2020 Conference USA football standings

	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
Marshall xy		4	–	1					7	–	3
Florida Atlantic		4	–	2					5	–	4
Western Kentucky		4	–	3					5	–	7
Charlotte		2	–	2					2	–	4
Middle Tennessee		2	–	4					3	–	6
FIU		0	–	3					0	–	5
West Division
UAB xy$		3	–	1					6	–	3
UTSA		5	–	2					7	–	5
Louisiana Tech		4	–	2					5	–	5
North Texas		3	–	4					4	–	6
Rice		2	–	3					2	–	3
Southern Miss		2	–	4					3	–	7
UTEP		0	–	4					3	–	5
Championship: UAB 22, Marshall 13
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Note: Due to COVID-19, Old Dominion opted out of the season.

The 2020 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team (WKU) represented Western Kentucky University in the 2020 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Hilltoppers played their home games at the Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium in Bowling Green, Kentucky, as members of the East Division of Conference USA (C–USA). They were led by second-year head coach Tyson Helton.

To be released

Western Kentucky announced its 2020 football schedule on January 8, 2020.^[1] The 2020 schedule consists of 6 home and 5 away games in the regular season.

The Hilltoppers had games scheduled against Indiana and Old Dominion, which were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.^[2][3][4]

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 12	7:00 p.m.	at Louisville*	Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY	ACCN	L 21–35	11,179
September 19	11:00 a.m.	Liberty*	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY	ESPNU	L 24–30	4,276
October 3	4:00 p.m.	at Middle Tennessee	Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium Murfreesboro, TN (100 Miles of Hate)	ESPN3	W 20–17	6,500
October 10	6:30 p.m.	Marshall	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY	Stadium	L 14–38	4,428
October 17	12:30 p.m.	at UAB	Legion Field Birmingham, AL	Stadium	L 14–37	11,098
October 24	3:00 p.m.	Chattanooga*	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY	ESPN3	W 13–10	3,905
October 31	9:15 p.m.	at No. 11 BYU*	LaVell Edwards Stadium Provo, UT	ESPN	L 10–41	6,843
November 7	5:00 p.m.	at Florida Atlantic	FAU Stadium Boca Raton, FL	Stadium	L 6–10	5,292
November 14	2:30 p.m.	Southern Miss	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY	CBSSN	W 10–7	3,815
November 21	1:00 p.m.	FIU	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY	ESPN3	W 38–21	3,823
December 6	11:00 a.m.	Charlotte	Jerry Richardson Stadium Charlotte, NC	ESPN3	W 37–19	714
December 26	2:30 p.m.	vs. Georgia State*	Ladd–Peebles Stadium Mobile, AL (2020 LendingTree Bowl)	ESPN	L 21–39	5,128
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll and CFP Rankings after November 24 released prior to game All times are in Central time

Schedule Source:^[5][6]

Western Kentucky at Louisville

1 2 3 4 Total Hilltoppers 7 0 7 7 21 • Cardinals 7 21 7 0 35 Date: September 12, 2020 Location: Cardinal Stadium Louisville, KY Game start: 7:05 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 3 minutes Game attendance: 11,179 Game weather: 80 °F (27 °C) • Weather: Rainy • Wind: SSW 5 MPH Referee: J. Flanagan TV announcers (ACC Network): Roy Philpott (play–by–play), Tim Hasselbeck (analyst), Eric Wood (sideline reporter)

Pregame line	Over/under
LOU –13	55[7]

Statistics	Western Kentucky	Louisville
First downs	12	22
Total yards	248	487
Rushing yards	119	144
Passing yards	129	343
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	27:27	32:33

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	10/23, 129 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Tyrrell Pigrome	17 carries, 68 yards
	Receiving	Jahcour Pearson	5 receptions, 67 yards
Louisville	Passing	Malik Cunningham	19/34, 343 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Javian Hawkins	19 carries, 71 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Dez Fitzpatrick	4 receptions, 110 yards, 1 TD

