CARROLLTON, Ga. - Week eight of the college football season brings arguably the biggest test of the season to the UWG football team, sending the Wolves to Stephenville, Texas to take on the third-ranked team in FCS football, Tarleton State, on the Texans' homecoming in a 7 p.m. EST kickoff.
The Wolves have lost two straight to ranked opponents and now take on the highest-ranked United Athletic Conference team and the highest-ranked opponent in the Division I era.
GAME INFORMATION
#23 West Georgia (5-2, 2-2 UAC) vs. #3 Tarleton State (7-0, 3-0 UAC)
Saturday, October 18
Kickoff: 7:00 p.m. EST
Location: Stephenville, Texas // Memorial Stadium
TV: ESPN+
Radio: KISS 102.7
"Todd Whitten is doing a good job. He's taken that team from Division II to Division I, and they've started off really fast," head coach Joel Taylor said of Saturday's opponent. "They're probably the most talented team in the UAC. They do what they do and they do it well."
Tarleton State's offense enters week eight averaging 47.4 points per game which ranks fourth in the country. That will present a challenge for the UWG defense, but the Wolves have faced high-powered offenses on the road this season and fared well. The Wolves continue to do a good job of takeaways on the defensive side of the ball, racking up 13 and recording at least one in every game.
On the flip side, Tarleton State's defense leads the country with 19 takeaways and is fourth in the country in turnover margin.
UWG is looking to get back in the win column after dropping back-to-back games. Colton FitzGerald got his first career start at quarterback in place of an injured Davin Wydner and played pretty well, throwing for 279 yards and a touchdown on 19 completions in 37 attempts.
Wydner's status for Saturday still remains unclear, but Taylor and the Wolves are confident in FitzGerald after seeing his performance last week.
"We'll see how Davin feels later in the week, and if he's good to go, we'll roll with him, and if he's not, hey, Colton let's go, strap it up," Taylor said of the current quarterback situation. "We have to all execute and it doesn't matter who's the quarterback, if we do that, we'll have a shot."
Tarleton State has also had injuries at quarterback with UAC Preseason Player of the Year Victor Gabalis missing the past two games with an injury. Daniel Greek has filled in, going a combined 40-for-60 for 665 yards and five touchdowns since coming in midway through the Texans' 52-24 victory over Chattanooga.
Prior to his injury, Gabalis was 69-for-11 with 966 passing yards, 12 passing touchdowns, and zero interceptions.
Saturday's game also features solid running back rooms for both teams as UWG's Latrelle Murrell and TSU's Tre Page III lead their respective teams and have combined for 15 rushing touchdowns. Page and the Wolves' TJ Lester are both tied for second among FCS freshmen with six rushing touchdowns on the season.
It's the second overall meeting between the Wolves and Texans with Tarleton State taking the win in Carrollton, 38-21, in 2024. The 2025 matchup is Tarleton State's Homecoming contest and kicks off at 7 p.m. ET.
The game is being broadcast on ESPN+ and UWG fans can also listen live to the radio broadcast on KISS 102.7 or the Gradick Communications Listening Portal.
