What: Eastern Michigan football season opener vs. Army

When: 7 p.m. Saturday

Where: Rynearson Stadium, Ypsilanti

The series: Army leads, 2-0

The last meeting: Oct. 11, 2008. Army won, 17-13, in West Point, NY.

Historically: Eastern Michigan is 71-14-4 (.629) in season-openers and 6-3 this decade. The Eagles shut out Indiana State, 52-0 last year.

The Coaches: Ron English and Rich Ellerson are both in their first seasons at Eastern Michigan and Army, respectively, English worked previously as the defensive coordinator at Louisville and Michigan. Ellerson spent the past eight years as the head coach at Cal Poly.

About Army: The Black Knights return 31 letterwinners (12 on offense, 17 on defense, 2 speciality players. They run the spread/triple option on offense and a double Eagle flex on defense.

What English says: "I want to play well and I want to win the game, but I know there's a long season and to me, what we have to do is keep coaching and keep getting these kids better. But I feel really good about their intensity, their attention to detail and their work ethic.

"I'm really eager to see the team. I'm one of those guys that I get caught up in the game and all that, but I get caught up in seeing people get better and improve, and I want to see the personality of the team."

What else is going on: Eastern Michigan's opening night festivities includes a 5-kilometer run which begins at 5 p.m. There will also be tailgate parties for Armed Forces veterans and for new students. The night will conclude with a post-game fireworks display.