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Most college quarterbacks would like to remember their first start, but for Eastern Washington's Matt Nichols, the game seems like one giant blur.
It was 2006, Nichols was a redshirt freshman starting against Pat White, Steve Slaton and then-No. 6 West Virginia in Morgantown, W.Va., in front of more than 55,000 screaming college fans.
No wonder it was a blur.
The Mountaineers routed the Eagles 52-3.
"I had so much adrenaline during that game, being my first start against that caliber team," Nichols said of the game, which marked the second time in school history the Eagles had played a ranked opponent. "I didn't even totally know what the offense was doing; let alone what the defense was trying to do to us. It was just kind of a surreal thing. I don't even know how to put it in words. I only remember a little bit of the game."
Flash forward to this season, and Nichols is a completely different quarterback.
He is the experienced, accomplished leader of an Eastern Washington team that finished 9-4 in 2007. The Eagles' season ended in a 38-35 loss to eventual three-time defending champion Appalachian State in the Football Championship Subdivision quarterfinals.
With that game being close and Appalachian State's monumental upset at Michigan, Nichols said he believes the game against Texas Tech is a "money game," but he acknowledged that his Eagles need an absolutely flawless performance, similar to what Appalachian State accomplished.
"No penalties or turnovers," said Nichols, who will lead the Eagles against Tech at 6 p.m. Saturday at Jones AT&T Stadium. "Not handing the game to them. I remember my first year against Oregon State. We came out and had a couple fumbles early, kind of handed them a 21-point lead. It was over after that."
Nichols, an All-Big Sky Conference quarterback that threw for a school-record 34 touchdowns and 3,744 yards last season, said playing larger schools such as Oregon State, West Virginia and BYU eases the nerves going into Jones AT&T Stadium, where fans can get pretty rambunctious.
"I know what the atmosphere is gonna be," he said. "This is gonna be my third year starting. I've been in the situation, I know how to handle it. I'm just trying to prepare some of the younger guys on the team for what it's going to be like."
Nichols and fellow All-American wide receiver Aaron Boyce, who caught 85 passes for 1,308 yards and 10 touchdowns last season, mirror the familiar duo of Graham Harrell and Michael Crabtree.
Boyce and Crabtree will both try to match the numbers they put up last season, but as is the case on both teams, a variety of weapons and added attention could limit their production.
Boyce exploded onto the scene when slot receiver Tony Davis went down with an injury during the fourth game of the 2007 season against Portland State. With Davis out for the next four games, Boyce had a total of 40 receptions for 679 yards and four touchdowns - nearly half of his final numbers.
"That was kind of a big thing, Tony going down," Nichols said. "Boyce had to step up and make a lot more catches. Aaron knows that he could have an extremely better season without having better numbers. Other teams are going to be too focused on him, and we have a lot of very good athletes that will hurt you if you put your focus on one person."
Eastern Washington coach Beau Baldwin said Boyce and Nichols are an integral part to the Eagles on and off the field, like Harrell and Crabtree are to the Red Raiders.
"They both mean a ton to the program, not only are they great players, they're great leaders," Baldwin said during a teleconference Wednesday. "They do the right stuff in the offseason. They lead by example also. When they're talking to their teammates, they're walking the walk as well, so they're tremendous assets to not just what we do offensively, and what numbers they put up, but just our team in general."
Even though Nichols knows his team has its work cut out, playing Tech does have its perks, he said.
"We're definitely excited about the opportunity," he said. "Me, personally, to play opposite a quarterback like Graham Harrell is kind of something that I always wanted to do. It's going to be a lot of fun. It'll be a good thing to be able to watch him play when I'm not on the field, learn a few things from him."
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