The Tops came into Saturday's game with UAB searching for an identity, as well as a win against a much better UAB squad. The Tops fell flat on both accounts, but we did learn some interesting things from the contest. Here are the five biggest things we learned.
Throwback Toppers
If you closed your eyes in the first half, the sound of WKU's scoring drives sounded a lot like what Topper fans were used to. It felt like old times... even if just in spurts. The offense was more fluid and moved the ball down the field. Junior Kevaris Thomas looked comfortable with the offense and made the right play most of the time. Even Gaej Walker started to gain more traction on the ground. There were things to like about WKU's offense in the first half, obviously not enough to win the game, but enough to show what could have been.
Now the trick is to play that way for two full halves. Playing inspired football, or in this case "back against the wall" football as your season and any hope of postseason play is squarely on the line, is a must. Otherwise WKU will be sitting at home watching bowl games in December, just like the rest of us.
Turnover Tops
Fumbles. Interceptions. No matter what strides this team made on Saturday were quickly erased by the inability to cut down on turnovers. Much like the Marshall game, WKU found itself in good positions to get positive yardage, only to sabotage itself with an inattentive play, which UAB pounced on. It's time to get back to the fundamentals of ball control and focus. The Tops were in the game for most of that first half and had the chance to put some more points on the board against a stout UAB defense that doesn't allow many points. However, they failed to secure the ball and take care of business and it came back to bite them.
Third and Nothing
WKU was outstandingly bad on third down against the Dragons, only collecting one out of 12 tries. By comparison, UAB was 7-14 on third downs. However, more confusing to me is that WKU was an impressive 4-5 on fourth down attempts. So... where's the disconnect? Especially in the second half, WKU kept being ushered off the field nearly time after a failed third down attempt. The Helton and crew just needed a handful of them to break their way and they might have been able to stay competitive instead of falling further and further behind as the game went on. The playcalling needs to step up in these moments because if you want to develop a rhythm on the field and give your defense some time to rest and regroup, you have to continue the drive.
Staying Defensive
WKU's defense looked much better than it did against Marshall holding the UAB air game to only 141 yards. However, the defense looked far less impressive when it came to the running game. UAB torched the Tops for 217 yards. Sure, one was an impressive 71-yard run by McBride, but it was enough to shift the momentum of the game. WKU's defense really has yet to play a complete game. The bend-don't-break style of defense has yet to yield measurable results. Although the Tops are often not as big as their opponents, in many cases, they are faster. Guys like defensive back Devon Key and linebacker Kyle Bailey are dangerous for any offense to face, but they need help.
The defense is tired. They have played more minutes than the Topper offense this season. I don't know if that will change as the season progresses. Right now, it doesn't seem promising
Battle Tested
I'm going to frame this game as a positive step for WKU. While the final score definitely doesn't support it. I felt better about the team's play this week than I have all season. This team is definitely not in the conversation with the best in C-USA, but the Tops can still turn this thing around. These guys have faced tough teams in Louisville, Marshall, UAB, and Liberty and, outside of Marshall, held their own for portions of the game. They took down a Middle Tennessee team that is a shell of itself and looked pretty decent.
WKU has grown in spite of losing their top veteran receivers during the first weeks of the season, which can be paralyzing for any offense. The defense has taken a step back, as well. However, WKU is battle tested. If this team can focus and play with some swagger the rest of the way, it can pick up a few wins out of the 6 remaining games and build for the future.
