Veltkamp shines as WKU wins again

BOWLING GREEN — The Western Kentucky football team is, in a word, rolling — and Hilltopper fans will enjoy a happy Halloween because of it.

Caden Veltkamp tossed two touchdown passes and George Hart ran for another score in a 21-point first quarter, and the Hilltoppers went on to defeat visiting Kennesaw State 31-14 in a Conference USA football game Wednesday night before 14,547 fans at Houchens/Smith Stadium.

Surging WKU improved to 6-2 overall and a front-running 4-0 in CUSA in posting its third consecutive victory. Kennesaw State, which pulled off a major upset over Liberty last week, fell to 1-7 in all games and 1-3 within the league.

In addition, WKU became FBS bowl-eligible for the sixth straight season under head coach Tyson Helton, and for the 10th time in the last 11 seasons.

“We did a lot of good things tonight and I’m really happy for our football team,” Helton said. “Kennesaw came in here after upsetting Liberty and we needed to have a pro mentality and have our jaws set for this one, and that’s exactly what we got from our football team — I’m very proud of the way we responded to this challenge.

“Our running game was working so well that it opened up the passing game for Caden very early on, allowing us to gain the early lead and momentum — we’re really finding our groove, offensively, and the balance we’ve developed is making us much more difficult to defend.”

The Hilltoppers started fast, marching 79 yards in eight plays on the game’s first possession, with backup tight end Trevor Borland hauling in a 5-yard scoring pass from Veltkamp to put WKU up 7-0 at 11:54.

Midway through the opening period, the Owls pulled even when running back Michael Benefield bolted 37 yards untouched on his way to paydirt.

Western answered immediately, driving 75 yards in only five plays to reclaim…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/veltkamp-shines-wku-wins-again-091600286.html

Author : Messenger-Inquirer, Owensboro, Ky.

Publish date : 2024-10-31 09:16:00

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