STEPHENVILLE, Texas – The Eastern Kentucky University football team will face the nation's top-ranked FCS team for the seventh time in program history when the Colonels visit No. 1 Tarleton State on Saturday night at Memorial Stadium.
Kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m. ET. Fans making the trip to Texas can purchase tickets
online here.
Fans unable to attend can watch live on ESPN+ with John Liddle, Hek'ma Harrison, and Sabrina Borg on the call.
Fans can also listen for free on the Colonels All-Access page, with
Wes Chandler and Graham Nash calling the action on the EKU Sports Network. The Kentucky 811 Pregame Show begins one hour before kickoff.
Saturday marks the fifth meeting between Eastern Kentucky and Tarleton State since 2021 and their fourth as United Athletic Conference opponents. The Colonels lead the all-time series 3-1 and won their only previous trip to Stephenville, defeating the then-No. 7 Texans 17-13 in 2024.
EKU (3-5, 2-1 UAC) is coming off a 16-13 victory over No. 23 West Florida last weekend in Richmond. The win marked the Colonels' first ranked victory of the season and extended their streak to seven consecutive seasons with a ranked win under head coach
Walt Wells, who has eight victories over ranked opponents during his tenure.
Making his first collegiate start, fifth-year quarterback
Blake Kendall completed 16 of 26 passes for 163 yards and his first career touchdown.
Jayden West and
Elijah Caldwell each finished with 68 receiving yards, recording long catches of 48 and 24 yards, respectively.
Defensively, Eastern Kentucky limited West Florida to 225 total yards and kept the Argonauts scoreless over the final 27 minutes. West Florida became the fifth opponent EKU has held to 20 points or fewer this season. Linebackers
Kaden Smith, the preseason UAC Defensive Player of the Year, and
Cam Jessee each recorded seven tackles while combining for a sack and three pass breakups.
Fifth-year defensive back Jeff Kinley and senior
Jayden Marable recovered fumbles for the Colonels' seventh and eighth takeaways of the season. Both recoveries led to second-half field goals, helping EKU rally for the victory. Marable earned UAC Defensive Player of the Week honors for his performance.
Eastern Kentucky holds a 3-3 record against No. 1-ranked opponents since Division I-AA play began in 1978. The Colonels' most recent victory over a top-ranked team came in 1990, when EKU defeated Middle Tennessee 10-7 at Roy Kidd Stadium.
The Colonels also spent 35 weeks as the nation's No. 1 team under Hall of Fame head coach Roy Kidd, holding the top spot during the 1979, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1989, and 1990 seasons.
Scouting No. 1 Tarleton State
Tarleton State (8-0, 3-0 UAC) enters Saturday ranked No. 1 in all FCS Top 25 polls under head coach Todd Whitten, who is in his 17th season with the Texans.
The Texans lead the FCS in total offense at 506 yards per game and rank second in scoring offense, averaging nearly 42 points. Senior quarterback Kaden Anderson has thrown for 2,268 yards and 24 touchdowns through eight games, earning UAC Offensive Player of the Week honors four times, including each of the past three weeks.
Anderson threw for 296 yards and four touchdowns in Tarleton State's most recent outing, a 49-7 victory at West Georgia.