Liberty at Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total • Flames 10 7 7 6 30 Hilltoppers 0 10 7 7 24 Date: September 19, 2020 Location: Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY Game start: 12:02 p.m. EDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 14 minutes Game attendance: 4,276 Game weather: 64 °F (18 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: NE 9 MPH Referee: Joe Lehring TV announcers (ESPNU): Clay Matvick (play–by–play) and Rocky Boiman (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
WKU –14.5	51.5[8]

Statistics	Liberty	Western Kentucky
First downs	27	19
Total yards	487	291
Rushing yards	354	110
Passing yards	133	181
Turnovers	0	0
Time of possession	34:59	25:01

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Liberty	Passing	Malik Willis	13/21, 133 yards
	Rushing	Malik Willis	21 carries, 168 yards, 3 TDs
	Receiving	CJ Yarbrough	2 receptions, 53 yards
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	18/25, 181 yards, 3 TDs
	Rushing	Tyrrell Pigrome	14 carries, 74 yards
	Receiving	Mitchell Tinsley	6 receptions, 69 yards, 1 TD

Middle Tennessee at Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total • Hilltoppers 0 10 3 7 20 Blue Raiders 0 10 0 7 17 Date: October 3, 2020 Location: Johnny "Red" Floyd Stadium Murfreesboro, TN Game start: 4:05 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 3 minutes Game attendance: 6,500 Game weather: 69 °F (21 °C) • Weather: Sunny & Nice • Wind: ESE 1 MPH Referee: Rodney Burnette TV announcers (ESPN3): Jake Rose (play–by–play) and Jeremy Kellem (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
WKU –7	52.5[9]

Statistics	Western Kentucky	Middle Tennessee
First downs	21	18
Total yards	326	319
Rushing yards	138	102
Passing yards	188	217
Turnovers	1	0
Time of possession	31:35	28:25

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	21/36, 188 yards, 2 TDs
	Rushing	Tyrrell Pigrome	16 carries, 55 yards
	Receiving	Xavier Lane	7 receptions, 73 yards, 1 TD
Middle Tennessee	Passing	Asher O'Hara	23/33, 217 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Asher O'Hara	25 carries, 98 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Jarrin Pierce	9 receptions, 65 yards

Marshall at Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total • Thundering Herd 14 14 10 10 48 Hilltoppers 0 0 7 7 14 Date: October 10, 2020 Location: Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY Game start: 6:36 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 2 hours and 57 minutes Game attendance: 4,428 Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C) • Weather: Partly Cloudy • Wind: E 6 MPH Referee: Billy Williams TV announcers (FOX Sports): Chris Hassel (play–by–play) and A. J. Hawk (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
MARSH –6.5	43[10]

Statistics	Marshall	Western Kentucky
First downs	17	15
Total yards	343	294
Rushing yards	181	85
Passing yards	162	209
Turnovers	0	3
Time of possession	34:41	25:19

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Marshall	Passing	Grant Wells	16/22, 162 yards
	Rushing	Brenden Knox	15 carries, 107 yards, 3 TDs
	Receiving	Broc Thompson	4 receptions, 94 yards
Western Kentucky	Passing	Kevaris Thomas	9/18, 148 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Kevaris Thomas	7 carries, 30 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Xavier Lane	4 receptions, 74 yards

Western Kentucky at Alabama–Birmingham

1 2 3 4 Total Hilltoppers 7 7 0 0 14 • RV Blazers 10 14 10 3 37 Date: October 17, 2020 Location: Legion Field Birmingham, AL Game start: 12:36 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 55 minutes Game attendance: 11,098 Game weather: 65 °F (18 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: E 3 MPH Referee: Joe Lehring TV announcers (FOX Sports): Chris Hassel (play–by–play) and A. J. Hawk (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
UAB –11.5	44[11]

Statistics	Western Kentucky	UAB
First downs	15	17
Total yards	250	358
Rushing yards	88	217
Passing yards	162	141
Turnovers	4	2
Time of possession	28:33	31:27

