Panther defensive coordinator Roc Bellatoni was surprisingly upbeat the week after Eastern’s 54-48 win over Tennessee State.

Bellatoni Wednesday freely displayed a quick off-kilter smile – almost a smirk. His No. 119-ranked defensive corps inspires a darker demeanor.

He said when Tennessee-Martin rolls into O’Brien Stadium noon Saturday, the Panthers will be ready to clamp down.

“It’s very important to play well on defense to improve their confidence,” Bellatoni said. “All they’ve heard and read about is how bad they’ve done.”

Tennessee-Martin’s athletic department issues fewer scholarships to players than the rest of the Ohio Valley Conference – consequently, the Skyhawks aren’t as deep on ‘D.

“We’ve got to work hard to get back on the horse,” Bellatoni said. “I think the week off before playing last week may have hurt us.”

Offense

Senior quarterback and Walter Payton Award candidate Tony Romo is three touchdown passes away from breaking the school single-season record in that category.

Panther head coach Bob Spoo would earn win No. 100, but as was the case with previous milestones, Spoo sees little relevance.

“I’m sure I’ve said this a lot, but I’m really glad Tony Romo is on our team,” Spoo said Wednesday. “But I’m glad he doesn’t go into games thinking about breaking a record – he just wants to win a game and does whatever it takes.”

Romo to senior flanker Will Bumphus for a touchdown is almost a guarantee in the Panther playbook.

Bumphus made 12 touchdown catches in the season’s first eight games. All three of his catches last week were in the end zone.

Junior tailback Andre Raymond continues hold the top spot in the national rankings in all-purpose yardage.

Raymond averages 204 yards per game. The Panthers are No. 6 in I-AA in total offense.

Tennessee-Martin was hit hard by the firing of head coach Sam McCorkle last week, but none were hit harder than former defensive line coach Johnny Jerrigan.

Jerrigan last week took the reigns of a battered 2-7 team seemingly headed to self-destruction.

The Tennessee-Martin pass threat is virtually nonexistent, which could play into Eastern’s favor. The Panthers have done fairly well against power run teams (Illinois State and Eastern Kentucky) this season. The Skyhawks have only four passing touchdowns this season.

Four running backs flank the Tennessee-Martin offense, none of which average more than 30 yards per game. Senior Carlos Latimore leads the Skyhawks running corps with 271 yards on 86 carries.

“We try to bang the ball downfield and run up the clock,” Jerrigan said in a press conference this week.

Spoo doesn’t expect Jerrigan to change the Skyhawks’ offensive game plan.

Edge: Eastern

Defense

Spoo echoed Bellatoni in saying the defense needs a good game for a morale boost. He said the problem has been the same all season.

“We just can’t get everyone in full pads on Tuesdays all year,” Spoo said. “I hope they’re not overlooking Tennessee-Martin. They don’t have the athletes, but we’re really not a sharp defensive team right now.”

Junior Buchanan Award candidate Nick Ricks leads the Panthers with 99 tackles and four sacks. Ricks made 14 tackles against the Tigers last week in a game where the Panthers missed many routine stops.

“We haven’t been avoiding tackle drills for those without pads,” Spoo said. “But there’s really only so much we can do, so we hope it improves this weekend.”

Eastern’s offense will provide the Skyhawks with arguably their biggest challenge of the season. Tennessee-Martin was shutout 24-0 by a pass-powered, nationally ranked Gardner-Webb team, but holding the Bulldogs to that many points was a small victory in an otherwise one-sided affair.

Jerrigan has already likened the Panthers’ offense to the Dallas Cowboys during the Michael Irwin days.

“They have a high-powered offense that can score on you at any time,” Jerrigan said. “There’s just not enough that can be said about (Romo).”

Senior defensive back Perez Boyd leads the Skyhawks with four interceptions and 83 tackles.

Edge: Even

Special teams

The Panthers expect teams to kick away from Raymond on a regular basis, but that doesn’t bother Spoo.

“We’ll take the ball further up field, there’s no problem with that,” Spoo said. “That’s not at all surprising that they’d want to kick away from (Raymond).”

Spoo confides in freshman place kicker Steve Kuehn despite two blocked extra points last weekend. The Arlington Heights product has missed nine of 34 point after touchdown kicks.

“He’s done a good job for us,” Spoo said. “Those two blocked extra points weren’t his fault.”

Lattimore is the Skyhawks’ deep threat. He averages 21 yards per kickoff return and has broken one for 68 yards.

Sophomore Brent Harris has made 10 of 15 field goals including one from 51 yards.

Edge: Even

Final score: Panthers 42, Skyhawks 10