Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina first-year head football coach
Kerwin Bell today reflected on last week's loss in the home finale against nationally-ranked ETSU before turning his attention to this week's road challenge as the Catamounts wrap up the regular season on the road in Lexington, Va., facing the VMI Keydets.
Bell talked about wanting to finish the 2021 regular season "the right way," to send out the seniors with a victory, while also buliding momentum towards the off-season and continuing to build the culture for Catamount football.
VMI (6-4, 4-3 SoCon) has dropped back-to-back road games and this week slid from the NCAA FCS national rankings, though the Keydets remain among those receiving votes in both the coaches' and media polls. Unofficially, VMI ranks 31st nationally in the coaches poll and is 29th in the media tabulation.
Last year, VMI earned its first-ever win over the Catamounts in Cullowhee, snapping WCU's 17-game series win streak with a
30-7 victory as a part of posting a 6-2 record. The Keydets won the SoCon regular-season title for the first time since 1977 and advanced to the NCAA FCS playoffs, falling at James Madison in the first round. VMI has secured back-to-back winning seasons for the first time since posting six-consecutive winning campaigns from 1957 to 1962 under head coach John McKenna and have six-or-more wins in consecutive seasons for the first time since back-to-back, 6-6 records in 2002 and 2003.
Two of the top three passing teams in the SoCon will match-up on Saturday in Lexington featuring two of the best quarterbacks and five of the top receiving threats. WCU leads the SoCon – and ranks ninth nationally – with an average of 312.3 passing yards per game, just ahead of third place VMI at 262.6 yards per game. WCU is second in the league in total offense at 456.5 yards per game while the Keydets are fourth averaging 417.9 yards per game.
With this year's Southern Conference champion to be decided in Johnson City, Tenn., when #10/8 ETSU hosts #23/21 Mercer at Greene Stadium at 1 p.m. on Saturday, VMI is likely on the outside looking in for a return to the NCAA FCS playoffs, needing a victory on Saturday to keep those hopes alive. The Keydets are among four conference teams vying for a berth that includes the Bucs, Bears, and the Chattanooga Mocs (6-4, 5-2 SoCon), who host The Citadel to conclude the regular season.
According to the latest Sagarin ratings and playoff field predictions, the Tennessee schools in UTC and ETSU are both projected to make the 24-team field with both Mercer and VMI among the first four out.
For the Catamounts, second-year freshman
Calvin Jones collected SoCon Special Teams Player of the Week honors and was an honorable mention for the Stats Perform FCS national honor for special teams on Monday. The Forest City, N.C., product posted a career-best 305 all-purpose yards including a career-high 213 yards on kickoff returns with a 95-yard kickoff return for a touchdown against ETSU.
Keep track of everything related to Catamount football and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/CatamountSports) and Twitter (@Catamounts, @CatamountsFB).
