2022 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team explained

Year:2022
Team:Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
Sport:football
Conference:Conference USA
Short Conf:C-USA
Record:9–5
Conf Record:6–2
Head Coach:Tyson Helton
Hc Year:4th
Cooff Coach1:Ben Arbuckle
Cooc1 Year:1st
Cooff Coach2:Josh Crawford
Cooc2 Year:1st
Off Scheme:Air raid
Def Coach:Tyson Summers
Dc Year:1st
Def Scheme:3–3–5
Stadium:Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
Champion:New Orleans Bowl champion
Bowl:New Orleans Bowl
Bowl Result:W 44–23 vs. South Alabama

The 2022 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University as a member of Conference USA (C-USA) during the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by head coach Tyson Helton, who was coaching his fourth season with the team. The Hilltoppers played their home games at Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

The team was led on offense by quarterback Austin Reed who joined the team in 2022 via the NCAA transfer portal.[1] Through the first two games, Reed had 550 passing yards, ranking third in the nation.[2]

Preseason

C-USA media day

The Conference USA media day was held on July 27 at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. The Hilltoppers were represented by head coach Tyson Helton, tight end Joey Beljan, and defensive end Juwuan Jones.[3] The Hilltoppers were predicted to finish third in the conference's preseason poll.[4]

Media poll
1 UTSA
2 UAB
3 WKU
4 Florida Atlantic
5 North Texas
6 UTEP
7 Charlotte
8 Middle Tennessee
9 Louisiana Tech
10 Rice
11 FIU

Schedule

Western Kentucky and Conference USA announced the 2022 football schedule on March 30, 2022.[5] [6]

Game summaries

Austin Peay

See also: 2022 Austin Peay Governors football team.

Statistics APSUWKU
First downs 19 19
Total yards 319 388
Rushing yards 163 108
Passing yards 156 280
Turnovers 4 1
Time of possession 32:39 27:31
Team Category Player Statistics
Austin Peay Passing Mike DiLiello 15/21, 156 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing Josh Samuel 20 rushes, 77 yards
Receiving Drae McCray 6 receptions, 90 yards, 2 TD
Western Kentucky Passing 20/34, 280 yards, 4 TD, INT
Rushing Davion Ervin-Poindexter 15 rushes, 49 yards
Receiving 6 receptions, 124 yards, TD

At Hawaii

See also: 2022 Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football team.

Statistics WKUHAW
First downs 24 20
Total yards 412 360
Rushing yards 141 94
Passing yards 271 266
Turnovers 2 6
Time of possession 25:52 34:08
Team Category Player Statistics
Western Kentucky Passing Austin Reed 22/31, 271 yards, 3 TD, INT
Rushing Kye Robichaux 7 rushes, 49 yards, TD
Receiving Daewood Davis 5 receptions, 78 yards
Hawaii Passing 22/33, 230 yards, 4 INT
Rushing Nasjzae Bryant-Lelei 13 rushes, 64 yards, TD
Receiving Jalen Walthall 3 receptions, 53 yards

At Indiana

See also: 2022 Indiana Hoosiers football team.

Statistics WKUIU
First downs 25 28
Total yards 545 484
Rushing yards 216 120
Passing yards 329 364
Turnovers 2 1
Time of possession 32:21 27:39
Team Category Player Statistics
Western Kentucky Passing Austin Reed 33/43, 329 yards, 2 TD, INT
Rushing Kye Robichaux 14 rushes, 135 yards
Receiving Daewood Davis 5 receptions, 77 yards, TD
Indiana Passing 33/55, 364 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Josh Henderson 11 rushes, 65 yards, TD
Receiving 8 receptions, 93 yards, TD

FIU

See also: 2022 FIU Panthers football team.

Statistics FIUWKU
First downs 10 32
Total yards 180 688
Rushing yards 56 210
Passing yards 124 478
Turnovers 2 1
Time of possession 30:32 29:28
Team Category Player Statistics
FIU Passing Grayson James 13/23, 85 yards
Rushing Lexington Joseph 15 rushes, 31 yards
Receiving Nate Jefferson 4 receptions, 27 yards
Western Kentucky Passing Austin Reed 29/35, 381 yards, 5 TD
Rushing L. T. Sanders 4 rushes, 73 yards, TD
Receiving 3 receptions, 125 yards, 2 TD

Troy

See also: 2022 Troy Trojans football team.

