By Jeff Nations, Bowling Green Daily News

The return of the longstanding football rivalry between in-state rivals Eastern Kentucky and Western Kentucky, dubbed the “Battle of the Bluegrass,” is set for Saturday at Houchens-Smith Stadium, but the two programs were already skirmishing over uniforms on Wednesday.

The Hilltoppers released a statement on the WKU Football official X (formerly Twitter) social media account Wednesday announcing the planned “White Out” home opener theme had hit a snag when EKU refused to allow the hosts to wear white helmets, uniforms and pants for the game despite WKU announcing its plans to do so in July.

” … EKU informed us on Tuesday of this week that they would be exercising their right as the visiting team to wear white uniforms, thus forcing us to wear red jerseys on Saturday,” the statement read in part. “Per NCAA rules, both teams must agree to a uniform switch. We were hoping EKU would agree to allow us to wear white on Saturday, as many other opponents have in past years.”

WKU encouraged fans in attendance to carry on with the “White Out” theme by wearing white on Saturday.

Shortly after that statement from WKU, EKU revealed its game-day uniform for Saturday with its own social media post – the Colonels will wear white jerseys and pants, with a maroon helmet.

Saturday’s 6 p.m. matchup at Houchens-Smith Stadium is the first meeting since 2017 between the former longtime Ohio Valley Conference rivals. WKU left the OVC after the 2000 season and moved up to the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) in 2009, while EKU remained at the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) level with meetings between the programs sporadic in the following years.

WKU leads the all-time series 48-35-3 and won the last meeting in 2017, a 31-17 victory for the Hilltoppers in the only matchup against the Colonels since the program moved up to the FBS level. WKU has won the last three meetings against EKU and has a 33-13-1 home record against the Colonels. The Hilltoppers have faced EKU more than any other opponent in football.

Both teams opened their seasons with lopsided road losses to Southeastern Conference opponents this past Saturday – the Tops dropped a 63-0 decision to No. 5 Alabama, while EKU lost 56-7 at Mississippi State.

“Got a really good opponent in EKU,” said WKU head coach Tyson Helton, who will be facing the Colonels for the first time. “Coach (Walt) Wells, their head coach, I know him very well, good coach, good team. I’m very familiar with coach Wells and their staff and there’s a lot of connections to Western Kentucky and EKU. It should be a really, really good game. It’s just great to get back home and get an opportunity to play this first home game.”

BARRY’S TIME

WKU redshirt sophomore Moussa Barry is starting to make quick starts a trend, even if it isn’t intentional.

Last season, Barry – a walk-on transfer from NCAA Division II Mars Hill – debuted in spectacular fashion for the Hilltoppers by hauling in a 51-yard touchdown pass from Austin Reed. It was the go-ahead score midway in the third quarter of the Tops’ 41-24 win against South Florida in the 2023 home opener.

“I remember that play – it was a stop-and-go,” Barry said. “It was a very exciting moment for me because it was my first collegiate touchdown.”

The 6-foot-2 native of Dacula, Georgia, soon went from that moment – who’s Moussa Barry? – to more of a modest role in the Tops offense. He finished the season with nine receptions for 145 yards and a touchdown – still enough to garner Conference USA Freshman Team honors.

Barry entered the NCAA transfer portal after the season, but returned to play for the Hilltoppers this season.

“When I first went in the portal, Western Kentucky was the only school that welcomed me in, showed me love,” Barry said. “And I saw how coach Helton worked – he played me as a walk-on freshman. I talked to coach Helton and he wanted me to come back, so I came back and ultimately it was the best decision I’ve made.”

Barry was one of the few bright spots in the Tops’ season-opening loss to Alabama at Bryant-Denny Stadium, finishing with a team-high four catches for 27 yards. The goal now is to continue that production throughout the season.

“It’s not like a first game of the season thing,” Barry said. “It’s kind of like its just me putting in the work and I guess God paying it off on the field.”

LOCAL TIES

The Colonels feature a number of familiar faces on their roster and on the coaching staff heading into Saturday’s matchup with the Tops.

Five former area standouts are on the EKU roster this season – defensive back Vito Tisdale (Bowling Green), defensive lineman Brad Gurley (Bowling Green), linebacker Braxton Baptiste (Russellville), defensive lineman Simon Ghee (Warren East) and wide receiver Isaiah Ghee (Warren East).

Tisdale, a redshirt junior who started his college career at Kentucky and played last season at Colorado, tallied a tackle in last week’s loss to Mississippi State.

Gurley, a redshirt sophomore, had two tackles against the Bulldogs and Baptiste was credited for a kickoff return.

The Colonels’ coaching staff also has deep ties to Western Kentucky, starting with the head coach. Wells spent 10 years at WKU working with the offensive line before leaving to become South Florida’s offensive coordinator and offensive line coach in 2013. During the final four years of his stay at WKU, Wells’ role expanded to offensive coordinator and running game coordinator. Four Hilltopper offensive linemen earned All-America honors under Wells’ direction, and Western ranked in the top four in the Sun Belt Conference in rushing each of his final four seasons – leading the league with 181.6 rushing yards per game in 2011 and improving that number to 186.2 yards per game in 2012.

Jeff Griffith, who played for WKU from 1986-89 and was a longtime area high school football coach – most recently as Warren East’s head coach – serves as EKU’s chief of staff this season after being elevated from his role of senior analyst in his first year with the program.

EKU offensive coordinator/running backs coach Andy Richman spent a season at WKU as tight ends coach in 2006, assistant head coach/nickels coach Mike Dietzel coached at WKU for seven seasons (2003-09, including three years as defensive coordinator), outside linebackers coach/co-special teams coordinator Derek Day began his coaching career as a defensive graduate assistant, defensive line/run game coordinator Eric Mathies served as WKU’s defensive line coach and later recruiting coordinator (2005-12), offensive line coach Eric Ravellette is a 2003 WKU graduate who started on the 2002 squad that won the NCAA Division I-AA (now FCS) national championship, and assistant specialist coach Matthew Amburgey earned a master’s degree from WKU in 2016.