2026 Western Kentucky
3–4 (2–1 Conference USA), coached by Tyson Helton. The season’s Wikipedia article records 2–4, over six games to the seven on file here. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest winBeat Mercyhurst 52–7Sep 26
By 45 points, its widest win.
- Most excitingBeat Sam Houston 16–3Oct 14
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 5 | at Nevada | L 14–49 | 58% |
| Sep 12 | at 2Georgia | L 20–70 | 16% |
| Sep 19 | at 4Indiana | L 0–38 | 11% |
| Sep 26 | vs Mercyhurst | W 52–7 | 86% |
| Oct 1 | at New Mexico State | L 13–34 | 59% |
| Oct 8 | vs Missouri State | W 34–13 | 60% |
| Oct 14 | at Sam Houston | W 16–3 | 56% |
| Oct 27 | vs Delaware | Preview | 67% |
| Nov 7 | at Middle Tennessee | Preview | 57% |
| Nov 14 | vs Jacksonville State | Preview | 48% |
| Nov 21 | at Liberty | Preview | 33% |
| Nov 28 | vs Kennesaw State | Preview | 66% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
- Record
- 3–4
- Conference
- 2–1 3rd in Conference USA
- AP now
- Unranked
- Points
- 149–214
- Coach
- Tyson Helton
- Elo
- 1474 −42 this season
- SP+ rating
- -13.0 No. 117 of 138; offense No. 107, defense No. 120, special teams No. 9
- SRS
- −14.2 No. 118 of 138 in FBS
- Returning
- 84% of last season’s EPA, No. 10 of 136
- Recruiting class
- No. 81 roster talent No. 87 in FBS
- Offensive coordinators
- Bodie Reeder and Joe Bernardi
- Defensive coordinator
- Davis Merritt
- Offense
- Air raid
- Defense
- 3–3–5
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | -0.05 | 34% | 1.21 | 123rd of 138 |
| Defense | 0.17 | 41% | 1.39 | 95th of 138 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.00 off 0.16 def | 38% off 42% def | — | 129th off 112th def |
Passing and running
| Pass success | Depth of target | Deep throws | Line yards | Stuffed | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 36% | 7.3 yds | 10% | 2.90 | 19% |
| Defense | 36% | 9.0 yds | 16% | 3.40 | 14% |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played. Passing and running: depth of target is how far downfield passes traveled in the air; deep throws are the share thrown deep, of the passes whose depth and direction the play-by-play describes (about half); line yards are the running yards per carry credited to the blockers; stuffed is the share of carries stopped at or behind the line. The defense’s line is what its opponents did. From CollegeFootballData.com, 2025 on.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.5 | own 28 | 16% allowed |
| Defense | 4.2 | own 28 | 16% caused |
CORE rating -19.2, 135th of 138 (offense -12.2, defense 7.0).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Rodney Tisdale Jr. QB | 862 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Brock Glenn QB | 5 TD |
| Rushing yards | Ajay Allen RB | 332 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Brock Glenn QB | 5 TD |
| Receiving yards | Jonathan Stafford Jr. WR | 375 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Coleson Arends TE | 2 TD |
| Tackles | Jaylen Lewis DB | 58 tkl |
| Sacks | Westen Ard LB | 2.5 sacks |
| Interceptions | Tony Newsome Jr. DB | 2 INT |
Top recruits in the 2026 class
| Devin Hamilton WR | ★★★ | No. 1114 |
| Cam O’Hara QB | ★★★ | No. 1308 |
| Tre’von McGory WR | ★★★ | No. 1358 |
| Zayden Walters OL | ★★★ | No. 1474 |
| Le’Kamren Meadows RB | ★★★ | No. 1474 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2026 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 1 | 3.0 | 0.866 |
| Running backs | 1 | 3.0 | 0.862 |
| Receivers | 4 | 3.0 | 0.862 |
| Offensive line | 5 | 3.0 | 0.847 |
| Defensive line | 5 | 3.0 | 0.844 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 3.0 | 0.860 |
| Defensive backs | 5 | 3.0 | 0.844 |
| Athletes and specialists | 1 | 3.0 | 0.825 |
| Whole class | 24 | 3.0 | 0.850 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Roster 109
The 2026 roster109 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2026 line; 63 have a stat line. See the roster
Transfers in 19
The 2026 portal Roq Montgomery OL | ★★★ | from  Alabama |
 Brock Glenn QB | ★★★ | from  Florida State |
 C.C. Ezirim TE | ★★★ | from  Toledo |
 Jyzaiah Rockwell WR | ★★★ | from  Prairie View A&M |
| Rhett Larson OL | ★★★ | from  Sam Houston |
| D’Cambren Verrett S | ★★★ | from Texas A&M–Kingsville |
 Garrison Madden LB | ★★★ | from  USC |
 Kalib Hicks RB | ★★★ | from  Oklahoma State |
 Nathan Gonzales DE | ★★★ | from  Indiana State |
 Sincere Baines RB | ★★★ | from  Maine |
 Tyreek Major OL | ★★★ | from  South Florida |
 Jacob Cosby-Mosley S | ★★★ | from  Wake Forest |
And 7 more, lower-rated or unrated.
Transfers out 23
And 11 more, lower-rated or unrated.
2026 Conference USA standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jacksonville State | 3–0 | 5–2 | |
| Liberty | 2–0 | 5–1 | |
 Western Kentucky | 2–1 | 3–4 | |
| Middle Tennessee | 1–1 | 3–3 | |
 Florida International | 1–1 | 3–3 | |
| New Mexico State | 1–1 | 2–4 | |
| Missouri State | 1–1 | 2–4 | |
| Delaware | 0–2 | 2–4 | |
| Kennesaw State | 0–2 | 1–5 | |
| Sam Houston | 0–2 | 1–5 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.