WKU (1-7, 0-4 C-USA) at Middle Tennessee (5-3, 4-1 C-USA)
Friday, Nov. 2 | Floyd Stadium | 7 p.m. CT
Friday, Nov. 2 | Floyd Stadium | 7 p.m. CT
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| HILLTOPPERS TRAVEL TO RIVAL MIDDLE TENNESSEE WKU's seniors are aiming to go 4-0 against the Blue Raiders. |
The Matchup
The match-up between Middle Tennessee and WKU is Conference USA's most frequently played rivalry game. The teams have combined for 67 games with MT holding a 34-32-1 advantage overall.
It's a "throw out the record books" game for both teams as well. Since 2011, four of six matchups have gone into overtime including three of the last four. Since 2011, five of six games have been decided by one score. The three previous matchups held in Murfreesboro have all gone into overtime.
WKU's senior class is aiming to become the first class since the 1976 senior class to get a victory over Middle Tennessee in all four matchups over their careers.
Friday's game will be WKU's second Friday game of the season, the program's most popular non-Saturday day of the week to play. The HIlltoppers are 21-22-2 all-time on Friday and have won four of the last five.
Scouting Middle Tennessee
For the fourth year in a row, the Blue Raiders are led by quarterback Brent Stockstill, son of head coach Rick Stockstill. Stockstill and the Blue Raiders are off to their best start in C-USA play since joining the league, sporting a 4-1 overall record and are 18-3 in their last 21 home C-USA games.
Averaging 355.4 yards of total offense per game, the Blue Raiders are scoring 28.4 points per game and wide receiver Ty Lee is the No. 1 option in the passing game, hauling in 36 catches for 382 yards and three touchdowns.
On defense, the Blue Raiders rank No. 88 nationally, and allow 419.8 yards per game on average. Defensive back Reed Blankenship leads the team with 63 tackles while linebacker Darius Harris has racked up 59. Harris and fellow backer Khalil Brooks have combined for 17.5 tackles for loss.
2018 Team Captains
WKU's season-long team captains were voted on at the end of fall camp, entirely by the players. In 2018, the Hilltoppers will have just two captains, both from the defense: senior DB DeAndre Farris and junior LB Ben Holt Holt's older brother, Nick, was a 2015 team captain at linebacker and both played for their father, Nick Holt, during his time as WKU's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach from 2013-16.
Holts on The Hill
When Ben Holt was voted a team captain, he and his brother, Nick, joined a very unique and exclusive group as one of just two sets of brothers to both serve as WKU captains.
Elmer (1965) and Lee Murray (1962) also served as captains and for over 50 years were the only sets of brothers to both serve as captains until the Holt's in 2018. Lee enjoyed a Hall of Fame career on The Hill in various roles as an assistant coach under Jimmy Feix and administrator as well as color analyst on WKU's radio broadcasts in the early 2000s.
Within Striking Distance
Through seven games, the Hilltoppers have lost four of six by a combined 12 points - three point losses in four games. WKU has been within striking distance of all four (vs. Maine, at Louisville, vs. Marshall, vs. ODU), and they aren't alone in being close to having their records flipped.
| TEAM | ONE-SCORE GAMES | RECORD |
| Arizona State | 6 | 2-4 |
| Eastern Michigan | 6 | 2-4 |
| WKU | 5 | 1-4 |
| Ball State | 4 | 1-3 |
| Old Dominion | 4 | 1-3 |
| Air Force | 4 | 1-3 |
Youth Movement
WKU is in the midst of a youth movement and rebuilding a roster which lost multiple three- and four-year starters at a number of positions after the 2016 Conference USA Championship season.
Last season, 24 players earned their first career start as Hilltoppers on offense or defense, the fourth-most nationally, and 11 true freshman saw game action. WKU trailed only Ball State (33), Illinois (31), Baylor (27), and Coastal Carolina (25) for the most first-time starters. On the 2018 roster, 66 percent of the roster is comprised of underclassmen.
| CLASS | # ON ROSTER | O/D STARTS |
|---|---|---|
| Seniors | 10 | 102 |
| Juniors | 21 | 102 |
| Sophomores | 27 | 112 |
| Redshirt Freshmen | 10 | 13 |
| True Freshmen | 27 | 1 |
Rebuilding Up Front
WKU's 2018 starting five entering the season was also one of only three offensive lines in the nation to have all five position starters earning their first career starts at their position (UTSA, Fresno State).
LT Cole Spencer started five games at RT to close the 2017 campaign while Tyler Witt started the final six at RG. Both have now swapped to the left side while center Seth Joest and RG Jordan Meredith earned their first career starts at any position at Wisconsin. RT Miles Pate has been primarily a guard during his time on The Hill but bumped outside this fall under the direction of new offensive line coach TJ Woods.
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