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Kentucky	Passing	Kevaris Thomas	16/35, 162 yards, 2 TDs, 2 INTs
	Rushing	Jakairi Moses	6 carries, 41 yards
	Receiving	Joshua Simon	6 receptions, 81 yards, 1 TD
UAB	Passing	Bryson Lucero	15/31, 141 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	DeWayne McBride	10 carries, 131 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Austin Watkins	7 receptions, 55 yards, 1 TD

Chattanooga at Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total Mocs 7 0 3 0 10 • Hilltoppers 3 0 3 7 13 Date: October 24, 2020 Location: Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY Game start: 3:05 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 2 hours and 51 minutes Game attendance: 3,905 Game weather: 50 °F (10 °C) • Weather: Cloudy • Wind: NE 10 MPH Referee: Chris Bynum TV announcers (ESPN3): Graham Doty (play–by–play) and Brandon Doughty (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
WKU –14	53.5[12]

Statistics	Chattanooga	Western Kentucky
First downs	13	14
Total yards	225	254
Rushing yards	135	122
Passing yards	90	132
Turnovers	0	2
Time of possession	32:21	27:39

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Chattanooga	Passing	Drayton Arnold	9/23, 90 yards
	Rushing	Ailym Ford	25 carries, 92 yards
	Receiving	Tyron Arnett	2 receptions, 30 yards
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	4/8, 73 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Gaej Walker	17 carries, 88 yards
	Receiving	Mitchell Tinsley	4 receptions, 46 yards

Western Kentucky at Brigham Young

1 2 3 4 Total Hilltoppers 3 0 7 0 10 • No. 11 Cougars 14 21 3 3 41 Date: October 31, 2020 Location: LaVell Edwards Stadium Provo, UT Game start: 8:20 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 9:20 p.m. Game attendance: 6,843 Game weather: 49 °F (9 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: NW 0 MPH Referee: Kevin Hassell TV announcers (ESPN): Beth Mowins (play–by–play), Kirk Morrison (analyst), and Stormy Buonantony (sideline reporter)

Pregame line	Over/under
BYU –31	52.5[13]

Statistics	Western Kentucky	BYU
First downs	12	22
Total yards	248	487
Rushing yards	119	144
Passing yards	129	343
Turnovers	1	2
Time of possession	27:27	32:33

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	19/30, 106 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Gaej Walker	17 carries, 75 yards
	Receiving	Xavier Lane	3 receptions, 31 yards
BYU	Passing	Zach Wilson	18/22, 224 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Tyler Allgeier	16 carries, 95 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Dax Milne	5 receptions, 67 yards, 1 TD

Western Kentucky at Florida Atlantic

1 2 3 4 Total Hilltoppers 0 0 3 3 6 • Owls 0 0 3 7 10 Date: November 7, 2020 Location: FAU Stadium Boca Raton, FL Game start: 5:35 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 2 hours and 53 minutes Game attendance: 5,292 Game weather: 72 °F (22 °C) • Weather: Rainy and Windy • Wind: E 20 MPH Referee: Jon Noli TV announcers (FOX Sports): Chris Hassel (play–by–play) and A. J. Hawk (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
FAU –7	38[14]

Statistics	Western Kentucky	Florida Atlantic
First downs	16	18
Total yards	257	273
Rushing yards	94	165
Passing yards	163	108
Turnovers	0	1
Time of possession	33:49	26:11

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	19/39, 163 yards
	Rushing	Gaej Walker	17 carries, 78 yards
	Receiving	Xavier Lane	7 receptions, 60 yards
Florida Atlantic	Passing	Nick Tronti	7/16, 108 yards
	Rushing	Javion Posey	9 carries, 60 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	TJ Chase	3 receptions, 47 yards

Southern Miss at Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total Golden Eagles 0 0 0 7 7 • Hilltoppers 7 3 0 0 10 Date: November 14, 2020 Location: Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY Game start: 2:37 p.m. CDT Elapsed time: 3 hours and 3 minutes Game attendance: 3,815 Game weather: 61 °F (16 °C) • Weather: Mostly Cloudy • Wind: SE 3 MPH Referee: Ken Antee TV announcers (CBS Sports Network): Dave Ryan (play–by–play) and Corey Chavous (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
WKU –7.5	45[15]

