WKU Football: What I Think I Think Ahead of UTSA

Here we sit, nearly 30 hours after Saturday’s loss to Troy, and I still feel pretty good about what WKU will be able to do during the rest of its season.

Not to say the Tops weren’t prepared, but they definitely looked like they were missing a pep in their step - until an old friend entered the game - and still were able to do the following:

a.) Throw for over 400 yards
b.) Almost put the finishing touches on a 90+ yard game-winning drive
c.) Only lose by a touchdown

There are no moral victories, of course, but here we sit, the Tops 3-2 overall and 1-0 in C-USA play, in a year where not even the closest Hilltopper observer knew how good WKU could play on either side of the ball. A lot of those questions, especially on defense have been answered.

One major question remains surrounding not just this team, the 2022 Hilltoppers, but the tenure of Tyson Helton overall: Can he beat good teams? Troy was a good test and the Tops couldn’t get over the line.

Now come the RoadRunners, who are back home after notching a Friday night win in Murfreesboro. We love to see it.

This week kicks off the most important stretch of the season for WKU, and it starts with not only a 2021 C-USA title game rematch, but a potential preview of the 2022 C-USA title game.

Before we start diving too deep into what could lie ahead for the Tops in the Lone Star State, I think…

• I think the Hilltoppers season will be defined by the next three, maybe four, weeks. Saturday starts a stretch the Tops will play who, a month into the season, appear to be the biggest contenders for the C-USA crown: at UTSA, at Middle, vs. UAB (short week) and vs. North Texas, who is on top of the conference this morning, with a 2-0 C-USA record. By the time the Tops get to Middle/UAB, one will be guaranteed to have two losses and by the time the Tops face North Texas, things could have crashed down to Earth (they have a bye this week before facing Tech on 10/15 and UTSA on 10/22).

• I think I owe UTSA fans an apology, so here it goes: I made a cheap jab at Frank Harris after watching five minutes of the game. He had three late drives end in turnovers that helped MT mount a comeback that, thankfully, the ‘Runners were able to fend off. I honestly didn’t know that he had posted a career and program day. The comment still stands - if Frank plays like that short time, the Tops will have some major success - but I did not have the full picture, and I apologize. Hey, at least it gave our friends at Alamodome Audible the opportunity to have some fun back at WKU’s expense. This is a fun “rivalry” and I’m going to miss it.

• I think we should talk about Harris some more: If he’s going to beat the Tops, he’s going to do it with his legs. The Tops struggled to stop Troy’s rushing attack, which came in as one of the worst in the nation, and have struggled previously to stop running quarterbacks (Mike DiLiello, Connor Bazelak) and neither of them are even close to the dual threat Harris is.

• I think if the Tops can contain Harris, this game will be decided on the outside: UTSA boasts one of the best wide receiver corps in the country while also having the worst tackling team in the nation. If the Tops can continue to get the ball to their receivers (mainly Michael Mathison and reengage Malachi Corley, who was mostly absent on Saturday) and make things happen, WKU could have a shot.

• I think this game has a chance to mirror that 2014 game vs. ODU, in which it felt like someone was scoring literally every two or three plays. This game has all the trappings of “whoever makes the first stop will win.”

• I think, having said that, that WKU actually has a better defense overall entering this matchup. I’m interested in what our UTSA friends will say throughout the week, but the issue in the two games last year was a slow defensive start, in which the Tops dug a whole they couldn’t get out of. This year, just one or two first half stops could prove to be the difference between a win and a loss.