Mid-American Conference Championship
Miami, Ohio (7-5) vs. Western Michigan (8-4)
Saturday, Noon ET (Ford Field, Detroit)
Western Michigan won the regular season conference title outright with a 7-1 record, ending a long absence in the championship game. The Broncos’ last appearance came during the 2016 season, when they defeated Ohio, 29-23.
Western Michigan has won eight of its last nine games after starting the season 0-3 against non-conference opponents.
Stout defense has been the key to the Broncos’ success. They only allowed 14.5 points per contest in MAC games, second best to Toledo (9.1). Offensively, they rely on a rushing attack that averaged 212 yards in conference play.
The RedHawks will be making their third straight appearance in the championship game. They defeated Toledo, 23-14, in 2023 and lost to Ohio, 38-3, last season. No team has gone to three title games in a row since Northern Illinois from 2010-15.
“There’s 18 teams that play this week. Fight for 11 months to be part of one of the nine games on Saturday,” RedHawks coach Chuck Martin said. “We lost 28 seniors, our top 15 offensive players and our whole entire offense, a ton of attrition during the year.”
Attrition is one word for what Miami has survived.
Quarterback Dequan Finn abruptly left the program with two games remaining to focus on the NFL draft. That pushed redshirt freshman Thomas Gotkowski to take over a backfield already hit hard by injuries.
“If you’d told me in August you’ll be playing Thomas Gotkowski, you’ll be down to your third, fourth, fifth tailback, (redshirt sophomore) Brock Uihlein is going to play the most snaps at linebacker in the two most pivotal games of the season,” Martin said, “I’d have said, ‘That’d be interesting. Not what we’re hoping for.'”
Miami (Ohio) handed Western Michigan its only conference loss on Oct. 25, scoring 17 unanswered points in the fourth quarter to notch a 26-17 victory.
The RedHawks tied for second place with Ohio and Toledo and lost to both teams but still snuck into the title game on a tiebreaker. Since Toledo and Ohio didn’t play each other, records against common opponents was used as the tiebreaker.
Ohio beat Miami in the championship game 38-3 last December.
Miami has a strong rushing defense (101.1 ypg in conference games) and held the Broncos to 3.7 yards per carry in their regular season meeting.
–Players to Know:
Miami (Ohio)
LB Jackson Kuwatch — Not only has Kuwatch made the second-most tackles on the team (87), he’s also second on the RedHawks in sacks (five).
RB Jordan Brunson — He’s led the RedHawks in rushing in each of the last seven games, including a 123-yard output against Buffalo on Nov. 19.
Western Michigan
QB Broc Lowry — He’s a bigger threat as a runner than a passer. Lowry rushed for 875 yards and 14 touchdowns. He threw just seven touchdown passes but was only picked off twice.
DE Nadame Tucker — After playing sparingly for Houston in three seasons, Tucker took the MAC by storm, recording 12 sacks.
–MAC Championship Game history
Miami is 4-3 all-time in the MAC title game. Northern Illinois (nine times) is the only team to appear in more conference championship games than the RedHawks, who tie Toledo with their ninth appearance this week.
Western Michigan makes its fourth appearance in the MAC Championship. The Broncos last won the game in 2016.
