WESTERN MICHIGAN at TOLEDO
Saturday, Oct. 23 -- 3:30 p.m. ET
Glass Bowl -- Toledo, OH
CBSSN
Any margin for error has disappeared for the Toledo Rockets. They may have been close losses, but two setbacks over the last two weeks have UT on the ropes in the MAC West. Now, the Rockets must face a Western Michigan team that drubbed preseason MAC favorite Kent State 54-31 last week.
Northern Illinois leads the West with a perfect 3-0 conference mark. However, WMU meets the Huskies in a regular season finale Nov. 23. If the Broncos (2-1 MAC) can reach that game without any further losses, they may be able to punch their own ticket to a MAC Championship game spot with a win.
This is the 76th meeting between Western Michigan and the University of Toledo. The series dates back to 1939, and the two institutions have met every year since 1950. UT leads 44-31-0, but since 2015, the series is tied at 3-3.
In one of the all-time classic MAC games, Western Michigan capped an incredible comeback with a fake spike touchdown from Kaleb Eleby to Jaylen Hall with 17 seconds left to come away with a 41-38 win over the Broncos.
Here's more on the two teams . . .
WESTERN MICHIGAN BRONCOS (5-2, 2-1 MAC)
>> The Broncos bounced back -- BIG TIME -- from a loss to Ball State last week by blasting MAC East favorite Kent State 64-31 Saturday in Kalamazoo. WMU was already up 23-17 at halftime and erupted for four straight TDs when play resumed. Both teams scored two more touchdowns before the final whistle.
>> Western Michigan piled up a season-high 648 yards of offense against KSU, with 341 on the ground and 307 through the air. The Broncos gained 14 first downs rushing and 13 passing.
>> Kaleb Eleby connected on 15-of-22 passes for 307 yrds and three TDs. He leads the MAC with an average of 249.3 passing yards per game and has thrown 12 TDs against just two interceptions.
>> Skyy Moore, also a sophomore is the MAC's top receiver, averaging 105.7 ypg. and 8.2 catches per outing. Moore and Jaylen Hall combined for 13 catches, 284 yards and three TDs against Kent State.
>> While WMU ranks second in passing offense (252.1 ypg), it is still fifth in rushing (185.3 ypg). Junior running back La’Darius Jefferson is tied for 9th in the FBS with nine rushing touchdowns this season. Only eight players have more than nine rushing TDs. He has a rushing score in 10-straight games.
>> Western Michigan is first in rushing defense (MAC), yielding just 115.4 ypg.
>> The Broncos are third in the country in time of possession per game (37:20), behind only Army and Air Force.
TOLEDO ROCKETS (5-2, 2-1 MAC)
>> UT is coming off back-to-back MAC losses. The Rockets fell to current MAC West leader Northern Illinois (22-20) in Week Six and dropped a 26-23 overtime decision at Central Michigan last Saturday.
>> After trailing 14-0 and 20-3, Toledo out-scored CMU 20-3 down the stretch to force overtime.
The Chippewas had first possession in OT and finished with a 38-yard field goal. Toledo, for its part, started with a penalty and lost eight yards overall before trying a 51-yard field goal that was no good.
>> Toledo owned a slight edge in total yards (350-328) and time of possession (31:33 - 28:27). The Rockets converted 20 first downs to 13 for Central Michigan.
>> UT converted 5-of-20 third downs and 2-of-3 fourth downs.
>> Making his first start, redshirt freshman DeQuan Finn completed 15-of-32 for 208 yards against Central Michigan. Isaiah Winstead led Rocket receivers with four catches for 108 yards.
>> Both Toledo touchdowns were on the ground, and both were scored by Finn. His 18-yard scamper with 35 seconds left in regulation tied the game with 35 seconds left in overtime.
Finn has rushed for a team-best six touchdowns this year, including two scores at CMU on Oct. 16. Four of his scores have been long distance calls—70, 36, 26 and 24 yards.
>> Junior Bryant Koback rushed for 87 yards vs. CMU, and now has 3,161 career rushing yards, passing Jalen Parmelee (3,119 yards from 1991-94) to move into seventh place on Toledo’s all-time list. He also has 35 career touchdowns, which puts him in a tie for fifth place with Joe Schwartz (1970-72) in career Rocket rushing scores.
>> Sophomore kicker Thomas Cluckey connect on 3-of-6 field goal tries versus CMU, with a long of 50 yards. He is 11-of-17 on the year.
>> Toledo is seventh among MAC teams in scoring (25.0 ppg) and first in scoring defense (19.1 ppg).
>> The Rockets are sixth in passing offense (230.8 ypg) and eighth in rushing (141.8 ypg).
>> Bryce Mitchell returned a third quarter kickoff 76 yards.
>> Freshman safety Maxen Hooks led the Rockets with 11 tackles vs. CMU. He has had 24 tackles in the last two games.
