Williamsburg, KY – It will be the first time since 2016 and 2017 the Patriots will meet the Wildcats on the field in consecutive seasons. The conference realignment a couple years ago has allowed the two teams to square off once again, the 11th time in program history at Wildcat Stadium in McKenzie, TN. The Patriots lead both the series history, 15-4, and the conference series, 10-3.

The Patriots will be looking for their first win since week two of the season where they rallied six touchdowns against the Cumberland Phoenix. The scores came three in the air, two on the ground and one defensively. The Patriots are on the road for the second consecutive game, rebuilding during the bye week after a loss to rival Lindsey Wilson 45-10.

 Cumberlands also looks to snap the Wildcats two-game win streak in their fourth game of the season, having won the last three matchups with Bethel dating back to 2015. A win on the road would match the Patriots longest win streak in the series history of four games.

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Quarterback Potential

Both Gavin Wilkinson and Nathan Arnold saw a half of action in the Patriots last game. It was Arnold who had the lone touchdown throw in the contest against the Blue Raiders despite the freshman getting the start in the first three games. This week, Arnold is listed as the man to lead under center, coming in with a 66.67% completion percentage.

The redshirt-sophomore quarterback has typically been the reliver for Wilkinson. This season, Arnold completed 10 passes on 15 attempts for 50 yards. The Tennessee-native has also thrown one touchdown for the Pats. He looks ahead to his first potential collegiate start to lead the Patriots offense against a team that has allowed 469 passing yards per game through the first two games of the season.

Freshman quarterback Wilkinson got his first taste of the rivalry between UC and Lindsey Wilson in week three. There, he completed nine passes for 114 yards. Wilkinson also posted a 61-yard pass in the game to move the Pats into the redzone. In game four against Bethel, the young gun will have the opportunity to be the reliever instead, learning the scheme from the sideline to have a better advantage when he ultimately does enter the game. This season, he has been a steady arm for the Patriots offense with almost 450 yards tossed and five passes leading to scores on the board.

Consistent Targets

While averaging a fair 257 yards allowed to their opening two contests, the Wildcats have struggled defensively against the air raid with 469 yards allowed on average. This is great news for the quarterback duo, as well as the Patriots receiving corps.

Darius Young, while not the number-one man in the depth chart this week, has posted his second 100+ yard game of the season in the loss to Lindsey Wilson. There, he went 10 receptions for 110 yards, giving him a season average just shy of the century mark in receiving yards. He leads the team in all receiving categories and will be a man to beat when he does rotate onto the field.

The step back will allow understudy receivers such as Alonzo Russell and TJ Williams to get a piece of the action. The pair have found the endzone at least once this season. Meanwhile, JR Lucas will look to improve as the lead receiver in the contest with only 2 receptions so far this season.

Carter Nelson and Chase Overstreet will balance out the offensive threats with H-back and tight end positioning. The two combine for six completed targets for 35 yards in the opening three games, propelling the short-yardage game.

The Backfield Grind

The Patriots look to smash the Wildcat defense with their run game yet again, running the ball for over 350 yards against Bethel in their last match-up. The Patriots have options in the backfield; Martize Smith is the main man on the depth chart for the upcoming contest. He and then-quarterback Josiah Robbins led the Patriots rushing attack last year with over 300 yards combined.

Cumberlands two-headed run game of Smith and Zalon Reynolds will be explosive against the Wildcats, although the defense comes into the day averaging 45 yards rushing against; that is 0.7 yards per attempt. However, the Wildcats come in with a pair of wins picked up against teams finishing in the bottom two of the Bluegrass in 2019. They have yet to meet the might of the Patriots run game.

As a collective, Cumberlands rushing offense has totaled 544 yards gained; per game they have averaged 157.7 yards. Reynolds has averaged 81 yards per game on the ground this season, noting a career day against Cumberland with twice that figure. The leader of the rotation can push for extra yards after initial contact to earn his trio of trips to the endzone.

Smith is set to get his first start of 2021 after being the go-to guy a year ago. A couple of touches into the season, the second-year rusher eclipsed 1,000 yards in his career. As the second man on the roster, Smith has averaged just a hair over 35 yards per game, right at five yards picked up per touch. This will be his chance to get back into the rhythm and flow and show Bethel the 45-yard average rushing allowed is a misleading figure.

Stun the Opposition

The Wildcats have averaged over 500 yards of offense in their opening pair of games. As mentioned, they played two of the lower teams in the conference while the Patriots have their toughest opponents of the year behind them. Cumberlands defense will need to step in to prove Bethel's numbers are well off where they should be. The crew showed up last season in the contest to shut down a high-rolling Bethel offense, spurring the Patriots on to victory.

 The Patriots continue their road swing while Bethel has their first home game of the season ahead of them. Despite the location disadvantage, Cumberlands has key players throughout the defensive-11 to stand up to the Wildcats. Off the line, as it has been through the season, Brad Montgomery will be the veteran player to look. Last time he only notched four tackles, but this year looks to be even more impressive as he averages almost seven tackles per game.

Adam Chaney is slowly becoming a staple for the linebackers. Fresh off his first collegiate sack against Cumberland, he followed with his first interception at Lindsey Wilson. He sits third on the team for total tackles this season with 17, following Montgomery (20) and Walker Dunn (19). He will be helped in the box by Jeremiah McKibben against a run game averaging about 150 yards per game with the rush attack.

Dunn will be the man to rely on in the secondary. He leads the entire defensive squad as a rookie with 13 solo tackles this season. They do not want to get beat over the top again on the road as they did against Lindsey Wilson, but could have the potential to have another multi-interception game with ball hawks like JR Smith still in the line-up.              

Gameday Information

Visiting fans will be permitted at Wildcat Stadium in McKenzie, TN. However, tickets are required to get into the venue and the fan protocols must be followed. Both of those can be found on the football schedule page on the Patriots athletics website.

Fans can also tune into the game via WildcatVision for the live broadcast, powered by Bethel's Sports Information Department with Dave McCulley and Zach O'Kelley on the call. In addition, EZ Country (WEZJ-FM 104.3) and The Farm (WEIO-FM 100.9) will be broadcasting to their local markets.

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