Western Michigan Football: The Pieces Are Coming Together For The Broncos

It didn’t take long to understand what Western Michigan’s identity is this season.

The Broncos want to be physical and lean on their run game and stout defense to try and wear down opponents. Even with a 3-3 record, it’s been a recipe for success.

WMU’s three losses have come to Michigan State, Illinois, and North Texas. Those teams are a combined 13-3. Illinois is ranked No. 17 in the Associated Press Top 25, and UNT is 5-0 and receiving votes in the AP Poll.

WMU only lost by three in overtime to North Texas, and although the Broncos were outscored 61-6 in the losses to those two Big Ten teams, their defense still showed that it was going to be a problem for its conference foes.

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That was the case in a win over Toledo three weeks ago.

The Broncos held the Rockets to 280 yards of total offense in the 14-13 win and limited Toledo quarterback Tucker Gleason to just 89 passing yards while snaring two interceptions. Gleason has been one of top passers in the MAC the past few seasons, and that may have been his worst outing during that span.

The Broncos also held a solid Rhode Island team to 14 points and held UMass to three points last week. In their current three-game win streak, they’re allowing 10 points per game. They rank second in the league, allowing 20.7 points and 315.2 yards per game. So far, this looks like the best defense under third-year head coach Lance Taylor.

The hiring of defensive coordinator Chris O’Leary in February is likely the biggest reason behind the ascension of WMU’s defense. O’Leary — who is also the safeties coach — was recently the safeties coach for the Los Angeles Chargers. Prior to that, he spent six seasons on the defensive staff at Notre Dame.

O’Leary has had WMU’s defense living in opposing backfields this season. The Broncos currently lead the FBS with 23 sacks while their 41 tackles for loss are tied for 12th most in the country and are the most in the MAC. Redshirt senior Nadame Tucker leads the league with nine tackles for loss, and his five sacks rank second. Rodney McGraw has registered four sacks for the Broncos.

And with O’Leary formerly coaching some elite safeties, I would be remiss not to mention the play of WMU safety Tate Hallock, who leads the team with 32 total tackles and has a pick-six. He was a second-team all-conference selection last year and will likely continue to improve under O’Leary.

The play of WMU quarterback Broc Lowry has continued to improve throughout the season as well.

WMU started the year with Lowry and Brady Jones nearly splitting time, but Lowry has since earned a majority of the snaps. He’s 69-for-114 passing with 751 yards and three TDs. He’s also rushed for 319 yards and six scores on 4.6 yards per carry.

The Broncos’ ground game has been the focal point of their offense so far. They’re second in the MAC with 247 rushing attempts and are only averaging 147 passing YPG. They’ve even been effective with all-conference running back Jalen Buckley and the offensive line battling injuries. Buckley was out against Rhode Island, and the offensive line has already seen eight different starters.

However, Lowry’s production as a passer has gradually taken strides throughout the past three weeks. The redshirt sophomore was a combined 20-of-36 passing (55%) in the first three games but has gone 49 of 78 (63%) during WMU’s three-game win streak. The competition hasn’t been as strong, and he had a subpar passing performance against Toledo, but the results when leaning on Lowry’s arm are encouraging and will keep defenses honest.

It seems like all areas are starting to click for the Broncos, and with the middle of conference play approaching, there’s hardly a better time for it. They’ll look to keep it rolling this week against Ball State.