2004 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team

Last updated

2004 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football
WKU Hilltoppers wordmark.png
Conference Gateway Football Conference
Ranking
Sports NetworkNo. 11
Record9–3 (6–1 Gateway)
Head coach
Offensive coordinator T. J. Weist (2nd season)
Offensive scheme Multiple
Defensive coordinatorMike Dietzel (1st season)
Base defense 3–4
Home stadium L. T. Smith Stadium
Seasons
←  2003
2005  →
2004 Gateway Football Conference standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
No. 9 Southern Illinois $^  7 –0   10 –2  
No. 11 Western Kentucky ^  6 –1   9 –3  
No. 25 Northern Iowa  5 –2   7 –4  
Southwest Missouri State  3 –4   6 –5  
Western Illinois  2 –5   4 –7  
Illinois State  2 –5   4 –7  
Youngstown State  2 –5   4 –7  
Indiana State  1 –6   4 –7  
  • $ – Conference champion
  • ^ – NCAA Division I-AA playoff participant
Rankings from The Sports Network poll

The 2004 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University in the 2004 NCAA Division I-AA football season and were led by second-year head coach David Elson. The team contended for Gateway Football Conference championship but finished 2nd. [1] They made the school's fifth straight appearance in the NCAA Division I-AA playoffs; it would end up being WKU's last playoff appearance, as they would initiate transitioning to NCAA Division I-A/FBS in 2006. The Hilltoppers finished the season ranked 11th in final I-AA postseason national poll. [2]

This team included future National Football League (NFL) players Curtis Hamilton, Brian Claybourn, Dan Cline, and Greg Ryan. Claybourn and Buster Ashley were named to the AP All American team. The All-Conference team included Ashley, Claybourn, Deonté Smith, Charles Thompson, Antonio Thomas, Justin Haddix, Erik Losey, Lerron Moore, and Joe Woolridge. [3]

Schedule

DateOpponentRankSiteResultAttendanceSource
September 4at No. 13 (I-A) Kansas State *No. 13
L 13–2746,740
September 11 Concord *No. 11
W 58–010,390
September 18at No. 20 Eastern Kentucky *No. 11
W 21–822,700
October 2 Youngstown State No. 6
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 44–1911,619
October 9at No. 22 Northern Iowa No. 6
W 17–1012,184
October 16at No. 1 Southern Illinois No. 4
L 10–3810,143 [4]
October 23 Indiana State Dagger-14-plain.pngNo. 10
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 31–97,390
October 30 Illinois State No. 7
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 24–217,126 [5]
November 6at Southwest Missouri State No. 5
W 28–248,942 [6]
November 13 Western Illinois No. 5
  • L. T. Smith Stadium
  • Bowling Green, KY
W 45–37,318 [7]
November 20at FIU *No. 3
W 35–143,108
November 27at No. 4 Sam Houston State *No. 11
L 24–549,554 [8]

References

  1. ↑ 2019 MVC Football Records, retrieved 30 April 2020
  2. ↑ "Final Div. I-AA poll". The Burlington Free Press. Burlington, Vermont. December 21, 2004. p. 6B. Retrieved May 20, 2017– via Newspapers.com. Open Access logo PLoS transparent.svg
  3. ↑ WKU Football Media Guide retrieved 31 March 2020.
  4. ↑ "No. 1 SIU rolls over No. 4 Western". Messenger-Inquirer . October 17, 2004. p. 4B. Retrieved December 29, 2021– via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Haddix leads Hilltoppers past Illinois State, 24-21". The Courier-Journal . Associated Press. October 31, 2004. p. C9. Retrieved November 27, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
  6. ↑ "Hilltoppers rally past Bears". Messenger-Inquirer. November 7, 2004. Retrieved June 29, 2024– via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ Grant, Michael (November 14, 2004). "Hilltoppers run, run, run over Western Illinois, 45-3". The Courier-Journal . p. C9. Retrieved January 26, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Hilltoppers fall hard in I-AA playoffs, 54–24". The Courier-Journal. November 28, 2004. Retrieved December 18, 2022– via Newspapers.com.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.