Weber State University Athletics
Weber State University
Butler
Game 4: Wildcat football home opener Saturday night
9/16/2025 4:30:00 PM | Football
Weber State will host Butler on Saturday at 7:00 p.m. at Stewart Stadium. The lighting of the W on the mountain will be at halftime.
• Weber State will finally play a home game as the Wildcats open the 2025 home schedule this Saturday night against Butler.
• The Wildcats have played the first three games on the road in three different time zones and have traveled nearly 9,000 miles.
• WSU is 1-2 on the season and coming off a thrilling 42-41 win at McNeese on Saturday.
• Butler is 2-1 and has won its last two games.
• The Bulldogs are an FCS school out of Indianapolis and play in the Pioneer League.
• Mickey Mental is back for his third season as head coach of the Wildcats. WSU also welcomes four new assistant coaches to the staff.
• Sloan Calder was named the Co-Big Sky Player of the Week after his performance in Saturday's win.
• This is the first ever meeting between Weber State and Butler.
• The Wildcats will be in all purple for the home opener.
• Weber State University will light the W on the mountain at halftime of Saturday's game.
• All tickets are $5 off for Saturday's game.
Media coverage
Saturday's game will kickoff at 7 p.m. at Stewart Stadium and will be streamed on ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Mike Folta and Riley Jensen will call the action on ESPN+.
The Weber State radio broadcast will be on 103.1 FM with Carl Arky and former WSU head coach and athletic director Jerry Graybeal on the call.
Live stats available at WeberStateSports.com and the Weber State Wildcats app.
Wildcats pick up first win with 42-41 thriller at McNeese
Weber State won a thriller Saturday night in Lake Charles, Louisiana with a 42-41 win at McNeese for the first win of the season. The 'Cats led by 21 points with 9:45 to play when the Cowboys responded with three-straight touchdowns. McNeese went for a two-point conversion in the final minute, but Matt Herron knocked down the pass attempt to seal the win for the Wildcats.
The two teams combined for nearly 1,000 yards of offense. Weber State jumped out to a 21-7 lead at halftime and the Wildcats had 229 yards rushing and 218 yards passing.
Sloan Calder named Big Sky Player of the Week
After a touchdown and five extra points scored, Weber State's Sloan Calder has been named the Big Sky Co-Special Teams Player of the Week.
Calder was 5 of 5 on extra point attempts and pulled off a touchdown that helped the 'Cats to Saturday's win.
Late in the second quarter, Weber State lined up for a field goal, but ran a fake and Calder took the ball and ran in for a 10-yard touchdown that put the Wildcats up 21-7 at halftime. It was Calder's first career touchdown.
The Morgan, Utah native is 2 of 3 on field goal attempts this season with a long of 51 yards in the season opener at James Madison.
He has played in 38 career games in four seasons at Weber State.
Offensive production
Weber State had a balanced offensive attack with 447 total yards of offense with 229 yards rushing and 218 yards passing in Saturday's win. Sophomore quarterback Jackson Gilkey threw for 218 yards and a touchdown and also had 114 yards rushing with another touchdown. He was the first Wildcat quarterback since Stefen Cantwell in 2017 to rush for more than 100 yards in a game. He completed a 78 yard touchdown pass to Jayleen Record in the first quarter an broke off a 50-yard rushing touchdown in the second quarter.
Through three games, Gilkey has thrown for 370 yards and two touchdown and is WSU's leading rusher with 175 yards.
Sophomore running back Davion Godley ran for 59 yards and two touchdowns in Saturday's win.
Two picks, including a TD for Wildcat defense
The Wildcat defense garnered two interceptions, one returned for a touchdown, and added six tackles for loss in Saturday's win.
Angel King intercepted a pass in the first quarter of the game, his second pick of the year. King leads the Wildcats in tackles this season with 19.
Early in the fourth quarter, BJ Carey had his first career interception and returned it 42 yards for a touchdown that gave the Wildcats a 42-21 lead.
This makes five straight seasons that Weber State has had an interception returned for a touchdown.
Home sweet home
The Wildcats will finally play at Stewart Stadium for the home opener this Saturday night.
This is the first year ever that Weber State started the season with three straight road games. The Wildcats will play four of the first five games on the road and WSU is the only Division I school to have the first four games played in four different time zones (not including games in Hawaii).
But the Wildcats are home this Saturday for the first time this year, and Weber State has won nine of the last 10 home openers.
September 20 is the latest home opener is the latest date to have a first home game since 2007.
Kickoff at 7 p.m. for Light the W
The kickoff time for Saturday's game has been moved back to 7:00 p.m. for the lighting of the W on the mountain right behind Stewart Stadium and Weber State University. The lighting ceremony will be at halftime of Saturday's game.
