HILLTOPPERS RACE TO 27-7 HALFTIME LEAD; WKU TAKES 4-2 OVERALL RECORD TO SAM HOUSTON STATE

You could see it in their eyes, once the task at hand was completed.

Western Kentucky’s football team was in control on Thursday night against the University of Texas-El Paso, yet another Conference USA opponent that will soon be leaving for greener pastures.

UTEP arrived as one of Conference USA’s two winless programs, along with league newcomer Kennesaw State, and the Miners were 19.5-point underdogs for their last trip to Bowling Green before moving on to the Mountain West Conference for the 2026-27 school year.

Western Kentucky was clearly the better team, but the Hilltoppers had to negotiate some downturns before scoring the game’s final 17 points in a 44-17 victory over the Miners.

Twelve days removed from a gut-wrenching defeat, a 21-20 loss to Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts, the Hilltoppers needed a strong bounce-back game to prepare for the stretch run of the season.

Sophomore WKU quarterback Caden Veltkamp completed 18 of 27 passes for 264 yards and three touchdowns, adding another TD on a 2-yard scoring run in the second quarter, as the Hilltoppers improved to 4-2 overall and 2-0 C-USA play.

UTEP, meanwhile, dropped to 0-6 overall and 0-3 against C-USA opponents.

“Good conference win tonight,” WKU coach Tyson Helton said when it was over. “A lot of things we can build off, for sure. At times, it was not pretty. We’ve got a quick turnaround coming up with Sam Houston, so we’ve got to turn this page and get going with them.

“(We) celebrate all wins – we’re very happy to win this game, but we need to get a lot better and we need to get a lot better real fast.”

Veltkamp, the former South Warren High School star, made a similar observation.

“It was all right. We played a little sloppy in the first half,” Veltkamp said. “… There were a couple times, in the red zone, where we didn’t execute and that was a point of emphasis for us this week.

“We need to be better in that area again next week, because we’re going to have to score some points. Sam Houston’s got a good team.”

Sam Houston State (5-1, 2-0 in C-USA), the former FCS national power, has an open date this weekend before the Bearkats play host to WKU next Wednesday night in Huntsville, Texas.

The Hilltoppers used former WKU linebacker Desmyn Baker’s late interception in the end zone to hold off the Bearkats, 28-23, last year at Houchens-Smith Stadium.

“It’s a good win, but there’s more left in the tank,” WKU junior defensive back Upton Stout said Thursday night.

Western Kentucky struck first, with junior quarterback Caden Veltkamp finding Hilltoppers wideout Dalvin Smith in the left corner of the end zone for a nifty 30-yard touchdown pass. Lucas Carneiro added the PAT and the Hilltoppers had bolted to a 7-0 lead.

A breakdown in the WKU secondary, just 38 seconds later, allowed the Miners to tie it up, with junior quarterback Cade McConnell finding wide receiver Kenny Odoms on a quick hitch pattern that went for a 68-yard touchdown pass. Odom made an inside move off the block of another UTEP wide receiver and beat the Hilltoppers’ pursuit in the middle of the field. UTEP added the extra point to tie the game at 7,

WKU’s offense endured a turnover in the red zone before getting the ball back and scoring in the final three minutes of the first quarter.

Senior WKU receiver Michael Mathison scored on a jet sweep from 12 yards out to put the Hilltoppers in front, 14-7, and Carneiro drilled a 25-yard field goal in the opening moments of the second quarter to extend the Tops’ lead to 17-7.

Veltkamp added his 2-yard TD run to push the Hilltoppers in front, 24-7, before sophomore placekicker Lucas Carneiro drilled a 42-yard field goal on the final play of the first half. Carneiro connected on a 54-yard field goal in the fourth quarter for the final points of the night.

“Lucas got a game ball tonight,” WKU coach Tyson Helton said with a smile.

UTEP’s McConnell gave way to backup quarterback Skyler Locklear for the second half, and Locklear struggled to sustain drives against a steady WKU pass rush and improved tackling in the open field. The Miners’ only points after halftime came on Corey Wren’s 100-yard kickoff return to open the third quarter, and Buzz Flabiano’s 42-yard field goal that made it 27-17.

WKU’s Michael Mathison scored the game’s final two touchdowns, first on a 14-yard pass from Caden Veltkamp late in the third quarter and then on a 3-yard TD pass from Veltkamp early in the fourth quarter.

WKU’s Easton Messer led the Tops with six receptions for 106 yards, while senior running back Elijah Young carried the ball 16 times for 60 yards. Veltkamp was often effective when he broke the pocket and he picked up a critical first-down on a scramble that covered 25 yards in the third quarter.

“If I have to run the ball, that’s what I’m going to do,” Veltkamp said.

Tyson Helton, WKU’s seventh-year head coach, preferred to look at the big picture as the Hilltoppers begin a short work week before next week’s road trip to play Sam Houston State in Huntsville, Texas.

“This is the time of year that you’ve got to be critical of yourself,” Helton said. “We’re happy to get this win, but we’re going to have to come back tomorrow morning ready to go to work.”