Two of the Big Sky Conference's top football programs – Eastern Washington University and Northern Arizona -- will square off in non-conference games in 2018 and 2020, Eastern athletic director Bill Chaves has announced.
 
The first meeting will be in Flagstaff, Ariz., on Sept. 8, 2018, and the return game will come two years later in Cheney, Wash., on Sept. 19, 2020. With the league consisting of 13 teams with one division, each team plays eight conference games and thus has four opponents each year they don't play. In 2016, North Dakota was an opponent EWU did not meet, and both teams finished 8-0 to share the league crown. Likewise, Eastern and NAU are not playing this season.
 
"We are glad that we can continue to play NAU even in the years we are not scheduled through the Big Sky," said Chaves. "Our games have always been tremendously exciting and we expect nothing less in these."
 
Eastern leads the all-time series against NAU 20-12, with Eastern winning 50-35 in Flagstaff last Sept. 24 in a meeting between the fourth-ranked Eagles and the 26th-ranked Lumberjacks. Eastern was also ranked fourth when the two teams met on Nov. 7, 2015, in Cheney, but EWU was defeated 52-30 to end its six-game winning streak. The last time EWU and NAU played in a non-conference game came in 1986 – the year before the Eagles joined the league.
 
The Lumberjacks also came from behind to win in Flagstaff in 2014. The Eagles have won 34 of its last 39 league games, and two of those losses were to NAU. Eastern finished 12-2 overall in 2016 and 8-0 in the conference to win the school's fifth league title in the last seven seasons. The Lumberjacks were 5-6 overall and 4-4 in the league, but in 2015 were 7-4 overall and 5-3 in the Big Sky to just miss out on a FCS Playoff berth.
 
Currently, Eastern is 4-1 in the Big Sky and 5-3 overall, while earning NCAA Football Championship Subdivision rankings of 11th by the both STATS and the coaches. Northern Arizona is 5-0 in the league and 6-2 on the season, and is rated No. 16 by the coaches and 18th by STATS.
 
This Saturday (Nov. 4), Eastern hosts Weber State – ranked 14th by the coaches and 19th in the STATS poll this week – in EWU's 91st annual Homecoming game. Northern Arizona is at Montana this week.
 
 

More on EWU's Future Schedules . . .

 
Big Sky Conference schedules for 2018 and 2019 have been announced, but Eastern is still waiting to add a non-conference game to its schedule in 2018 before making an official announcement. The same is true for 2019 when teams are allowed to play up to 12 games in the regular season, but EWU already has agreements in place with three non-conference opponents in 2020 (Florida, NAU and Jacksonville State).
 
North Dakota will be leaving the conference for the Missouri Valley Football Conference (Summit League in other sports) following the 2017-18 school year, but will still play its previously scheduled Big Sky games through 2019. Eastern is scheduled to play its last games against UND on Nov. 11, 2017, in Grand Forks, and Sept. 28, 2019, in Cheney. North Dakota will play an affiliate schedule in the league in 2018 and 2019 and not be eligible for the title, however, previously-scheduled Big Sky games against the Fighting Hawks will count in the conference standings.
 
The University of Idaho will join the Big Sky in football in 2018, and EWU will play the Vandals on Oct. 27, 2018, in the first meeting between the two schools since 2012 when Eastern won in Moscow 20-3. The last time the former league rivals met in a Big Sky game was in 1995 when the Vandals prevailed 37-10. The Eagles trail in the all-time series 15-6, but have won three of the last five meetings.
 
As part of the scheduling of league games, each school has traditionally played two opponents every year as a rival. Eastern's current rivals are Montana and Portland State, however, that will change to Idaho and Portland State, with Montana becoming Idaho's second rival. That begins in the 2018 season, meaning EWU will not play a regular season game versus Montana in 2018 for the first time since 1982.
 
However, modifications had to be made because of games previously scheduled, so Eastern doesn't play the Vandals in 2019. League schedules for 2020 and beyond have yet to be announced, but starting that season EWU will play UI and PSU annually, and the other league schools on a rotating basis.
 
 

Complete List of EWU's Future Games Scheduled . . .

SUBJECT TO CHANGE . . . *Indicates Big Sky Conference game.

2018 SCHEDULE
9/1/18 - Open
9/8/18 - at Northern Arizona
9/15/18 - at Washington State
9/22/18 - Cal Poly* (tentatively Hall of Fame Day at EWU)
9/29/18 - at Montana State*
10/6/18 - Southern Utah*
10/13/18 - at Weber State*
10/20/18 - Open
10/27/18 - Idaho* (tentatively Homecoming at EWU)
11/3/18 - at Northern Colo.*
11/10/18 - UC Davis*
11/17/18 - at Portland State*
 
2019 SCHEDULE
8/31/19 - at Washington
9/7/19 - Open
9/14/19 - at Jacksonville St.
9/21/19 - Open
9/28/19 - North Dakota*
10/5/19 - at Sacramento St.*
10/12/19 - Northern Colorado*
10/19/19 - Open
10/26/19 - at Montana*
11/2/19 - Northern Arizona*
11/9/19 - at Idaho State*
11/16/19 - at Cal Poly*
11/23/19 - Portland State*
 
Also . . .
9/5/20 - at Florida
9/12/20 - Western Illinois
9/19/20 - Northern Arizona
9/11/21 - Jacksonville State
9/18/21 - at Western Illinois
9/3/22 - at Oregon (date subject to change)