The Sports Network Preview
North Texas (1-6) at Western Kentucky (1-6)
DATE & TIME: Saturday, October 30th, 3:00 p.m. (et)
FACTS & STATS: Site: L.T. Smith Stadium (22,113) -- Bowling Green, Kentucky. Television: None. Home Record: UNT 0-4, WKU 0-2. Away Record: UNT 1-2, WKU 1-4. Neutral Record: UNT 0-0, WKU 0-0. Conference Record: UNT 1-3, WKU 1-2. Series Record: North Texas leads, 3-0.
GAME NOTES: The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers return home after snapping the nation's longest losing streak last week, as they play host to the Mean Green of North Texas in a Sun Belt Conference showdown at L.T. Smith Stadium.
North Texas comes in looking to put an end to its second three-game skid of the season, as the Mean Green fell in a 34-10 decision at home to FIU on October 16th.
Western Kentucky avoided its 27th consecutive loss last week as the Hilltoppers finally ended the nation's longest run of futility with a 54-21 triumph over league foe Louisiana.
The Mean Green has handled Western Kentucky in all three previous meetings between the teams, the most recent being a 68-49 triumph on Halloween last year.
North Texas has been in turmoil all season due to the revolving door at quarterback, as three different signal-callers have fallen prey to the injury bug. Chase Blaine started his first game at the position in the recent loss to FIU. Blaine connected on 13 of his 28 pass attempts, good enough for 142 yards while being sacked four times. Running back Lance Dunbar remains the lone standout weapon on the Mean Green offense as he averages 97 yards per contest on 4.3 yards per carry, and he has scored three touchdowns this season.
The Mean Green have started slowly in most games this season, allowing 58 total points in the first quarter, more than any other quarter. North Texas has given up 108 points in the first half, while allowing its opponents to put up just 50 points after the break. In the recent defeat to FIU, everything followed suit as the Mean Green allowed 27 first-half points, including 17 in the opening quarter, while only giving up seven points the remainder of the way. Overall, opponents score 26.7 points while amassing 357.7 yards per clash.
In the 54-21 victory over Louisiana, Western Kentucky quarterback Kawaun Jakes completed 18-of-22 passes for a season-high 262 yards. Jakes also rushed for 28 yards, and scored on a pair of one-yard touchdown dashes. Junior running back Bobby Rainey still paces the way for all rushers in the Sun Belt Conference, leading the way as he averages 119.7 yards per game, ranking 11th in the nation. Rainey gains 4.8 yards per carry and has reached the end zone seven times this season while sitting just 162 yards away from his first 1,000-yard rushing campaign.
The WKU defense has allowed an average of 36.9 points and 400 yards of total offense per contest. The run defense is still the glaring issue as opponents churn out more than 183 yards on the ground each time out. Western Kentucky has given up an embarrassing 24 rushing touchdowns in seven games, two of which came in last week's win over Louisiana. However, the Hilltoppers improved tremendously in that victory, allowing the Ragin' Cajuns a mere 96 rushing yards on the day.
This matchup looks to be a rather high-scoring affair as both defenses have struggled all season. Look for the Hilltoppers to gain their second straight win and first ever victory over North Texas behind a big day from Rainey.
Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Western Kentucky 45, North Texas 34
10/27 10:38:26 ET