BOWLING GREEN, Ky. – WKU Football overcame a 14-point first-half deficit and a lengthy weather delay in the second half to beat Toledo 26-21 on Saturday at Houchens-Smith Stadium.
The Hilltoppers (3-1 overall, 1-0 Conference USA) scored the final 16 points after the game was delayed for 75 minutes midway through the third quarter before getting two big red zone stops from their defense with a pair of interceptions from Devonte' Mathews to close out the nonconference victory over the Rockets (3-1 overall, 0-0 MAC).
HOW IT HAPPENED
- Tucker Gleason opened the scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run with 13:18 remaining in the second quarter to give Toledo a 7-0 lead.
- The Rockets went ahead 14-0 with 2:30 to play in the first half with a 14-yard touchdown reception by Anthony Torres on a pass from Gleason.
- WKU got on the board with a 44-yard pass from Caden Veltkamp to Kisean Johnson with 1:53 to play in the second quarter to make it 14-7.
- Lucas Carneiro connected on a 39-yard field goal during the first two minutes of the second half to make it a 14-10 game.
- Toledo extended its lead to 21-10 with a 7-yard touchdown pass from Gleason to Torres. A 75-minute weather delay followed the touchdown.
- After Cole Maynard pinned the Rockets at their own 2-yard line, Devon Lynch tackled Toledo's rusher in the end zone for a safety to make it a 21-12 game with 39 seconds to play in the third quarter.
- Veltkamp recorded a 7-yard touchdown rush with 10:43 to play to cut Toledo's deficit to two at 21-19.
- WKU took a 26-21 lead with 5:16 remaining on a 3-yard touchdown rush from Veltkamp.
- The Hilltopper defense stood tall after Toledo made trips to the red zone twice in the final three minutes. Both times Devonte' Mathews picked off passes to give WKU the ball back.
NOTABLES
- Caden Veltkamp made the first start of his college career and finished with 242 yards and one touchdown on 20-of-30 passing. He also had 20 yards and two scores on 16 rushing attempts.
- Kisean Johnson led WKU in receiving for the third straight game. He finished with 73 yards and a touchdown on six receptions.
- Eight different Hilltoppers recorded receptions in the game, with five posting multi-reception games.
- The WKU defense posted four turnovers gained. Devonte' Mathews recorded two interceptions in the fourth quarter, Kylan Guidry forced a fumble that was recovered by Darius Thomas, and Anthony Brackenridge recovered a fumble on a mishandled Toledo snap.
- Upton Stout led WKU in tackles with seven.
- WKU posted six tackles for loss and two sacks in the win. Kent Robinson and Guidry each posted a sack.
- Cole Maynard averaged 50.8 yards on six punts in the win. He had four punts travel 50-plus yards and two downed inside the 20-yard line. His farthest punt of the game was 57 yards. The 50.8 yards per punt is the fifth-highest average in a single game for any player with at least four punt attempts in program history.
- WKU's captains for the game were wide receiver Dalvin Smith, running back George Hart III and defensive tackle Dallas Walker.
- The game entered a 75-minute lightning delay that began at 8:05 p.m. and ended at 9:20 p.m. It is the first weather delay for WKU Football since Nov. 7, 2020, when the start time for a game at FAU was delayed by 30 minutes.
QUOTABLES
- "Just very proud of our guys. They faced so much adversity tonight and responded every single time. Very unique game. I've been a part of a lot of games, but we had a weather delay, we were down and things aren't going well, but somehow, some way, we found a way to win the game. I cannot say enough about our defense. Every single time, they responded. They were tested big time tonight and they stepped up to the plate. I can't thank them enough for that. A lot of big plays out there tonight when we needed them the most and just really proud of this football team. We've just got to keep growing. Big win for us tonight." – WKU Football Head Coach Tyson Helton, on the 26-21 win over Toledo.
- "I'm thankful for the defense, for sure. Obviously it was not my best personal game, but our offense rallied in the fourth quarter coming out of that little break that we had, so I was really proud of our offense as a whole. Then the defense coming up with two stops in the red zone, bailing me out. First start as a win, you'll take it every day, so I'm happy for our team that we got the win today." – WKU Football quarterback Caden Veltkamp, on making his first start and the win over Toledo.
- "I think we wanted to go toward spreading it out and letting guys make plays after Kisean (Johnson) had the long one that he (Veltkamp) threw to him, we kind of looked at it and said, 'I think we can win these one-on-one matchups.' We said that at halftime, then the delay happened, then it started raining, but then after that we found a way to come out and win the game, so nothing wrong." – WKU Football Wide Receiver Easton Messer, on finding offense in the win over Toledo.
- "We were in the zero man coverage. I was in the post and just read the quarterbacks eyes and just go make a play." – WKU Football safety Devonte' Mathews, on the game-clinching interception in the fourth quarter.
- "Really, it was just stay focused on our keys and when the opportunity comes, just make the most of it and just play together for real, run to the ball and make our tackles. That's it." – WKU Football linebacker Kylan Guidry, on the defensive performance in the win over Toledo.
NEXT UP
- The Hilltoppers will head to New England to face Boston College on Saturday, Sept. 28. Kickoff at Alumni Stadium against the Eagles is scheduled for 11 a.m. CT and the game will be televised on ACC Network.
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