Ranking the Top 131 College Football Programs of the Last 40 Years: 100. Western Kentucky
Welcome to the Top 100
The first year I got into football was 2009, the year Western Kentucky joined the FBS as a full-time member. Back then, time moved slower, and it seemed like Western Kentucky was the worst team to ever play football. After all, they were 4-32 from 2008-10, and I had no other impression of them. WKU surpassed all my expectations from then on, going 94-53 since 2011 and becoming a perennial bowl team.
Best Seasons and Highlights
+------+------------------+------+--------------+--------+
| rank | team | year | resume score | record |
+------+------------------+------+--------------+--------+
| 14 | Western Kentucky | 2015 | 28.669 | 12-2 |
| 15 | Western Kentucky | 2016 | 22.48 | 11-3 |
| 41 | Western Kentucky | 2021 | 5.276 | 9-5 |
| 42 | Western Kentucky | 2019 | 2.155 | 9-4 |
| 47 | Western Kentucky | 2022 | 1.176 | 9-5 |
| 57 | Western Kentucky | 2013 | -0.248 | 8-4 |
| 54 | Western Kentucky | 2014 | -0.765 | 8-5 |
| 61 | Western Kentucky | 2011 | -7.788 | 7-5 |
| 70 | Western Kentucky | 2012 | -11.281 | 7-6 |
| 98 | Western Kentucky | 2017 | -25.538 | 6-7 |
| 104 | Western Kentucky | 2020 | -28.728 | 5-7 |
| 109 | Western Kentucky | 2018 | -41.39 | 3-9 |
| 112 | Western Kentucky | 2010 | -51.793 | 2-10 |
| 112 | Western Kentucky | 2008 | -53.299 | 2-10 |
| 119 | Western Kentucky | 2009 | -73.239 | 0-12 |
+------+------------------+------+--------------+--------+
Overall Score: 3946 (100th)98-85 record
2 conference titles
6-3 bowl record
0 consensus All-Americans
13 NFL players drafted
The move from FCS to FBS has been nothing short of a success for WKU. 9 bowl appearances in 14 eligible seasons, along with a 6-3 record in those games. QBs, RBs, and WRs that have been atop the NCAA leaderboards statistically. They’ve even been a bit of a TE factory with NFL veterans Tyler Higbee and Jack Doyle. And they’ve definitely been a QB factory, with Brandon Doughty, Mike White, and Bailey Zappe all getting drafted in the last 7 years.
Top 5 Seasons
Worst Season: 2009 (0-12 overall, 0-8 Sun Belt)
They were young—this team wasn’t completely devoid of talent. After a 7-63 opening loss to Tennessee, they were much more competitive by the end, losing 3 straight one-possession games to Sun Belt opponents. The defense was porous (119th in PPG allowed) and the offense wasn’t much better (104th in PPG), but they had a few players that would turn into something. RB Bobby Rainey ran for 939 yards and 6 TD on 6.5 YPC, but would rush for 1649 yards in 2010 and 1695 yards in 2011, winning Sun Belt POTY in 2010. TE Jack Doyle was 2nd on the team in receptions/receiving yards with 37 and 365, and would go on to play in the NFL from 2013-2021, making 2 Pro Bowls. Freshman QB Kawaun Jakes ended up being a 4-year starter and in his career, threw for 7538 yards 51 TD 38 INT and ran for 785 yards 14 TD.
5. 2022 (9-5 overall, 6-2 Conference USA)
2022 WKU had a Bailey Zappe-sized hole to fill at QB, which translated from college football terms, means about as big as you can get. Lucky for them, they got Austin Reed in the transfer portal. At Division II West Florida, Reed had led the Argonauts to the 2019 D2 title, and combined for 78 TD passes to just 20 INT in 2019/2021. He’d transition to the FBS level extremely well, throwing for 4746 yards 40 TD 11 INT in his first year with the Hilltoppers, winning C-USA Newcomer of the Year. WKU played well all year, finishing 3rd in C-USA, but they saved their best for last, going up 41-10 against 10-2 South Alabama in the bowl before winning 44-23. Reed was nearly flawless, throwing for 497 yards 4 TD 1 INT. Reed also looked good against the two P5 teams WKU played (Indiana and Auburn), combining for 618 passing yards 4 TD 3 INT.
