Western Kentucky junior receiver Jake Gaebler (left) hauls in a pass earlier this season against Florida Atlantic at Houchens-Smith Stadium. Joe Imel/Daily News

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Sometimes, consistency from players on a 2-7 team can be a tough thing to find.

It hasn’t been a problem, however, for Western Kentucky University junior wide receiver Jake Gaebler.

Despite early injury issues, Gaebler has easily been the Hilltoppers most reliable offensive threat this season, catching a team-high 32 passes for 388 yards and three touchdowns, despite missing one full game and substantial portions of two more.

A contributor since his redshirt freshman season in 2006, Gaebler says his key to success is simple: work ethic.

“I’m never the quickest or fastest guy out there, but I feel like I run good routes and read defenses pretty well,” Gaebler said. “The most important thing is running good routes, whether you run a 4.4 or a 4.8 (40-yard dash), you have to get separation.

“And that’s something I work on in the offseason. I work with the quarterbacks with timing all the time, and I think that’s just a quality that I have that definitely helps.”

For his career, Gaebler has 103 catches for 1,230 yards and eight touchdowns. With a full season and three games left to go in his career, he’s just 46 catches from breaking Curtis Hamilton’s all-time career receptions record, set last season with 149.

Until now, Gaebler has performed a supporting role in the Hilltopper offense. He played his first two seasons alongside the best statistical wideout ever at WKU in Hamilton.

But all that’s changed, as Gaebler’s hauled in 20 catches for 259 yards and two scores in the last three contests alone.

“We’re getting to a point here where he’s going to start seeing double teams because a few times there last week they knew the ball was going to him and he still got it,” WKU coach David Elson said. “That’s the sign of a great receiver and a great playmaker, and now we’ve got to start to be alert that people are going to be much more conscious of him.”

A perfect example of Gaebler’s value came Saturday against North Texas. Gaebler caught a quick slant pass and broke through four tackles, then used his feet for a 62-yard scoring play.

Hilltopper coaches say those big plays come on weekends because of the way Gaebler carries himself during the week.

“He’s football smart, he understands the game and understands route-running and how to get open,” WKU wide receivers coach T.J. Weist said. “And he really prepares, he studies the defense, he works during practice, he understands the game plan and he knows the opposition’s personnel.

“And lastly, I trust him and I can put him in different positions because I know he’s so competitive. I know he can keep his emotions in check and he knows that when he makes a big play he won’t get too high or when things don’t go right to get too frustrated. I can trust him to know what to do and lead others because he plays with so much confidence.”

As much as Gaebler credits his hard work in practice, Gaebler said that learning from former players such as Hamilton and receiver Maurice Perkins didn’t hurt.

“Being able to work with those guys and learn from them or watch practice and game film on them was big,” Gaebler said. “Just seeing the way they approached the game and studied film, how they ran their routes and worked with technique and that type of thing has really helped me become the receiver I am now.”

Now, as WKU moves forward in its transition to the NCAA Football Bowl Subdivision, Gaebler hopes to pass along that knowledge and confidence to the Toppers’ younger wideouts.

“Me and Jessie Quinn, who is a senior wide receiver, that’s something we really try to do is coach the young guys up,” he said. “Just like Curtis and Maurice did for us, because those young guys are going to be the future of this program.

“And when we’re done, they’re going to have to step up. And the more we can teach them, the better off this program’s going to be.”