The Western Carolina Catamounts football program represents
Western Carolina University
Western Carolina University (WCU) is a public university in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina system.
The fifth oldest institution of the sixteen four-year universities in the UNC system, WCU was founded t ...
Southern Conference
The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly ...
. Since the school's first football team was fielded in 1931, the Catamounts have a record of 341-502-23, have made two postseason appearances, and have played in one national championship game.
Western Carolina plays its home games at the 13,742 seat
Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium
Bob Waters Field at E. J. Whitmire Stadium is a 13,742-seat football stadium in Cullowhee, North Carolina. It opened in 1974 and is home to the Western Carolina University Western Carolina Catamounts, Catamounts college football, football Western ...
Western Carolina has had 14 head coaches since the first team was organized in 1931.
Kerwin Bell
Kerwin Douglas Bell (born June 15, 1965) is an American football coach and former player who has been the head coach of the Western Carolina Catamounts football team since 2021. Bell was born in the rural North Central Florida town of Live Oak, ...
, the current head coach, was hired on April 27, 2021.
Bob Waters
Robert Lee Waters (June 22, 1938 – May 29, 1989) was an American football player, coach, and administrator, best known for his contributions to athletics at Western Carolina University. Waters coached the Western Carolina Catamounts football tea ...
(1969–1988) holds the record for most wins (116), longest tenure (20 seasons), and highest winning percentage (.550) among all former Western Carolina coaches.
C.C. Poindexter, often called the "Father of Western Carolina Athletics", was instrumental in organizing the first football team in 1931. Then the Western Carolina Teacher's College, Poindexter was the first person hired by the college to work exclusively in athletics and became the first athletic director and football coach. He would later lead the baseball and basketball programs as well.
Postseason
* 1949 - The 1949 Western Carolina Catamounts, coached by Tom Young, completed their regular season 8–2, winning the North State Conference championship. Western Carolina was then invited to play West Liberty State in the Smokey Mountain Bowl in
Bristol, Tennessee
Bristol is a city in the State of Tennessee. Located in Sullivan County, its population was 26,702 at the 2010 census. It is the twin city of Bristol, Virginia, which lies directly across the state line between Tennessee and Virginia. The ...
. The Catamounts fell short 20–0.
*1974 - The 1974 Western Carolina Catamounts, coached by Bob Waters, completed their regular season 9–1, earning a birth to the 1974 NCAA Division II playoff. The Catamounts had wins over ranked opponents
Indiana State
Indiana State University (ISU) is a public university in Terre Haute, Indiana. It was founded in 1865 and offers over 100 undergraduate majors and more than 75 graduate and professional programs. Indiana State is classified among "D/PU: Doctor ...
and
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 ...
during the season. They then traveled to No.1 ranked Louisiana Tech where they were defeated 10–7.
*1983 - The 1983 Western Carolina Catamounts, coached by Bob Waters, completed their regular season 8-2-1, earning a birth to the 1983 NCAA Division I-AA playoffs. The Catamounts then hosted their first ever playoff game against Colgate, winning 24–23. Western Carolina then traveled to No.2 seed Holy Cross, where they upset the Crusaders 28–21. In the semifinals, they beat No.3 seed, and Southern Conference rival, Furman 14–7. In the 1983 Division I-AA National Championship Game at Hagood Stadium in
Charleston, South Carolina
Charleston is the largest city in the U.S. state of South Carolina, the county seat of Charleston County, and the principal city in the Charleston–North Charleston metropolitan area. The city lies just south of the geographical midpoint o ...
, the Catamounts fell to No.1 seed
Southern Illinois
Southern Illinois, also known as Little Egypt, is the southern third of Illinois, principally along and south of Interstate 64. Although part of a Midwestern United States, Midwestern state, this region is aligned in culture more with that of th ...
43–7.
Classifications
*1973–1976: NCAA Division II
*1977: NCAA Division I
*1978–1981: NCAA Division I–A
*1982–present: NCAA Division I–AA
Conference memberships
*1931–1932: Independent
*1933–1960:
North State Conference
Conference Carolinas, formerly known as the Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference (CVAC) or the Carolinas Conference, is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) primarily at the Divisio ...
*1961–1967:
Conference Carolinas
Conference Carolinas, formerly known as the Carolinas-Virginia Athletic Conference (CVAC) or the Carolinas Conference, is a college athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) primarily at the Divisio ...
*1968–1972: Independent
*1973–1976: NCAA Division II Independent
*1977–present:
Southern Conference
The Southern Conference (SoCon) is a collegiate athletic conference affiliated with the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I. Southern Conference football teams compete in the Football Championship Subdivision (formerly ...
Also members of the
Smoky Mountain Conference The Smoky Mountain Conference – officially the Smoky Mountain Athletic Conference – was an intercollegiate athletic conference that existed from December 1926 to October 1966. Most teams in the league were located in Tennessee, and there were a ...
starting in 1934.
Playoff appearances
NCAA Division I-AA/FCS
The Catamounts have appeared in the I-AA/FCS playoffs one time, with an overall record of 3–1.
NCAA Division II
The Catamounts made one appearance in the Division II playoffs, with a combined record of 0–1.
Rivalries
Appalachian State - Battle for the Old Mountain Jug
The main rivalry of the Catamounts was against their in-state rival
Appalachian State
Appalachian State University (; Appalachian, App State, App, or ASU) is a public university in Boone, North Carolina. It was founded as a teachers college in 1899 by brothers B. B. and D. D. Dougherty and the latter's wife, Lillie Shull Dough ...
. Western Carolina and Appalachian State played annually for the Old Mountain Jug. The two rivals first faced off in 1932, with Appalachian State winning 20–0. The Old Mountain Jug trophy was first introduced in 1976. After Appalachian State moved to the
Football Bowl Subdivision
The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...
in 2014, the two have not met since. Appalachian State leads the series 58–19–1. Appalachian State's Biggest win is 54-7 in 1939 and Western Carolina's Biggest win is 44-14 in 1977.
Catamounts in the NFL
Future non-conference opponents
Announced schedules as of December 8, 2022.
See also
*
Western Carolina Catamounts
The Western Carolina Catamounts are the intercollegiate athletics teams that represent Western Carolina University. The Catamounts compete in the NCAA Division I as members of the Southern Conference. Western Carolina fields 16 varsity sports te ...