In a primetime marquee matchup, Western Michigan (6-4, 5-1 MAC) took an important step in the standings, achieving bowl eligibility by besting Ohio (6-4, 4-2 MAC) in a hard-fought contest.
The game started out with a promising Bobcat drive but Western Michigan’s Tate Hallock turned the tide. The Broncos’ star seventh-year senior safety stepped in front of a slant intended for Ohio wide receiver Chase Hendricks, stopping the drive in its tracks with his eighth career interception. Yet the Bobcats’ defense answered the bell, protecting a short field and forcing kicker Palmer Domschke to a 46-yard field goal which was converted for a 3-0 Broncos lead.
The Bobcats took a while to jump-start the offense but on its third drive, it finally answered Domschke’s points with a 4-yard touchdown run from quarterback Parker Navarro to take a 7-3 lead.
Unfazed, WMU responded with a promising drive of its own, fueled by a clutch fourth down conversion from quarterback Broc Lowry to true freshman wideout Aveion Chenault. The drive stalled, however, when Bobcats’ JACK defensive end Jay Crable wreaked havoc at just the right moment to force a potential WMU touchdown pass off-line. Adding to the Broncos’ misfortune, Domschke was unable to salvage the drive when his 26-yard field goal attempt doinked hard off the left upright.
As the second quarter progressed, neither offense was able to string enough plays together to do any damage, so the teams headed into the locker room with Ohio leading 7-3. It marked Ohio’s second-straight midweek game holding an opponent to three at the half.
The third quarter was a rare affair as each squad had just one sustained offensive series, each resulting in a touchdown.
The Broncos started the stanza with a gritty, 68-yard drive featuring five runs of seven yards or more, with running back Jalen Buckley doing the heaviest lifting. It ultimately materialized in the end zone on a 1-yard Lowry touchdown run, opening up a 10-7 Western Michigan lead.
Ohio answered with an absolute odyssey of a drive, taking what the Broncos gave them on a 17-play, 83-yard possession featuring 16 runs. Bobcats quarterback Parker Navarro and halfback Sieh Bangura traded impressive runs to keep the sticks moving, and Bangura cashed in on a 5-yard run on 3rd and goal to regain the lead at 13-10. However, the Bobcats missed the PAT — its fourth miss of the season — to keep WMU within a field goal.
The Bobcats’ lead was short lived due to a championship effort by the home team on both sides of the ball in the final quarter, which sealed the deal.
On its first possession of the fourth, Western Michigan shocked the visitors on a legendary effort by wideout Tailique Williams, who turned a short reception and five-to-seven broken tackles into a 71-yard scamper. The Broncos cashed in on a short Buckley run the very next play to take a 17-13 lead with 13:43 remaining.
Western Michigan dominated the remainder of the game, thriving on the ground offensively while simultaneously wielding a smothering defense. The Broncos chewed up 7:44 of clock on one fourth quarter possession, but Domschke’s shanked 37-yard field goal gave Ohio a final chance at the win. The Bobcats only went backwards though, unable to convert on a desperation 4th and 20 to keep the drive alive, allowing Western Michigan to emerge for its sixth win in a 7-game span.
Bowl eligible for the second-straight year, the Broncos now control their own destiny for their first MAC Championship Game appearance since 2016. Lance Taylor and his squad look to keep the championship drive going next Tuesday at Northern Illinois, while Ohio looks to regroup next Tuesday night against UMass after collecting its second MAC loss of the season. At the conclusion of Nov. 11, Ohio and Western Michigan are the only bowl eligible teams in the MAC.
