012 |
| September 28 | 2:00 p.m. | Lindenwood | O'Brien FieldCharleston, IL | ESPN+ | L 25–28 | 3,890 |
| October 5 | 2:00 p.m. | No. 13 Southeast Missouri State | O'Brien FieldCharleston, IL | ESPN+ | L 27–38 | 7,777 |
| October 12 | 5:00 p.m. | at Tennessee State | Hale StadiumNashville, TN | ESPN+ | L 17–41 | 7,875 |
| October 26 | 2:00 p.m. | at UT Martin | Graham StadiumMartin, TN | ESPN+ | L 17–52 | 4,109 |
| November 2 | 2:00 p.m. | Western Illinois | O'Brien FieldCharleston, IL | ESPN+ | W 45–38 | 5,369 |
| November 9 | 12:30 p.m. | at Gardner–Webb | Ernest W. Spangler StadiumBoiling Springs, NC | ESPN+ | L 28–31 | 2,451 |
| November 16 | 12:00 p.m. | Charleston Southern | O'Brien FieldCharleston, IL | ESPN+ | W 16–13 $^{OT}$ | 1,895 |
| November 23 | 12:00 p.m. | at Tennessee Tech | Tucker StadiumCookeville, TN | ESPN+ | L 6–23 | 6,790 |
| *Non-conference gameRankings from STATS Poll released prior to the gameAll times are in Central time |||||||

## Game summaries
### at Illinois (FBS)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Fighting Illini (FBS) | 14 | 17 | 7 | 7 | 45 |
at Memorial Stadium • Champaign, IL
* Date: Thursday August 29, 2024
* Game time: 9:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 82 °F (28 °C)
* Game attendance: 43,849
* Referee: Ron Snodgrass
* TV announcers (BTN): Mark Followill (play-by-play), Jeremy Leman (analyst), and Kylen Mills (sideline)
| Statistics | EIU | ILL |
| First downs | 9 | 27 |
| Total yards | 196 | 488 |
| Rushing yards | 49 | 246 |
| Passing yards | 147 | 242 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 16-32-2 | 21-29-0 |
| Time of possession | 23:59 | 36:01 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 16-32, 147 yards, 2 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 9 carries, 28 yards |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | DiAirious Smith | 5 receptions, 63 yards |
| Illinois | Passing | Luke Altmyer | 19-24, 213 yards, 4 TD |
| Illinois | Rushing | Kaden Feagin | 16 carries, 108 yards, 1 TD |
| Illinois | Receiving | Pat Bryant | 5 receptions, 63 yards, 2 TD |

### Indiana State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Sycamores | 0 | 13 | 0 | 7 | 20 |
| Panthers | 7 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 27 |
at O'Brien Field, Charleston, IL
* Date: Saturday September 7, 2024
* Game time: 6:00 PM
* Game weather: Sunny, 65 °F (18 °C)
* Game attendance: 7,222
* Referee: Gabriel Tomlin
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | INST | EIU |
| First downs | 20 | 16 |
| Total yards | 334 | 354 |
| Rushing yards | 74 | 86 |
| Passing yards | 260 | 268 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 30–37–3 | 19–32–1 |
| Time of possession | 31:15 | 28:41 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Indiana State | Passing | Elijah Owens | 30/37, 260 yards, 3 TD, 3 INT |
| Indiana State | Rushing | Elijah Owens | 12 carries, 44 yards |
| Indiana State | Receiving | Rashad Rochelle | 4 receptions, 45 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 19/32, 268 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 24 carries, 93 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Terrance Gipson | 6 receptions, 100 yards |

### at Northwestern (FBS)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Wildcats (FBS) | 7 | 7 | 10 | 7 | 31 |
at Martin Stadium • Evanston, IL
* Date: September 14, 2024
* Game time: 6:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 10,631
* Referee: Gregory Blum
* TV announcers (BTN): Jason Ross Jr. (play-by-play) and Matt Millen (analyst)
| Statistics | EIU | NW |
| First downs | 13 | 22 |
| Total yards | 207 | 450 |
| Rushing yards | 40 | 203 |
| Passing yards | 167 | 247 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 17–31–1 | 21–32–0 |
| Time of possession | 24:28 | 35:32 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 17/31, 167 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | Jay Pearson | 8 carries, 29 yards |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Cooper Willman | 6 receptions, 66 yards |
| Northwestern | Passing | Jack Lausch | 20/31, 227 yards, 2 TD |
| Northwestern | Rushing | Cam Porter | 15 carries, 77 yards, 1 TD |
| Northwestern | Receiving | A.J. Henning | 7 receptions, 117 yards, 1 TD |

