Game #7 - Samford

For their seventh game of the season, the Catamounts remain on the road and travel to Birmingham, AL.

Last season the Cats broke an eleven game winning streak owned by the Bulldogs over our Cats. Since Samford joined the Southern Conference in 2008, Western is 1-7 against the Bulldogs.

When: Saturday, October 22nd - Time  7:00 pm  ET

Where: Seibert Stadium, Birmingham, AL

Radio: Catamount Sports Network

TV:  American Sports Network (ASN)    - sorry Cat fans, this one is on ASN and will not be streamed on video.  

The Series: The Cats are 2-11 overall against the Bulldogs since winning the first outing back in 1969. Samford owned an eleven game winning streak against Western until last year when the Cats broke that winning streak in Cullowhee with a 56-36 win over the Dogs.   

Game Notes:    Western Carolina    -       Samford         

Last Season's Game vs. Samford:     October 24, 2015

Catamounts Claim Homecoming Game over Samford, 56-36   -    Corey Holloway rushed for two touchdowns and Karnorris Benson tallied a pair of receiving scores as Western Carolina powered past the Samford Bulldogs, 56-36, on Saturday afternoon in Southern Conference play at E.J. Whitmire Stadium / Bob Waters Field. The Catamounts claimed their fourth-straight seasonal victory, winning their third-consecutive Homecoming game. WCU (5-2, 3-1 SoCon), which never trailed on Saturday, scored on five of its seven second half possessions including three-consecutive touchdowns to grab a 26-point lead early in the fourth quarter. Spearman Robinson capped scoring with a 49-yard kickoff return for a touchdown on an on-side kick attempt to provide the final tally.

This Season's Record (Samford):  5-1 overall,  3-0 home, 2-1 away  (3-1 SoCon)  - The Hatch attack seems to have bloomed this season in Birmingham. Other than a breakdown against the Mocs in Chattanooga, the Bulldogs have pretty much breezed through their schedule. with wins over Mars Hill, Central Arkansas, Wofford, Furman and VMI.  

Offensive Formation: Multiple

Defensive Formation:  4-3

2015 Samford Statistics (6 games): 
Rushing Offense: 473 yards
Yards per game: 79
Yards per rush: 3 yards
TDs rushing: 7
Passing Offense: 2165 yards or 361 yards per game
Passing Comp-Att-Int: 190-263-4
Total Offense: 2638 yards or 440 yards per game
Passing 1st downs: 89
Rushing 1st downs: 31
Fumbles-Lost: 8 - 4
3d Down Conversions: 25 of 81
4th Down Conversions: 5 of 9

In conference play, the Bulldogs lead the SoCon in scoring offence with an average of 62 points per game while the Cats are in eight place with a 23 point average. The Bulldogs are giving up only 24 points per game, good enough for 4th place, while Western is in last place a 34.3 points per game. The one place the Cats win the statistical match up is rushing offense, averaging 114 yards per game, while the dogs are averaging only 79 yards on the ground. Both teams have potent passing games, coming in at 1 &2 in the conference standing.  Samford leads the conference with 361 yards passing per game, with the Cats in #2 at 284 yards per game.

Samford's sophomore quarterback Devlin Hodges earned his third-straight SoCon Offensive Player of the Week honor against VMI.  In Saturday's 55-21 win over the Keydets, Hodges completed 35-of-50 passes for a career-high 435 yards, Hodges tied a career high with five touchdown passes in the win, as he connected on touchdown passes from 3, 5, 7, 9 and 16 yards out. For the season, Hodges leads the SoCon and ranks third nationally with 345.0 passing yards per contest. His 22 touchdown passes on the season rank third in FCS. He has completed 180-of-249 passes for 2,070 yards, 22 touchdowns and four interceptions.

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