Top Storylines:
• Red-hot Kennesaw State football begins a two-game road swing when it heads to Las Cruces to take on CUSA foe New Mexico State on Saturday, Nov. 8. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. ET on ESPN+.
• Kennesaw State has won six-straight games and is 4-0 in Conference USA action this season, currently holding the longest active win streak among Group of Five teams. The Owls’ only blemishes this season have been Power 4 losses to Wake Forest (5-3) and No. 2-ranked Indiana (9-0).
• Kennesaw State was joined by Notre Dame this weekend as the first FBS teams since Iowa in 2020 to win six-straight games after starting the season 0-2.
• After knocking off UTEP last week, Kennesaw State became just the ninth team to become bowl eligible in its first full-fledged season of FBS.
• In CUSA action this season, the Owls lead the conference in both scoring offense (34.3) and scoring defense (17.3), as KSU has earned a share of the lead in the league standings with four weeks to go.
• r-Fr. LB Tywon Christopher earned CUSA Defensive Player of the Week honors for his 12-tackle game last week where he also forced a fumble.
• Christopher tallied the second-best run defense grade in the country (96.4) and sixth-best defensive grade overall (80.2), according to Pro Football Focus.
• Also shining last week was Sr. RB Chase Belcher, who took 24 carries for 113 yards -- both career highs -- and a touchdown in the effort. He’s caught fire of late, rushing for 178 yards in the last two weeks after 57 yards in his first five games.
• Thanks to a 57-yard punt return for a touchdown last week against UTEP, r-Sr. WR Gabriel Benyard set the program record for career punt return yardage (457), eclipsing Isaac Foster’s 436-yard mark set 2018-23.
• The touchdown return was the second in program history -- both by Benyard.
• Despite having played two Power 4 opponents this year, the Owls offensive line continues to impress, leading Conference USA with just nine sacks allowed on the season and two sacks allowed in CUSA games.
• Kennesaw State is one of only six schools to have started the same five starting offensive linemen each game this season (Old Dominion, Iowa, Texas A&M, Maryland, Air Force).