Statistics	Southern Miss	Western Kentucky
First downs	13	19
Total yards	221	304
Rushing yards	154	121
Passing yards	67	183
Turnovers	0	0
Time of possession	25:18	34:42

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Southern Miss	Passing	Trey Lowe	6/14, 67 yards
	Rushing	Kevin Perkins	8 carries, 71 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Antoine Robinson	2 receptions, 25 yards
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	19/30, 183 yards
	Rushing	Jakairi Moses	12 carries, 40 yards
	Receiving	Xavier Lane	5 receptions, 90 yards

Florida International at Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total Panthers 7 6 0 8 21 • Hilltoppers 0 10 14 14 38 Date: November 21, 2020 Location: Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, KY Game start: 1:05 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3 hours and 14 minutes Game attendance: 3,823 Game weather: 66 °F (19 °C) • Weather: Mostly Cloudy • Wind: S 5 MPH Referee: Joe Lehring TV announcers (ESPN3): Nate Gatter (play–by–play) and Brandon Doughty (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
WKU –7	42[16]

Statistics	FIU	Western Kentucky
First downs	17	13
Total yards	268	278
Rushing yards	121	157
Passing yards	147	121
Turnovers	2	0
Time of possession	33:51	26:09

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
FIU	Passing	Max Bortenschlager	8/18, 106 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	D'Vonte Price	24 carries, 100 yards
	Receiving	JJ Holloman	2 receptions, 54 yards, 1 TD
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	14/25, 121 yards
	Rushing	Gaej Walker	17 carries, 127 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Mitchell Tinsley	3 receptions, 28 yards

Western Kentucky at Charlotte

1 2 3 4 Total • Hilltoppers 3 14 10 10 37 49ers 0 0 7 12 19 Date: December 6, 2020 Location: Jerry Richardson Stadium Charlotte, NC Game start: 11:05 a.m. CST Elapsed time: 3 hours and 13 minutes Game attendance: 714 Game weather: 49 °F (9 °C) • Weather: Sunny and Clear • Wind: 0 MPH Referee: Jonathan Noli TV announcers (ESPN3): Bobby Rosinski (play–by–play) and Reggie Walker (analyst)

Pregame line	Over/under
CHAR –2	46[17]

Statistics	Western Kentucky	Charlotte
First downs	21	18
Total yards	436	308
Rushing yards	218	89
Passing yards	218	219
Turnovers	0	1
Time of possession	29:59	30:01

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	18/27, 218 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Gaej Walker	19 carries, 98 yards
	Receiving	Dakota Thomas	5 receptions, 78 yards
Charlotte	Passing	Chris Reynolds	14/34, 205 yards, 2 TDs
	Rushing	Tre Harbison	16 carries, 80 yards
	Receiving	Victor Tucker	8 receptions, 111 yards

Georgia State vs. Western Kentucky

1 2 3 4 Total • Panthers 7 20 3 9 39 Hilltoppers 7 0 7 7 21 Date: December 26, 2020 Location: Ladd–Peebles Stadium Mobile, AL Game start: 2:30 p.m. CST Elapsed time: 3 hours and 26 minutes Game attendance: 5,128 Game weather: 52 °F (11 °C) • Weather: Sunny • Wind: SE 4 MPH Referee: Mike Cuttone TV announcers (ESPN): Mike Couzens (play–by–play), Jay Walker (analyst), Dawn Davenport (sideline reporter)

Pregame line	Over/under
GSU –3	50[18]

Statistics	Georgia State	Western Kentucky
First downs	27	14
Total yards	484	284
Rushing yards	227	104
Passing yards	257	180
Turnovers	1	3
Time of possession	35:02	24:58

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Georgia State	Passing	Cornelious Brown IV	16/30, 232 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT
	Rushing	Destin Coates	23 carries, 117 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Cornelius McCoy	5 receptions, 88 yards, 1 TD
Western Kentucky	Passing	Tyrrell Pigrome	17/33, 180 yards, 2 INTs
	Rushing	C. J. Jones	5 carries, 57 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Joshua Simon	4 receptions, 84 yards