The 2016 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented
Western Kentucky University
Western Kentucky University is a public university in Bowling Green, Kentucky. It was founded by the Commonwealth of Kentucky in 1906, though its roots reach back a quarter-century earlier. It operates regional campuses in Glasgow, Elizabethtow ...
(WKU) in the
2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season
The 2016 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level of college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The regular season began on August 26, 2016 and ended on D ...
. The Hilltoppers played their home games at the
Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium in
Bowling Green
A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls.
Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep ...
,
Kentucky
Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia ...
, and competed in the East Division of
Conference USA (C–USA). They were led by third year head coach
Jeff Brohm
Jeffrey Scott Brohm (born April 24, 1971) is an American football coach and former quarterback, who is the current head football coach of the Louisville Cardinals. Brohm played college football at the University of Louisville for coach Howard Sc ...
. They finished the season 11–3, 7–1 in C-USA play to win a share of the East Division title with
Old Dominion
Old Dominion most commonly refers to:
*The Old Dominion, a nickname for the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia
** Colony of Virginia
*Old Dominion University, a public university in Norfolk, Virginia
**Old Dominion Monarchs, the athletic teams represe ...
. Due to their head-to-head victory over Old Dominion, Western Kentucky represented the East Division in the
Conference USA Championship Game where they defeated
Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activi ...
to be crowned C-USA champions. They were invited to the
Boca Raton Bowl
The Boca Raton Bowl is an annual National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sanctioned post-season Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) college football bowl game played in Boca Raton, Florida, since December 2014 on the campus of Fl ...
where they defeated
Memphis
Memphis most commonly refers to:
* Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt
* Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city
Memphis may also refer to:
Places United States
* Memphis, Alabama
* Memphis, Florida
* Memphis, Indiana
* Memp ...
. This team led the NCAA in Scoring Offense.
On December 5, head coach Jeff Brohm resigned to become the head coach at
Purdue. He finished at WKU with a record of 30–10, two bowl wins, and two C-USA titles. Defensive coordinator
Nick Holt led the Hilltoppers in the Boca Raton Bowl.
Schedule
Western Kentucky announced its 2016 football schedule on February 4, 2016. The 2016 schedule consisted of 6 home and away games in the regular season. The Hilltoppers hosted C–USA foes
Florida International (FIU),
North Texas
North Texas (also commonly called North Central Texas) is a term used primarily by residents of Dallas, Fort Worth, and surrounding areas to describe much of the north central portion of the U.S. state of Texas. Residents of the Dallas–Fort Wo ...
,
Old Dominion
Old Dominion most commonly refers to:
*The Old Dominion, a nickname for the U.S. Commonwealth of Virginia
** Colony of Virginia
*Old Dominion University, a public university in Norfolk, Virginia
**Old Dominion Monarchs, the athletic teams represe ...
, and
Rice
Rice is the seed of the grass species '' Oryza sativa'' (Asian rice) or less commonly ''Oryza glaberrima'' (African rice). The name wild rice is usually used for species of the genera '' Zizania'' and '' Porteresia'', both wild and domesticat ...
, and traveled to
Florida Atlantic,
Louisiana Tech
Louisiana Tech University (Louisiana Tech, La. Tech, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Ruston, Louisiana. It is part of the University of Louisiana System and classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activi ...
,
Marshall
Marshall may refer to:
Places
Australia
* Marshall, Victoria, a suburb of Geelong, Victoria
Canada
* Marshall, Saskatchewan
* The Marshall, a mountain in British Columbia
Liberia
* Marshall, Liberia
Marshall Islands
* Marshall Islands, an i ...
, and
Middle Tennessee
Middle Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of the U.S. state of Tennessee that composes roughly the central portion of the state. It is delineated according to state law as 41 of the state's 95 counties. Middle Tennessee contains the ...
.
Western Kentucky's four non-conference games included two home games against
Houston Baptist from the
Southland Conference
The Southland Conference, abbreviated as SLC, is a collegiate athletic conference which operates in the South Central United States (specifically Texas and Louisiana). It participates in the NCAA's Division I for all sports; for football, it ...
and
Vanderbilt from the
Southeastern Conference
The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is an American college athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central and Southeastern United States. Its fourteen members include the flagship public universities o ...
(SEC), and two road games against
Alabama
(We dare defend our rights)
, anthem = "Alabama"
, image_map = Alabama in United States.svg
, seat = Montgomery
, LargestCity = Huntsville
, LargestCounty = Baldwin County
, LargestMetro = Greater Birmingham
, area_total_km2 = 135,765 ...
from the SEC and
Miami (Ohio) from the
Mid-American Conference
The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region (North America), Great L ...
(MAC).
Game summaries
Rice
At Alabama
At Miami (OH)
Vanderbilt
Houston Baptist
At Louisiana Tech
At Middle Tennessee
Old Dominion
At Florida Atlantic
FIU
North Texas
At Marshall
Vs. Louisiana Tech–C-USA Championship Game
Vs. Memphis–Boca Raton Bowl
Rankings
References
Western Kentucky
Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state.
;Always included
* The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football seasons
Conference USA football champion seasons
Boca Raton Bowl champion seasons
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football
The Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football program is a college football team that represents Western Kentucky University. The team competes at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level and represents the university as a member of Confer ...
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