1997 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team

The 1997 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University in the 1997 NCAA Division I-AA football season and were led by quarterback Willie Taggart and head coach Jack Harbaugh. The team was an independent and earned their first NCAA Division I-AA Playoff berth since 1988, making it to the quarterfinals. The Hilltoppers primarily ran an option offense and were ranked 1st in Rush Offence for NCAA Division I-AA. They finished the season ranked 5th in final I-AA postseason national poll.[1]

1997 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football
ConferenceIndependent
Ranking
Sports NetworkNo. 5
Record10–2
Head coach
Home stadiumL. T. Smith Stadium
Seasons
← 1996
1998 →
1997 NCAA Division I-AA independents football standings
Conf Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
No. 18 Cal Poly       10 1  
No. 5 Western Kentucky ^       10 2  
No. 17 Hofstra ^       9 2  
No. 25 Liberty       9 2  
Samford       7 4  
Morehead State       5 4  
South Florida       5 6  
Southern Utah       5 6  
Saint Mary's       4 6  
Davidson       3 8  
Buffalo       2 9  
La Salle       1 8  
Charleston Southern       1 9  
Austin Peay       0 10  
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll

Western Kentucky's roster included future NFL players Rod “He Hate Me” Smart and Ben Wittman. Patrick Goodman and Andy Hape were named to All-America teams,[2] while Harbaugh was Division I-AA Independents and AFCA Region 3 Coach of the Year.[3] The I-AA Independent All-Star Team included Goodman, Bryan Heyward, Joey Stockton, Hape, Ron Kelly, and Taggart.[4]

Schedule

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DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
August 28at Tennessee–MartinNo. 10W 42–07,796
September 6No. 12 Murray StateNo. 11W 52–50 3OT15,400
September 13at Eastern KentuckyNo. 9W 37–2118,600
September 20Austin PeayNo. 6
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 53–77,000
September 27South FloridaNo. 3
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 31–311,200
October 4at UABNo. 3L 16–2017,385[5]
October 18No. 3 (DII) New HavenNo. 7
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 24–219,300
October 25at Southern IllinoisNo. 7W 52–313,000[6]
November 1Morehead State No. 5
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 38–249,700
November 8at Indiana StateNo. 5W 21–142,265
November 29No. 15 Eastern KentuckyNo. 5
W 41–149,000
December 3at No. 4 Eastern WashingtonNo. 5
L 21–386,829

References

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  1. ^ "Div. I-AA Poll". Longview News-Journal. Longview, Texas. November 18, 1997. p. 2D. Retrieved April 30, 2017 – via Newspapers.com. 
  2. ^ WKU Football 2021 Media Guide retrieved 16 August 2021.
  3. ^ Coach Bio: Jack Harbaugh retrieved 6 April 2020.
  4. ^ WKU Football 2019 Media Guide retrieved 31 March 2020.
  5. ^ "UAB tops Hilltoppers". The Paducah Sun. October 5, 1997. Retrieved December 13, 2021 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Hardwig, Greg (October 26, 1997). "Slick Willie waxes Salukis". The Southern Illinoisan. p. 1C. Retrieved January 15, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.