WKU HILLTOPPERS (3-4, 2-1) vs.
CHARLOTTE 49ers (4-3, 2-1)
Saturday, October 30 | 3 p.m.
Houchens-Smith Stadium | BG, KY
CHARLOTTE 49ers (4-3, 2-1)
Saturday, October 30 | 3 p.m.
Houchens-Smith Stadium | BG, KY
| LEARN ABOUT THE TEAM: |
| Bailey Zappe on The Solid Verbal Podcast Narveson Voted C-USA Player of the Week WKU Weekly Game Notes Package Coach and Player Interviews (YouTube) |
| HILLTOPPERS HOST CHARLOTTE FOR "WILD, WILD WESTERN" HOMECOMING It will be a crucial matchup for WKU and the 49ers; two teams tied for top spot in Conference USA East |
NOTING THE GAME
- WKU and Charlotte have played only four times in their head-to-head series, all over the past four years. Each matchup in 2017, 2018 and 2019 was the host's Homecoming game and the home team won each time.
- The 2020 matchup was originally scheduled for November 28 at Jerry Richardson Stadium, before it was postponed due to positive COVID-19 test results within the Charlotte program. First, the game was moved to December 1, then once more to December 6. Ultimately, the Hilltoppers defeated Charlotte by a score of 37-19.
NUMBERS TO WATCH
- 430.6 — Bailey Zappe leads FBS with 430.6 pass yards per game, with the next-closest being Virginia's Brennan Armstrong at 402.5 yards. Zappe is tied for the FBS lead with 29 TD's and ranks ninth with a 169.6 passing efficiency rating.
- 38-5 — Bailey Zappe's TD-INT ratio in 12 career games against FBS teams. He has completed 399-of-600 passes (65.3%) for 4,768 yards (397.3 avg) in those 12 games.
- 51.5 — With a sack at FIU, DeAngelo Malone upped his career TFL total to 51.5. Chris Carpenter (52.0) ranks second in WKU program history in TFL's and Sherrod Coates (75.0) ranks first.
- 2 — FBS receivers with over 1,000 yards through seven games: Jerreth Sterns and USC's Drake London, who has 79 catches for 1,003 yards and 5 scores.
HOMECOMING ON THE HILL
- WKU's first Homecoming game was on November 5, 1927, as the team defeated Louisville by a score of 7-6. The Hilltoppers are 55-31-3 all-time in Homecoming games. A victory against Charlotte would give WKU its sixth Homecoming win in the past eight seasons, after the Hilltoppers dropped 6-of-7 such contests from 2007-to-2013.
CHASING GREATNESS
- Through seven games, Zappe's numbers are comparable to Brandon Doughty's 2015 season in which he set WKU's all-time passing record (5,055) in 14 games, as well as Texas Tech's B.J. Symons' 2003, in which he set the FBS all-time passing record (5,833) in 13 games:
- Bailey Zappe: 246-of-346 (71%) for 3,014 yards, with 29 TD and 4 INT
- Brandon Doughty: 197-of-266 (74%) for 2,709 yards, with 24 TD and 4 INT
- B.J. Symons: 264-of-397 (67%) for 3,506 yards, with 32 TD and 8 INT
STERNS: ALSO A STUD
- Wide receiver Jerreth Sterns is also nipping at the heels of the all-time greats. Through seven games, Sterns' numbers are comparable to Taywan Taylor's 2016 season in which he set all-time records (98 catches for 1,730 yards, with 17 touchdowns) in 14 games. East Carolina's Zay Jones set the FBS record with 158 receptions in 12 games in 2016, and Nevada's Trevor Insley's 2,060 yards in 11 games in 1999 is the all-time FBS mark:
- Jerreth Sterns: 83 receptions for 1,077 yards, with 10 touchdowns
- Taywan Taylor: 54 receptions for 870 yards, with 5 touchdowns
- Zay Jones: 95 receptions for 909 yards, with 3 touchdowns
- Trevor Insley: (In search of game-by-game stats for TI's 1999)
STAFF SHUFFLE
- Of WKU's 10 full-time assistant coaches, only one (special teams coordinator and safeties coach Andy LaRussa) has the same role as last season. Four have new roles: Maurice Crum (linebackers –> defensive coordinator), Bryan Ellis (now co-offensive coordinator and inside receivers coach), Kenny Baker (defensive ends –> defensive line) and Stephen Hamby (quality control –> offensive line). Five are new faces: Zach Kittley (offensive coordinator and quarterbacks), Pat Bastien (linebackers), Josh Crawford (outside receivers), Keynodo Hudson (cornerbacks) and Carlos Locklyn (running backs).
THE PORTAL
- Of the 105 players on WKU's 2021 roster, 26 of them (24.8%) are incoming transfers. Of the 26, 14 are coming directly from FBS programs –10 from Power Five programs and four from Group of Five teams. Of the 26, eight are from FCS programs – including four from the Houston Baptist offense. Of the 26, four are from the JuCo ranks, however three of those spent a year on Power Five teams.
ZERO TO 10,004
- WKU returned zero passing yards from the 2020 season. Enter graduate transfer quarterback Bailey Zappe, whose 10,004 yards at Houston Baptist from 2017-to-2020 led all active CFB passers to begin the season. Now at 13,018 yards after 3,014 through his first seven games as a Hilltopper, Zappe still tops the list.
The 2021 WKU Football season is presented by Stewart Richey Service Group. Stewart Richey is a multi-disciplined construction and service firm providing contracting, maintenance, and repair services across residential, commercial, industrial, civil and institutional markets. Stewart Richey Service Group has provided over 45 years of service!
