KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- It's been one of the goals from Day 1 of the 2014 season for Western Michigan football: go from worst to first in the Mid-American Conference and the MAC's West Division.
With a win and a little help this week, the Broncos can actually accomplish that feat.
WMU (8-3, 6-1 MAC) goes for a seventh straight win and a chance at a division title on Friday when they host defending West champions Northern Illinois (9-2, 6-1 MAC) at 11:00 a.m. at Waldo Stadium. The game will air on ESPNU.
The Broncos would have to beat the Huskies, then hope Toledo would lose to Eastern Michigan in order to win the division crown outright and play in the MAC Championship game on December 5 at Ford Field. Admittedly, it would be quite the upset; the Rockets are a 23-point favorite over the Eagles, according to VegasInsider.com. WMU can win a share regardless with a victory over NIU.
Toledo owns a head-to-head tiebreaker with Western Michigan with their 20-19 overtime win in September in Kalamazoo.
Since that loss, the Broncos have won six straight games - orchestrating the best turnaround in school history and putting themselves in a spot to win their first division championship since winning back-to-back West titles in 1999 and 2000 - the only two division crowns in program history.
All of this comes on the heels of a 1-11 campaign in 2013, the first season under head coach P.J. Fleck. The 33-year-old is now one of 20 semifinalists for the Maxwell National Coach of the Year award - and the Broncos have received an individual conference honor from the MAC after every game in the 2014 season.