Glass Bowl -- Toledo, OH
CBSSN
Any margin for error has disappeared for the Toledo Rockets. They may have been close losses, but two setbacks over the last two weeks have UT on the ropes in the MAC West. Now, the Rockets must face a Western Michigan team that drubbed preseason MAC favorite Kent State 54-31 last week.
Northern Illinois leads the West with a perfect 3-0 conference mark. However, WMU meets the Huskies in a regular season finale Nov. 23. If the Broncos (2-1 MAC) can reach that game without any further losses, they may be able to punch their own ticket to a MAC Championship game spot with a win.
This is the 76th meeting between Western Michigan and the University of Toledo. The series dates back to 1939, and the two institutions have met every year since 1950. UT leads 44-31-0, but since 2015, the series is tied at 3-3.
In one of the all-time classic MAC games, Western Michigan capped an incredible comeback with a fake spike touchdown from Kaleb Eleby to Jaylen Hall with 17 seconds left to come away with a 41-38 win over the Broncos.
Here's more on the two teams . . .
WESTERN MICHIGAN BRONCOS (5-2, 2-1 MAC)
>> The Broncos bounced back -- BIG TIME -- from a loss to Ball State last week by blasting MAC East favorite Kent State 64-31 Saturday in Kalamazoo. WMU was already up 23-17 at halftime and erupted for four straight TDs when play resumed. Both teams scored two more touchdowns before the final whistle.
>> Western Michigan piled up a season-high 648 yards of offense against KSU, with 341 on the ground and 307 through the air. The Broncos gained 14 first downs rushing and 13 passing.
>> Kaleb Eleby connected on 15-of-22 passes for 307 yrds and three TDs. He leads the MAC with an average of 249.3 passing yards per game and has thrown 12 TDs against just two interceptions.
>> Skyy Moore, also a sophomore is the MAC's top receiver, averaging 105.7 ypg. and 8.2 catches per outing. Moore and Jaylen Hall combined for 13 catches, 284 yards and three TDs against Kent State.
>> While WMU ranks second in passing offense (252.1 ypg), it is still fifth in rushing (185.3 ypg). Junior running back La’Darius Jefferson is tied for 9th in the FBS with nine rushing touchdowns this season. Only eight players have more than nine rushing TDs. He has a rushing score in 10-straight games.
>> Western Michigan is first in rushing defense (MAC), yielding just 115.4 ypg.
>> The Broncos are third in the country in time of possession per game (37:20), behind only Army and Air Force.
TOLEDO ROCKETS (5-2, 2-1 MAC)
>> UT is coming off back-to-back MAC losses. The Rockets fell to current MAC West leader Northern Illinois (22-20) in Week Six and dropped a 26-23 overtime decision at Central Michigan last Saturday.
>> After trailing 14-0 and 20-3, Toledo out-scored CMU 20-3 down the stretch to force overtime.
The Chippewas had first possession in OT and finished with a 38-yard field goal. Toledo, for its part, started with a penalty and lost eight yards overall before trying a 51-yard field goal that was no good.
>> Toledo owned a slight edge in total yards (350-328) and time of possession (31:33 - 28:27). The Rockets converted 20 first downs to 13 for Central Michigan.
>> UT converted 5-of-20 third downs and 2-of-3 fourth downs.
>> Making his first start, redshirt freshman DeQuan Finn completed 15-of-32 for 208 yards against Central Michigan. Isaiah Winstead led Rocket receivers with four catches for 108 yards.
>> Both Toledo touchdowns were on the ground, and both were scored by Finn. His 18-yard scamper with 35 seconds left in regulation tied the game with 35 seconds left in overtime.
Finn has rushed for a team-best six touchdowns this year, including two scores at CMU on Oct. 16. Four of his scores have been long distance calls—70, 36, 26 and 24 yards.
>> Junior Bryant Koback rushed for 87 yards vs. CMU, and now has 3,161 career rushing yards, passing Jalen Parmelee (3,119 yards from 1991-94) to move into seventh place on Toledo’s all-time list. He also has 35 career touchdowns, which puts him in a tie for fifth place with Joe Schwartz (1970-72) in career Rocket rushing scores.
>> Sophomore kicker Thomas Cluckey connect on 3-of-6 field goal tries versus CMU, with a long of 50 yards. He is 11-of-17 on the year.
>> Toledo is seventh among MAC teams in scoring (25.0 ppg) and first in scoring defense (19.1 ppg).
>> The Rockets are sixth in passing offense (230.8 ypg) and eighth in rushing (141.8 ypg).
>> Bryce Mitchell returned a third quarter kickoff 76 yards.
>> Freshman safety Maxen Hooks led the Rockets with 11 tackles vs. CMU. He has had 24 tackles in the last two games.
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