RICHMOND, Ky. – Eastern Kentucky has been playing football since 1909, but will face its neighbor to the north, the University of Kentucky, for just the fourth time on Saturday.
The Colonels (2-1) and Wildcats (3-1) will kick off at 7:30 p.m. at Commonwealth Stadium. The game will air live on SEC Network Alternate and online on WatchESPN, where available.
The Alumni and Donor Engagement Office will host a pre-game tailgate event at UK. The event is set to begin at 4:30 p.m. at the corner of Alumni Drive and University Court. Cover fee is $20, which includes a meal and two drink vouchers. Those without game tickets are welcome to stay at the tailgate and watch the broadcast of the game.
The two teams met for the first time in 1998 and have tangled twice more since. The last meeting came in 2009, Head Coach
Dean Hood's second season. The Colonels were down just 10-6 with 2:44 left in the first half, but Kentucky scored right before the half and went on to win 37-12.
EKU beat Austin Peay, 51-13, on Saturday. Playing without senior All-American running back
Dy'Shawn Mobley, Eastern rode the backfield combination of newcomer
Adam Lane and freshman
Ethan Thomas to victory. Lane and Thomas softened the blow of Mobley's absence by combining for 118 yards and three touchdowns. Quarterback
Bennie Coney, meanwhile, went 28-of-35 for a season-high 261 yards and a touchdown.
Kentucky is 3-1 and is off to a 2-1 start to Southeastern Conference play. The Wildcats rebounded from their first loss of the season, 14-9 at home to Florida, by beating No. 23 Missouri 21-13.
Eastern has played well against Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) teams during
Dean Hood's coaching tenure. In addition to beating Miami (Ohio) 17-10 last season, the Colonels have lost close games at Indiana (19-13), Louisville (23-13) and Kansas State (10-7). Earlier this season, EKU held North Carolina State to 35 points, fewer than any other team the Wolfpack have played this season.
Against its two FCS opponents, the Colonels have put 103 points on the board while giving up just 23. In those two games, Eastern Kentucky generated 415.5 yards of offense per game, including 284.5 through the air.
Through all three of its games this season, EKU leads the OVC and ranks 10th in FCS with a turnover margin of +1.33 per game. Eastern also leads the OVC and is sixth in the nation with just one turnover this season. Eastern has not turned the ball over in either of its last two games, including against North Carolina State.
EKU has been successful in getting to the quarterback this season, and protecting its own. The Colonels have sacked the opposing quarterback seven times in three games while the Eastern offensive line has allowed just three sacks.
