WKU Football travels to New Orleans to take on Southern Miss in the 2025 New Orleans Bowl at the Caesars Superdome on Dec. 23.
The Hilltoppers return to action after a narrow 37-34 loss to Jacksonville State in their final regular-season game. Graduate running back La’vell Wright rushed for 116 yards and two touchdowns, becoming only the second Hilltopper to rush for 100 yards this season.
Freshman quarterback Rodney Tisdale Jr. will start for the Hilltoppers in his first career bowl game following a challenging outing against the Gamecocks, throwing for 180 yards and an interception.
Punter Cole Maynard and offensive lineman Laurence Seymore were named to All-America teams. Maynard became the program’s first All-American player during the program’s FBS era, and the first Consensus All-American since Buster Ashley in 2004.
The Southern Miss Golden Eagles soared to a 7-2 start before dropping their final three games. The Golden Eagles fell to Troy 28-18 at home in a winner-take-all game with a trip to the Sun Belt Championship game on the line.
Senior quarterback Braylon Braxton leads the Golden Eagles, throwing for 2,796 yards and 23 touchdowns with seven interceptions this season.
Interim Coach Blake Anderson will coach the Golden Eagles following Head Coach Charles Huff’s leave for the head coaching position at Memphis.
The New Orleans Bowl appearance marks the seventh straight season the Hilltoppers qualified for a bowl game. WKU is one of just eight programs in the country to play in a bowl game in every season since 2019, Head Coach Tyson Helton’s first season. WKU is 4-2 in bowl games in the Helton era.
“I’m excited about going [back] to New Orleans, we went down there in 2022 and had a great bowl experience,” Head Coach Tyson Helton said. “Our guys are very excited to go compete with Southern Miss and try to win that trophy.”
WKU returns to the New Orleans Bowl for the second time in program history. The Hilltoppers claimed a 44-23 victory over South Alabama in the 2022 New Orleans Bowl.
“We’re going to enjoy New Orleans,” senior running back George Hart III said. “But when it’s time to lock in on the field, we’re going to have that locked in mentality.”
Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. CT and will be televised nationally on ESPN.
