# 2019 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team

The 2019 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team (WKU) represented Western Kentucky University in the 2019 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Hilltoppers played their home games at the Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium in Bowling Green, Kentucky, as members of the East Division of Conference USA (C–USA). They were led by first-year head coach Tyson Helton.

## Preseason
### Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released
| Award | Player | Position | Year |
| Rimington Trophy | Seth Joest | C | JR |
| John Mackey Award | Kyle Fourtenbary | TE | JR |
| Outland Trophy | Miles Pate | T | SR |
| Wuerffel Trophy | Tyler Witt | OL | JR |

### Preseason media poll

The preseason poll was released prior to the Conference USA media days on July 17–18, 2019. The Hilltoppers were predicted to finish in fifth place in the C–USA East Division.
| Predicted finish | Team (1st Place Votes) |
| 1 | Marshall (14) |
| 2 | FIU (9) |
| 3 | Florida Atlantic (3) |
| 4 | Middle Tennessee |
| 5 | Western Kentucky |
| 6 | Old Dominion |
| 7 | Charlotte |

### Preseason All–Conference USA teams

2019 Preseason All-Conference USA
All-CUSA Offense :
| Position | Player | Class |
| OL | Miles Pate | Sr. |
All-CUSA Defense :
| Position | Player | Class |
| No players were selected |||
All-CUSA Special Teams :
| Position | Player | Class |
| No players were selected |||

## Schedule

| Date | Time | Opponent | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| August 29 | 6:30 p.m. | No. 25 (FCS) Central Arkansas* | Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith StadiumBowling Green, KY | ESPN+ | L 28–35 | 17,120 |
| September 7 | 6:00 p.m. | at FIU | Riccardo Silva StadiumMiami, FL | ESPN+ | W 20–14 | 13,311 |
| September 14 | 3:00 p.m. | vs. Louisville* | Nissan StadiumNashville, TN | Stadium | L 21–38 | 22,665 |
| September 28 | 6:00 p.m. | UAB | Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith StadiumBowling Green, KY | ESPN+ | W 20–13 | 20,304 |
| October 5 | 5:00 p.m. | at Old Dominion | S.B. Ballard StadiumNorfolk, VA | ESPN+ | W 20–3 | 18,405 |
| October 12 | 6:00 p.m. | Army* | Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith StadiumBowling Green, KY | Stadium | W 17–8 | 16,107 |
| October 19 | 3:00 p.m. | Charlotte | Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith StadiumBowling Green, KY | ESPN+ | W 30–14 | 15,816 |
| October 26 | 1:30 p.m. | at Marshall | Joan C. Edwards StadiumHuntington, WV | Stadium Facebook | L 23–26 | 22,099 |
| November 2 | 3:00 p.m. | Florida Atlantic | Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith StadiumBowling Green, KY | ESPN+ | L 24–35 | 14,212 |
| November 9 | 11:00 a.m. | at Arkansas* | Donald W. Reynolds Razorback StadiumFayetteville, AR | SECN | W 45–19 | 42,985 |
| November 23 | 2:30 p.m. | at Southern Miss | M. M. Roberts StadiumHattiesburg, MS | ESPN+ | W 28–10 | 20,369 |
| November 30 | 1:00 p.m. | Middle Tennessee | Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith StadiumBowling Green, KY (100 Miles of Hate) | ESPN+ | W 31–26 | 7,589 |
| December 30 | 11:30 a.m. | vs. Western Michigan | Gerald J. Ford StadiumDallas, TX (First Responder Bowl) | ESPN | W 23–20 | 13,164 |
| *Non-conference gameHomecomingRankings from AP Poll and College Football Playoff Rankings after November 5 released prior to gameAll times are in Central time |||||||

## Game summaries
### Central Arkansas

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Bears | 0 | 14 | 0 | 21 | 35 |
| Hilltoppers | 14 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 28 |

### At FIU

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 7 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 20 |
| Panthers | 7 | 0 | 7 | 0 | 14 |

### Vs. Louisville

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 0 | 7 | 7 | 7 | 21 |
| Cardinals | 7 | 24 | 7 | 0 | 38 |

### UAB

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Blazers | 3 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 13 |
| Hilltoppers | 3 | 10 | 0 | 7 | 20 |

### At Old Dominion

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 0 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 20 |
| Monarchs | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 3 |

### Army

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Black Knights | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 8 |
| Hilltoppers | 7 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 17 |

### Charlotte

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| 49ers | 7 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Hilltoppers | 7 | 10 | 13 | 0 | 30 |

### At Marshall

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 0 | 7 | 6 | 10 | 23 |
| Thundering Herd | 14 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 26 |

### Florida Atlantic

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Owls | 0 | 21 | 7 | 7 | 35 |
| Hilltoppers | 14 | 0 | 7 | 3 | 24 |

### At Arkansas

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 14 | 21 | 3 | 7 | 45 |
| Razorbacks | 7 | 0 | 0 | 12 | 19 |

### At Southern Miss

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Hilltoppers | 7 | 14 | 0 | 7 | 28 |
| Golden Eagles | 7 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 |

### Middle Tennessee

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Blue Raiders | 3 | 10 | 0 | 13 | 26 |
| Hilltoppers | 3 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 31 |

### Vs. Western Michigan (First Responder Bowl)

| | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Broncos | 3 | 7 | 7 | 3 | 20 |
| Hilltoppers | 0 | 10 | 0 | 13 | 23 |