At UTSA

See also: 2022 UTSA Roadrunners football team.

At Middle Tennessee

See also: 2022 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team.

UAB

See also: 2022 UAB Blazers football team.

Statistics UABWKU
First downs 14 19
Total yards 327 352
Rushing yards 231 224
Passing yards 96 128
Turnovers 4 1
Time of possession 27:21 32:39
Team Category Player Statistics
UAB Passing 2/2, 63 yards, TD
Rushing 24 rushes, 200 yards
Receiving Samario Rudolph 1 reception, 59 yards, TD
Western Kentucky Passing Austin Reed 14/23, 128 yards
Rushing L. T. Sanders 16 rushes, 120 yards
Receiving Malachi Corley 5 receptions, 77 yards

North Texas

See also: 2022 North Texas Mean Green football team.

Statistics UNTWKU
First downs 25 23
Total yards 541 466
Rushing yards 196 146
Passing yards 345 320
Turnovers 0 2
Time of possession 29:05 30:55
Team Category Player Statistics
North Texas Passing 20/28, 322 yards, 3 TD
Rushing Ayo Adeyi 10 rushes, 72 yards, TD
Receiving Damon Ward Jr. 4 receptions, 101 yards, TD
Western Kentucky Passing Austin Reed 29/49, 320 yards, TD, INT
Rushing L. T. Sanders 13 rushes, 76 yards
Receiving 8 receptions, 97 yards

At Charlotte

See also: 2022 Charlotte 49ers football team.

Statistics WKUCHAR
First downs 25 22
Total yards 592 384
Rushing yards 131 161
Passing yards 461 223
Turnovers 0 3
Time of possession 20:26 39:34
Team Category Player Statistics
Western Kentucky Passing Austin Reed 23–38, 409 yards, 6 TD
Rushing Davion Ervin-Poindexter 3 rushes, 49 yards
Receiving Malachi Corley 6 receptions, 162 yards, 1 TD
Charlotte Passing 17–27, 196 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing James Martin III 16 rushes, 85 yards
Receiving 7 receptions, 88 yards

Rice

See also: 2022 Rice Owls football team.

At Auburn

See also: 2022 Auburn Tigers football team.

At Florida Atlantic

See also: 2022 Florida Atlantic Owls football team.

South Alabama (New Orleans Bowl)

See also: 2022 South Alabama Jaguars football team and 2022 New Orleans Bowl.

Notes and References

  1. News: Reed throws four TD passes, Western Kentucky rolls in opener. My San Antonio. August 27, 2022.
  2. Web site: Football Player Passing Stats 2022. ESPN.com. September 4, 2022.
  3. Web site: . 2022 Ryan C-USA Kickoff Set for July 27 in Arlington . June 30, 2022 . July 18, 2022.
  4. Web site: Conference USA . C-USA Announces Media's Predicted Order of Finish for 2022 . July 25, 2022 . July 30, 2022.
  5. Web site: Nick Bromberg. Conference USA releases revised 2022 football schedule without teams leaving for Sun Belt. Yahoo! Sports. March 30, 2022. May 11, 2022.
  6. News: Hilltoppers announce revised 2022 football schedule. Bowling Green Daily News. March 30, 2022. May 11, 2022.
  7. Web site: GAME NOTES: Charlotte vs. WKU. Charlotte49ers.com. November 1, 2022. November 23, 2022.
  8. Web site: Watts Breaks Sacks Record; Niners Suffer Home Loss. November 23, 2022.
  9. Web site: Scoring Summary Report 2022 Charlotte Football, Western Kentucky vs Charlotte (Nov 5, 2022 at Charlotte NC). November 5, 2022. November 23, 2022.
  10. Web site: Western Kentucky vs Charlotte– Game Summary. ESPN. November 5, 2022. November 23, 2022.
  11. News: Charlotte 49ers football loses to Western Kentucky at home. Hunter. Bailey. The Charlotte Observer. November 5, 2022. November 23, 2022.