2022 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football
New Orleans Bowl champion
ConferenceConference USA
Record9–5 (6–2 C-USA)
Head coach
Co-offensive coordinatorBen Arbuckle (1st season)
Co-offensive coordinatorJosh Crawford (1st season)
Offensive schemeAir raid
Defensive coordinatorTyson Summers (1st season)
Base defense3–3–5
Home stadiumHouchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
Seasons
← 2021
2023 →
2022 Conference USA football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
UTSA y$   8 – 0     11 – 3  
North Texas y   6 – 2     7 – 7  
Western Kentucky   6 – 2     9 – 5  
Middle Tennessee   4 – 4     8 – 5  
UAB   4 – 4     7 – 6  
Florida Atlantic   4 – 4     5 – 7  
Rice   3 – 5     5 – 8  
UTEP   3 – 5     5 – 7  
FIU   2 – 6     4 – 8  
Charlotte   2 – 6     3 – 9  
Louisiana Tech   2 – 6     3 – 9  
Championship: UTSA 48, North Texas 27
  • $ – Conference champion
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

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
Predicted finish Team
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

Roster

2022 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team roster
Players Coaches
Offense
Pos. # Name Class
WR 0 Jaylen Hall GS
WR 1 Craig Burt Jr. Sr
RB 3 Jakairi Moses  Jr
WR 4 Michael Mathison Jr
WR 5 Dakota Thomas So
TE 6 Joshua Simon  So
WR 7 Daewood Davis  Sr
RB 8 Kye Robichaux So
WR 9 Josh Sterns So
QB 10 Caden Veltkamp Fr
WR 11 Malachi Corley So
QB 12 Turner Helton Fr
QB 13 Darius Ocean  Fr
WR 15 K. D. Hutchinson Fr
QB 16 Austin Reed GS
WR 17 Dalvin Smith  So
WR 18 Denzil Aleeyne So
RB 19 Javy Bunton  Fr
RB 21 L. T. Sanders Fr
RB 22 Davion Ervin-Poindexter  Jr
WR 23 Kendall Abdur-Rahman  So
RB 37 Zavione Wood  Fr
OL 50 Wesley Horton  Fr
OL 51 Luke Slusher Fr
OL 52 Marshall Jackson  Fr
OL 53 Rusty Staata  Jr
OL 58 Evan Wibberley Fr
OL 64 Vincent Murphy  So
OL 67 Hayden Todd Fr
OL 68 Colt Jackson So
OL 71 Wyatt Anderson Fr
OL 72 Colten Cable Jr
OL 73 Wes Dorsey  So
OL 74 Michael Ondelacy  So
OL 75 Gunner Britton  Jr
OL 76 Mark Goode So
OL 77 David Ndukwe So
OL 78 Quantavious Lesue So
OL 79 Cameron Stage  Jr
WR 80 Easton Messer Fr
TE 81 Dane Saltarelli  Jr
WR 82 Jax Cooper Fr
TE 83 Alex Williams  Fr
WR 85 Tomi Mustapha  Fr
WR 86 TeeJay Taylor  So
TE 87 River Helms  Fr
TE 89 Joey Beljam  Jr
Defense
Pos. # Name Class
DT 0 Lorenzo Hernandez GS
LB 1 Jaden Hunter  Sr
DB 2 A. J. Brathwaite Jr.  Jr
LB 3 Jaques Evans So
LB 4 Niko Cooper  Jr
DB 5 Rome Weber  Jr
DB 6 T. J. Springer  So
DB 7 Tre Shaw  Sr
LB 8 Matthew Flint  Jr
DB 9 Dominique Bradshaw  Sr
LB 10 Desmyn Baker Jr
DB 11 Talique Allen  Fr
DB 12 Kahlef Hailassie  Jr
DT 13 Terrion Thompson So
DB 14 Davion Williams  Jr
LB 15 Aaron Key  Fr
DB 16 Kendrick Simpkins So
DB 17 Travis Collier  Fr
DB 18 C. J. Jones  Sr
DB 19 Virgil Marshall Fr
DB 20 Kaleb Oliver  Sr
DB 21 Upton Stout  Fr
DB 22 Darius Thomas Fr
LB 23 Will Ignont  Sr
LB 24 Derrick Smith  Sr
LB 25 Bryson Washington  Jr
DB 26 Amaari Smith Fr
DB 27 Kiwon Harris  Jr
LB 28 Ely George So
LB 29 Dezmion Roberson  Fr
DB 30 Xavier Shaw  Fr
DB 31 Anthony Brackenridge Fr
LB 32 Kylan Guidry So
LB 33 Eli Jones Fr
DE 34 Juwuan Jones  Sr
DT 35 Mike Allen  Sr
DB 37 Maximus Pulley  Fr
LB 38 A. J. Yasilli Fr
DB 40 B. J. Wagner  Fr
DB 41 Alex Ford Fr
LB 42 Trent Zappe Fr
DB 43 Manny Moss Fr
DT 44 Dareon Goodrum Jr
LB 45 Nathan Griffin So
LB 50 Luke Burton Fr
DE 55 Dante Walker  So
DE 88 Jake Jackson Fr
DT 90 Keaton Law Fr
DT 91 Chase Jones  Fr
DE 92 Marcus Patterson Fr
DE 93 Reid Jamerson Fr
DE 95 Deante McCray Fr
DT 97 Darius Shipp Sr
DT 98 Hosea Wheeler So
DT 99 Brodric Martin  Sr
Special teams They
Pos. # Name Class
K 20 Lucas Carneiro Fr
LS 40 Zach Lassiter  Sr
K 44 Bryden Narveson  Jr
K 46 Cory Munson Jr
P 47 Tom Ellard Fr
K 49 Nolan McCord  Fr
LS 52 Trey Naughton Fr
LS 59 Jake Bowman So
P 94 Wes Pahl  Fr
Head coach
Coordinators/assistant coaches
  • Ben Arbuckle (Co-Offensive coordinator / quarterbacks)
  • Josh Crawford (co-offensive coordinator / Wide receivers)
  • Zach Lankford (co-offensive coordinator / Offensive line)
  • Tyson Summers (Defensive coordinator)
  • Andy Larussa (special teams coordinator / tight ends)
  • Kenny Baker (defensive line)
  • Enrique Davis (running backs)
  • Keynodo Hudson (defensive backs)
  • Michael Hutchings (outside linebackers)
  • Travis Cunningham (Middle linebackers)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • Injured Injured
  • Redshirt Redshirt

