The hearts of Hilltopper faithful were broken on Tuesday night as Jacksonville State’s kicker sunk one through the uprights at the buzzer, sealing WKU’s first Conference-USA loss of the season, 20-17.
“Tough loss, thought our kids battled hard.” Head coach Tyson Helton said. “We took it all the way to the end.”
It truly was a tale of two halves as this loss marked the Hilltoppers second straight game failing to score in the second half. WKU’s latest win against the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs included a scoreless second half following a 35-point onslaught in the first. While the Hilltoppers were able to escape the Bayou State with the win, they weren’t as lucky against the Gamecocks as their seven-point halftime lead wasn’t enough.
“We came out and nothing was working for us, we just gotta come together.” Redshirt sophomore tight end River Helms said. “Second half has been a problem for us all season.”
Defense shined in the final 30 minutes, as the second half offensive struggle infected both teams. A 25:20-minute scoring drought took place before JVST’s Anwar Lewis took a 26-yard rush to the house to tie the game with 4:40 left in regulation. A combined seven punts, three turnover on downs and an interception took up a majority of the second half.
“I thought the defense battled extremely hard,” Helton said. “But if you let a team like that stay in the game and we don’t get it done offensively, that’s the result you’re going to get.”
The first half of the game looked a lot different than the second. WKU looked to take control of the game early, jumping out to an early 10-0 lead after one. Graduate quarterback Austin Reed looked to be back to his usual self in the quarter combining for 120 yards and a touchdown.
“In the first half everybody came together,” Helms said. “There were more explosive plays, the energy was definitely better, so I feel like that helped all around.”
Despite their scoreless start, JVST got themselves back in the ball game in the second quarter. Capitalizing on a messy 15 minutes of play, Gamecock quarterback Zion Webb used his legs for 106 yards and a touchdown to head into the half with only a seven-point deficit.
C-USA OUTLOOK AFTER GAME
It’s no secret that the Hilltoppers were heavy favorites to take home the conference title this season. And while this loss doesn’t put an end to WKU’s title hopes, the loss certainly won’t help. With the win over the Hilltoppers, JVST now holds sole possession of second place in the conference just behind Liberty.
However, WKU still is able to control their own destiny when it comes to C-USA contention. If WKU are able to run the table in the remainder of their games, they will punch a ticket to the C-USA championship game.
These Hilltoppers have a prime opportunity to put themselves back in a great position next week against the Liberty Flames. Liberty will come to Bowling Green unbeaten and in first place in the conference. If the Hilltoppers can pull off the upset, they’ll jump Liberty in the standings with four games to go.
“You’re afforded an opportunity to lose probably one conference game,” Helton said. “We’ve gotta rebound really fast. Liberty’s an excellent football team.”
Football reporter Jake McMahon can be reached at [email protected].
