2017 GOODYEAR COTTON BOWL CLASSIC
No. 15 Western Michigan (13-0, 8-0 MAC) vs. No. 8 Wisconsin (10-3, 7-2 Big Ten)
Monday, January 2, 2017 • 1:00 pm ET
Arlington, Texas • AT&T Stadium (71,998)
ESPN: Bob Wischusen (play-by-play), Brock Huard (analyst), Allison Williams (sideline)
Watch Live
Western Michigan Notes; MAC Notes;
• Western Michigan won its first outright MAC Championship since 1988 on Dec. 2 vs. Ohio. It was the Broncos’ first appearance in the MAC title game since 2000.
• Western Michigan finished the regular season 13-0 for the first time in program history. The Broncos are the first MAC team since Marshall in 1999 to go 13-0.
• The appearance in the Cotton Bowl is the first New Year’s Six berth for the Broncos, and just the second in MAC history. Previously, Northern Illinois earned a berth to the Orange Bowl in 2012.
• Wide receiver Corey Davis became the first player in Western Michigan history to be a Consensus All-American. He was voted First-Team All-American by the Associated Press, AFCA and FWAA. He was second-team on the Sporting News and Walter Camp Football Foundation.
• This season Davis became all-time FBS receiver in yards with 5,212 yards. He is the only player in FBS history with 300+ catches, 5,000+ yards and 50 receiving TDs and leads the country in TD receptions this season with 18.
• Earlier this year running back Jarvion Franklin set the Western Michigan program record for single game rushing yards with 281 at Akron. He currently has 3,586 career rushing yards, fourth most in WMU history. He has 41 rushing TDs, a new WMU record.
• The Broncos lead the country in turnover margin at +19. They were the last team in the country to commit a turnover. The Broncos have set a program record with 566 points scored this season.
MAC Dominance:
Western Michigan had historically the most dominant season in MAC history this year.
• The Broncos (8-0) were the first team in league history to win every MAC con-test by at least 14 points.
• Western Michigan became the first team in the league to finish 8-0 in MAC play since Northern Illinois did it in 2013.
• Overall there have been 12 teams since the league started playing at least eight games beginning in 1978 to win every league game.
• This year the Broncos won 11 straight games by 14 or more points. The only game the team did not win by at least 14 points was the season opener at Northwestern (22-21).
Best QB-WR Duo in History:
Quarterback Zach Terrell and wide receiver Corey Davis are approaching yet another record to add to an impressive list. Terrell and Davis have connected for 50 touchdowns, the second most in FBS history. Overall, Davis has caught 51 TDs in his career with Terrell making up 98 percent of them. Terrell has thrown 95 career TDs with Davis being on the receiving end 52.6 percent of the time.
Most prolific QB-WR duos.
• Chase Clement & Jarett Dillard, Rice, 51 touchdowns (2005-08)
• Zach Terrell & Corey Davis, WMU, 50 touchdowns (2013-pres.)
• Graham Harrell & Michael Crabtree, TTU, 41 touchdowns (2007-08)
• Geno Smith & Stedman Bailey WVU, 40 touchdowns (2010-12)
Win Streak:
Western Michigan is meeting Wiscon-sin for the fifth time in program history, with the Badgers owning the 3-1 series lead. The Broncos’ victory over the Badgers came in the 1988 season opener when Western Michigan went to Camp Randall and won 24-14. 1988 season was the last season before this year that the Broncos captured a MAC Championship. The 1988 team went 9-3 overall.
The Boat is on Fire:
Western Michigan currently has a 15-game winning streak dating back to last season, the longest all-time in program history. Overall the Broncos are 20-2 in their last 22 games, the best record over an 22-game stretch in program history. Western Michigan’s streak is also the second-longest active win streak in the country.
