Miami RedHawks vs Western Michigan Broncos recap: Broncos contain RedHawks, win 35-13

The Western Michigan Broncos (4-3, 3-0) aren't always pretty, but with their 3rd win in October, they continue to be a force to be reckoned with in the MAC after beating the Miami RedHawks (1-7, 0-4) 35-13 in a game that wasn't really close in the 2nd half.

The Broncos started early, forcing a Billy Bahl fumble on the 3rd play of the game.  The result was a very short field for the WMU offense, with Daniel Braverman toeing the end zone for his 10th receiving touchdown of the season.

But the RedHawks would respond nicely, putting together solid back-to-back drives.  First, Bahl would get subbed out in favor of Gus Ragland, who would take a keeper 8 yard for a touchdown to tie the game.  Then, after a sack on 2nd down killed the ensuing Broncos drive, the same strategy would put Miami into the red zone again.  However, they would be forced to settle for a field goal to make it 10-7 late in the quarter.

And that's when the Broncos turned into the possession team they've become famous for in MAC play.

With a solid mix of runs and short passes, Zach Terrell led back-to-back touchdown drives that totaled over 9-and-a-half minutes to make it 21-10 at the half.  The first drive would end with Terrell hitting Carrington Thompson for a 6-yard touchdown.  The second would be a RedHawk killer, as Jamauri Bogan took a 4th-and-1 hand-off 17 yards for a score.

And the Broncos never looked back.

With the second half largely played in Miami territory, the Broncos were able to tack on two more scores on five minute drives while killing possession after possession from the RedHawks.  Braverman would catch his 2nd touchdown catch of the day on a 5-yard slant to kick off the half.  Miami would respond with a Kaleb Patterson 38-yard field goal that hit off the right upright and somehow fell through.  But the next 22 minutes would only see Bogan punch in another score late in the 4th to put away the game.

Terrell finished with a very efficient day.  He went 25-for-32 for 278 yards and three scores, and despite taking 3 sacks, finished with 5 yards rushing including a couple key scampers to pick up first downs.  Bogan led the rushing attack with 84 yards on 19 carries and two scores.  Braverman had 135 yards on 13 catches with his two scores.  Corey Davis also had a solid outing, with 113 yards on 7 catches in a very windy day.

For Miami, Bahl finished 13-for-26 with 200 yards passing.  However, he took 4 sacks and was under pressure much of the day.  His leading target was Sam Martin, who finished with 134 yards on 6 catches, including burning Darius Phillips deep in the 1st quarter to set up one of their early scores.  The RedHawk rushing attack was otherwise ineffective, with 27 carries resulting in 58 yards as a team, despite getting 38 and 30 yard runs by Alonzo Smith (who netted 36 yards on 6 carries) and Maurice Thomas (38 on 3), respectively.