CULLOWHEE, N.C. – Fresh off their first BYE of the 2026 season, the Presbyterian College football team will put a bow on the pre-PFL schedule this weekend by visiting the Western Carolina Catamounts.
Kickoff in game number three is labeled for 2:30 and will be streamed live on ESPN+. Tomorrow will be the sixth matchup between PC and WCU over the last two decades, with both sides looking to get back in the win column.
Presbyterian was able to manage well over 300 yards in their most recent effort against then-#15 Mercer, while Western Carolina played Cincinnati tight through two quarters, however both parties were ultimately bested.
The Blue Hose are in the middle of a three-game road swing that will flow into the conference opener at Marist on September 26. Saturday's scuffle in Cullowhee will be the second of six road games for PC altogether.
GAMEDAY CENTRAL
WHO: Presbyterian (1-1) at Western Carolina (1-2)
WHERE: E.J. Whitmire Stadium (Cullowhee, N.C.)
WHEN: Saturday, September 19 | 2:30 PM
FOLLOW THE ACTION
WATCH: ESPN+
LIVE STATS: SideArm
X (FORMERLY TWITTER): @BlueHoseFB
GAME NOTES: Presbyterian Notes |
PFL Weekly Report
SHARPE SHINES BRIGHT
• Through the first two games of the #RahlBall era, Presbyterian's offensive MVP has been sophomore signal-caller
Landon Sharpe from nearby White Knoll High School.
• Waiting his turn after a record-shattering 2025 campaign, Sharpe took the controls in the season-opener where he downed UVA Wise 47-37. He accounted for a quartet of touchdowns (all in the second half), helping the Blue Hose achieve their most total yards in the first game of a new year since 2021 (576).
• He was selected the Pioneer Football League Offensive Player of the Week after throwing for 367 yards and rushing for an additional 94, becoming the first PC quarterback since Ren Hefley five years prior to complete 30 passes in a single game.
• After coming up short at then-#15 Mercer and sitting out last Saturday with a BYE, Sharpe currently ranks seventh nationally with an average of 275 passing yards per game. He possesses a 140.5 efficiency rating (good for third in the conference), and he is one of just 12 FCS quarterbacks who has thrown one interception or less.
• Presbyterian ranks second in the PFL for average total yardage (448). Sharpe has completed a pass to eight different receivers, most of all
Brice Johnson who ranks inside the nation's top 15 in catches per game (six).
SOCON SUCCESS
• In the 2020's decade, PC has enjoyed playing spoiler to opponents in the Southern Conference, earning three victories over SoCon schools since 2023.
• The Blue Hose started this trend with a dramatic 23-20 triumph at Wofford three years ago, converting three 4th-down scenarios on their final drive to score the winning touchdown with 28 seconds on the clock.
• Presbyterian then upped the ante in 2025 with back-to-back wins over perennial SoCon title contenders: a jumbo upset against future Playoff qualifier Mercer by a 15-10 count (sealing the win with a 16-yard TD in the final moments) followed by a 21-point comeback at Furman that was settled in overtime 39-38.
• The stunner over #11 Mercer was PC's highest-ranked victory of the Division I era (2007 onward), ending a 35-game Pioneer League losing streak against non-conference top-25 opponents.
• Western Carolina has matched up with Presbyterian more times than any other SoCon institution outside the state of South Carolina, with Saturday being the 21st all-time matchup between the pair.
• The Scotsmen last defeated WCU back in 2014 at Bailey Memorial Stadium, a five-point result where Presby snatched the win on a 32-yard pick six with less than two minutes remaining.
OPPONENT PROFILE
• Seemingly always in the mix amidst a very competitive Southern Conference, head coach Kerwin Bell's Western Carolina squad has reeled off exactly seven wins in three straight seasons.
• Migrating to Cullowhee after serving as the Offensive Coordinator at South Florida, Bell began his sixth season at WCU with a solid 45-21 win versus Eastern Kentucky.
• Trailing 14-7 just before the half, the Catamounts produced 24 unanswered points to run away with the contest. Quarterback Lex Thomas created four touchdowns in the season-opener (the same number as Sharpe against UVA Wise), stacking up 35 second-half points.
• Western Carolina's bid for a 2-0 start was denied by Campbell the next week, managing to shut out the Fighting Camels in the second half but still coming up short 28-19.
• Last weekend, the Catamounts went up against Big 12 competition with a visit to Cincinnati. Thomas scored a short touchdown with six minutes until halftime to pull within four points, but the Bearcats went on a tear after that to earn a 62-10 win.
• Western Carolina is presently one of 24 FCS teams who has not yet lost a fumble this season. They lead all SoCon offenses in average passing yards (271) and have already picked off four passes which ranks inside the nation's top 15.
• Coach Bell's unit has scored either a touchdown or a field goal in all 11 of their trips to the red zone, a 100% rate that less than 20 FCS can equal.
• Sophomore Richard Hollis is averaging almost 30 yards per kick return (inside the top ten nationally). Just four quarterbacks at the FCS level have bettered Thomas' 811 passing yards at this stage of the season.
• Presbyterian last visited the Catamounts in 2022, their first appearance in this series since joining the Pioneer Football League. On that day, WCU surpassed 700 yards and won by a final count of 77-21.
