CULLOWHEE, N.C. (WLOS) — Western Carolina University (WCU) is gearing up for its biggest weekend in over four decades. The university is celebrating Homecoming Week, which began on Nov. 3 and continues through the Homecoming football game on Saturday, Nov. 8.
The Homecoming game is one of the biggest matchups, not only of the season, but since the early days of the Reagan Administration.
WCU wrapped up its Nov. 2 game with its sixth straight win of the season after defeating Chattanooga, 35–28. The Catamounts improved to 6–3 overall and 5–0 in the Southern Conference (SoCon).
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The Catamounts face off against defending SoCon champions, the Mercer Bears, on Saturday, Nov. 8. The Bears enter this matchup with 7-1 overall and 6-0 in SoCon play.
The Nov. 8 game is particularly important because both the Catamounts and Bears are the only two SoCon teams still in the Football Championship Series (FCS) Top 25 rankings.
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While the Catamounts dropped out of the rankings earlier this season after a loss to Gardner-Webb, they have climbed back into the top 25, landing at No. 24 in the Week 11 FCS Coaches Poll.
Mercer is also ranked first in the SoCon, as the Cats are ranked second. If the Cats win Saturday, they will kick Mercer out of the top position in the conference and put themselves in the driver’s seat to not only secure an automatic spot in the NCAA FCS playoffs – but move them closer to their first SoCon championship in program history.
The Catamounts will also look to end a nine-game losing streak to the Bears.
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Current WCU students and alumni will cheer on their team at the Homecoming tailgate Saturday, Nov. 8, from 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. when the game begins. Tickets are available for purchase at universitytickets.com.
The day before, Nov. 7, WCU will kick off Homecoming weekend with a parade in downtown Sylva.
The gameday timeline goes as follows:
- 8 a.m.: Parking lots open
- 10 a.m.: Gate 1 ticket booth opens
- 11 a.m.: Tailgating begins
- 12:05 p.m.: Cat walk
- 1 p.m.: Gates open
- 2:15 p.m.: Pride of the Mountains pregame show
- 2:32 p.m.: Kickoff
For a full list of WCU homecoming events, visit here.
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