4. 2019 (9-4 overall, 6-2 Conference USA)
Whereas 2022 Western Kentucky was all about offensive firepower, 2019 went heavy on the defense, ranking 22nd in the country giving up just 20.1 PPG. It was NOT a good start, losing 28-35 to Central Arkansas, but WKU would rebound to be a respectable 5-4 toward the end of the year. That’s when one of the best revenge stories of the season occurred. QB Ty Storey, who was at Arkansas for 4 years before transferring to Western Kentucky in 2019, returned to Fayetteville to try and exact revenge on coach Chad Morris. The details are murky, but Storey started a few games in 2018 but it appeared that Morris didn’t care for him as a starter all that much. On his return, Storey announced himself as the Chad Morris slayer, accounting for 290 yards of total offense and 3 TD in a 45-19 win. Morris was fired shortly after. As for Storey and WKU, they drove off into the sunset, winning their last 2 regular season games and bowl game to finish 9-4, and #42 in my rankings. DL DeAngelo Malone won C-USA DPOTY with 99 tackles 11 sacks 9.5 TFL. Tyson Helton won C-USA Coach of the Year.
3. 2021 (9-5 overall, 7-1 Conference USA)
What a year for Houston Bapti-I mean, Western Kentucky. QB Bailey Zappe, WR Jerreth Sterns, and offensive coordinator Zach Kittley all had great years for FCS Houston Baptist in 2020, and decided to join Western Kentucky for 2021. Zappe set an NCAA record for TDs in a season, throwing for 5967 yards 62 TD 11 INT!!! Sterns led the nation in all 3 receiving categories with 150 catches for 1902 yards and 17 TD! Kittley won 247Sports’ Offensive Coordinator of the Year, transforming WKU’s offense from 115th in PPG the previous year to 2nd in 2021. The offense was historic, even #2 WR Mitchell Tinsley had 87 catches for 1402 yards and 14 TD. I gotta give some credit to the big boys up front too: Offensive linemen Cole Spencer, Mason Brooks, Quantavious Leslie, and Boe Wilson all made the All-CUSA Team. Zappe won C-USA POTY, and DL DeAngelo Malone won his 2nd C-USA DPOTY award to go with his 2019 one. Malone and Zappe were drafted in the 3rd and 4th rounds of the 2022 NFL Draft after the year.
2. 2016 (11-3 overall, 7-1 Conference USA)
The two seasons left are Jeff Brohm’s final 2 years at WKU: 2015 and 2016. Narrowly finishing as the 2nd best season is 2016, where Western Kentucky finished #15 in my rankings. If there’s one thing Brohm knows, it’s offense. WKU ranked 1st in the nation with 45.5 PPG. This team was LOADED with offensive talent. QB Mike White completed 67% for 4363 yards 37 TD 7 INT. RB Anthony Wales ran for 1621 yards and 27 TD on 6.8 YPC. WR1 Taywan Taylor caught 98 balls for 1730 yards and 17 TD. WR2 Nicholas Morris added 76 catches for 1318 yards and 14 TD. 3 offensive linemen made 1st/2nd Team All-CUSA. Taylor and Norris are #1/#2 in school career receiving yards. Wales is #1 in school career total TD. White is #2 in career passing yards and TD. Lots of legends on this team. They finished top 15 for me because of forgivable losses (#1 Alabama, Vanderbilt in OT, Louisiana Tech which they avenged later), blowout wins (59-24 over 10-3 Old Dominion, 52-3 over FAU, 45-7 over North Texas, 60-6 over Marshall), and beating 4 other bowl teams (Miami (OH), Middle Tennessee, Louisiana Tech, Memphis). Western Kentucky won their 2nd straight Conference USA title, and Brohm left for Purdue after the season.
1. 2015 (12-2 overall, 8-0 Conference USA)
Brandon Doughty walked so Mike White and Bailey Zappe could run. QB Doughty arrived in 2011 to a team that was just 4-32 the 3 years prior. Doughty bided his time before getting a starting opportunity in 2013, throwing 14 TD 14 INT, then elevating to another level in 2014 with 49 TD 10 INT, winning C-USA POTY. In 2015, his senior year, he’d take it even further, completing 72% for 5055 yards 48 TD 9 INT on 9.4 YPA, winning his 2nd straight C-USA POTY Award. WKU started the year by outlasting Vanderbilt 14-12, and that would be the worst game they’d play all year offensively. After a 41-38 win over Louisiana Tech in their second game, Western Kentucky destroyed any C-USA opponent that stood in their way for the rest of the season, the smallest margin of victory being just 16 points. The 2 losses were 35-38 to Indiana and 20-48 to #5 LSU. WKU played well in both games, racking up 568 yards of offense against Indiana and 428 against LSU. Southern Miss would put up a good fight in the C-USA Title Game, going up 28-21 in the 3rd, but WKU would score the last 24 to win it 45-28. A 45-35 shootout win in the bowl against Quinton Flowers, Marlon Mack, and South Florida ended the year with a 12-2 record, a Conference USA title, and a #24 AP Ranking. 5 players were drafted into the NFL from this team over the next 2 years, including Doughty and Super Bowl champion TE Tyler Higbee.
5th Quarter
We did! We finally made it into the top 100! How would you rank Brandon Doughty, Mike White, and Bailey Zappe both production-wise and talent-wise? What do you think of Western Kentucky? Any good memories?
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