Roster
Last update: August 23, 2022

Schedule

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

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
August 2711:00 a.m.Austin Peay*
CBSSNW 38–2713,688
September 311:00 p.m.at Hawaii*
SPEC PPVW 49–179,346
September 1711:00 a.m.at Indiana*
BTNL 30–33 OT48,952
September 242:30 p.m.FIU
  • Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
CBSSNW 73–015,127
October 16:00 p.m.Troy*
  • Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
ESPN+L 27–3420,168
October 85:00 p.m.at UTSA
ESPN+L 28–3122,328
October 152:30 p.m.at Middle Tennessee
ESPN+W 35–1714,806
October 217:00 p.m.UAB
  • Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
CBSSNW 20–1716,334
October 292:30 p.m.North Texas
  • Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
StadiumL 13–4017,194
November 511:00 a.m.at Charlotte
CBSSNW 59–710,857
November 121:00 p.m.Rice
  • Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
ESPN+W 45–1010,127
November 193:00 p.m.at Auburn*
SECNL 17–4181,824
November 2611:00 a.m.at Florida Atlantic
CBSSNW 32–31 OT18,376
December 218:00 p.m.vs. South Alabama*
ESPNW 44–2313,456

Game summaries

Austin Peay

See also: 2022 Austin Peay Governors football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Governors 10 7 3 7 27
Hilltoppers 7 14 0 17 38
Statistics APSU WKU
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 Austin Reed 20/34, 280 yards, 4 TD, INT
Rushing Davion Ervin-Poindexter 15 rushes, 49 yards
Receiving Daewood Davis 6 receptions, 124 yards, TD

At Hawaii

See also: 2022 Hawaii Rainbow Warriors football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Hilltoppers 0 21 7 21 49
Rainbow Warriors 3 7 0 7 17
Statistics WKU HAW
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 Brayden Schager 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
1 2 3 4OT Total
Hilltoppers 7 10 7 60 30
Hoosiers 3 7 3 173 33
Statistics WKU IU
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 Connor Bazelak 33/55, 364 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Josh Henderson 11 rushes, 65 yards, TD
Receiving Cam Camper 8 receptions, 93 yards, TD

