Cullowhee, N.C. – Saturday's annual gridiron grudge match between mountain rivals Western Carolina and East Tennessee State has more than just bragging rights and a traveling trophy on the line here in 2024. The 54th series meeting between the Catamounts and Buccaneers holds Southern Conference title and NCAA FCS playoff implications when the toe hits leather midday Saturday at William B. Greene Jr. Stadium in Johnson City, Tenn.
 
No. 22 Western Carolina (5-4, 4-1 SoCon) seeks its third-straight series victory and to keep its hopes alive for the program's first-ever SoCon Championship when it faces ETSU (5-4, 3-2 SoCon) with a Noon kickoff. The Bucs are the second WCU opponent to sit just outside the national rankings at game time, joining four other Top 25 opponents on WCU's ledger.
 
Saturday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with live audio coverage through the Catamount Sports Network. Airtime of the Pepsi Tailgate Show is 11 a.m. ahead of the Noon kickoff from Johnson City, Tenn. Fans across Western North Carolina can listen to the game locally on SIX affiliate frequencies: in Sylva on 105.7 FM and 540 AM WRGC, "The River" (WRGC.com) and 104.9 FM and 1050 AM WFSC, "Franklin's First Voice" in Franklin (1050WFSC.com); in Asheville on 1310 AM WISE Sports Radio (wisesportsradio.com); and for the next two weeks (Nov. 9 and 16), in Marion, N.C. on Bigfoot Country 103.9 FM and 1250 AM (bigfoot1039.com).
 
All eyes will center upon the quarterback position on Saturday as Western Carolina is expected to send redshirt freshman QB Taron Dickens to the field for his second-straight start in place of preseason SoCon Offensive Player of the Year, Cole Gonzales. Last week, Dickens accounted for 480 yards of total offense including a career-high 431 passing yards with five touchdowns and 41 yards on the ground. For his efforts, Dickens after garnering SoCon Offensive Player of the Week and Stats Perform FCS National Freshman of the Week plaudits – the first weekly awards of his career that spans just six games.
 
On the other sideline, ETSU and veteran first-year head coach Tre Lamb has denoted that he expects both of his quarterbacks – Jaylen King (113-of-217, 1,515 yds, 9 TDs, 11 INTs) and Gino English (25-of-40, 465 yds, 4 TD, 2 INT) – to both split the reps at the controls of the Buccaneer offense. ETSU threw for a school-record 459 yards last week at league-leading Mercer.
 
Western Carolina looks to keep pace in a tight race for the 2024 Southern Conference Championship as two of the top four teams in the league clash. The Catamounts are second in the SoCon standings, percentage points behind Mercer Bears at 5-1 while WCU enters the weekend at 4-1.
 
Of note, No. 22 Western Carolina visiting ETSU (RV) is one of just THREE "Ranked vs. Ranked" or "Ranked vs. Receiving Votes" games this weekend: No. 3 South Dakota State (7-2) at No. 21 North Dakota (5-4) in the Missouri Valley and No. 4 UC Davis (8-1) at No. 7 Montana (7-2) represent the marquee matchups on Nov. 9.
 
Riding the current two-game series winning streak, the Catamounts have edged in front of UTC in the all-time series, 27-25-1.  The Catamounts have won the last two series meetings to retain possession of "The Rock," the traveling trophy in the mountain rivalry. WCU throttled ETSU 58-7 in Cullowhee last November and squeezed out a 20-17 victory in 2022 on a walk-off field goal in the last meeting in Johnson City.
 
Saturday's early kickoff is scheduled for Noon from the hills of eastern Tennessee.
 

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Game 10: Saturday, Nov. 9, 2024  •  Noon
Location: Johnson City, Tenn. (William B. Greene Stadium)  
Records:  (RV/22) Western Carolina (5-4, 4-1 SoCon) at (--/RV) ETSU (5-4, 3-2 SoCon)
  
BROADCAST INFORMATION: 
Video Stream: ESPN+ (subscription required) / Watch ESPN
PxP: Keith Brake
Analyst: Mark Hutsell
 
Live Stats Link 
  
Radio: Catamount Sports Network 
PxP: Gary Ayers
Analyst: Daniel Hooker
Producer / Host: Jeff Bryson
  
CSN Affiliates: 
Sylva – 105.7 FM / 540 AM WRGC – wrgc.com
Franklin – 104.9 FM / 1050 AM WFSC – 1050wfsc.com
Asheville – 1310 AM WISE Sports Radio – wisesportsradio.com
Marion – 103.9 FM / 1250 AM Bigfoot Country (bigfoot1039.com)
Online: CatamountSports.com 
 
Click HERE to Listen to CSN