Cullowhee, N.C. – The top two scoring teams in the Southern Conference – and all the NCAA FCS – square off on Saturday afternoon as Western Carolina hits the road in league play, visiting the 12th-ranked Mercer Bears at Five Star Stadium in Macon, Ga. Kickoff is scheduled for 4 p.m.
 
Western Carolina (3-2, 1-1 SoCon) enters the weekend SoCon showdown averaging a league-best 39.2 points per game – the ninth-best average in NCAA FCS football – while Mercer (4-1, 2-0 SoCon) is just behind in second in the SoCon – 13th nationally – with an average of 36.6 points over the first five games this season.
 
Saturday's game will be broadcast live on ESPN+ (subscription required). The game can also be heard through the Catamount Sports Network with the Pepsi Tailgate Show airtime at 3:00 p.m. Fans across western North Carolina can hear the broadcast locally on seven CSN affiliates: in Sylva, 105.7 FM and 540 AM WRGC "The River"; 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 the game with live stats accessible online at CatamountSports.com with timely in-game updates on Twitter using @Catamounts and @CatamountsFB.
 
Western Carolina saw its four-game FCS road game win streak snapped the last time it hit the road in SoCon play, falling at No. 21 Samford, 35-12, back on Sept. 24. The Catamounts returned to the win column with a solid home victory over VMI last Saturday in Cullowhee, upending the Keydets 38-17 behind four passing touchdowns by Carlos Davis and 521 yards of total offense.
 
Mercer is riding high after its third-straight seasonal victory last Saturday, downing Wofford in Spartanburg, 42-7. The Bears tallied a balanced 554 yards of total offense – 330 passing and 224 on the ground – while limiting the struggling Terriers to just 221 yards and a late third-quarter score. Mercer returns home for the first time since mid-September when the Bears blanked The Citadel, 17-0, in its conference opener.
 
Saturday's game pits strength-on-strength for the two squads. WCU enters the game as the SoCon's top offense-producing unit at 549.8 yards per game, squaring off against the league's stingiest defense at Mercer, limiting foes to just 294.4 yards per game. The Catamounts lead the SoCon in both rushing (198.6 yds/gm) and passing (351.2 yds/gm), while the Bears are holding teams to just 173 yards through the air to lead the SoCon and are third in rushing defense at 121.4 yards per game. Mercer is limiting teams to just 15.2 points per game, tops in the SoCon.
 
Two of the top quarterbacks – WCU's Davis and Mercer's Fred Payton – as well as three of the top wide receivers in the Southern Conference – Catamount redshirt sophomore Raphael Williams and both Ty James and Devron Harper from Mercer – will all share the same field on Saturday. Davis leads the SoCon with an average of 325.8 passing yards per game and is tops in total offense at 340.0 yards per game, ranking fifth in the NCAA in both categories. Payton is third overall in the SoCon in passing (237.2 yds/gm, 25th in FCS) and tied for second in total offense at 241.6 yds/gm (35th in FCS) – but ranks as the most efficient passer in the league (180.42) and is one of just four NCAA FCS quarterbacks without an interception.
 
On the receiving front, Williams paces a deep receivers room, ranking fifth in receptions per game (5.0) and sixth in receiving yards per game (68.6 yds/gm). Mercer's top two threats are Ty James, who leads the SoCon with an average of 81.4 yards per game, and Devron Harper, third at 70.8 yds/gm and 4th with 5.2 rec/gm. Harper has scored 10 touchdowns this season – seven receiving, two rushing, and one on a kickoff return.
 
Defensively, the Catamounts enter the week well ahead of its pacing statistically from a year ago in averaging over 100 fewer rushing yards, over 50 less passing yards, and surrendering nearly 20 fewer points. WCU leads NCAA FCS and the SoCon with 24 total sacks through five games – three more than the squad had collectively as a unit in 2021.
 
Since winning the first two games of the head-to-head series in 2014 and 2015, the Catamounts have lost six straight in the series with Mercer. WCU is just 1-3 in games played in Macon, Ga., with the lone victory coming back in 2014 when Spearman Robinson hauled in three receiving scores from QB Troy Mitchell and WR Terryon Robinson tossed a scoring strike to counterpart Karnorris Benson in the 35-21 win in the series opener.
 
NOTE: WCU is one of 115 NCAA football teams wearing a special lime green ribbon decal on its helmet over the past two weekends as a part of the "Hilinski's Hope" initiative in support of the third-annual College Football Mental Health Week (Oct. 1-8) ... Hilinski's Hope Foundation (H3H) was founded by Mark and Kym Hilinski to honor the legacy of their son and former Washington State QB Tyler Hilinski ... WCU's helmets are also adorned with pink ribbon decals for breast cancer awareness month aimed at raising awareness about the impact of breast cancer.
 

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Game 6: Saturday, Oct. 8, 2022  •  4:00 pm
Location: Macon, Ga. (Five Star Stadium – 13,790)
Records: Western Carolina (3-2, 1-1 SoCon) at #12 Mercer (4-1, 2-0 SoCon)
 
LINK: Western Carolina Football - Media Center

BROADCAST INFORMATION:
TV / Video Stream:  ESPN+ (subscription required)
PBP: Frank Malloy; Color: Phil Cox
 
Radio: Catamount Sports Network
PBP: Gary Ayers; Color: Daniel Hooker; Producer: Jeff Bryson
 
CSN Affiliates:
Sylva – 105.7 FM / 540 AM WRGC
Franklin – 104.9 FM / 1050 AM WFSC
Asheville – WISE Sports Radio 102.9 FM / 1310 AM
Canton – WYSE Sports Radio 970 AM
Online: CatamountSports.com
 
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).