Oct. 2, 2013
WKU Notes | ULM Notes
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Game Day Central
BOWLING GREEN, Ky.- The WKU Hilltoppers hit the road for their first Thursday night game of the season and second Sun Belt Conference match-up as they take on ULM at Malone Stadium. Kick-off is set for 6:30 p.m. and can be seen nationally on ESPNU.
Thursday's game will be the ninth game all-time between the Warhawks (2-3, 0-0) and Hilltoppers (3-2, 0-1) with both teams winning four games. The Warkhawks and Tops played in consecutive years from 1952 to 1955 when WKU was a member of the Ohio Valley Conference and renewed the series as SBC brethren in 2009.
Since the series renewed in the SBC, however, the Tops are 1-3 all-time against ULM, having earned a 31-28 overtime victory the last time they went to Monroe in 2011. Each of the previous two games between the two have gone to overtime with each team winning on the road.
Entering the week, ULM is expected to be without the services of the SBC Preseason Offensive Player of the Year in quarterback Kolton Browning. Browning sustained an injury in the third quarter of last week's game with Tulane.
Last week's 19-7 victory helped the Tops earn a pair of SBC players of the week in Antonio Andrews and Xavius Boyd. It was Boyd's second defensive player of the week award.
Andrews enters this week's contest as the nation's leader in numerous categories including rushing yards (727), all-purpose yards per game (228.0) and rushing touchdowns (8). Andrews also became the first player in the nation to record five rushing touchdowns in a single game this season when he tallied as many against Morgan State. Only four players in the nation hit that mark throughout all of last season. Andrews' 291 all-purpose yards in that game are fourth-most in the nation so far this season.
Boyd's 2013 campaign has been nothing short of a breakout year. After recording just three double-digit tackle performances in 2012, Boyd recorded four straight to open the season and is the only player in the Sun Belt Conference to average 10 or more tackles per game to this point. Boyd leads the SBC in tackles, tackles for loss and sacks.
After allowing more than 200 yards rushing in their first two games of the season, the WKU defense has not allowed a team to eclipse that mark over their last three. In fact, the Tops held the nation's top rushing offense in Navy to just 107 yards on the ground. WKU has also not allowed a 100 yard individual rusher this season.
Following the ULM contest, the Tops have their longest break of the season and will have the next two Saturdays off before returning to The Hill on Tuesday, Oct. 15 when they host Louisiana-Lafayette for a nationally-televised showdown on ESPN 2. That game is also set as the team's annual Black Out game and will kick off at 7 p.m.
