FRISCO, Texas — Down by 19 points late in the third quarter, getting shut out by the toughest defense to score against among all FCS teams, Eastern Washington finally had something to cheer about. A touchdown pass meant the Eagles wouldn’t get shut out.
Then Bo Levi Mitchell threw another touchdown pass.
And, with 2:47 left, he did it again.
When the Eastern Washington defense followed with one last stand, the guys best known for playing their home games on flaming-red turf had a new claim to fame — national champions, having pulled off a stunning 20-19 victory over Delaware on Friday night in their first trip to the finals.
“It’s been like this all year,” Mitchell said. “We’ve had a bunch of up-and-down games. It’s all a credit to the coaches because they never panic. Once we got that first touchdown, that gave us a lot of confidence. That really electrified us.”
Mitchell grew up outside Houston and began his college career at nearby SMU.
After this performance, folks in Cheney will always consider him one of their own.
Wearing flaming-red cleats to remind him of his new home, Mitchell went from generating only 92 yards midway through the third quarter to leading TD drives that covered 80, 89 and 69 yards.