For each week of Western Kentucky's 2019 football season, Tyler Mansfield of InsideHilltopperSports.com will connect with a beat writer who covers the opposing team for a Q&A session.
For Game 7, Tyler chats with David Scott, who covers Charlotte for The Charlotte Observer in Cornelius, North Carolina.
WKU (4-2, 3-0 Conference USA) is coming off a 17-8 win last Saturday against Army and has won three straight.
Charlotte (2-4, 0-2) travels to Bowling Green after losing 48-23 last weekend at Florida International and has dropped three straight.
Kickoff time for the Homecoming game is slated for 3 p.m. Saturday at Houchens-Smith Stadium. It will be broadcast on ESPN+.
Tyler: Charlotte has dropped three straight games and is still searching for its first Conference USA win. How can you assess the way the 49ers have performed through their first six games of the season?
David: Charlotte's first four games went about as planned, beating Gardner-Webb and UMass and losing to Appalachian State and Clemson. The 49ers were competitive against App State (a 56-41 loss), which gave the program some hope that the 49ers could really compete against top-flight competition. But they've stumbled out of the gate in C-USA play, falling to FAU and FIU, allowing an average of 46.5 points in those two games. So, bottom line: after a somewhat promising start, there's a feeling the team has taken a step back as it's begun league play.
Tyler: When looking at Charlotte's roster, Benny LeMay is obviously one of the main names that stands out. He rushed for 144 yards and a touchdown last week at FIU and has recorded 100+ yards in four of the 49ers' six games this year. Just how special and talented is LeMay and what does he mean to the team?
David: Benny LeMay is having an C-USA player of the year kind of season. He's one of those backs who, while not being very big (5-9, 218) has that blend of power and speed, as well as an eye for finding holes in the line, that makes him so hard to defense. He's ranked first in the league in all-purpose yards (129.), rushing yards (622) and rushing yards per game (103.7) and is also second or third in yards per carry (6.48), rushing TDs (5) and total TDs (7). He's already got runs of 65, 58 and 48 yards this season.
Charlotte's passing attack, while pretty efficient at times under QB Chris Reynolds, isn't prolific, so having a back like LeMay is incredibly important. He's also become a dangerous weapon in the passing game, with 14 catches.
Tyler: Relating to LeMay, Charlotte's rushing attack has seemed to be the key to its offense thus far. Averaging 34 points and 408 yards per game as an overall unit, 218 of those yards come on the ground and the 49ers average 5.6 yards per attempt. What's your take on Charlotte's run game and the offense overall?
David: The offense revolves around LeMay, and his two backups are also dangerous. Aaron McAllister averages 5.9 yards per game and Ishod Finger averages 7.2. Reynolds has also been able (for the most part) to use a deep receiving corps to keep defenses honest. Three receivers -- Victor Tucker, Cam Dollar and true freshman Micaleous Elder -- have 13-plus catches. And Reynolds continues to also be a threat with his legs. In addition to his 952 yards passing, he's rushed for 268 yards (not counting sacks) and has scored three touchdowns.
