Western Michigan wins 4th MAC title, bulldozes Miami (OH), 23-13

Detroit — Western Michigan, as it often has this year, went about things the hard way at times on Saturday. 

Despite being evidently the better team than Miami (OH) down-to-down and dominating the first half in yardage, a 10-point halftime lead felt anything but solid. But over the course of the second half, the Broncos continued hammering away, stuck to the plan and eventually put away the Redhawks for good. 

Western Michigan (9-4, 7-1 MAC) are champions, burying Miami (OH) (7-6, 6-2), 23-13, in front of a very friendly Ford Field crowd of 19,114 to hoist the MAC championship trophy. The Broncos rolled to a win behind a punishing ground game led by junior tailback Jalen Buckley and a pair of explosive touchdown runs, and a defense that shut out the Redhawks after the opening series. With the win, the Broncos have now beaten every MAC foe they played this season, avenging a regular-season loss to Miami (OH) in late October, and cap a remarkable turnaround from an 0-3 start.  

Saturday’s championship is the fourth MAC title in program history for Western Michigan, which had won the league in 1966, 1988 and 2016. It’s just the second time the Broncos have won the MAC title game in four appearances — the game first came into reality in 1997. It’s the first conference title for head coach Lance Taylor as he winds down Year 3 leading the Broncos. 

"Can't tell you how proud I am," Taylor said postgame. "When we started 0-3, everybody counted us out. They buried us. We were dead. Nobody counted us in. But these guys kept believing in each other, kept playing for each other and that's what showed up again and again and again. And that's how we won this championship."

And it took all of three plays for the Broncos to take a lead they never relinquished. 

Taking the ball to start the game, the Broncos ran quarterback Broc Lowry on back to back plays to bring up 3rd and 2. Buckley got his number called for the third down carry. 

He took a handoff from Lowry, surged through a massive running lane created by his offensive line to the left side, shrugged off the one second-level defender who even got a hand on him, then chugged 67 yards for a touchdown less than 90 seconds into the game. 

It turned into one of the best performances of Buckley’s career, and perhaps the best given the stage, when he ripped off an almost carbon-copy of his first half touchdown run to open the second half for the Broncos. 

After the WMU defense forced a three and out to open the second half, the Broncos took over at the 35. Lowry ran for a one yard carry before Buckley got a handoff on 2nd down. 

Buckley sprinted through the left side and, while not having quite as much room, still outran various defenders to turn the corner and score a 64-yard touchdown run. He broke the plane right in front of the Western Michigan marching band, as the pro-Bronco crowd roared in approval.

He finished with 193 yards on 19 carries and two touchdowns, just a few yards shy of his career high. And Buckley did all this after playing a large portion of the 2025 season, including Saturday's game, with a fractured wrist that he wore a brace over to protect.

"I just want to give thanks to my offensive line, my quarterbacks, my receivers," Buckley said after winning offensive player of the game. "I don't think receivers dream of blocking all the time. In this offense, that's what it takes. And I just want to thank the receivers, the offensive line. I can't be me without my quarterback, my receivers and my offensive line opening up holes."

Buckley’s massive outing couldn’t have happened without a Western Michigan offensive line that, in Taylor’s estimation, is the most improved group on the team. The Broncos have withstood a pair of season-ending injuries on the line, and still the group managed to spearhead this offense.

“They’re a cohesive group right now that’s playing at a really high level," Taylor said on Thursday during a press conference.

On Saturday, along with winning a conference title, the group excelled at setting the offensive tone once more, as Western Michigan ran for 5.3 yards per carry and surrendered just three combined sacks and tackles for loss.

And none of what the Broncos did on Saturday, or really this season, could’ve happened without the defense, a unit that has defined this Western Michigan season. 

Western Michigan has been a stingy, difficult-to-play defense all year. Edge rusher Nadame Tucker is one of the most productive players in the country, and first year defensive coordinator Chris O’Leary arrived and supercharged how the group played. 

And after giving up a touchdown to Miami (OH) on their opening series, the Broncos tightened up and didn’t allow another point until 6:45 remaining in the 4th quarter, when leading by 17. 

Miami (OH) finished with 272 total yards, lost a fumble, went 6-for-18 on third and fourth downs and head coach Chuck Martin swapped quarterbacks mid-game, benching Thomas Gotkowski for Henry Hesson. 

But when the Redhawks did score to make it a 10-point game late, it echoed the lone WMU loss of conference play. 

Western Michigan recovered an ensuing onside, but turned it over on downs trying to ice away the game. Miami (OH) took over down 10 with 6:04 to play and a real chance to shift the tension to the opposite sideline. 

Instead, The Broncos forced three incompletions in a row before Tucker, as he has all season, wrecked the game for the opposition. 

He beat the left tackle with speed off the snap, arrived at Hesson at the top of his drop, and slung him down to create a turnover on downs and get the ball back to Western Michigan. 

"I know what I have to do as far as to help my team win," Tucker said. "And that's wreak havoc. And we feed off each other, offensively and defensively. When I see Buck running around doing all that, that makes me want to go stop 'em, put him back on the field. It's just a blessing."

What hadn’t been evident the first time they played, but is certain now, is Western Michigan is better than Miami (OH).

And now the Broncos have a conference championship to prove it. 

"It's still surreal," Taylor said. "I think it's been a goal, since I've taken the job, that we wanted to accomplish. I'm just so proud of our team. They're the ones who made this championship happen."