Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina plays its second of two-consecutive road Southern Conference games as the Catamounts head to William B. Greene Stadium on Saturday to face mountain-rival East Tennessee State in the gridiron grudge match, the "Blue Ridge Border Battle." Kickoff from ETSU's William B. Greene Stadium is scheduled for 1 p.m.
 
Saturday's game will be broadcast on the Nexstar affiliates with three stations – WYCW (Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville), WMYT (Charlotte), and WWCW (Roanoke, Va.) – to carry the broadcast which can also be seen on ESPN+ (paid subscription required). WSPA's sports director Pete Yanity and former Wofford All-American lineman Jared Singleton have the call.
 
The game can also be heard on the Catamount Sports Network with a Noon air time ahead of the kickoff just after 1 p.m. with the "Voice of the Catamounts" Gary Ayers (pxp), Daniel Hooker (analyst), Greg McLamb (sideline), and Jeff Bryson (producer) on the call.  Fans across western North Carolina can hear the game locally on eight CSN affiliates: 105.7 FM and 540 AM WRGC "The River" in Sylva; 104.9 FM and 1050 AM WFSC in Franklin; WISE Sports Radio 1310 AM and 102.9 FM in Asheville; and 970 AM WYSE in Canton, with live streaming audio online at CatamountSports.com.
 
Fans can also follow Saturday's game through live stats from ETSU, available with links online at CatamountSports.com and ETSUBucs.com.
 
Playing its final road game of the 2021 spring season, WCU looks to put the clamps on a seven-game winless drought away from Cullowhee that dates to the final road game of the 2019 season at nationally-ranked Alabama. Among the seven-game slide are three games against ranked FBS opponents – Alabama, Liberty, and North Carolina – and three against the league foes this spring.
 
After opting out of competition in the fall portion of the 2020-21 schedule, the Buccaneers have played three games this spring with a 2-1 overall record – 1-1 in games played in Johnson City, Tenn. ETSU's second game of the season against Wofford was also postponed due to COVID protocols within the Terriers' program back in early March.
 
The Buccaneers rank eighth in the SoCon in total offense, averaging 281.7 yards per game including 193.3 yards per game through the air – third in the SoCon – with just 88.3 rushing yards per game, ninth in the league. Defensively, ETSU boasts the second-best overall defense, limiting opponents to 282.7 yards per game over their three spring games – third against the pass (193.3 yds/gm) and fifth against the run (133.3 yds/gm).
 
WESTERN CAROLINA AT ETSU – SERIES HISTORY:

• Western Carolina and ETSU meet for the 50th time on the football gridiron with the Catamounts holding a slim 25-23-1 edge in the all-time series that was dormant from 2003 until 2016 after ETSU dropped its football program ... From 1990-97, both teams enjoyed four-game win streaks – first by WCU followed by four consecutive series wins by the Bucs ... WCU has won six of the last 10 in the head-to-head series;
• With the traveling trophy on the line the past two seasons, BOTH games have gone to OVERTIME – a thrilling triple-OT 45-43 game won by 25th-ranked ETSU in Johnson City in the most recent meeting in eastern Tennessee and last year's 23-20 overtime win for the Catamounts in Cullowhee;
• The WCU–ETSU series was rekindled in the biggest of ways back in 2016 with a meeting held at the "Last Great Colosseum," the World's Fastest Half-Mile, Bristol Motor Speedway ... the game marked ETSU's official return to the Southern Conference, its first league game since 2003.

 
RUNNING BACK SUCCESS IN RECENT WCU-ETSU MATCH-UPS:

• Two of the top four running backs in the Southern Conference will be on display Saturday afternoon in WCU's Donnavan Spencer and ETSU's Quay Holmes … Spencer ranks second in the league with 84.8 yards per game while Holmes is averaging 73.0 yards per game rushing;
• In SoCon-only statistics, Spencer LEADS the SoCon with a 98.2 yard per game average and has a league-best six rushing touchdowns;
• WCU RB DONNAVAN SPENCER has a pair of 100-yard rushing performances in his three previous meetings with ETSU ... Spencer ran for 139 yards and a career-best FOUR touchdowns back in 2017 and amassed 124 rushing yards and a score in 2019 in Cullowhee ... Combined, Spencer has 339 rushing yards (avg. 113 yds/gm) and six TDs on the ground against ETSU, adding 67 receiving yards out of the backfield;
• In the last two meetings with Western Carolina, ETSU had a running back eclipse the 100-yard mark and score a pair of rushing touchdowns ... RB Jacob Saylors ran for 123 yards on just 12 carries and two scores in the triple-overtime win in Johnson City, Tenn., in 2018 ... Last year in Cullowhee, RB Quay Holmes rushed 36 times for 166 yards and two scores ... Holmes has three career rushing TDs against WCU, running for a combined 245 yards in the previous two meetings with the Catamounts.

 
SATURDAY'S BROADCAST INFORMATION:
Game 9: Saturday, March 27, 2021 – 1 p.m.
Location: Johnson City, Tenn. (Greene Stadium – 7,694)
Records: Western Carolina (1-7, 1-3 SoCon) at ETSU (2-1, 2-1 SoCon)
Television: Nexstar / ESPN+ (PxP: Pete Yanity; Analyst: Jared Singleton)
Affiliates: WYCW (Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville), WWCW (Roanoke, Va.), WMYT (Charlotte)
Video: ESPN+ (paid subscription required)
Radio: Catamount Sports Network (PxP: Gary Ayers; Analyst: Daniel Hooker; Sideline: Greg McLamb; Producer: Jeff Bryson) – Noon air time
 
Game Day Information at ETSU's Greene Stadium:

• ETSU Athletics requires that its patrons adhere to CDC guidelines and COVID-19 recommendations ... Face coverings are required to be worn at all sporting events unless actively eating or drinking and patrons are asked to practice physical distancing;
• ETSU is selling hillside tickets for Saturday's game for $10 – all other tickets are sold out … Tickets for the hill can be purchased by visiting ETSUTickets.com, or contacting the ETSU Ticket Office by calling (423) 439-3878;
• ETSU has a clear bag policy for all home football games inside William B. Greene, Jr. Stadium. In addition, security procedures including metal detectors and security wands will be employed at entry gates ... Also, NO UMBRELLAS are allowed inside the stadium.

 
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