For the special night, all tickets in the stadium are $5 off for Saturday's game.
Weber State will also honor this year's class of the Wildcat Hall of Fame at halftime of Saturday's game. Kelsey Chugg (women's golf - 2011-13), Taron Johnson (football - 2014-17), Linsey McFarland (soccer - 2003-06), "CT" Carla Taylor (women's basketball coach - 1989-2011), and Rico Washington (men's basketball - 1987-89) will be inducted into the Weber State Athletics Hall of Fame this weekend.
Team captains
As selected by their teammates, Weber State has named four captains for the 2025 season. Wildcat senior fullback Colter May, senior offensive lineman Gavin Ortega, senior wide receiver Jayleen Record, and junior defensive tackle Keahnist Thompson will be the team captains for the 2025 season. Record is a captain for the second-straight season. May and Ortega were both selected as preseason All-Big Sky selections.
Head coach Mickey Mental returns for third season as head coach
Mickey Mental is in his third season as head coach and his fourth overall season at Weber State. He is also the offensive coordinator for the Wildcats.
Mental came to Weber State as the offensive coordinator under Jay Hill for the 2022 season and helped lead the Wildcats to the second round of the FCS Playoffs. He was named the 12th head coach in Weber State history in December 2022. In his third season as head coach, he has a 10-15 overall record and a 7-9 Big Sky record at Weber State.
Prior to coming to Weber State, Mental was the head coach at Notre Dame College in Ohio for two seasons where he posted a 16-2 overall record and a 13-1 record in conference play. In the spring 2021 season, he led the Falcons to a conference championship. He is a native of Olmstead Falls, Ohio.
Four new assistant coaches join the Wildcats
Weber State welcomed four new coaches to the staff this season, including two former Wildcat football players. Keilan Benjamin (cornerbacks), Brady Daigh (defensive tackles), Justin "Ace" Mullgrav (linebackers), and Daniel Wright Jr. (running backs), are all new to the Wildcat staff this season. Benjamin and Wright are former Wildcat players. Benjamin was a standout cornerback with the Wildcats in 2017 and 2018 and earned first-team All-Big Sky honors, while helping the Wildcats to back-to-back Big Sky titles. Wright was a running back at Weber State from 2019 to the spring 2021 season. He was also part of two Big Sky Championship teams.
Former Wildcat all-time great joins the coaching staff
Coach Mental also added one more Wildcat great to the coaching staff as Weber State Hall of Famer Jamie Martin was added as an Offensive Analyst. Martin is one of the best players in Weber State and Big Sky Conference history. He played quarterback at Weber State from 1989-92 and was a two-time All-American and a two-time Big Sky MVP. He won the Walter Payton Award in 1991 as the top player in the country, the only Wildcat to ever do so. He is a member of the Weber State Hall of Fame and the Big Sky Hall of Fame and he is the only player in WSU history to have his jersey retired. Following his Weber State career, Martin played 16 years in the NFL and was a part of seven different teams.
Weber State football history
This marks the 64th season of football at Weber State, since the school became a four-year institution. The Wildcats are charter members of the Big Sky Conference and have won eight Big Sky titles and advanced to the FCS Playoffs 10 times. WSU won four Big Sky titles and advanced to the FCS Playoffs six times under Jay Hill who was the head coach from 2014-22, now the defensive coordinator at BYU. Veteran college football coaches Mike Price (1981-89) and Ron McBride (2005-11) were also head coaches at Weber State and led the Wildcats to Big Sky titles.
About Butler
The Butler Bulldogs enter Saturday's game with a 2-1 overall record. They opened the season with a 38-14 loss at Northern Iowa and are coming off back-to-back wins over Truman State and Hanover.
Butler is an FCS school out of Indianapolis, Indiana, and competes in the Pioneer Football League.
The Bulldogs were 9-3 overall last season and finished tied for third in the Pioneer League at 5-3.
Butler has a new coach this season in Kevin Lynch who was named head coach in December. He was the Assistant Head Coach and Offensive Coordinator at Ball State before coming to Butler.
The Bulldogs were picked fourth in the Pioneer League preseason poll.
Series history
This will be the first ever meeting between the two schools. It will also be just the second gave ever for Weber State against a team currently in the Pioneer Football League. The Wildcats played Drake in 1970.
This will be just the second game ever for Butler in Utah. The Bulldogs played at Southern Utah in 2001.
Looking ahead
After Saturday's game the Wildcats will open Big Sky Conference play next week with another road game at UC Davis.
Following a bye week on October 4, the next game will be on October 11 when the 'Cats host Sacramento State in the annual Homecoming game at Weber State.
