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Western Kentucky vs. Indiana Preview: 3 keys to Hilltoppers upsetting Hoosiers

By Chris Schultz

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Can the Hilltoppers continue their winning ways against Indiana?

The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers travel to Bloomington this Saturday to take on the Indiana Hoosiers at Memorial Stadium. Head coach Jeff Brohm and his team are looking forward to the challenge that awaits them against another school from a Power Five conference.

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After starting the season 2-0 including a win over Vanderbilt in Nashville, the Toppers are more confident than ever that they can get the job done against an Indiana team that is also undefeated. WKU has yet to beat a Big Ten school in program history, but that might change this weekend so what must happen for the Toppers to pull this off?

First they will have to rely on quarterback Brandon Doughty who ESPN analyst Kirk Herbstreit referred to as the best kept secret in college football this year, while those in Bowling Green, KY know all too well what this kid is capable of.

Doughty led the nation in both passing yards and touchdowns last year with remarkable efficiency. To say this Hilltopper team will go only as far as Doughty will take them would be an understatement. After looking human in the first game against the Commodores, Doughty was back to his old self last week against a tough Louisiana Tech team where he threw for 441 yards and a touchdown.

Unfortunately for Doughty and the Hilltoppers, they will be without starting running back and All-Conference USA player Leon Allen who suffered a season-ending knee injury last Thursday night. It will be up to redshirt freshman D’andre Ferby and former Indiana running back and graduate transfer Anthony Davis to pick up where Allen left off.

The running game for Western Kentucky has been a sweet spot for almost a decade having seen the likes of Allen, Antonio Andrews (Tennessee Titans), and Bobby Rainey (Tampa Bay Buccaneers) having success so Ferby should give fans a glimpse of the future while Davis looks to run past his former teammates.

Speaking of running, the Topper defense better be ready to stop Indiana’s prolific offense led by senior quarterback Nate Sudfeld and transfer Jordan Howard who set the UAB single season rushing record last year with 1,587 yards.

In his debut for the Hoosiers, Howard ran for 145 yards and three touchdowns, albeit against FCS foe Southern Illinois. Against FIU last week, it was Sudfeld who did the running with two scores. With an experienced offensive line to boot, WKU will have their work cut out for them to stop what can be an explosive offense for IU.

Even though the line favors Indiana by two, this is an even matchup of two teams with similar aspirations. Should the Hilltoppers win, and I think they will, it’s hard to call this an upset. Western Kentucky ranks in the top five in college football for active winning streaks with seven in a row dating back to last season.

The game will air on ESPNews, but I have a feeling this will be the best game on Saturday that no one watches.

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