FIU

See also: 2022 FIU Panthers football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Panthers 0 0 0 0 0
Hilltoppers 14 28 17 14 73
Statistics FIU WKU
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 Malachi Corley 3 receptions, 125 yards, 2 TD

Troy

1 2 3 4 Total
Trojans 10 3 7 14 34
Hilltoppers 7 10 3 7 27

See also: 2022 Troy Trojans football team

At UTSA

1 2 3 4 Total
Hilltoppers 7 7 0 14 28
Roadrunners 7 10 7 7 31

See also: 2022 UTSA Roadrunners football team

At Middle Tennessee

1 2 3 4 Total
Hilltoppers 0 14 14 7 35
Blue Raiders 7 3 0 7 17

See also: 2022 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team

UAB

1 2 3 4 Total
Blazers 7 10 0 0 17
Hilltoppers 0 10 10 0 20

See also: 2022 UAB Blazers football team

North Texas

See also: 2022 North Texas Mean Green football team
1 2 3 4 Total
Mean Green 17 3 0 20 40
Hilltoppers 7 6 0 0 13
Statistics UNT WKU
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 Austin Aune 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 Malachi Corley 8 receptions, 97 yards

At Charlotte

1 2 3 4 Total
Hilltoppers 21 14 7 17 59
49ers 0 0 7 0 7

See also: 2022 Charlotte 49ers football team

Rice

1 2 3 4 Total
Hilltoppers 7 17 7 14 45
Owls 0 7 3 0 10

See also: 2022 Rice Owls football team

At Auburn

See also: 2022 Auburn Tigers football team
Game Twelve – Western Kentucky Hilltoppers (7−4) at Auburn Tigers (4−6)
Period 1 2 34Total
Hilltoppers 0 17 0017
Tigers 10 7 101441

at Jordan–Hare Stadium • Auburn, Alabama

  • Date: Saturday, November 19, 2022
  • Game time: 3:01 p.m. CST
  • Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 55 °F (13 °C) • Wind: 6 mph NW
  • Game attendance: 81,824
  • Referee: Scott Walker
  • TV announcers (SEC Network): Dave Neal (play-by-play), Deuce McAllister (analyst), Andraya Carter (sideline reporter)
Statistics WKU AUB
First downs
Plays–yards
Rushes–yards
Passing yards
Passing: comp–att–int
Time of possession
Team Category Player Statistics
Western
Kentucky 		Passing Austin Reed 26/55, 289 yards, 2 TD, 2 INT
Rushing Markese Stepp 7 carries, 33 yards
Receiving Malachi Corley 12 receptions, 99 yards
Auburn Passing Jarquez Hunter 1/1, 20 yards, 1 TD
Rushing Tank Bigsby 18 carries, 110 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Koy Moore 2 receptions, 31 yards, 1 TD
Scoring summary
Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score
Plays Yards TOP Western Kentucky Auburn
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.

At Florida Atlantic

1 2 3 4OT Total
Owls 0 7 10 77 31
Hilltoppers 0 7 10 78 32

See also: 2022 Florida Atlantic Owls football team

South Alabama (New Orleans Bowl)

1 2 3 4 Total
Hilltoppers 14 17 10 3 44
Jaguars 0 3 14 6 23

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

References

  1. ^ "Reed throws four TD passes, Western Kentucky rolls in opener". My San Antonio. August 27, 2022.
  2. ^ "Football Player Passing Stats 2022". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
  3. ^ "2022 Ryan C-USA Kickoff Set for July 27 in Arlington". Conference USA. June 30, 2022. Retrieved July 18, 2022.
  4. ^ "C-USA Announces Media's Predicted Order of Finish for 2022". Conference USA. July 25, 2022. Retrieved July 30, 2022.
  5. ^ Nick Bromberg (March 30, 2022). "Conference USA releases revised 2022 football schedule without teams leaving for Sun Belt". Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  6. ^ "Hilltoppers announce revised 2022 football schedule". Bowling Green Daily News. March 30, 2022. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
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