WKU HILLTOPPERSÂ (1-4, 1-2 C-USA) vs. UTCÂ MOCSÂ (6-6, 3-5 SoCon*)
Saturday, October 24 | 3 p.m. CT  | Houchens-Smith Stadium | Bowling Green, Ky.
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Saturday, October 24 | 3 p.m. CT  | Houchens-Smith Stadium | Bowling Green, Ky.
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| LONG-TIME FOES WKU, CHATTANOOGA MEET FOR FIRST TIME IN 13 YEARS Hilltoppers ready for unique situation of the Mocs playing their lone fall game of 2020 on Saturday |
NOTING THE GAME - WKU vs. CHATTANOOGA
- This will be the 14th all-time meeting between the Hilltoppers and Mocs, but the first since WKU has been an FBS program. Most recently, WKU swept Chattanooga in a home-and-home series in 2006 and 2007, with both scores coincidentally ending up as 28-21 victories.
- The first game between the Hilltoppers and Mocs was played all the way back in 1927, with Chattanooga taking that one by a lopsided score of 42-6. After that, the two did not meet again until 1976; they then played in each of the next three years. After another hiatus, WKU played the Mocs in six straight seasons from 1986 to 1991.
- Chattanooga had a four-game win streak and three-game win streak in the head-to-head series, while the Hilltoppers have never won more than two consecutive games against the Mocs. A win on Saturday would do just that.
NUMBERS TO WATCH
- 19 — Receptions by WR Dayton Wade over the past 3 games against MTSU, Marshall and UAB. Before those contests, Wade had only 1 career catch for 10 yards in 15 games.
- 7-38 — Over the past 2 games, the Hilltoppers have turned the ball over 7 times, which has led to 38 points off turnovers for their opponents - Marshall and UAB.
- 356 — The Hilltoppers' 25-man senior class brings 356 career starts of experience going into Game 6 of the year. Safety Devon Key leads WKU with 42 career starts on The Hill.
HILLTOPPERS WITH CHATTANOOGA TIES
- Defensive ends coach Kenny Baker was the defensive line coach for the Mocs in 2019, where he helped Khayyan Edwards and Telvin Jones to Second Team All-SoCon honors.
- Co-OC and running backs coach Ryan Aplin was the wide receivers coach for the Mocs in 2017.
- Former WKU defensive ends coach Jimmy Lindsey coached defensive line and special teams at Chattanooga from 2010 to 2011.
- Former WKU long snapper Jared Nash graduated from Chattanooga in the spring of 2019 before walking on for the Hilltoppers and playing in the 2019 fall campaign. He made every special teams snap for WKU and was voted Second Team All-CUSA following the season.
- Former WKU running back Gino Appleberry, Jr. and tight end Jay Gibson have transferred from The Hill to Chattanooga in recent years.
SUCCESS vs. NON-CON, NON-POWER FIVE
- Dating back to 2012, WKU has had a 19-5 record against other Group of Five teams and FCS opponents, including an 11-3 mark at home. From 2013 to 2017, the Hilltoppers won 14-straight such games.
- However, the Hilltoppers have dropped back-to-back games against FCS foes; a 31-28 loss to Maine in 2018 and a 35-28 loss to Central Arkansas in 2019. Of the five losses, none have been by more than 10 points.
WKU'S ANNUAL WHITE OUT HOME GAME
- This will be WKU's annual White Out game, where the Hilltoppers wear all white uniforms for a home game. Dating back to 2013, WKU has a 5-1 record when wearing all white uniforms at home, with the only loss being a 37-34 defeat against Old Dominion in 2018.
HILLTOPPER PENALTIES AT A MINIMUM
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In 2019, WKU was only called for 53 penalties all season, which ranked third in FBS, and that trend has continued. So far in 2020, the Hilltoppers have had only 15 penalties for 136 yards in four games, which ranks fourth in FBS.
GAMEÂ 5 at UABÂ GAME NOTES
- WKU's team captain for the game was senior safety Antwon Kincade.
- UAB won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. It was the first time in a Hilltopper game this season that the home team has won a coin toss.
- There was an attendance of 11,098 at Legion Field for the 12:36 p.m. CT kick off. The game lasted 3:25, which was WKU's longest of the season. The only game in 2019 the Hilltoppers played that lasted longer was the First Responder Bowl, which ran 3:35.
- WKU fell to 4-4 all-time against UAB, including 1-3 in Birmingham. The Hilltoppers also dropped to 7-5-1 all-time in games played on Oct. 17.
- WKU went 1-for-12 on third down tries, but 4-for-5 on fourth down tries. For the season, the Hilltoppers are 17-for-63 (27%) on third downs and 10-for-14 (71.4%) on fourth downs.
- WKU was 2-for-2 scoring touchdowns in the red zone, improving to 9-for-10 on the season.