### at No. 17 Illinois State (Mid-America Classic)

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| No. 17 Redbirds | 14 | 7 | 3 | 7 | 31 |
at Hancock Stadium • Normal, IL
* Date: September 21, 2024
* Game time: 6:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Cloudy, 83 °F (28 °C)
* Game attendance: 9,012
* Referee: Greg Gompf
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | EIU | ILST |
| First downs | 9 | 28 |
| Total yards | 192 | 518 |
| Rushing yards | 105 | 253 |
| Passing yards | 87 | 265 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 12–22–2 | 22–28–1 |
| Time of possession | 24:03 | 35:57 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 10/19, 72 yards, 2 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 19 carries, 117 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Eli Mirza | 2 receptions, 19 yards |
| Illinois State | Passing | Tommy Rittenhouse | 17/22, 228 yards, 3 TD |
| Illinois State | Rushing | Wenkers Wright | 25 carries, 150 yards, 1 TD |
| Illinois State | Receiving | Daniel Sobkowicz | 7 receptions, 93 yards, 2 TD |

### Lindenwood

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Lions | 0 | 0 | 14 | 14 | 28 |
| Panthers | 14 | 3 | 0 | 8 | 25 |
at O'Brien Field • Charleston, IL
* Date: Saturday September 28, 2024
* Game time: 2:00 PM
* Game weather: Cloudy, 73 °F (23 °C)
* Game attendance: 3,890
* Referee: Branden McCain
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | LIN | EIU |
| First downs | 20 | 25 |
| Total yards | 453 | 458 |
| Rushing yards | 170 | 132 |
| Passing yards | 283 | 326 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 14–19–1 | 26–44–0 |
| Time of possession | 29:22 | 30:38 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Lindenwood | Passing | Nate Glantz | 14/19, 283 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT |
| Lindenwood | Rushing | Cortezz Jones | 20 carries, 104 yards |
| Lindenwood | Receiving | Jeff Caldwell | 4 receptions, 115 yards, 4 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 26/43, 326 yards, 2 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 28 carries, 123 yards |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Terrance Gipson | 9 receptions, 93 yards |

### No. 13 Southeast Missouri State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| No. 13 Redhawks | 7 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 28 |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 13 | 27 |
at O'Brien Field, Charleston, IL
* Date: Saturday October 5, 2024
* Game time: 2:00 PM
* Game weather: Sunny, 83 °F (28 °C)
* Game attendance: 7,777
* Referee: Drew Myers
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | SEMO | EIU |
| First downs | 26 | 19 |
| Total yards | 426 | 385 |
| Rushing yards | 61 | 19 |
| Passing yards | 364 | 366 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 30–43–1 | 27–42–0 |
| Time of possession | 34:02 | 25:58 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Southeast Missouri State | Passing | Paxton DeLaurent | 30/43, 364 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT |
| Southeast Missouri State | Rushing | Darrell Smith | 18 carries, 63 yards |
| Southeast Missouri State | Receiving | Tristan Smith | 8 receptions, 124 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 27/42, 366 yards, 2 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 14 carries, 48 yards, 2 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | MJ Flowers | 11 receptions, 72 yards |

### at Tennessee State

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 10 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Tigers | 0 | 20 | 14 | 7 | 41 |
at Nissan Stadium • Nashville, TN
* Date: Saturday October 12, 2024
* Game time: 5:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny
* Game attendance: 10,715
* Referee: Michael Lennie
* TV: ESPN+
| Statistics | EIU | TNST |
| First downs | 23 | 20 |
| Total yards | 435 | 365 |
| Rushing yards | 75 | 128 |
| Passing yards | 360 | 237 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 30–51–1 | 21–33–0 |
| Time of possession | 31:54 | 28:06 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 28/46, 338 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 21 carries, 57 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Cooper Willman | 8 receptions, 141 yards |
| Tennessee State | Passing | Draylen Ellis | 20/32, 224 yards, 4 TD |
| Tennessee State | Rushing | Jaden McGill | 9 carries, 47 yards |
| Tennessee State | Receiving | Karate Brenson | 6 receptions, 121 yards, 1 TD |

### at UT Martin

| Pregame line | Over/under |
| UT Martin –17 | 54.5 |
| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 7 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 17 |
| Skyhawks | 7 | 14 | 10 | 21 | 52 |
at Graham Stadium • Martin, TN
* Date: Saturday October 26, 2024
* Game time: 2:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Cloudy, 67 °F (19 °C)
* Game attendance: 4,109
* Referee: Gabe Tomlin
* TV: ESPN+
| Statistics | EIU | UTM |
| First downs | 23 | 20 |
| Total yards | 396 | 460 |
| Rushing yards | 48 | 212 |
| Passing yards | 348 | 248 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 36–54–3 | 16–23–0 |
| Time of possession | 32:16 | 27:44 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 36/54, 348 yards, 2 TD, 3 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 14 carries, 49 yards |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Cooper Willman | 11 receptions, 143 yards, TD |
| UT Martin | Passing | Kinkead Dent | 16/22, 248 yards, 3 TD |
| UT Martin | Rushing | Patrick Smith | 13 carries, 87 yards, 2 TD |
| UT Martin | Receiving | Max Dowling | 3 receptions, 70 yards, 2 TD |

