The Vanderbilt Commodores and the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers have scheduled a three-game football series, both schools announced this morning.
Vanderbilt will host Western Kentucky at Vanderbilt Stadium in Nashville on Sept. 12, 2015 and again on Nov. 4, 2017. The Commodores will travel to face the Hilltoppers at Houchens Industries-L.T. Smith Stadium in Bowling Green on Sept. 24, 2016.
“This series is a good idea for several reasons,” Vanderbilt Director of Athletics David Williams said. “We are already playing several other nearby institutions and Western is only an hour up the road for the fan bases of both schools. And in this era of escalating travel costs and game expenses, it makes sense to stay at or near home when the opportunity arises.”
The two schools have met three times on the gridiron, but the games were in 1931, 1932, and 1938. Vanderbilt leads the series 3-0.
“We are very excited to be adding Vanderbilt as a future football opponent,” said WKU Director of Athletics Todd Stewart. “Our game in 2016 will mark the first ever football appearance by a member of the SEC on our campus, and it will be a great day for our university, fans and community. The away games also present a great opportunity for our fans, students and over 7,000 alumni in Nashville to support WKU football on the road.”
Barring any changes, Vanderbilt has now completed their 2015 non-conference schedule. Vandy is also slated to host Richmond and travel to Middle Tennessee and Wake Forest.
In 2016, the Commodores also host Middle Tennessee and travel to Georgia Tech, while in 2017 they travel to MTSU again.
Western Kentucky has also tentatively completed their 2015 non-conference schedule, which also includes Miami (OH) at home and Indiana and LSU on the road.
WKU was previously scheduled to play at Army in 2015 and host the Black Knights in 2016, but those two games have been pushed back to 2019 and 2021.
Football Schedules