WKU Football: Western Michigan Q&A with Bronco Blitz
We’re just three days away from the First Responder Bowl in Dallas against Western Michigan. WKU has an opportunity to close the season on…
We’re just three days away from the First Responder Bowl in Dallas against Western Michigan. WKU has an opportunity to close the season on a high note and potentially build towards a 2020 season with conference championship aspirations. With that in all of that in mind, we thought that we’d get a Western Michigan perspective on the game. Luckily for us, we got Jarritt Orlando from Bronco Blitz to give us his thoughts on the WMU program, the game, and some predictions. Without further adieu, here is our conversation with Jarritt.
The Broncos finished the regular season 7–5, narrowly missing out on the MAC title game. How did WMU’s season play out?
WMU won the games they were supposed to and lost the games they were underdogs. their final 5 games are what hurt them. They lost first of the last five on the road to Eastern Michigan and lost the final game of the season to Northern Illinois where a win would’ve meant a trip to the MAC championship in Detroit. Western Michigan was the far superior team in the MAC this year but underperformed in a few key games.
WMU alum Tim Lester succeeded wildly successful PJ Fleck as the Broncos head coach. How has he done in the three seasons post-Fleck?
He’s done well. I think the fanbase has lofty expectations and understandably so after Fleck went undefeated, led the Broncos to the Cotton Bowl and along the way hosting College Gameday. The MAC is a very competitive conference with a lot of talent each and every year. Lester has done well, having winning seasons every year. I think the coaching staff is doing a great job recruiting and you’ll see that progress in the coming years.
How did the 2016 Cotton Bowl season transform the WMU program? Three seasons later, did it have a lasting impact from a fan support/following perspective?
As stated in the last question, I feel the 2016 season left the fan base with very high expectations. Fleck also took most of his recruiting class when he left for Minnesota so the current staff was left rebuilding. It’s kind of like getting over an ex. As time goes on, it gets easier to move on. I’m a fan of this Lester and Co.
Now onto the game:
MAC Offensive Player of the year Levante Bellamy (RB) appears to be the Broncos primary weapon on offense. What makes him so special?
Speed. I’ll be interested to see if he gets an invite to the NFL combine and to see what kind of numbers he puts up. legit 4.3 forty speed. vision, elusiveness and breakaway speed makes for a great running back at any level.
Quarterback Jon Wassink put up solid numbers (2904 yards passing, 19 touchdowns). What should WKU fans expect from the Bronco signal-caller?
It depends on the weather. We saw him really struggle in cold and wet weather. He doesn’t have an elite arm so when the weather is bad, the defense stacks the box to eliminate the run and takes away the play action. He’s struggled with the deep ball, especially in bad weather. If it’s dry, his strength is working the middle of the field and out routes. He does have some running ability that we started to see towards the end of the year. He’s a great leader out there and game manager.
Who are some other skill position players that Hilltopper fans should worry about in Dallas?
Tight end Gio Ricci has NFL talent. The Broncos lost their top WR threat, Dee Eskridge at the beginning of the year to injury and had to turn to true freshman Skyy Moore, who emerged as the Bronco’s top receiver and grad transfer Keith Mixon, who’s great in the slot and as a returner.
WMU’s defense was inconsistent across most of the season (91st in SP+, 414 yards per game). How would you describe the Broncos defensive unit? Who are the impact players for the Broncos on Defense?
Inconsistent is the perfect word. They are stronger up front and struggle in the secondary. They play with a lot of energy which trickles down from defensive coordinator Lou Esposito. They have one of the top tacklers in the nation in Treshaun Hayward (5th in the nation) The defensive line has Ali Fayad who is a threat to get to the quarterback on any given play.
How do you see the game playing out? What is your prediction?
I think if the weather is nice, it will be a high scoring game. I don’t know much about Western Kentucky but they play in a similar mid-major conference and based on their offense stats, seem pretty balanced. WMU has an offense with the potential to put up a lot of points. I’ll be a homer and say WMU pulls out the win in a close one, 34–31
I want to thank Jarritt for taking the time to do this q&a with us. You can read his work here and can also follow his twitter account for fun analysis and reaction to Monday’s matchup.