WKU Football faced a tough challenge in its season opener, suffering a 63-0 defeat against No. 5 Alabama on Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium.
The Hilltoppers (0-1) struggled early on, with two turnovers in the first quarter leading to quick touchdowns for the Crimson Tide (1-0). Alabama took full advantage, building a 21-0 lead by the end of the first quarter. The Tide continued to dominate, doubling their lead to 42-0 by halftime. They added 14 points in the third quarter and another touchdown in the fourth, sealing the 63-0 victory.
Notables:
- The game drew an attendance of 100,077, the fifth-highest ever for a WKU game. Notably, three of the top five attendances have occurred at Alabama’s Bryant-Denny Stadium.
- Moussa Barry set a career-high with four catches, finishing with 27 receiving yards.
- Cole Maynard averaged 44.8 yards per punt on nine punts, with three exceeding 50 yards, including a long of 54 yards.
- Hosea Wheeler recorded a sack and forced a fumble in the first quarter, marking his second career forced fumble, the first occurring against Ohio State in 2023.
- Nazir Ward led the Hilltoppers with a career-high five tackles.
Quotable:
“Really good football team we played tonight in the University of Alabama. I tell you, they did everything you’re supposed to do. They’re a big, physical football team. They played well. They were very cohesive with what they did. They got after us pretty good, so hat’s off to them. They’re 1-0. They’ve got a great staff, great team and I expect great things out of them this year. I think they’re going to really challenge a lot of people. As far as our football team, at times I thought we did some good things. I thought we moved the ball well, pretty good in the first half. Obviously the turnovers cost us with the interceptions. Defensively, we had way too many explosive plays, as we all know, in the first half. Defense settled down a little bit in the second half and started to find their groove a little bit. Offensively, we just couldn’t get going in the second half. Good football team we played, and, man, I’m looking forward to watching those guys play the rest of the year.” – WKU Football Head Coach Tyson Helton, on the loss to No. 5 Alabama.
“It’s something you learn to do as an athlete. Tough losses like this, you learn to just wipe them out and focus on the next week.” – WKU wide receiver Easton Messer, on being ready for next week’s game against EKU.
“During the week, we focused on eat, just be physical, attack and it’s all-out effort. Just go and attack the ball, and I think that’s what we did tonight. Even though we came up short, I feel like we played with good effort the whole game. I’m proud of our defense.” – WKU defensive tackle Hosea Wheeler, on WKU’s defensive effort at Alabama.
Next Up: The Hilltoppers will host Eastern Kentucky (0-1) for their home opener at Houchens-Smith Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 7. The game will be WKU’s white-out game, and fans are encouraged to wear white.
