WKU Football will face Sam Houston in an important Conference USA mid-week game on Wednesday at Elliott T. Bowers Stadium in Huntsville, Texas. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. and the game will be televised nationally on ESPN2.
WKU took down UTEP 44-17 on Thursday, Oct. 10, at Houchens-Smith Stadium its last time out. The Hilltoppers, wearing Big Red-inspired uniforms, put up nearly 300 yards of offense in the first half as they built a 27-7 lead, before eventually finishing off the 27-point victory to move to 5-0 all-time against UTEP. WKU rushed for 218 yards, which was the most the program has recorded in a single game this season, and Mike Mathison tallied three touchdowns. Quarterback Caden Veltkamp finished with 264 yards and three touchdowns on 18-of-27 passing and added a rushing score as well.
The Hilltoppers are one of four teams in CUSA without a loss in league play this season. WKU, Sam Houston and Jax State all sit at 2-0, while Liberty is currently 3-0 in CUSA play and 5-0 overall. Louisiana Tech and FIU are both 1-1 in league play, while Middle Tennessee, New Mexico State, Kennesaw State and UTEP are all still looking for their first win in league play.
The Hilltoppers have started 2-0 in Conference USA play for the second straight year. WKU’s last 3-0 start in CUSA play came in 2019 during Tyson Helton’s first season as head coach. WKU started 4-0 in CUSA that season.
WKU has been tough to score on since the season-opening loss at at Alabama. The Hilltoppers are allowing only 16 points per game over their last five games, and have not allowed more than 21 points in a game during that stretch. That stretch includes a shutout win over in-state rival Eastern Kentucky in the home opener and a win last week in which the defense allowed only 10 points.
WKU has been especially good in the red zone all season, allowing scores just 61% of the time. The Hilltoppers rank first in CUSA and fifth nationally entering games on Saturday, Oct. 12, in red zone defense. WKU is tied for 15th nationally in turnovers gained this season with 10.
Punter Cole Maynard and kicker Lucas Carneiro have been big players on special teams this fall. Maynard ranks first in CUSA in average yards per punt with 47.1 per attempt on 20 attempts. He’s had eight punts travel 50-plus yards, with a long of 60 yards, and has landed four inside the 20-yard line. He was named CUSA Special Teams Player of the Week on Sept. 23. WKU’s single-season record for average yards per punt is 45.9 yards, held by John Haggerty in the 2019 season. Carneiro is 7-for-8 on field goals with a long of 54 last week – tied for the second longest in program history – and is 21-for-21 on PATs.
Veteran receiver Dalvin Smith has 19 touchdown receptions in his WKU career after catching a 30-yard scoring pass from Caden Veltkamp in the win over UTEP. The 19 touchdown receptions are tied for seventh most in program history with Jared Dangerfield, Curtis Hamilton and Jay Davis. Taywan Taylor holds the program record with 41 touchdown receptions.
WKU and Sam Houston have met twice before, with each team owning one win in the series. The Hilltoppers claimed a 28-23 victory over the Bearkats last season in Bowling Green, after turning the ball over five times.
WKU’s defense forced three turnovers on Sam Houston’s final three possessions in the game, and the win secured bowl eligibility for the Hilltoppers. The only other meeting was a 54-24 Sam Houston win in Huntsville, Texas, in the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs on Nov. 27, 2004.
Sam Houston 5-1 overall and 2-0 in CUSA play this season – the program’s second at the FBS level. The Bearkats own wins over Rice, Hawaii, New Mexico State, Texas State and UTEP. The one loss was to UCF in Orlando, Florida.
Offensively, the Bearkats rank third in CUSA with 31.8 points per game. Sam Houston is also third in the league in scoring defense, allowing 23.8 points per game.
K.C. Keeler is in his 10th season as Sam Houston’s head coach. He entered the 2024 season with an 88-35 record with the Bearkats, which included the program’s first-ever FCS national championship in 2020. Overall in his 31-year head coaching career, Keeler is 267-110-1.
