2012 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team

American college football season

2012 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football

Little Caesars Pizza Bowl vs. Central Michigan, L 21–24
Conference	Sun Belt Conference
Record	7–6 (4–4 Sun Belt)
Head coach	Willie Taggart (3rd season; regular season) Lance Guidry (interim; bowl game)
Offensive scheme	West Coast
Defensive coordinator	Lance Guidry (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
Seasons← 2011 2013 →

2012 Sun Belt Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
Arkansas State $	7	–	1	10	–	3
Louisiana–Monroe	6	–	2	8	–	5
Middle Tennessee	6	–	2	8	–	4
Louisiana–Lafayette *	4	–	2	5	–	4
Western Kentucky	4	–	4	7	–	6
Troy	3	–	5	5	–	7
North Texas	3	–	5	4	–	8
Florida Atlantic	2	–	6	3	–	9
FIU	2	–	6	3	–	9
South Alabama **	1	–	7	2	–	11

$ – Conference champion * – Louisiana–Lafayette vacated 4 wins due to NCAA violations. ** – South Alabama was ineligible for the conference title or a bowl game as part of their transition to the FBS.

The 2012 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Willie Taggart and played their home games at Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium. They were a member of the Sun Belt Conference. They finished the season 7–6, 4–4 in Sun Belt play to finish in fifth place. They were invited to the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, their first bowl appearance since joining FBS in 2007, where they were defeated by Central Michigan.

After a three-year record of 16–20, head coach Willie Taggart resigned in December to become the head coach at South Florida. Defensive coordinator Lance Guidry coached the Hilltoppers in Little Caesars Pizza Bowl. Bobby Petrino was hired as the school's new head coach on December 10, 2012.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	6:00 p.m.	Austin Peay*	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	ESPN3	W 49–10	16,327
September 8	3:30 p.m.	at No. 1 Alabama*	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, Alabama	SECN	L 0–35	101,821
September 15	6:00 p.m.	at Kentucky*	Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, Kentucky	ESPNU	W 32–31	53,980
September 22	6:00 p.m.	Southern Miss*	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	ESPN3	W 42–17	23,252
September 29	6:00 p.m.	at Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium Jonesboro, Arkansas	ESPN3	W 26–13	25,160
October 11	6:30 p.m.	at Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, Alabama	ESPNU	W 31–26	16,426
October 20	3:00 p.m.	Louisiana–Monroe†	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	ESPN3	L 42–43	22,323
October 27	6:00 p.m.	at FIU	FIU Stadium Miami	ESPN3	W 14–6	12,842
November 1	8:15 p.m.	Middle Tennessee	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky (100 Miles of Hate)	ESPNU	L 29–34	17,327
November 10	12:00 p.m.	Florida Atlantic	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	SBN/CSS	L 28–37	14,185
November 17	6:00 p.m.	at Louisiana–Lafayette	Cajun Field Lafayette, Louisiana	ESPN3	L 27–31	20,314
November 24	12:00 p.m.	North Texas	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	SBN/CSS	W 25–24	11,074
December 26	6:30 p.m.	vs. Central Michigan*	Ford Field Detroit (Little Caesars Pizza Bowl)	ESPN	L 21–24	23,310
*Non-conference game Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Game summaries

Austin Peay

	1	2	3	4	Total
Governors	9	9	7	3	28
Hilltoppers	14	21	7	7	49

@ Alabama

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	0	0	0	0	0
#1 Crimson Tide	14	7	7	7	35

@ Kentucky

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Hilltoppers	3	14	7	0	8	32
Wildcats	0	10	7	7	7	31

The win over the Wildcats of the SEC marks the Hilltoppers first ever win over a team from a Bowl Championship Series conference..

Southern Miss

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Eagles	0	3	7	7	17
Hilltoppers	14	7	21	0	42

@ Arkansas State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	0	0	14	12	26
Red Wolves	3	10	0	0	13

@ Troy

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	7	7	14	3	31
Trojans	10	7	9	0	26

Louisiana–Monroe

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Warhawks	0	21	0	14	8	43
Hilltoppers	7	21	0	7	7	42

@ FIU

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	7	0	0	7	14
Panthers	3	0	0	3	6

Middle Tennessee

	1	2	3	4	Total
Blue Raiders	10	7	7	10	34
Hilltoppers	7	10	7	5	29

Florida Atlantic

	1	2	3	4	Total
Owls	0	14	7	16	37
Hilltoppers	7	7	0	14	28

@ Louisiana–Lafayette

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	0	10	3	14	27
Ragin' Cajuns	0	10	7	14	31

North Texas

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	7	10	7	0	24
Hilltoppers	7	3	0	15	25

Central Michigan–Little Caesars Pizza Bowl

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	7	7	7	0	21
Chippewas	14	3	0	7	24

This will be the Hilltoppers first bowl game since becoming a member of the FBS in 2007.

References

v t e Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football
Venues	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium (1968–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Eastern Kentucky: Battle of the Bluegrass Middle Tennessee: 100 Miles of Hate Murray State: Battle for the Red Belt
Culture & lore	Big Red "Stand Up and Cheer"
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1913 1914 1915 1916 1917–1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
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