GAME 8
WKU (4-3 Overall, 2-1 Conference USA) vs. Liberty (7-0 Overall, 5-0 Conference USA)
Date: Tuesday, Oct. 24
Kickoff: 6:30 p.m. CT
Location: Bowling Green, Ky. (Houchens-Smith Stadium)
Watch: ESPNU
Listen: WKLX (SAM 100.7 FM) and WWKU (ESPN Radio 102.7 FM) in Bowling Green
Social: @WKUFootball | @WKUSports
Game Notes: WKU Notes | Liberty Notes
NOTES
- WKU will bring back the Big Red logos on helmets this week, but with a different twist from last year's helmet worn against Rice. This year, seven different logos will be seen on the helmets depending on position groups – for quarterbacks, running backs, receivers/tight ends, specialists, offensive/defensive linemen, linebackers, and defensive backs. WKU will wear all-black uniforms, and fans are encouraged to wear black for the blackout game.
- WKU will host a free pregame concert with award-winning country singer and songwriter Jordan Davis prior to this week's game. The one-hour concert will begin at 5 p.m. CT with kickoff set for 6:30 p.m. at Houchens-Smith Stadium. South Lawn will open at 4 p.m. for the concert festivities and space is available on a first-come basis. No pop-up tents will be allowed for tailgating on South Lawn for the concert.
- Quarterback Austin Reed moved into fifth place in WKU's career completion rankings, passing Justin Haddix with his 24 completions last time out. Reed currently has 563. Mike White sits in fourth with 648. Reed has 56 career touchdown passes, and is six away from tying Bailey Zappe for third in career touchdown passes in program history. Malachi Corley moved into second on WKU's career receptions list in the win at LA Tech, and now has 223 catches in his career, and in the same game moved into third on the career touchdown receptions list with 23. Taywan Taylor holds both records – 253 catches and 41 touchdowns – and Nicholas Norris is second in career touchdown receptions with 26. Corley's 2,634 receiving yards are fourth all-time, behind Taylor (4,234), Norris (3,091) and Lucky Jackson (2,680).
- The "Takeaway Tops" are back this season after tying for the best marks in the nation with 32 forced turnovers and six defensive touchdowns in 2022. WKU has 18 turnovers gained so far this fall – tied for the most in the country with Liberty following Oct. 17 games – with defensive touchdowns scored against USF and Houston Christian. WKU is tied for seventh nationally with two defensive touchdowns this season, while six teams have three defensive scores, following Oct. 17 games.
QUOTES
- "Very excited to be back home this week. Get to play a really good Liberty football team. Things are really heating up in conference play, about how I thought it would be. I thought this year there was going to be a lot of parity and there is a lot of parity. There seems to be a lot of games coming down the stretch. Obviously we had a tough loss last week against Jacksonville State. Our guys will rebound. I know they're excited to be back at home. It's going to be a great atmosphere. We need all our Hilltopper fans to come out and support us. Really excited about being home and really excited about playing an excellent Liberty team. We've got to go get this conference win." – WKU Head Coach Tyson Helton, on Tuesday's game against Liberty.
- "What an opportunity this is – national TV versus an undefeated team, really good offense, really good defense. For us to go out there and have this opportunity in front of our fans and the atmosphere they're going to create at our home stadium – we're excited for that in a must-win conference game we feel like, but that goes without saying because every game is a must-win for us just because it's the next game. 1-0 mentality every single week. We feel like every game is a must-win because it's just the next one. Obviously a really big one that we're really excited for it, our players are really excited for it and just excited for the opportunity." – WKU Offensive Coordinator Drew Hollingshead, on Tuesday's game against Liberty.
- "Very proud of our group. I thought our guys played really, really hard. I thought, again, we go through and you feel like you've gone out there and you've got the right game plan and you execute it well. We start really hot with a couple of three-and-outs to start through the game and are in a good position. They score in the second quarter, get to 10 at halftime, come out and play really, really well throughout the third and the majority of the fourth, and ultimately I've got to find a better way for myself to do a better job in the last two drives. Our kids did an excellent job, took the plan we had for the week, executed it really well. One of our better games tackling. From that perspective, you're playing a team that's really hard to defend, a team that's tempo is really difficult to get lined up, be sound, and still be able to play aggressive. Credit to coach (Rich) Rodriguez and his staff, his players. They did an amazing job. They kept trying to find different answers, kept trying to find different formations, different runs, and we continued as our staff and our players continued to make adjustments, and we did a good job of that. We've ultimately – it comes down on me – we've got to find a way to make one more play and find a way to come up with one more takeaway." – WKU Defensive Coordinator Tyson Summers, on the defense's performance at Jacksonville State.
LAST TIME OUT
- WKU lost 20-17 at Jacksonville State on Tuesday, Oct. 17, in Jacksonville, Alabama. The Hilltoppers led for much of the game, but struggled to score during the second half and the Gamecocks won on a 41-yard walk-off field goal.
ABOUT LIBERTY
- Liberty is in its first season as a member of Conference USA and the Flames have gotten off to a hot start. Liberty is unbeaten at 7-0 overall and atop the pack in CUSA with a 5-0 mark. The Flames most recently defeated Middle Tennessee 42-35 at home on Tuesday, Oct. 17.Â
SERIES HISTORY
- Tuesday's game will mark the fourth meeting all-time between WKU and Liberty, the second meeting as FBS programs and the first meeting with Conference USA implications. The Flames own a 3-0 lead in the series, with a 30-24 win over the Hilltoppers during the 2020 season at Houchens-Smith Stadium the last time the two programs met. Liberty also claimed wins over WKU in back-to-back seasons in 1995 and 1996. The Flames have started their first season in CUSA with a 5-0 record in league play and are 7-0 overall, while WKU sits at 2-1 in CUSA play after last week's setback at Jacksonville State.
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