WKU Football: Gameday Information for Season Opener against Central Arkansas
Football season starts tonight as the Tyson Helton era kicks off at Home against the Purple Bears of Central Arkansas. WKU will look to…
Football season starts tonight as the Tyson Helton era kicks off at Home against the Purple Bears of Central Arkansas. WKU will look to erase the pain of the short-lived Mike Sanford era and start off the season on the right track.
If you need to know any of the game information, look no further — we have you covered.
Location
Houchens Industries L.T. Smith Stadium
Time
6:30 PM CT
Weather Forecast
TV
Radio
Gameday Information
2019 WKU Football Gameday Information
Betting Lines from Vegas Insider
Western Kentucky -8.5
Over/ Under: 54.5
Moneyline: Western Kentucky -335
Current Records
WKU: 0–0. 3–9 in 2018
Central Arkansas: 0–0. 6–5 in 2018
Last Game
WKU traveled to Louisiana Tech in what turned out to be the last game of the Mike Sanford era. WKU came out on fire against the 7–4 Bulldogs, scoring the first 23 points of the game within the 18 minutes of the game. Louisiana Tech would then reel off 15 straight points and cut the lead down to 8 four minutes into the 3rd quarter. Both teams would sputter from there but WKU would clinch a 30–15 victory on a 36-yard touchdown run by D’Andre Ferby to close out their season 3–9.
The Purple Bears traveled to Abilene Christian to close out their season. After falling behind 7–3 in the second quarter, Central Arkansas would reel off 13 straight points punctuated by a late touchdown pass to clinch a 16–7 victory and a winning season as the Purple Bears finished 2018 at 6–5.
Coaches
Tyson Helton- First Season- 0–0 overall
Nathan Brown- 2nd Season- 6–5 Overall
Series
Last Meeting
Back in 2009 during the last year of the David Elson era, the Hilltoppers hosted the Purple Bears on a September afternoon. After a scoreless first quarter, Central Arkansas would take control of the game scoring on a 51-yard touchdown run by Leonard Ceasar and 6-yard touchdown pass from Robbie Park to Preston Echols giving them a 14–0 lead in the second quarter.
WKU would cut the lead in half on a four-yard touchdown run by quarterback Brandon Smith but that would be as close as they would get as UCA scored two more touchdowns in the second half and cruised to a 28–7 win moving WKU to 0–3 on the season. WKU would finish 2009 at a program worst 0–12.
Relevant Reading
Injury Report
For WKU:
CB — Roger Cray- Out- Surgery
LB- Eli Brown- Out- Foot
K/P- Alex Rinella- Out- Academically Ineligible
For Central Arkansas:
· N/A
Excitement Level — 7
Hope springs eternal as a new season starts with a new coaching staff in place. The WKU fanbase has turned the proverbial page and is ready to see if rookie head coach Tyson Helton can replicate the magic of the Jeff Brohm era that he was a part of. Tonight’s matchup against the FCS Purple Bears should provide a perfect opponent (Maine loss last year notwithstanding) to get a confidence-boosting win and get the fan base optimistic about the program again. We are excited to see if last season’s growing pains and experience have helped this team grow and take a step forward this year. Should WKU get a comfortable win, they’ll ride the good vibes and have nine days to prepare for their first challenge against East division favorite FIU. Let’s all hope they do what they should do against a lower-division opponent.
Go Tops! We’ll be at the Houch providing live coverage of this game. If you’re in Bowling Green for the game, please send us your tailgating and in-game pictures via Twitter at @TheTowelRackWKU or on our Facebook page and we’ll share.