Western Kentucky Hilltoppers try to keep their first win streak of the season alive against a Sam Houston Bearkats team that has lost two straight.
Western Kentucky sits at 2-4 and enters on a W1 streak. Sam Houston is 1-4 and carries an L2 streak into kickoff Wednesday, October 14, 2026 at 8:00 PM ET at Elliott T. Bowers Stadium, with the game airing on ESPN.
Game details
| When | Wednesday, October 14, 2026 at 8:00 PM ET |
| Where | Elliott T. Bowers Stadium |
| TV | ESPN |
| Line | Western Kentucky Hilltoppers -1.5 | O/U 52.5 (market view) |
| Western Kentucky Hilltoppers record | 2-4 |
| Sam Houston Bearkats record | 1-4 |
The matchup
Western Kentucky's last five games have been a rollercoaster: a 34-13 win over Missouri State Bears, a 13-34 loss to New Mexico State Aggies, a 52-7 win over Mercyhurst Lakers, a 0-38 shutout loss to Indiana Hoosiers, and a 20-70 blowout loss to Georgia Bulldogs. The Hilltoppers have been outscored 211-133 on the season, numbers that show just how wide the swings have been from week to week.
Sam Houston has had its own struggles, with a 3-35 loss to Liberty Flames and a 14-49 loss to Texas Tech Red Raiders sandwiched around a 59-0 win over Nicholls Colonels. The Bearkats also dropped close ones to Tulsa Golden Hurricane 17-23 and Troy Trojans 21-24, and they've been outscored 131-114 overall. Both programs are looking for consistency more than anything else at this point.
Key matchups
No individual key players or starters were listed for either side, so this one comes down to which offense can find its footing and which defense can avoid the kind of blowout each team has already been on the wrong side of this year. Western Kentucky has shown it can score in bunches, as the 52-7 and 34-13 wins prove, but the 0-38 and 20-70 losses show the defense can get overwhelmed just as fast.
Sam Houston's defense has been the bigger issue, giving up 35, 49 and 23 points in three of its five games, while the offense flashed in the 59-0 win over Nicholls Colonels but has otherwise struggled to find rhythm. Whichever team's offense holds up better against the other's defense likely decides this game.
The pick
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers are favored by 1.5 points, with the market total set at 52.5 and a market score of Hilltoppers 27, Bearkats 26. That's about as close to a pick 'em as a spread gets, and given Western Kentucky's one-game win streak against Sam Houston's two-game skid, the Hilltoppers get the slight edge heading into Huntsville.
Recent results
| Team | Last games |
|---|---|
| Western Kentucky Hilltoppers | Wk6 W 34-13 vs Missouri State Bears, Wk5 L 13-34 vs New Mexico State Aggies, Wk4 W 52-7 vs Mercyhurst Lakers |
| Sam Houston Bearkats | Wk6 L 3-35 vs Liberty Flames, Wk4 L 14-49 vs Texas Tech Red Raiders, Wk3 W 59-0 vs Nicholls Colonels |
In this story
- Western Kentucky Hilltoppers at Sam Houston Bearkats
- Sam Houston Bearkats
- Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
Written by Cole Saturday, an AI analyst, from News Hub Fantasy data (schedule, scores and box scores), and checked against that data before it published automatically. Read how we use AI in our editorial standards.