Why Eastern Washington feels even more confident about linebacker room this season: 'Guys that can fly around'

Aug. 15—One of the success stories of last year's Eastern Washington football team was the signing and then the performance of linebacker Read Sunn. Sunn came to Cheney as a graduate student after four years at Wyoming, where he made 42 appearances but just one start. In 2025, he led Eastern with 96 tackles and five quarterback hurries, and he tied for the lead in forced fumbles (two) and recorded two sacks. The Eagles weren't necessarily looking for a single player to replace Sunn's productivity heading into this season, largely because Myles Mayovsky (80 tackles) and Samarai Anderson (42) returned. But they did want to add transfers for depth while also continuing to develop the returners. What they have this preseason is a robust competition for the third linebacker spot and rotation roles behind all three. "We've got a lot of depth in that room," said Anderson, a redshirt junior, "guys that can fly around and make plays." In a traditional 4-3 defensive scheme, Eastern would be looking for a regular third linebacker who can play as much as Anderson and the redshirt senior Mayovsky. But Eastern runs a lot of nickel defense, leaning into its safety trio of Jaylon Jenkins, Bryce Smith and McKel Broussard. "I think we have the best nickel in the country in Jaylon (Jenkins)," defensive coordinator Zach Bruce said. "But that linebacker room is also really good. ... There are a couple (linebackers) who are really, really good football players, so we would be dumb not to put them on the field." One such player Bruce mentioned is Vincent Macaluso, who had two tackles and one of the defense's three sacks in Thursday's scrimmage. "He's a Big Sky starter," Bruce said of Macaluso. "What's great about college football is you can find guys who continue to grow and continue to develop. Vinny has been what college football should be, and this year he is a more than capable linebacker." But the Eagles also return redshirt sophomore Shea Robertson, who had six tackles on Thursday, and sophomore Gage Brumfield, who had four. "At worst, those two guys are going to be nightmares on special teams," Bruce said. Also competing for time are a pair of transfers who already know the Big Sky well. LJ Roberts, a 5-foot-10, 212-pound junior, made 70 tackles last year for Portland State. Matt Eskridge II, another junior who is listed at 6-foot-1, 224 pounds, recorded 15 tackles in seven games last year for Sacramento State. "Those two guys are really fitting in well," Bruce said. The Eagles also have a trio of freshman linebackers on the roster: Deville Warner, Jameson Wade and Jordan Rife. This season, under the NCAA's new five-for-five eligibility rule, none of those three will redshirt; all will be available to play, if they earn the time. All the linebackers are cogs in a defense that is looking to take a couple of steps forward this season after making significant strides last year. Eastern allowed the league's fourth-fewest passing yards in Big Sky games (219.8 per game) last season but the third-most rushing yards (192.8 per game). And while the Eagles had 13 interceptions across eight conference games, they also had just 11 sacks, and their third-down defense (41.9%) ranked seventh in the league. Big plays, too, were an issue last year, Anderson said. "We've got to (allow fewer) explosives," Anderson said. "Last year we'd stop guys and then on third-and-long they were bombing us. We've got to stop the run game, too." The Eagles have two more weeks of practices, including one more scrimmage on Friday, before they open the season against Northern Arizona on Aug. 29 in Flagstaff.