1975 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team

The 1975 Western Kentucky football team represented Western Kentucky University during the 1975 NCAA Division II football season. The team came off an 7–3 record from the prior season[4] and was led by coach Jimmy Feix. They claimed a share of the Ohio Valley Conference championship and returned to the NCAA Division II Football Championship for the second time in three years.[5] One of the highlights of the season was a victory over NCAA Division I Louisville.[6] The Hilltoppers won their first two playoff games, including a win over New Hampshire in the Grantland Rice Bowl, before falling in the championship game to Northern Michigan in the Camellia Bowl.[7] They finished ranked 3rd in both the AP and UPI final polls.[8][9]

1975 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football
OVC co-champion
Rice Bowl Champion
Camellia Bowl, L 14–16 vs. Northern Michigan
ConferenceOhio Valley Conference
Ranking
APNo. 3
1975 record11–2 (6–1 OVC)
Head coachJimmy Feix (8th season)
Captains
  • Rick Green
  • Bob Hobby (alt.)
Home stadiumL. T. Smith Stadium
1975 Ohio Valley Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L T  W L T
No. 3 Western Kentucky ^ 6 –1 –0  9 –1 –0
Tennessee Tech $ 6 –1 –0  8 –3 –0
No. 12 Eastern Kentucky 5 –2 –0  8 –2 –1
Murray State 3 –3 –1  4 –5 –1
Austin Peay 3 –4 –0  3 –8 –0
Middle Tennessee State 2 –5 –0  4 –7 –0
East Tennessee State 1 –5 –1  2 –8 –1
Morehead State 1 –6 –0  3 –7 –0
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division II playoff participant
  • WKU claims a co-championship,[1] while both the OVC[2] and Tennessee Tech[3] state it is not shared
Rankings from Associated Press poll

This team was one of the best in school history and included future NFL players David Carter, Darryl Drake, Rick Caswell, and Biff Madon. Rick Green was named to the AP All American team as well as the OVC Defensive Player of the Year and Feix was named Divisional Kodak College Coach-of-the-Year.[10] The All OVC team included Green, Sheroid Barrett, Chip Carpenter, Walt Herod, John Leathers, and Keith Tandy.[11]

Schedule
DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendance
September 6at Dayton*
W 27–711,300
September 13at D1 Louisville*
  • Old Cardinal Stadium
  • Louisville, KY
W 21–1734,700
September 20Illinois State*
W 24-1415,300
September 27at Austin PeayNo. 2
W 30–36,800
October 4East Tennessee StateNo. 2
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 17–014,400
October 18Tennessee TechNo. 2
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 20–79,000
October 25at No. 4 Eastern KentuckyNo. 2
L 7–1324,200
November 1Morehead StateNo. 6
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 14–1020,100
November 8at Middle TennesseeNo. 6
W 24–1011,300
November 22Murray StateNo. 5
W 19–015,300
November 29at No. 10 Northern IowaNo. 4
W 14–122,500
December 6vs. New HampshireNo. 4
W 14–36,000
December 13vs. No. 5 Northern MichiganNo. 4
L 14–1615,558
  • *Non-conference game
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
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References
  1. "2017 WKU Football Media Guide" (PDF). wkusports.com. Western Kentucky Athletics. p. 164.
  2. "2017 Ohio Valley Conference Media Guide" (PDF). ovcsports.com. p. 82.
  3. "2014 Tennessee Tech Football Guide". ttusports.com. Tennessee Tech Athletics. p. 166.
  4. http://college-football-results.com/f/wkentuck.htm
  5. Ruby, Earl (1979). Red Towel Territory: A History Of Athletics At Western Kentucky University. American National Bank and Trust Co. ASIN B00ILIOPAO.
  6. 1975 WKU Football schedule and results retrieved 2 April 2020.
  7. NCAA Division 2 Football Championship History retrieved 2 April 2020.
  8. "Javelinas First in Final AP Poll". Valley Morning Star. Harlingen, Texas. December 20, 1975. p. B3. Retrieved May 28, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. "NCAA Division II UPI Final Poll". The Orlando Sentinel. Orlando, Florida. November 26, 1975. p. 2-C. Retrieved May 28, 2017 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. Legendary WKU Coach Feix Named To College Football Hall Of Fame Ballot retrieved 2 April 2020.
  11. WKU Football Media Guide retrieved 31 March 2020.
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