A battle of epic proportions, set in the foothills of the bluegrass, pits dominant opposing forces as the UAB football team seeks to reestablish its conference supremacy in a mid-season league contest with future title game implications.

The Blazers hit the road to open a crucial two-game conference road trip as they face off against Western Kentucky, Friday, Oct. 21, at L.T. Smith Stadium in Bowling Green, Kentucky.

Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. on CBS Sports Network.

UAB is coming off a 34-20 win over Charlotte, shrugging off a slow start with a balanced offensive attack and defensive turnaround, but is 0-2 on the road this season and faces the league’s top offense and rushing defense in a matchup that could very well decide the conference title down the line.

“Each team, throughout the season, you’ve got to have those opportunities and that moment,” UAB interim head coach Bryant Vincent said. “We had that opportunity earlier in the season and we didn’t get it done. There’s growth and development from our team. It’s a big game, big opportunity, and a tremendous challenge in front of us on both sides of the ball and as a football team.”

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In UAB’s two losses this season, both on the road, the Blazers turned the ball over six times but were able to put themselves in a position to win the game in the waning moments. A total of 11 points separates UAB from a 6-0 record this season and being stingy with the ball will be crucial to ensure there are no what-ifs following the outcome.

“We’ve got to have great ball security,” Vincent said. “We’ve got to be savvy in situations, whether it’s third down, whether it’s red zone, whether it’s goal line.”

“They’re one of the top offenses in the country,” he added. “We’ve got to be able to defend these guys on the perimeter. They’re a big perimeter offense and like to stretch the field. We’ve got to tackle well, we’ve got to swarm the football and we’ve got to be great in situational football.”

The obvious answer for success lies in UAB’s formidable rushing attack but the Hilltoppers just so happen to be the best rushing defense (120.4 ypg) in C-USA, ranking 36th in the nation. Given its high-powered offense, the rushing defense could be a result of teams passing more in order to keep pace with Western Kentucky.

Left guard Matthew Trehern doesn’t expect a sudden change in tactics and is prepared to lead the charge for DeWayne McBride and Jermaine Brown Jr., the former currently leading the nation with 155.6 ypg and on pace to break every UAB single-season rushing record. The ability of the running game to find early success should lead to open downfield receivers for a passing attack starting to find stable footing.

“We welcome the challenge and we’re going to do what we do and we’re going to run the football,” Trehern said. “The mentality really starts on Monday’s practice. We talk about it to the offense, bring the mentality today and it will bleed over to Saturday. When you bring that mentality every day, it bleeds over to game day.”

Defensively speaking, UAB matches up strength-for-strength with the Hilltoppers’ offense and has proven success this season against high-scoring offenses. The Blazers held the 11th-ranked Georgia Southern offense (505.9 ypg) to only 204 passing yards, while collecting three interceptions, and held a top-40 Charlotte passing offense to 214 yards while grabbing two interceptions.

The Hilltoppers, for their part, enter the game ranked 16th in total offense (489.1) and top-10 in more than seven offensive categories — powered by its sixth-ranked passing attack (344.7 ypg).

“We have faced several high-powered passing offenses, but each one is a little bit different,” Vincent said. “This one against Western Kentucky, they’re a little bit different themselves. We’ve got to be able to line up, we’ve got to keep them in front of us. We can bend, but we can’t break. It’s a challenge that our defense gets excited for. They welcome challenges; they’re a very spirited, competitive group that’s going to be excited to play this game.”

Following a record-setting season by former Hilltoppers quarterback Bailey Zappe, Western Kentucky turned to the transfer portal once more and came away with West Florida signal-caller Austin Reed. The graduate transfer has taken almost every offensive snap this season, completing 70.7 percent of his passes for 2,316 yards and 21 touchdowns, against five interceptions. He is not the most fleet of foot but has rushed for 151 yards and four touchdowns while being sacked only eight times.

“He’s very accurate, you can tell he’s experienced,” Vincent said. “He makes a lot of good decisions because the ball is in his hand every snap and they’re throwing it a lot and he’s making decisions. He’s accurate, he gets it out quick, he keeps the team in good situations and you can just tell he’s got a firm grasp of what they’re doing. They’re a tempo offense, they’re going to put pressure on us to line up fast, and he’s going to have a lot of options.”

Putting pressure on Reed and affecting his decision-making is the key for the UAB defense, a unit that prides itself on drowning out the noise and silencing opposing offenses. Senior linebacker Noah Wilder, who moved into seventh place (284) on UAB’s all-time tackles list last week, expects adversity and tough situations facing the Hilltoppers in unfriendly confines but finds solace in fighting an uphill battle.

“When you play a road game, you get to embrace the moment,” Wilder said. “They’ve got a really great offense all around the board. When you go down there, you have to give everything you’ve got. Everything isn’t always going to go our way, but as long as we keep fighting until the end, we have a chance. Away games are always hard, especially when you go to an environment like Western Kentucky. It’s fun playing road games and embracing that moment.”