| 2018 Eastern Illinois Panthers football | |
|---|---|
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| Conference | Ohio Valley Conference |
| Record | 3–8 (3–5 OVC) |
| Head coach |
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| Offensive coordinator | Scott Parr (1st season) |
| Defensive coordinator | Cary Fowler (2nd season) |
| Home stadium | O'Brien Field |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 10 Jacksonville State $^ | 7 | – | 1 | 8 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 15 Southeast Missouri State ^ | 6 | – | 2 | 8 | – | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Kentucky | 5 | – | 2 | 7 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Murray State | 5 | – | 3 | 5 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tennessee State | 3 | – | 4 | 4 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Eastern Illinois | 3 | – | 5 | 3 | – | 8 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Austin Peay | 3 | – | 5 | 5 | – | 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UT Martin | 2 | – | 6 | 2 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Tennessee Tech | 1 | – | 7 | 1 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2018 Eastern Illinois Panthers football team represented Eastern Illinois University as a member of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC) during the 2018 NCAA Division I FCS football season. Led by Kim Dameron in his fifth and final season as head coach, the Panthers compiled an overall record of 3–8 overall with a mark of 3–5 in conference play, tying for sixth place in the OVC. Eastern Illinois played home games at O'Brien Field in Charleston, Illinois.
On November 18, Dameron was fired.[1] He finished his tenure at Eastern Illinois with a five-year record of 27–30.
Preseason
OVC media poll
On July 20, 2018, the media covering the OVC released their preseason poll with the Panthers predicted to finish in fifth place.[2] On July 23, the OVC released their coaches poll with the Panthers predicted to finish in fourth place.[3]
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacksonville State | 134 (14) |
| 2 | Austin Peay | 114 (1) |
| 3 | UT Martin | 96 |
| 4 | Tennessee State | 91 |
| 5 | Eastern Illinois | 83 |
| 6 | Eastern Kentucky | 64 |
| 7 | Murray State | 39 |
| 8 | Southeast Missouri State | 35 |
| 9 | Tennessee Tech | 19 |
| Predicted finish | Team | Votes (1st place) |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jacksonville State | 126 (14) |
| 2 | Austin Peay | 112 (4) |
| 3 | UT Martin | 95 |
| 4 | Eastern Illinois | 73 |
| 5 | Eastern Kentucky | 69 |
| 6 | Tennessee State | 64 |
| 7 | Southeast Missouri State | 62 |
| 8 | Murray State | 24 |
| 9 | Tennessee Tech | 23 |
Preseason All-OVC team
The Panthers had three players selected to the preseason all-OVC team.[4]
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Offense
Defense
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Schedule
| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 1 | 3:00 p.m. | at Arkansas* | SECN | L 20–55 | 63,342 | |
| September 8 | 6:30 p.m. | at No. 19 Illinois State* | NBCSC+ | L 10–48 | 8,914 | |
| September 15 | 6:00 p.m. | Indiana State* | ESPN+ | L 41–55 | 6,420 | |
| September 22 | 2:00 p.m. | Tennessee State |
| ESPN+ | L 40–41 | 7,670 |
| September 29 | 6:00 p.m. | at Tennessee Tech | ESPN+ | W 52–38 | 7,184 | |
| October 6 | 6:00 p.m. | Murray State |
| ESPN+ | L 41–48 | 3,063 |
| October 13 | 3:00 p.m. | at No. 8 Jacksonville State | ESPN3 | L 22–49 | 15,649 | |
| October 20 | 2:00 p.m. | UT Martin |
| ESPN3 | W 24–21 OT | 7,413 |
| October 27 | 12:00 p.m. | at Eastern Kentucky | ESPN+ | L 23–31 | 4,400 | |
| November 10 | 1:00 p.m. | Austin Peay |
| ESPN+ | W 52–21 | 2,149 |
| November 17 | 1:00 p.m. | at No. 23 Southeast Missouri State | ESPN+ | L 32–38 | 3,987 | |
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Game summaries
At Arkansas
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 0 | 6 | 7 | 7 | 20 |
| Razorbacks | 10 | 28 | 10 | 7 | 55 |
At Illinois State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 10 |
| No. 19 Redbirds | 7 | 21 | 10 | 10 | 48 |
Indiana State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sycamores | 17 | 14 | 14 | 10 | 55 |
| Panthers | 20 | 0 | 7 | 14 | 41 |
Tennessee State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tigers | 0 | 13 | 13 | 15 | 41 |
| Panthers | 17 | 7 | 7 | 9 | 40 |
At Tennessee Tech
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 7 | 14 | 10 | 21 | 52 |
| Golden Eagles | 10 | 0 | 7 | 21 | 38 |
Murray State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Racers | 10 | 14 | 14 | 10 | 48 |
| Panthers | 7 | 10 | 17 | 7 | 41 |
At Jacksonville State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 3 | 6 | 0 | 13 | 22 |
| No. 8 Gamecocks | 14 | 7 | 14 | 14 | 49 |
UT Martin
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | OT | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skyhawks | 7 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 21 |
| Panthers | 0 | 7 | 14 | 0 | 3 | 24 |
At Eastern Kentucky
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 10 | 7 | 0 | 6 | 23 |
| Colonels | 3 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 31 |
Austin Peay
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Governors | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| Panthers | 14 | 21 | 3 | 14 | 52 |
At Southeast Missouri State
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panthers | 7 | 0 | 10 | 15 | 32 |
| No. 23 Redhawks | 10 | 7 | 3 | 18 | 38 |
