Coming off of a much-needed, mid-season bye week, Western Carolina head football coach Kerwin Bell today talked about his squad's preparations for the stretch run in the Southern Conference which opens this Saturday, Oct. 23 as the Catamounts head to Charleston, S.C., to face the triple-option attack of The Citadel.

Entering the bye week, Bell stated that he hoped to return several offensive linemen back to the lineup, while also looking at the quarterback position. Bell said Tuesday that he expects both Antwann Fann and Christian Coulter to return after Fann missed the Mercer game while Coulter started but was hobbled after the opening series and sidelined due to injury. To date, Bell's Catamounts have seen eight offensive linemen shelved due to a variety of injuries.

He also talked Tuesday about returning QB Rogan Wells to the Catamount backfield. The fifth-year transfer graduate student has been out of the lineup since exiting the road game at Chattanooga early with second-year transfer QB Carlos Davis earning his first career start last time out against Mercer on Homecoming. Davis, a product of Baltimore, Md., has accounted for 441 passing yards with three TDs over the past two games.

While Bell has used the bye week to heal his squad including bumps and bruises that have slowed several of his defensive players, he also said that it's afforded his staff an extra week to look at the triple option offensive attack of The Citadel. Though difficult to duplicate, he and his defensive staff have use the extra time to prepare for the Bulldogs (2-4, 1-2 SoCon), who have dropped back-to-back games since reclaiming the Silver Shako in a 35-24 home victory over archrival VMI in the "Military Classic of the South" back on Oct. 2.
 
Bell and Western Carolina continue to seek their first victory of the season this Saturday at Johnson Hagood Stadium with kickoff at 2 p.m. Saturday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ with live audio coverage provided by the Catamount Sports Network hitting the air at 1 p.m. with the Pepsi Tailgate Show.
 
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