2018 FAMOUS IDAHO POTATO BOWL
Western Michigan (7-5, 5-3 MAC) vs. BYU (6-6, Independent)
Friday, December 21, 2018 • 4:00 pm ET • Boise, Ida. • Albertsons Stadium (36,387)
ESPN Announcers: Roy Philpott (play-by-play), Tom Ramsey (analyst), Alex Corddry (sideline)
Watch Live
Western Michigan Notes: MAC Notes:
The 2018 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl marks the ninth bowl appearance in Western Michigan history and WMU’s fourth bowl appearance in the last five seasons. The Broncos finished the regular season second in the MAC West Division standings after going 7-5 overall and 5-3 in MAC play under second-year head coach Tim Lester.
This is the second appearance for Western Michigan in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. The first was in 2014, falling to Air Force, 38-24. Future No. 5 overall NFL draft pick Corey Davis had all three of WMU’s touchdowns in the game, making TD receptions of 47, 35 and 51 yards. Davis’ three receiving TDs is a WMU bowl record.
Western Michigan features one of the most prolific offenses in the nation as the Broncos have scored 40 or more points in five games and average over 33 points per game. WMU racked up over 500 yards of total offense in six of the 12 games this year including a season-high 621 yards in the season opener against ACC opponent Syracuse.
Western Michigan averages 447.2 yards of total offense with 204.6 of that coming on the ground. Through the air WMU is second in the MAC in passing offense (242.6 ypg) and passing efficiency (144.2). The Broncos rank ninth in the nation in time of possession for 33:27 per game.
After starting the season with losses to Syracuse and then ranked No. 21 Michigan, the Broncos rattled off six-straight wins. Redshirt junior quarterback Jon Wassink was injured in the first quarter against Toledo (Game 9) and the Broncos lost three straight in his absence, falling to Toledo, Ohio and Ball State, before bouncing back to end the regular season with a 28-21 victory over MAC champion Northern Illinois on Nov. 20. It is the second-straight year Wassink has suffered a season-ending injury. Last year he broke his collarbone in Week 8 at Eastern Michigan.
True freshman quarterback Kaleb Eleby made his debut against Toledo on Oct. 25, replacing injured junior Jon Wassink in the first quarter. In his debut, Eleby threw for 293 yards and two touchdowns on 23 of 28 passing. Over the four games played this season, Eleby has completed 72 of 111 attempts for 917 yards. He has four touchdowns throwing, two rushing and two interceptions.
Bellamy & Bogan: The 1-2 punch of junior running back LeVante Bellamy and senior Jamauri Bogan provided the offensive spark for the Broncos in 2018. The duo combined for 1,874 rushing yards and 22 total touchdowns. Bellamy was the workhorse for the Broncos leading the MAC in rushing yards (1,172), rushing yards per game (97.7) and all-purpose yards (1,567).
Bellamy had six rushing touchdowns and recorded five games with over 100 yards on the ground, including a career-high (and MAC season-high) 213 yards at Ball State on Nov. 13. Both his rushing yards and all-purpose yards through the end of the regular season ranked 17th in the nation. It is his first 1,000-yard season of his career - and his rushing total this year ranks 10th most in school history.
Bogan has 702 yards rushing and 15 touchdowns this season, which leads all touchdown scorers in the MAC (rushing & receiving) and ranks 15th most in the nation. Bogan is second all-time in school history with 42 career rushing TDs and sixth with 3,265 career rushing yards. He recorded a touchdown in each of the final seven MAC games and ran for four scores at Bowling Green on Oct. 13. This is Bogan’s second all-conference season, he was also named MAC Freshman of the Year in 2015.
