Box Score
Notes
Quotes
Philadelphia - Western Michigan is on a two-game winning streak after junior place kicker Nate Meyer booted a 33-yard field goal through the uprights as time expired to give the Brown & Gold a 19-16 win over Temple. The Broncos came back from an 11-point first half deficit to defeat the Owls at Lincoln Financial Field on Saturday afternoon.
Despite Meyer kicking the game-winning field goal as time expired, the turning point in the game came on what initially looked to be a Temple third quarter touchdown. Owls signal caller Mike McGann hit Jamel Harris in the red zone but before Harris could cross the goal line, Scooter McIntosh stripped the ball on the two-yard line and Ameer Ismail took the recovery 18 yards to the 20-yard line.
Both teams played the field position game over the next several possessions. The Broncos tilted that battle in their favor when Jim Laney grooved a 53-yard punt that was downed by Londen Fryar at the one-yard line. It was the third time in the past two games Fryar has downed a punt within the opponent's five-yard line. Western took over for the fateful final drive with 1:48 remaining. Robbie Haas, who relieved injured Bronco Ryan Cubit completed the only two passes he threw during the drive and relied on reserve running back Mark Bonds for the remaining yardage. Bonds carried the ball six times for 17 of his 36 yards, setting up Meyer's decisive kick.
"I was just trying to take my focus off the big situation and just do what I do in practice," said Meyer. "I was just thinking about how much I wanted to win for the team and keep myself calm and relaxed."
The game began in a peculiar way after Temple drove the ball 72 yards and scored on a Josh Bundy two-yard run to take a 6-0 lead. The ensuing extra point attempt was blocked by senior nose guard Paul Moersch and returned for a two-point conversion by Ismail. It was the first time in school history that this had been accomplished. Ismail was busy all day, finishing with a career-high 15 tackles (four solo).
After a second Temple touchdown, the Broncos struck twice through the air. Cubit, who finished with 191 yards passing on 18-of-29 passing, hit Joe Gardner in stride for an eight-yard touchdown. Two possessions later, Cubit connected with Greg Jennings from 17 yards out on fourth and one to give WMU a 16-13 lead. Jennings' score gave him 28 career touchdown receptions, passing Steve Neal (27) for the most in Bronco football history.
Temple closed out the first half with a 26-yard field goal off the foot of Ryan Lux. Umar Ferguson led the Owls with 115 yards rushing on 33 carries as Trovon Riley paced the Broncos with 96 yards on 27 touches. Brian Allbrooks caught four balls for 84 yards, while Western's Tony Scheffler hauled in seven catches for a team-leading 118 yards. Defensively, three Broncos finished with double-figure tackles. Along with Ismail, freshman Greg Marshall finished with 14 stops (five solo) and Anthony Belmonte added 10 tackles.
Western Michigan heads back to Waldo Stadium to face Mid-American rival Buffalo. Game time is scheduled for 7 p.m. and can be heard on WFAT, the Bronco Radio Network.
Written by Mat Kanan, associate director of athletic media relations
