2012 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team

The 2012 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team represented Western Kentucky University in the 2012 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by third-year head coach Willie Taggart and played their home games at Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium. They were a member of the Sun Belt Conference. They finished the season 7–6, 4–4 in Sun Belt play to finish in fifth place.^[1] They were invited to the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, their first bowl appearance since joining FBS in 2007, where they were defeated by Central Michigan.^[2]

2012 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football
Little Caesars Pizza Bowl vs. Central Michigan, L 21–24
Conference	Sun Belt Conference
Record	7–6 (4–4 Sun Belt)
Head coach	Willie Taggart (3rd season; regular season) Lance Guidry (interim; bowl game)
Offensive scheme	West Coast
Defensive coordinator	Lance Guidry (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium
Seasons ← 2011 2013 →

2012 Sun Belt Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Arkansas State $		7	–	1					10	–	3
Louisiana–Monroe		6	–	2					8	–	5
Middle Tennessee		6	–	2					8	–	4
Louisiana–Lafayette *		4	–	2					5	–	4
Western Kentucky		4	–	4					7	–	6
Troy		3	–	5					5	–	7
North Texas		3	–	5					4	–	8
Florida Atlantic		2	–	6					3	–	9
FIU		2	–	6					3	–	9
South Alabama **		1	–	7					2	–	11
$ – Conference champion * – Louisiana–Lafayette vacated 4 wins due to NCAA violations. ** – South Alabama was ineligible for the conference title or a bowl game as part of their transition to the FBS.

After a three-year record of 16–20, head coach Willie Taggart resigned in December to become the head coach at South Florida. Defensive coordinator Lance Guidry coached the Hilltoppers in Little Caesars Pizza Bowl. Bobby Petrino was hired as the school's new head coach on December 10, 2012.

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	6:00 p.m.	Austin Peay*	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	ESPN3	W 49–10	16,327
September 8	3:30 p.m.	at No. 1 Alabama*	Bryant–Denny Stadium Tuscaloosa, Alabama	SECN	L 0–35	101,821
September 15	6:00 p.m.	at Kentucky*	Commonwealth Stadium Lexington, Kentucky	ESPNU	W 32–31 OT	53,980
September 22	6:00 p.m.	Southern Miss*	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	ESPN3	W 42–17	23,252
September 29	6:00 p.m.	at Arkansas State	Liberty Bank Stadium Jonesboro, Arkansas	ESPN3	W 26–13	25,160
October 11	6:30 p.m.	at Troy	Veterans Memorial Stadium Troy, Alabama	ESPNU	W 31–26	16,426
October 20	3:00 p.m.	Louisiana–Monroe†	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	ESPN3	L 42–43 OT	22,323
October 27	6:00 p.m.	at FIU	FIU Stadium Miami	ESPN3	W 14–6	12,842
November 1	8:15 p.m.	Middle Tennessee	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky (100 Miles of Hate)	ESPNU	L 29–34	17,327
November 10	12:00 p.m.	Florida Atlantic	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	SBN/CSS	L 28–37	14,185
November 17	6:00 p.m.	at Louisiana–Lafayette	Cajun Field Lafayette, Louisiana	ESPN3	L 27–31	20,314
November 24	12:00 p.m.	North Texas	Houchens Industries–L. T. Smith Stadium Bowling Green, Kentucky	SBN/CSS	W 25–24	11,074
December 26	6:30 p.m.	vs. Central Michigan*	Ford Field Detroit (Little Caesars Pizza Bowl)	ESPN	L 21–24	23,310
*Non-conference game Rankings from Coaches' Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

Game summaries

Austin Peay

	1	2	3	4	Total
Governors	9	9	7	3	28
Hilltoppers	14	21	7	7	49

See also: 2012 Austin Peay State Governors football team

@ Alabama

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	0	0	0	0	0
#1 Crimson Tide	14	7	7	7	35

See also: 2012 Alabama Crimson Tide football team

@ Kentucky

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Hilltoppers	3	14	7	0	8	32
Wildcats	0	10	7	7	7	31

See also: 2012 Kentucky Wildcats football team

The win over the Wildcats of the SEC marks the Hilltoppers first ever win over a team from a Bowl Championship Series conference..

Southern Miss

	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Eagles	0	3	7	7	17
Hilltoppers	14	7	21	0	42

See also: 2012 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team

@ Arkansas State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	0	0	14	12	26
Red Wolves	3	10	0	0	13

See also: 2012 Arkansas State Red Wolves football team

@ Troy

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	7	7	14	3	31
Trojans	10	7	9	0	26

See also: 2012 Troy Trojans football team

Louisiana–Monroe

	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
Warhawks	0	21	0	14	8	43
Hilltoppers	7	21	0	7	7	42

See also: 2012 Louisiana–Monroe Warhawks football team

@ FIU

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	7	0	0	7	14
Panthers	3	0	0	3	6

See also: 2012 FIU Panthers football team

Middle Tennessee

	1	2	3	4	Total
Blue Raiders	10	7	7	10	34
Hilltoppers	7	10	7	5	29

See also: 2012 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team and Middle Tennessee–WKU football rivalry

Florida Atlantic

	1	2	3	4	Total
Owls	0	14	7	16	37
Hilltoppers	7	7	0	14	28

See also: 2012 Florida Atlantic Owls football team

@ Louisiana–Lafayette

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	0	10	3	14	27
Ragin' Cajuns	0	10	7	14	31

See also: 2012 Louisiana–Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns football team

North Texas

	1	2	3	4	Total
Mean Green	7	10	7	0	24
Hilltoppers	7	3	0	15	25

See also: 2012 North Texas Mean Green football team

Central Michigan–Little Caesars Pizza Bowl

	1	2	3	4	Total
Hilltoppers	7	7	7	0	21
Chippewas	14	3	0	7	24

See also: 2012 Central Michigan Chippewas football team and 2012 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl

This will be the Hilltoppers first bowl game since becoming a member of the FBS in 2007.