Catamounts’ high-powered, record-setting offense picked up where it left off as WCU opened the new season against Eastern Kentucky on Saturday, Aug. 29, setting a record-high 45-21 victory and getting one step closer to leading the all-time series against EKU at 5-4 WCU.
It was also a christening of $40 million in athletics facility upgrades at the E.J. Whitmire Stadium, the debut of the Phillips Football Center, with a Nike black-uniform debut, free T-shirts for the first 3,500 fans, a postgame drone light show, and a full house with 13,482 fans watching the game.
New starting quarterback Lex Thomas needed one half to settle in and one half to take over. By the time the Catamounts closed out their win, Thomas had accounted for five total touchdowns — three passing, two rushing — in a debut that instantly validated coach Kerwin Bell’s decision to hand him the job just days before kickoff.
Western Carolina picked the perfect way to open a new era — and a new rivalry. The Catamounts’ landslide win over Eastern Kentucky was the first chapter in a fresh home-and-home series between the two programs, and it left no doubt which team has the early edge.
Catamounts opened the non-conference game on a grim note when EKU quarterback Tyler Travers connected on six passes before finding Elijah Caldwell for an 18-yard touchdown pass with 9:38 left in the first quarter, giving the Colonels a 7–0 lead. But Catamounts found an opening when Thomas hit A.J. Colombo for a 15-yard TD catch, followed by a 34-yard Bryan McCollum field goal to tie the game 7–7 with 15 seconds left in the first half. Travers found Brayden Latham for a 9-yard touchdown with 1:57 left in the half, extending EKU’s lead to 14–10.
However, even when all hopes of Southern Conference recognition seemed lost, the Catamounts had an offensive surge when Ja’Torian Mack forced a fumble at midfield. Nassor Ashenafi recovered it, setting up Lex Thomas’ second TD pass to Josh Perry for a 31–14 lead. In the 4th quarter, Thomas added a 15-yard rushing touchdown. Marceille Taylor, who holds WCU’s career tackles record, forced a late turnover, helping WCU hold EKU to just 65 rushing yards on 29 carries — 2.2 yards per attempt — while recording three sacks and forcing two turnovers. Western Carolina finished with 508 yards of offense, scored on all six of its red-zone trips without committing a turnover.
At the post-game press conference, Thomas commented on the second half.
“I mean, I just think we started a little slow, if I’m being honest,” Thomas said. “There’s a lot of new players. There’s a lot of moving pieces…everyone has to be on the same page, and I feel like once, you know, once we got going in the third quarter, it was only a matter of time before we started scoring.” Thomas is ranked as the No. 27 player in the state according to 247Sports.
Head coach Kerwin Bell commented on the preparations made in the off-season that made Saturday’s victory possible.
“So, we try and reinvent the game in practice and put them [the players] in situations…,” Bell said. “…Where they can learn how to counter certain strategies or even just work on their weak points so that, on the day, we can work around gaps in the defense/offense on the fly.”
Hear what Bell said in the post-game press conference with the Western Carolina Journalist, specifying the preparation and mindset heading into this new season as WCU prepares to face Campbell in the first away game of the season.
The audience was happy with the result despite the slow start in the first half of the game.
“Not gonna lie, I thought we [Western Carolina Catamounts] were screwed after EKU’s touchdown in the first half,” audience member and WCU senior Jacob Smith said. “But I think after last year’s complaints with the defense, we really stepped things up with our offensive line and that’s what saved our asses.”
Smith saw the last game WCU had with EKU in 2023 in Richmond, KY, with WCU barely pulling off the victory in the last half with 27-24. Smith reflected that the Catamounts needed that experience to dominate this season compared to last time.
See below for more reactions from the fans.
It’s also worth noting the performance of the award-winning Pride of the Mountains marching band with their up‑tempo pop and funk‑rock medleys with electric guitars, singers, and percussion. Their elaborate field show choreography blended marching, dancing, and visual effects to give a jolt to the atmosphere that hyped up the stands.
Immediately after the game, over 100 drones took to the sky to the north of the E.J. Whitmire Stadium, almost directly above the galleries, with animations including the official WCU Catamount logo opening its mouth for a fierce roar, a purple and gold football being passed around, and a depiction of one of our marching band members wearing purple and gold tapping a snare drum. This marked the first sports-affiliated drone show in the history of WCU athletics.
WCU’s next game is an away game against Campbell on Sept. 5 at 3:30 p.m. at the Barker-Lane Stadium in Buies Creek, North Carolina.
Bell also commented on how this win prepared them for the Catamounts’ next upcoming game with Campbell.
“They came in here two years ago and beat us at home, and then we had a tough time beating them down there…” Bell said. “…So, to go back to their place; their coaches do a good job, their players do a good job, great personnel, etc. We gotta make sure we don’t have a letdown not playing in front of our student body, our fans, and this atmosphere here; we have to still go and put on a good show and make sure we’re ready to play even without all of those things.”
