Cullowhee, N.C. – Western Carolina football will be featured twice among the Southern Conference's six-game, over-the-air television broadcast package with Nexstar Media Group as the "Ingles SoCon Game of the Week." The announcement was made today by the conference office on the eve of the 2025 SoCon Football Media Day at the Hotel Hartness in Greenville, S.C.
 
Nexstar Broadcasting, Inc., Ingles Markets, and The SoCon continue the ongoing partnership with plans for six scheduled broadcasts of matchups involving conference schools beginning on Aug. 28 and concluding on Nov. 22. Branded as "SoCon Saturday," the games will be broadcast throughout the league's six-state footprint through a network of Nexstar stations.
 
Those Nexstar affiliates with the opportunity to air the Ingles SoCon Game of the Week are: ECBD (Charleston), WMYT (Charlotte), WWCW (Lynchburg/Roanoke), and WYCW (Greenville/Spartanburg/Asheville). Although not a Nexstar station, WMUB (Macon), Mercer University Broadcasting, will also have the option to air select contests.
 
Official clearances for each broadcast produced by the video operations crews of each host school will be announced the week of the game. The broadcasts will also air concurrently through ESPN+ (paid subscription required) or ESPN3 (cable/satellite subscription required).
 
Eight of the league's nine football-playing schools will appear at least once during the six scheduled seasonal matchups. The first two of the showcase games are nonconference matchups hosted by SoCon schools, with an October date and three November games featuring conference showdowns between Furman at Wofford (Oct. 18) and the Paladins visiting Chattanooga (Nov. 8). Western Carolina will be a part of the final two regular-season broadcasts, hosting mountain-rival ETSU (Nov. 15) for the Blue Ridge Border Battle, and wrapping up the regular season at VMI on Nov. 22.
 
Additionally, on Monday, WCU announced that all six of its home games – and most of all SoCon games away from Cullowhee this season – will be broadcast on ESPN+ or ESPN3.
 
Western Carolina head football coach Kerwin Bell and veteran defensive linemen Caleb Fisher and Micah Nelson will represent the Catamounts at Tuesday's 2025 SoCon Football Media Day in Greenville, S.C., the unofficial opening to the preseason. Both the official preseason All-SoCon teams and the predicted order of finish, as voted on by the league's head coaches, will be unveiled as part of the festivities.
 
WCU opens the season at home, under the lights on Labor Day Weekend against Gardner-Webb on Saturday, Aug. 30. Western Carolina's football student-athletes officially report for fall camp on Tuesday, July 29, with the first of two helmet-only practices scheduled for the morning of Wednesday, July 30.
 
Season tickets for all six home games, along with single-game tickets and gameday parking for the Aug. 30 home opener, are currently on sale through the Catamount Athletics Ticket Office on the first floor of the Ramsey Center, by phone at (828) 227-2401, or online at CatamountSports.com/BuyTickets. Tickets and parking for WCU's remaining five home dates go on sale to the public on Monday, July 28.
 
2025 SoCon / Nexstar Television Package:
Thurs., Aug. 28 – West Georgia at Samford – Birmingham, Ala. – 7:30 pm ET / 6:30 pm CT
Sat., Aug. 30 – North Dakota State at The Citadel – Charleston, S.C. – Noon
Sat., Oct. 18 – Furman at Wofford * – Spartanburg, S.C. – Noon
Sat., Nov. 8 – Furman at Chattanooga * – Chattanooga, Tenn. – Noon
Sat., Nov. 15 – ETSU at Western Carolina – Cullowhee – Noon
Sat., Nov. 22 – Western Carolina at VMI * – Noon
*All Times Eastern
 
Keep track of everything related to Catamount football and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (FB.com/CatamountSports, FB.com/WesternCarolinaFootball), Twitter (@catamounts, @CatamountsFB), and Instagram (wcu_catamounts, catamountsfb).
 
Important Dates in Catamount Athletics & Catamount Football:
Tues., July 22 – 2025 SoCon Football Media Day – Hotel Hartness in Greenville, S.C.
Wed., July 23 – Catamount Football on-campus media day (Ramsey Center)
Mon., July 28 – Remaining Catamount Football single-game tickets and parking go on sale
Tues., July 29 – Catamount Football officially reports to campus for fall camp
Tues., July 29 – Catamount Soccer begins 2025 practice
Wed., July 30 – Catamount Football – first official practice (helmets only) – 8:30 a.m.
Thurs., July 31 – Catamount Volleyball begins 2025 practice
Tues., Aug. 5 – Catamount Soccer vs. Charleston Southern (Exhibition), 4 p.m.
Fri., Aug. 8 – Catamount Soccer vs. Queens University (Exhibition) – 6 p.m.
Thurs., Aug. 14 – Catamount Football Ladies Night – Whitmire Stadium – 5 p.m.
Thurs., Aug. 14 – Catamount Soccer vs. Appalachian State (Season Opener) – 6 p.m.
Sun., Aug. 17 – Catamount Soccer vs. High Point – 1 p.m.
Fri., Aug. 22 – Catamount Volleyball vs. UNC Pembroke (Exhibition) – 6 p.m.
Sat., Aug. 30 - Catamount Football vs. Gardner-Webb – 6 p.m. (Postgame Fireworks)
Sun., Aug. 31 – Catamount Soccer vs. Tennessee (First Bank Beach Night) – 6 p.m.
Tues., Sept. 9 – Catamount Volleyball vs. UNC Asheville (First Bank Beach Night) – 6 p.m.
Fri., Sept. 12 – The Bob Waters Memorial Golf Tournament – Sequoyah National in Cherokee, N.C.
Sat., Sept. 13 – Catamount Football vs. Elon – 2:30 p.m. (White Out Whitmire! Wear White!)