- WKU turned the ball over four times, which led to 17 points off turnovers for UAB. In their previous game, the Hilltoppers had three turnovers that led to 21 points for Marshall.
- WKU fell to 13-8 while wearing white jersey tops and red pants, dating back to 2013.
- Kevaris Thomas started his first career game, completing 16-of-35 attempts for 162 pass yards, with 2 touchdowns and 2 interceptions. The two picks were the first thrown by a Hilltopper quarterback this season. He carried 13 times for 1 yard (31 gain, 30 lost). Had a long rush of 12 yards, but was sacked 5 times.
- Joshua Simon led WKU with season-highs of 6 receptions for 81 yards and 1 touchdown. All of which came in the first half.
- John Haggerty tied a career high with 6 punts, which added up to 260 yards (43.3-yard average). He had punts of 63 and 68 yards, both of which went for touchbacks. The 68-yarder was a career-long, eclipsing his previous career-long of 64 yards on Nov. 23, 2019 at Southern Miss.
- Trae Meadows was responsible for both of WKU's turnovers on defense, with a forced fumble in the first quarter and an interception in the fourth quarter. The interception was his second as a Hilltopper, with the other one coming last season on Sept. 28 vs. UAB. The forced fumble was the first of his career.
GAME 4Â vs. MARSHALLÂ GAME NOTES
- WKU's team captain for the game was graduate senior quarterback Tyrrell Pigrome.
- Marshall won the coin toss, chose to receive and scored a touchdown on a two-play, 75-yard drive to open the game. The away team has won all four coin tosses so far this season.
- There was an attendance of 4,428 in Houchens-Smith Stadium for the 6:36 p.m. CT kick off. The game lasted 2:57, which was WKU's shortest of the season. In 2019, the Hilltoppers played 3-of-14 games in under 3:00.
- WKU lost to Marshall for the fourth-straight time and fell to 4-8 all-time against the Thundering Herd, including 2-3 in Bowling Green. The Hilltoppers dropped to 7-5-1 all-time in games played on Oct. 10.
- WKU fell to 55-31-3 all-time in homecoming games.
- WKU committed zero penalties, the first time the team has done so since at least 2007. It was the first time an FBS team did not commit a penalty so far in 2020. There were only eight such instances in 2019.
- WKU turned the ball over three times, which led to 21 points off turnovers for Marshall. The -21 points off turnovers margin was the worst for the Hilltoppers since Nov. 24, 2017 at FIU.
- WKU fell to 8-4 while wearing red jersey tops and white pants, dating back to 2013. The Hilltoppers are 2-3 in their past five games in that uniform combination.
- Kevaris Thomas came into the game in the third quarter and completed 9-of-18 attempts for 148 pass yards, with 1 touchdown and 0 interceptions. The touchdown – a 26-yarder to Dalvin Smith with 0:06 remaining in the game – was his first collegiate passing score.
- He carried 7 times for 30 yards and one touchdown, including WKU's game-long 13-yard rush in the fourth quarter. He completed a 51-yard pass to Xavier Lane in the third quarter, the longest play by the Hilltoppers this season. Scored a two-yard touchdown rush two plays later, the second rushing score of his WKU career.
- Dayton Wade led WKU with a career-high 8 receptions, while also adding 58 yards to rank second on the team.
- Xavier Lane had a team-high 74 yards on 4 receptions, including a career-long 51-yarder in the third quarter.
GAME 3Â at MIDDLE TENNESSEE GAME NOTES
- WKU's team captain for the game was redshirt senior defensive tackle Jeremy Darvin.
- WKU won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. The Hilltoppers have won 2-of-3 coin tosses this season.
- There was an attendance of 6,500 in Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium for the 4:05 p.m. CT kick off. The game lasted 3:03, which matched WKU's first game of the season at Louisville.
- WKU improved to 34-35-1 all-time against Middle Tennessee, including 14-20-1 in Murfreesboro. The Hilltoppers also improved to 8-5-1 all-time in games played on Oct. 3 – including four straight wins.
- With 37 combined points, it was the lowest-scoring game in the head-to-head series since a 21-10 win by Middle Tennessee in 2008.
- With a three-point margin of victory, eight of the past 10 head-to-head matchups have been decided by five points or fewer.
- Middle Tennessee fell to 54-25-2 all-time in homecoming games.
- WKU won the time of possession battle 31:35-to-28:25 over Middle Tennessee. It was the first time this season the Hilltoppers had an advantage in time of possession.
- WKU allowed only 319 total yards to Middle Tennessee, the lowest total for the defense this season.
- WKU gained 326 yards of offense – including 138 rush yards and 188 pass yards – all three are the highest totals for the Hilltoppers this season.
- WKU improved to 9-3 when following a bye week dating back to 2012. The Hilltoppers have held their opponent to 17 points or fewer in seven of the last eight such games – all wins.
