Western Kentucky running back D'Andre Ferby carries the ball Nov. 17 during the Hilltoppers' 41-38 win over Middle Tennessee at Houchens-Smith Stadium. The Blue Raiders will host WKU on Nov. 2 in Murfreesboro, Tenn.

Editor’s note: This is part nine of a 12-part series previewing Western Kentucky’s football opponents for the 2018 season.

The Hilltoppers will travel to Murfreesboro, Tenn., for a Nov. 2 game at Conference USA rival Middle Tennessee. Kickoff from Johnny “Red” Floyd Stadium is set for 7 p.m., with the game to be broadcast on CBS Sports Network.

FRISCO, Texas – Brent Stockstill knows the life of a college football coach. The Middle Tennessee quarterback also knows it’s a life he wants to pursue.

“I’ve known I wanted to do it since I was real little, probably first or second grade,” Stockstill told the Daily News last month during Conference USA Media Days at The Star. “I wrote it on a piece of paper, said I wanted to be a college football coach.

“Just growing up and seeing the way (father Rick Stockstill) did it and the way he climbed the ranks and being around the game of football and the love I have for competing and winning, it’s just a match. I’ve known I wanted to do it and I can’t wait to get into it one day.”

Brent Stockstill was born in 1994, when his father was wide receivers coach/co-offensive coordinator at Clemson. Rick Stockstill worked as an assistant at Clemson, East Carolina and South Carolina before he got a head coaching chance of his own in 2006 at MTSU.

The elder Stockstill has been the Blue Raiders’ coach for the last 12 seasons, posting a 79-72 career record. Rick Stockstill will commence his 13th season as Middle Tennessee coach this fall, and the fourth with his son as starting QB.

Brent Stockstill gray shirted in 2013 for the Blue Raiders and redshirted the following season after playing only one game.

The younger Stockstill has played 31 games in the three seasons since.

“I can’t tell you how much I’ve enjoyed it, how fun it’s been,” Rick Stockstill said of coaching his son. “I told him when he came, ‘You can win the Heisman, or you can never come off the bench and I don’t want our father-son relationship to be affected by it.’ It hasn’t.

“We’ve always been close. He’s my best friend and always has been. We’re even closer now because I’ve had the opportunity to see how hard he works, see how he takes care of his body and how competitive he is and how humble he is. I’ve created a lifetime of memories I’ll be able to look back on.”

Brent Stockstill has completed 63.6 percent of his passes for 8,951 yards and 77 touchdowns against 25 interceptions. He owns program records for passing TDs, 300-yard passing games (14), 400-yard passing games (two), passing yards per game (288.7) and completions (729).

Now a redshirt senior, the QB is about to start the final season of his college career. After it’s over, he hopes to get a shot to play in the NFL.

But if pro football isn’t in the cards, then Brent Stockstill said he’s ready to start his coaching career as soon as next season. The quarterback would likely start as a graduate assistant working with a team’s offense.

“Obviously he’s been around it all his life,” Rick Stockstill said. “He understands the highs and lows of it. He understands the time away from family.

“It’s not like he’s getting into something that he doesn’t know. He’s been around it his whole life. He’ll be a hell of a coach.”

Brent Stockstill is confident he’ll be effective on the recruiting trail – an important area for any college football coach.

“I’m just a tireless worker,” he said. “I think that’s what recruiting is about – you never stop working, never stop digging. Then building relationships with people, how you treat people is something I take pride in.”

MTSU brings back an intriguing 2018 roster for Brent Stockstill’s final college season as a player. He’s one of three preseason All-Conference USA selections on the team’s offense, alongside guard Chandler Brewer and wide receiver Ty Lee.

Lee caught 79 passes last season, most in C-USA, for 955 yards and five touchdowns. Running backs Brad Anderson, Tavares Thomas and Terelle West are back after combining for 1,306 rushing yards in 2017.

Brewer, Robert Behanan and Carlos Johnson are back on the offensive line. The Blue Raiders’ preseason depth chart lists redshirt freshman Cole Kirby, a Franklin native and Franklin-Simpson High School product, as the team’s backup left tackle.

Middle Tennessee returns seven defensive starters from a unit that tied with Marshall last year as Conference USA’s leader in defensive yards per play (4.95).

Khalil Brooks is a preseason All-C-USA pick. Fellow linebacker Darius Harris was MVP of the Blue Raiders’ 2017 Camellia Bowl win against Arkansas State. Safety Jovante Moffatt notched a team-best 101 tackles last year.

MTSU was picked to finish third in the C-USA East Division behind Florida Atlantic and Marshall in the league’s preseason poll. The Blue Raiders will face both those teams in the first five weeks of the season. They also visit Southeastern Conference foes Vanderbilt, Georgia and Kentucky this season.

Middle Tennessee’s annual rivalry matchup with Western Kentucky takes place Nov. 2. Four of the last six meetings have gone to multiple overtimes, including a 41-38, three-OT Hilltopper win last fall.

Best offensive player

Brent Stockstill, Quarterback, Redshirt senior

Stockstill’s importance to Middle Tennessee was illustrated last year when he suffered a September shoulder injury. The Blue Raiders were 2-4 in six games without the Murfreesboro native and 5-2 in seven games with him.

Best defensive player

Khalil Brooks, Linebacker, Redshirt junior

Brooks was a Second Team All-Conference USA performer in 2017 after collecting 76 tackles, 17 tackles for loss and 7½ sacks. The Atlanta native was twice named C-USA Defensive Player of the Week.

Head coach

Rick Stockstill (79-72, 13th season; 79-72 overall)

2017 season results

7-6 overall, 4-4 Conference USA, Camellia Bowl champions

Series history vs. Western Kentucky

Middle Tennessee leads 34-32-1 (Hilltoppers won last meeting 41-38 in three overtimes Nov. 17 in Bowling Green).{&end}