Getty The Austin Peay Governors will face UT Martin Saturday. (Photo by Scott Cunningham/Getty Images)
The University of Tennessee at Martin Skyhawks (6-3, 5-1) will travel to Clarksville to play the 24th ranked Austin Peay Governors (6-3, 4-1) at Fortera Stadium Saturday.
The game (4 p.m. ET start time) won’t be on TV, but you can watch it live right here on ESPN+, the streaming service from ESPN that has exclusive coverage of dozens of college football games and other live sports every week, all the 30-for-30 documentaries and additional original content (both video and written) all for $4.99 per month.
You can sign up for ESPN+ right here, and you can then watch Austin Peay vs UT Martin live on your computer via ESPN.com, or on your phone (Android and iPhone compatible), tablet, Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, or other streaming device via the ESPN app.
Watch Austin Peay vs TN-Martin on ESPN+
UT Martin vs Austin Peay Preview
The Governors are coming off a thrilling 28-21 overtime victory against Eastern Kentucky last week. Peay quarterback JaVaughn Craig led the way with 238 yards passing and three touchdown passes in the game. The Governors scored a touchdown on the first play in overtime, will come into this game hot, winning four of their last five games.
Helping Craig on offense this season have been running back Kentel Williams, who has been the Governors’ best rushing threat, with 633 yards rushing on the season, and DeAngelo Wilson. Junior wide receiver Wilson has been one of Craig’s favorite targets, and he has 966 receiving yards and nine touchdowns so far this season. Wilson has been a legitimate deep threat, and Craig will likely look his way a great deal in this game.
The Skyhawks are coming off a 22-17 homecoming victory against Jacksonville State. Quarterback John Bachus III threw for 245 yards and a score in that game, and the redshirt freshman has had a solid season so far. Bachus has thrown for a total of 1,890 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions so far this year.
UT Martin has also benefitted from the occasional special teams play this season. Terry Martin also had a punt return for a touchdown for UT Martin in the win against Jacksonville State, so special teams may be a key factor to watch in this game.
On defense, the Skyhawks are led by linebacker Cecil Cherry, who has four sacks on the season so far. They are giving up 17 points a game, boasting one of the stingiest defenses in the Ohio Valley Conference. UT Martin’s defense will face an Austin Peay team that has the best offense in the OVC, averaging 38 points a game, so this will certainly be an evenly-matched contest.
The implications for both teams in this game are huge. If UT Martin wins its next two games, the team will win just its second conference championship in school history and its first since the 2006 season. The same applies to Austin Peay, who seeks its second conference championship in program history, as well.
This is the 68th meeting between Austin Peay and UT Martin since 1930. The Skyhawks lead the all-time series, 39-26-2. UT Martin has also won 10 of the last 11. This may be one of the bigger and most important matchups in the history of the rivalry.