### Western Illinois

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Leathernecks | 0 | 17 | 7 | 14 | 38 |
| Panthers | 7 | 10 | 14 | 14 | 45 |
at O'Brien Field • Charleston, IL
* Date: Saturday November 2, 2024
* Game time: 2:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 61 °F (16 °C)
* Game attendance: 5,369
* Referee: Michael Lennie
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | WIU | EIU |
| First downs | 24 | 22 |
| Total yards | 395 | 534 |
| Rushing yards | 86 | 196 |
| Passing yards | 309 | 338 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 29–43–0 | 19–27–0 |
| Time of possession | 30:30 | 29:30 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Western Illinois | Passing | Nathan Lamb | 29/43, 309 yards, 3 TD |
| Western Illinois | Rushing | Cameren Smith | 17 carries, 66 yards, 1 TD |
| Western Illinois | Receiving | Elijah Aragon | 9 receptions, 83 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 19/27, 338 yards, 5 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 27 carries, 194 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Alex Ginnever | 6 receptions, 100 yards, 2 TD |

### at Gardner–Webb

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 28 |
| Runnin' Bulldogs | 10 | 14 | 7 | 0 | 31 |
at Ernest W. Spangler Stadium • Boiling Springs, NC
* Date: Saturday November 9, 2024
* Game time: 12:30 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 67 °F (19 °C)
* Game attendance: 2,451
* Referee: Brad Carrell
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | EIU | GWEB |
| First downs | 21 | 25 |
| Total yards | 465 | 464 |
| Rushing yards | 7 | 127 |
| Passing yards | 458 | 337 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 20–36–1 | 26–34–0 |
| Time of possession | 27:46 | 32:14 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 20/36, 458 yards, 4 TD, 1 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 15 carries, 45 yards |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Cooper Willman | 11 receptions, 291 yards, 3 TD |
| Gardner–Webb | Passing | Tyler Ridell | 26/34, 337 yards, 1 TD |
| Gardner–Webb | Rushing | Carson Gresock | 9 carries, 50 yards, 2 TD |
| Gardner–Webb | Receiving | Taylor Shields | 3 receptions, 86 yards |

### Charleston Southern

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total |
| Buccaneers | 0 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 13 |
| Panthers | 0 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 16 |
at O'Brien Field • Charleston, IL
* Date: Saturday November 16, 2024
* Game time: 12:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 50 °F (10 °C)
* Game attendance: 1,895
* Referee: Zach Erdmann
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | CHSO | EIU |
| First downs | 11 | 17 |
| Total yards | 201 | 232 |
| Rushing yards | 125 | 64 |
| Passing yards | 76 | 168 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 10–19–0 | 17–26–2 |
| Time of possession | 27:05 | 27:34 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Charleston Southern | Passing | Rob McCoy Jr. | 7/13, 52 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Rushing | Autavius Ison | 12 carries, 42 yards |
| Charleston Southern | Receiving | Chris Rhone | 1 reception, 18 yards |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 17/23, 168 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | MJ Flowers | 22 carries, 73 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Quenton Rogers | 5 receptions, 66 yards |

### at Tennessee Tech

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| Golden Eagles | 3 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 23 |
at Tucker Stadium • Cookeville, TN
* Date: Saturday November 23, 2024
* Game time: 12:00 p.m.
* Game weather: Sunny, 49 °F (9 °C)
* Game attendance: 6,790
* Referee: Gabriel Tomlin
* TV announcers (ESPN+): TBD
| Statistics | EIU | TNTC |
| First downs | 18 | 17 |
| Total yards | 241 | 328 |
| Rushing yards | 80 | 200 |
| Passing yards | 161 | 128 |
| Passing: Comp–Att–Int | 18–28–1 | 11–20–0 |
| Time of possession | 30:23 | 29:37 |
| Team | Category | Player | Statistics |
| Eastern Illinois | Passing | Pierce Holley | 14/20, 129 yards |
| Eastern Illinois | Rushing | Jay Pearson | 11 carries, 69 yards, 1 TD |
| Eastern Illinois | Receiving | Cooper Willman | 9 receptions, 86 yards |
| Tennessee Tech | Passing | Dylan Laible | 9/16, 88 yards |
| Tennessee Tech | Rushing | Jalen Mitchell | 20 carries, 131 yards |
| Tennessee Tech | Receiving | Torin Baker | 3 receptions, 49 yards |