Jaylin Terzado (9) caught a 58 yard touchdown pass from Taron Dickens in Saturday's home loss to ETSU.

Mark Haskett

Football 11/15/2025 11:45:00 PM Daniel Hooker, Associate Athletics Director for Media Relations

Postgame Notes - vs. ETSU (11/15/25)

Postgame Notes
ETSU 52, No. 25 Western Carolina 35
E.J. Whitmire Stadium / Bob Waters Field
Cullowhee, N.C. | Saturday, Nov. 15, 2025
Att: 10,543

With the Loss:

Western Carolina dropped back-to-back home games and fell to 2-4 in games played at Whitmire Stadium this season;
WCU was relegated to a second-straight defeat in the all-time series with ETSU, as the Buccaneers retained possession of "the Rock," the traveling trophy in the head-to-head series … ETSU evened the all-time series at 27-27-1 with Saturday's win;
Dating back to 2023, Western Carolina has now dropped its last 10 games as a nationally-ranked NCAA FCS team … WCU's last win AS A RANKED TEAM came against ETSU in the 2023 installment of the "Blue Ridge Border Battle" as the No. 17 Catamounts dismantled the Bucs, 58-7, at home on Nov. 11, 2023 … Two of WCU's 10-straight losses came to NCAA FBS opponents (at NC State; at Wake Forest) and three came against another FCS ranked opponent;

Post-Game Notes:

A total of 10,543 fans came back to #CatamountCountry for Saturday's home finale on Saturday … In six home games in 2025, WCU had 65,917 fans come through the gates at Whitmire Stadium this season, the 14th-most in the NCAA FCS through Nov. 15 – up three spots from last week and continuing to rank as the most in the Southern Conference;
Following Saturday's game, WCU finished its six home games with an average of 10,986 fans, ranked 19th nationally in average attendance – and FIRST in the SoCon, just ahead of The Citadel with an average of 10,652;
Western Carolina's offense amassed 529 yards of total offense against ETSU on Saturday … the Catamounts finished with 426 passing yards and 103 combined rushing yards … It was the fourth 400+ yard passing performance by the Catamount offense this season, the fourth-most in a game in 2025;
WCU ranks THIRD nationally with an average of 491.0 yards of total offense per game, trailing Mercer (521.2 yds/gm – which faces its FBS opponent this week at Auburn) and Monmouth (512.8 yds/gm) … the Catamounts are 11th nationally in scoring offense with 415 points, averaging 37.7 points per game – second in the Southern Conference;
WCU LEADS the NCAA FCS in passing with 3,922 total yards, averaging 356.5 yards per game through the air, just ahead of Mercer (3,452 yards – 345.2 yds/gm) … WCU has passed for over 3,000 yards in five-straight seasons, each under head coach Kerwin Bell … Catamount football has eclipsed the 3K passing mark now SIX times in program history … WCU is just 107 yards shy of the school record for passing yards in a season – 4,029 yards
WCU's single-season record 41 passing touchdowns LEAD the NCAA, two more than second-place Monmouth (39) … the Catamounts' previous benchmark was 33 TDs in 2023;
Western Carolina had two takeaways on Saturday without a turnover … WCU is tied for 16th nationally with 18 turnovers gained – 7 fumbles recovered and 11 interceptions … the Catamounts are also 23rd in turnover margin this season (+5) … WCU has just THREE turnovers in the past SIX games, with nine takeaways in the same span;
Catamount QB Taron Dickens threw for 426 yards, his school-record SIXTH game of 400 yards or more … Dickens has now eclipsed 350 yards in eight games in his career;
In eight games this season, Dickens has amassed 3,178 passing yards, while completing 74.77% (243-of-325) passes ... Dickens has the second-most passing yards in the NCAA FCS this season, trailing Mercer's Braden Atkinson (3,243 yards in nine games) – just 65 yards in arrears … Dickens has FOUR of the Top 13 individual passing games in the NCAA FCS this season (582 yds, vs. Samford; 551 yds, vs. Mercer; 427 yds, at Campbell; 426 yds, vs. ETSU);
With 3,178 passing yards in 2025, Dickens is WCU's single-season passing yardage leader, eclipsing the previous school benchmark held by Jeff Gilbert (2,993 yards, 1983);
Dickens has already broken WCU's single-season passing touchdown record with an NCAA-leading 35 aerial scores on the season, breaking the previous benchmark held by Cole Gonzales with 28 TD passes in 2023 … Dickens is now just ONE passing TD shy of tying the Southern Conference record of 36 passing scores in a season held by former Samford QBs Michael Hiers (2022) and Devlin Hodges (2016);
Over 16 career games, Dickens now has 4,733 career passing yards, advancing into 10th in WCU's all-time career record books, 267 yards shy of 5K career yards … His 48 career passing touchdowns are already the FOURTH most in program history, two shy of third-place Troy Mitchell (50, 2012-15) … He is also FOUR TD passes shy of the SoCon's Top 10 (52, BJ Coleman, UTC from 2009-11)… Dickens is averaging 2.8 passing TDs per game (48 TDs in 17 career games);
True freshman quarterback Jordan Martin-Durham made his collegiate debut on Saturday, scoring a touchdown on his first career touch – a one-yard touchdown plunge on the first play of the second quarter … WCU's 13 seasonal rushing scores have been spread between six different players with two – Markel Townsend (5) and Camury Reid (4) with multiple scores ... It's the 15th straight season that WCU has double-digit scores on the ground (7 in 2010)
A combined nine different Catamount receivers caught passes against ETSU … RB Markel Townsend caught a career-high nine passes out of the backfield and a career-best 58 receiving yards … WR Michael Rossin caught a touchdown pass for the third-straight game – and for the fourth time in the past five games – giving him five receiving TDs as a rookie … WR Jaylin Terzado hauled in his first career receiving touchdown coming on his fifth career catch, a career-long 58-yard reception;
Through 11 games this season, James Tyre has a SoCon-leading and team-best 65 receptions, the SEVENTH-most on WCU's single-season record books and just SIX shy of fifth on the list … Tyre also ranks third in the SoCon with a team-leading 692 receiving yards, just ahead of Malik Knight, who is fifth with 680 receiving yards;
Tyre ranks SIXTH with 65 receptions and ranks 35th nationally with 763 receiving yards, while Malik Knight is 51st with his 715 receiving yards … Tyre is 43rd with 69.4 yards per game and Knight is 54th with 65.0 yards per game;
Tyre enters the week tied for FOURTH in the NCAA FCS in receiving touchdowns (11), still just one shy of matching the program record – 12 by Karnorris Benson (2013) and Eric Rasheed (1983) … a combined 15 different Catamounts have receiving touchdowns this season with five players recording three-or-more receiving scores;
Three Catamounts finished with double-digit tackles in leading the Catamounts against ETSU … Samaurie Dukes was credited with 13 tackles, the FIFTH double-digit tackle effort of his career, matched by Bo Simpson-Nealy, who had a career-high 12 tackles … LB Jordan Thompson finished with his fourth double-digit tackle effort of the season with 10 stops, including six solo, adding a fumble recovery;
WCU was held to a season-low TWO tackles for loss, one coming on the lone sack of the game with a sack/fumble by Justin Wallace ... Jordan Thompson recovered the fumble … CB Cam'Ron Dabney scooped-and-scored a second Buccaneer fumble on a 43 yard TD, just the second defensive TD for the Catamounts this season;

Miscellaneous Notes:

Western Carolina's team captains for Saturday's game: senior DB #3 Samaurie Dukes; senior WR #4 Dominic Dutton; senior LB #5 Hayward McQueen Jr.; and senior TE #86 Brayden Blackmon;
Graduate transfer WR #8 Painter Richards-Baker carried out the North Carolina flag during Saturday's team entrance, a tradition begun in the game following the aftermath of Hurricane Helene in 2024;
WCU won the opening toss and elected to defer their choice to the second half as ETSU received the opening kickoff;
Western Carolina wore purple helmets over purple jerseys and gold pants for the NINTH time under head coach Kerwin Bell … WCU dropped to 4-5 in the purple/gold look;