NCAA FCS Southern

Western Carolina football predictions & picks

Southern

2026 record: 5-5
Southern: 6th
PPG: 29.2
Streak: W2
Last 5: Won 44–20 vs Tennessee Tech · Sat, Oct 3 Lost 14–17 at Mercer · Sat, Oct 10 Lost 18–41 vs Chattanooga · Sat, Oct 24 Won 27–26 at Furman · Sat, Oct 31 Won 26–10 vs Wofford · Sat, Nov 7

Western Carolina next game

Wk 11

W Carolina @3:30 PM ET Saturday, November 14 Samford

Picks

The model publishes its moneyline, spread and over/under picks in the days before kickoff. They will be here, and on the game’s own page.

Western Carolina 2026 schedule & results

Every pick graded once the game ends

WeekOpponentResult Our best pickGame page

Wk 1Sat, Aug 29Aug 29 vs Eastern Kentucky E Kentucky W45–21 —

Wk 1Sun, Sep 6Sep 6 @Campbell Campbell L19–28 —

Wk 2Sat, Sep 12Sep 12 @Cincinnati Cincinnati L10–62 —

Wk 3Sat, Sep 19Sep 19 vs Presbyterian Presbyterian W58–14 —

Wk 4Sat, Sep 26Sep 26 @East Tennessee State ETSU L31–58 —

Wk 5Sat, Oct 3Oct 3 vs Tennessee Tech Tennessee Tech W44–20 —

Wk 6Sat, Oct 10Oct 10 @Mercer Mercer L14–17 —

Wk 8Sat, Oct 24Oct 24 vs Chattanooga Chattanooga L18–41 —

Wk 9Sat, Oct 31Oct 31 @Furman Furman W27–26 —

Wk 10Sat, Nov 7Nov 7 vs Wofford Wofford W26–10 —

Wk 11Sat, Nov 14Nov 14 @Samford Samford 3:30 PM ET Pick coming soon

Wk 12Sat, Nov 21Nov 21 vs The Citadel The Citadel 12:00 PM ET Pick coming soon

Western Carolina team stats

2026 regular season · 10 games · rank among 127 FCS teams

Offense

Points 29.2/ game 38th

Total yards 394.3/ game 35th

Passing yards 250.6/ game 21st

Rushing yards 143.7/ game 76th

Third-down conversions 38.7% 61st

Giveaways 0.9/ game 15th

Time of possession 29:34 68th

Defense

Points allowed 29.7/ game 83rd

Yards allowed 419.0/ game 102nd

Passing yards allowed 221.1/ game 70th

Rushing yards allowed 197.9/ game 109th

Takeaways 1.8/ game 17th

Penalties 8.0/ game 111th

Western Carolina leaders

2026 regular season

Passing Lex Thomas 2,391yds 10 TD · 2 INT · 63.7% comp. · 10 games

Rushing Josh Perry 534yds 7 TD · 4.2 per carry · 10 games

Receiving AJ Colombo 537yds 47 catches · 0 TD · 10 games

Tackles Joshua Collins 55 10 games

Sacks Trystan Anderson 4.5 9 games

Interceptions Jayden Cornelius 3 7 passes defended · 10 games

Southern standings

All college standings

#Team WLT W-L PCTPFPA DIFFSTRKSTK

1 Tennessee Tech Tennessee Tech 910 9-1 .900 356203 +153 W5

2 Mercer Mercer 820 8-2 .800 287163 +124 W6

3 East Tennessee State ETSU 640 6-4 .600 319236 +83 L2

4 Chattanooga Chattanooga 640 6-4 .600 212130 +82 L1

5 Wofford Wofford 550 5-5 .500 227221 +6 L2

6 Western Carolina W Carolina 550 5-5 .500 292297 −5 W2

7 Samford Samford 460 4-6 .400 190229 −39 W3

8 Furman Furman 370 3-7 .300 171211 −40 W1

9 The Citadel The Citadel 280 2-8 .200 181322 −141 L5

10 VMI VMI 0100 0-10 .000 88420 −332 L10

Western Carolina FAQ

Who does Western Carolina play next?

Next up for Western Carolina: on the road at Samford, Saturday, November 14, 3:30 PM ET. Our picks for it go up in the days before kickoff.

What is Western Carolina’s record this season?

Western Carolina is 5-5, 6th in the Southern.

Who leads Western Carolina in passing yards?

Lex Thomas, with 2,391 passing yards in the 2026 regular season (10 TD · 2 INT · 63.7% comp. · 10 games).

Southern rivals

All teams

Chattanooga East Tennessee State Furman Mercer Samford Tennessee Tech The Citadel VMI Wofford

Western Carolina this week

Western Carolina is 5-5, 3-3 in Southern play. Its last game was a 26–10 win over Wofford at home on November 7, its second in a row. Its offense averages 29.2 points a game (38th in FCS), and its defense allows 29.7 (83rd).

Next up, Western Carolina visits Samford on Saturday, November 14 at 3:30 PM ET. The rest of the week’s games are on the college football picks board.