Football Opens Up Road Trip At No. 10 Western Carolina
10/27/2023 6:36:00 PM | Football
Kickoff Is Slated For 2:30 p.m. ET On ESPN+
MACON – The Mercer football team will open up a 2-game road trip on Saturday when the Bears trek to Cullowhee, N.C., to go head-to-head with 10th-ranked Western Carolina at E.J. Whitmire Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 2:30 p.m. ET.
The game is slated to be streamed live on ESPN+ with Kyle Rush and Phil Cox handling the duties in the booth. Rick Cameron and the rest of the Mercer Sports Network will call all of the action as well, and fans can listen to that broadcast on The Creek 100.9 FM, or by visiting Sportsmic. A live statistics link is also being provided by the Western Carolina athletics department.
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The game is slated to be streamed live on ESPN+ with Kyle Rush and Phil Cox handling the duties in the booth. Rick Cameron and the rest of the Mercer Sports Network will call all of the action as well, and fans can listen to that broadcast on The Creek 100.9 FM, or by visiting Sportsmic. A live statistics link is also being provided by the Western Carolina athletics department.
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| ABOUT THE GAME | ||
| Date: Saturday, October 28 Time: 2:30 p.m. ET Location: Cullowhee, N.C.. I E.J. Whitmire Stadium TV: ESPN+ Listen Live: 100.9 The Creek I Sportsmic Network Live Statistics: Sidearm Stats Twitter Updates: @MercerFootball  |
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| GAME NOTES (PDF) | ||
| Mercer | Western Carolina | Southern Conference |
| MERCER/WESTERN CAROLINA SERIES | ||
| Mercer leads the all-time series with Western Carolina, 7-2, and will ride a seven-game series win streak into Saturday's contest in Cullowhee. The Bears are 3-1 all-time at E.J. Whitmire Stadium, and have grabbed a road win in each of their last three trips to the North Carolina mountains. The Orange & Black has averaged more than 44 points per game over its last seven games in the series, and used 42 first-half points to turn back WCU, 49-6, last season in Macon. | ||
| SCOUTING WESTERN CAROLINA | ||
| The Catamounts, under the direction of fourth-year head coach Kerwin Bell, returned 15 starters, including seven on the defensive side of the ball and six on offense, from last year's team that registered a 6-5 record (4-4 SoCon) and a 5th-place finish in the league's final regular season standings. Among the returnees are eight preseason all-conference picks, including five first-team preseason all-league picks. Western Carolina had its 5-game win streak snapped with a 29-17 home setback to third-ranked Furman last week in Cullowhee, N.C. The Paladins limited WCU nearly 150 yards below its normal single-game offensive output to help a 20-14 halftime lead hold up. The Catamounts totaled more than 34 minutes of possession time in the contest, but also negated a pair of promising drives by throwing a pair of interceptions deep in Furman territory. |
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| CLASH OF THE JUGGERNAUTS | ||
| Saturday's contest will pit the nation's most prolific offense against the league's top total defense. Western Carolina has racked up 506.3 yards per game (1st NCAA) so far this season, while the Bears have limited opponents to a SoCon-low 322.5 yards an outing (23rd NCAA). Mercer has surrendered just 243.0 yards and 13.5 points per game over its last four outings. | ||
| NEXT WEEK FOR THE BEARS | ||
| The Bears will close out the road portion of their 2023 regular season schedule on November 4 when they head to Charleston, S.C., to take on The Citadel. Mercer is back home again on November 11 when it tangles with Samford at Five Star Stadium. | ||
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