FLORENCE, Ala. (November 7, 2025) – A classic rivalry will resurface in historic Braly Stadium for the first time in nearly a decade, as the University of North Alabama football team will host the West Georgia Wolves in United Athletic Conference action on Saturday in Florence.
Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. at Braly Stadium. Fans are encouraged to plan accordingly, as the pep rally and Lion Walk will begin at 12:30 p.m. with the earlier kickoff.
For a list of "things to know" for Saturday's game,
click here.
GAMEDAY INFORMATION
North Alabama vs. West Georgia
Date: Saturday, November 8
Time: 3 p.m. CT
Location: Florence, Alabama
Stadium: Braly Stadium
Capacity: 14,215
TV: ESPN+ ("Voice of the Lions"
Benjamin Ray, Bryan Neece,
Chase Glover)
Radio: Roar Lions Productions (Jordan Campbell, Jacob Tucker,
Chase Glover)
Live Stats: StatBroadcast
Tickets: Click Here
Social Media:
@UNAFootball
UNA Game Notes |
Opponent Game Notes |
UAC Notes
NOTABLES
ABOUT THE LIONS: North Alabama brings a 2-7 overall record into Saturday with both wins coming at home. The Lions are currently 1-4 in conference play with a win over Eastern Kentucky in the last home game. The last two weeks saw UNA go on the road and fall to No. 23 Austin Peay (56-28) and Utah Tech (34-33). UNA has the 17th ranked rushing attack in FCS with 196.8 rushing yards per game.
ABOUT THE WOLVES: West Georgia is 6-3 overall and 3-3 in the UAC. The Wolves — who are currently receiving votes in both FCS polls — got off to a 5-0 start in their second FCS season, but have since dropped three of the last four games to nationally-ranked opponents. However, West Georgia edged Central Arkansas in its last game with an 18-17 win, securing its first winning season at the FCS level. UWG enters the UNA game after a bye week. West Georgia has the second-ranked defense in the UAC with 24.0 points per game allowed.
SERIES HISTORY: UNA and West Georgia will play for the 37th time on Saturday. The Lions have a 23-13 advantage in the all-time series. The Lions and Wolves played regularly as Gulf South Conference rivals from 1983-2017, then UNA moved to FCS the following season. UWG moved up to FCS in 2024, renewing the rivalry in Carollton. This will be the first meeting in Braly since 2016.
LAST YEAR'S MEETING: Last season, UNA and West Georgia renewed a historic rivalry for the first time since 2017. The Lions welcomed the Wolves to the United Athletic Conference with a 25-16 win in Carrollton. In one of the oddest games of the football season, UNA totaled over 43 minutes of possession and ran 87 plays while just taking the field 39 times on defense. One of those 39 plays sealed the game, as
Jackson Bratton recorded a sack for a safety. In the third quarter,
Dakota Warfield caught the go-ahead touchdown to make it 20-13. The acrobatic catch was the #6 play on SportsCenter Top 10 and the #2 play on ESPN College Football Final. The Lions also made College Football Final last week against Utah Tech for the first time since Warfield's catch.
LAST TIME IN BRALY: A radio call that will live in the minds of UNA fans forever, the Lions defeated West Georgia by a 24-23 final in 2016, which was the last time the two sides played at Braly Stadium. UWG led 23-10 heading into the final frame, but the Lions came back on a two-yard touchdown from Jacob Tucker and another two-yard run from Blake Hawkins. Hawkins replaced Tucker at QB after an injury and scored with 1:44 left to make it 24-23. West Georgia moved down the field and got all the way to the UNA five yard line, calling timeout with just seconds remaining to set up a short game-winning field goal attempt for Hunter Heck. The UWG kicker pushed it wide left, sending UNA fans into a frenzy with a thrilling victory. Both teams were nationally-ranked with West Georgia at #3 and North Alabama at #18. The Wolves were led by head coach Will Hall, a former Harlon Hill winner at UNA, while the Lions were led by UNA Athletic Hall of Famer Bobby Wallace.
UNA vs. THE PEACH STATE: Saturday marks the 103rd meeting between UNA and a school from the state of Georgia. Of those games, 78 of those are against traditional Gulf South Conference rivals West Georgia and Valdosta State. North Alabama is 66-35-1 against the Peach State.
LAST TIME OUT: UNA dropped a heartbreaker in Utah last week, falling 34-33 in overtime against Utah Tech. The Lions were down a touchdown heading into the fourth quarter and had back-to-back touchdowns to take the lead. Utah Tech tied the game with 4:06 left. Both teams scored in overtime, but a missed extra point on UNA's possession became the difference.
MOVING THE CHAINS: UNA has set season-highs for first downs in each of the last two weeks, including 27 against Austin Peay and 28 against Utah Tech. The Lions now rank 11th in FCS with 206 first downs. The only team better in the UAC is #6 Tarleton with 238 first downs.
TWO 100-YARD RUSHERS: Destin Wade and Juice Allen both rushed for over 100 yards against Utah Tech, marking the first time UNA has had a pair of 100-yard rushers in a game since 2017. The last pair to do that was Nick Taylor and Dre Hall against Mississippi College.
WATCH OUT FOR WATFORD: There have been 20 punts of over 70 yards in FCS this season.
Adam Watford has two of those with the 8th and 12th longest, including a 74 yarder against Central Arkansas and a 72 yarder against Utah Tech. He and James Platte from The Citadel are the only two FCS punters with multiple 70-yard punts this year.
RECORD WATCH: Adam Watford needs one more 50-yard punt to set a couple of single-season and career records. He and Joe Gurley are currently tied for the single season FCS era record with 14 punts of over 50 yards. Gurley set the record in 2019 and Watford tied last week at Utah Tech. Also, Watford is one 50-yard punt away from tying Tony Faggioni for the all-time career record. Watford has 29 such punts over three seasons. Faggioni had 30 from 1995-98.
BAND OF BROTHERS: Christian Burkhalter and
Bishop Burkhalter are one of the few sibling sets in FCS football. Against Central Arkansas, the Burkhalter brothers were both credited with a tackle on the same play. There are no other FCS teams to have siblings record a stat on the same play this season.
UAC ROUNDUP: All four games in the UAC will be afternoon kickoffs, including Utah Tech at No. 18 Abilene Christian and Southern Utah at EKU in the 2 p.m. time slot. This will be followed by the UNA/UWG game and Central Arkansas at Austin Peay at 3 p.m. The one team on a bye this week is No. 6 Tarleton State.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