- WKU improved to 5-5 while wearing white jersey tops and black pants, dating back to 2013. The Hilltoppers are 4-1 in such games over the past two seasons.
- Xavier Lane led WKU with 7 catches, 73 yards and 1 touchdown, including a career-long catch of 26 yards in the second quarter. The 7 receptions were a career-high, and the touchdown was his first career score at WKU.
- Brayden Narveson went 2-for-2 in field goal attempts, hitting from 47 and 53 yards. The 53-yarder is the third-longest in WKU's 102-season program history, and is tied for the fifth-longest field goal make in FBS this season.
GAME 2Â vs. LIBERTY GAME NOTES
- WKU's team captain for the game was redshirt senior punter John Haggerty.
- Liberty won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. The Hilltoppers had won three consecutive coin tosses dating back to last season.
- There was an attendance of 4,276 in Houchens-Smith Stadium for the 11:02 a.m. CT kick off. The game lasted 3:14, which was above WKU's first game time of 3:03 at Louisville.
- WKU fell to 0-3 all-time against Liberty, including 0-2 in Bowling Green. The Hilltoppers also fell to 6-7 all-time in games played on Sept. 19.
- WKU was out-scored 10-0 in the first quarter, while out-scoring Liberty 24-20 in the other three quarters combined.
- Liberty won the time of possession battle 34:59-to-25:01 over WKU, a week after Louisville won the time of possession battle 32:33-to-27:27 over the Hilltoppers. Last season, WKU averaged a 32-to-28 time of possession advantage in 13 games.
- Liberty rushed for 354 yards, marking only the sixth time WKU has given up over 350 rush yards in the team's FBS Era (since 2009). Most recently the Hilltoppers allowed 368 rush yards in a 42-28 loss vs. Florida Atlantic on Oct. 28, 2017.
- WKU committed only 2 penalties for 19 yards, compared to Liberty's 8 for 89 yards. Through two games, the Hilltoppers have only committed 6 penalties for 42 yards. Last season, WKU ranked 11th in FBS with only 39.5 penalty yards per game on 4.1 infractions.
- WKU's loss to Liberty was only the team's fifth to a non-conference, non-Power Five team dating back to 2012. The Hilltoppers are 19-5 in such games over the past eight-plus seasons, but 5-4 since 2017.
- WKU fell to 7-4 while wearing red jersey tops and red pants, dating back to 2013. Since 2016, the Hilltoppers are 2-3 in such games.
- Devon Key led WKU with a career-high 15 tackles (7 solo, 8 assisted) for his 8th-career double-digit tackle game. He forced a fumble of Liberty QB Malik Willis in the second quarter that was not recovered by WKU, his first collegiate forced fumble.
- Dionté Ruffin led WKU with 3 pass breakups, which tied a career-high from last season in a 20-13 win vs. UAB on Sept. 28.
GAME 1Â at LOUISVILLE NOTES
- WKU's team captain for the game was redshirt senior safety Devon Key.
- WKU won the coin toss and deferred to the second half. The Hilltoppers have won three consecutive coin tosses dating back to last season.
- There was an attendance of 11,179 in Cardinal Stadium for the 8:05 p.m. ET kick off. The game lasted 3:03, which was slightly below WKU's average game time of 3:08 last season.
- In the 102nd season of WKU Football, the Hilltoppers fell to 60-36-6 all-time in season-opening games. WKU also fell to 1-4 all-time in games played on Sept. 12.
- WKU fell to 12-22 all-time against Louisville, including 12 consecutive matchups dating back to the Hilltoppers' last win in the series in 1975. That total includes a 4-19 record on games played in Louisville.
- WKU was out-scored 21-0 in the second quarter, while out-scoring Louisville 21-14 in the other three quarters combined. It was a similar story in last season's matchup between the two teams, as WKU was out-scored 24-7 in the second quarter, while tying Louisville 14-14 in the other three quarters combined.
- WKU allowed only 7 points in the second half, continuing the team's trend from last season. Over the final 12 games of 2019, the Hilltoppers allowed an average of only 6.9 points in the second half.
- Louisville converted 9-of-16 (56%) of third downs against WKU. Last season, the Hilltopper defense ranked 7th in FBS by allowing a third-down conversion rate of only 30%.
- Louisville won the time of possession battle 32:33-to-27:27 over WKU, which included a 18:55-to-11:05 advantage in the first half.
- WKU recorded 10 tackles for loss as a team, which was more than the Hilltoppers had in any game last season. In all, nine different WKU defenders had at least 0.5 tackles for loss.
- WKU fell to 4-5 while wearing white jersey tops and black pants, dating back to 2013. The Hilltoppers had won three consecutive games in the combination at the tail end of the 2019 season.
- Omari Alexander had a Swiss Army Knife-type performance, with a fumble recovery on a muffed punt, a blocked punt, an interception, a tackle for loss and 5 total tackles (3 solo, 2 assisted).
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