Nevada football will open the 2010 season at home against Eastern Washington on Thursday, Sept. 2.

This is the second time in the past three seasons that the Wolf Pack has opened the season with an FCS opponent. In 2008, the Wolf Pack hosted Grambling State.

Nevada and Eastern Washington last met in 1991, a 51-14 Nevada victory in Cheney, Wash. The Wolf Pack owns a 7-1 advantage in the series.

“Eastern Washington has been a force in the Big Sky and they have been one of the top-ranked FCS schools from that conference over the last few years,” coach Chris Ault said. “I know they are a competitive and well-coached team.”

The game against Eastern Washington marks the first of 13 for Nevada this year, which is allowable under NCAA rules for teams that travel to Hawaii during a season.

In the nonconference season, Nevada will host Colorado State on Sept. 11 at Mackay Stadium and Cal will make its first trip to Reno the following week.

The Wolf Pack have nonconference trips on Sept. 25 to BYU and UNLV on Oct. 2.

The Wolf Pack play three consecutive home games to start the season for the first time since 1991. It’s the exact opposite of last year when the Wolf Pack opened with three road games and struggled to a 0-3 start.

“Opening the 2010 season [with] three consecutive home games lends itself well with our 13-game schedule,” Ault said. “Playing at home early is exciting and will definitely help set the tone for the season.”