GAME 5: 
WESTERN MICHIGAN (1-3, 0-1 MAC) vs. BALL STATE (1-3, 0-0 MAC)
 
Date: Sept. 30, 2023
Kickoff: 3:30 p.m. EDT
Location: Kalamazoo, Mich.
Stadium: Waldo Stadium (30,000)
TV: ESPN+
Radio: Bronco Media Network
Live Stats: https://www.statbroadcast.com/events/statbroadcast.php?t=1&gid=wmu
All-Time Series: WMU leads 27-22

THIS WEEK
Western Michigan welcomes Ball State to Waldo Stadium for a 3:30 p.m. kickoff on Saturday. The game can be watched live on ESPN+ with Doug Sherman and Forrest Conoly on the call. Robin Hook and John Creek will provide coverage on the Bronco Media Network.
 
THE MATCH UP
- Saturday is the 50th meeting between the Broncos and the Cardinals. WMU won last season's meeting in Muncie, 37-30.
- The road team has won each of the last two games.
- WMU has not won its MAC home-opener since the 2020 COVID-19-shortened season, a 41-38 win over Toledo. In a normal season, WMU has not won a MAC home-opener since the 2019 season and a 31-15 win over Central Michigan.
- Western Michigan leads the all-time series at 27-22.
 
COACH TO CURE MD
The Western Michigan coaching staff will be wearing patches on the sideline for the 16th Annual Coach to Cure MD. The annual charity initiative teams up with the American Football Coaches Association to raise money and awareness for Duschene's Muscular Dystrophy, the most common fatal genetic disorder diagnosed during childhood.
 
Coach to Cure was launched by the Parent Project Muscular Dystrophy and the AMFC back in 2008 and now includes the majority of college coaching staffs in all divisions. The Broncos have a strong history of supporting PPMD and Coach to Cure. Former Western Michigan hockey assistant coach Rob Facca's son Louie was diagnosed with the disease back in 2010. Louie, Rob and his wife Nikki were sideline guests for WMU's Coach to Cure MD game at the University of Illinois back in 2011.
 
Fans engage with Coach to Cure MD by using the hashtag #TackleDuchenne to spread the word on social media, by texting the word "CURE" to 501501 to give $25, or by donating in honor of their favorite coach on the CoachToCureMD.org website.
 
SCOUTING THE CARDINALS
- The Cardinals have had a tough non-conference schedule, playing at Kentucky, at No. 1 Georgia and hosting Georgia Southern. BSU's one win is a 45-7 victory over Indiana State at home.
- Ball State has averaged just 6.66 points per game in its losses this season.
- Freshman Kadin Semonza has seen the bulk of the snaps at quarterback, throwing for 480 yards, three touchdowns and five interceptions. His top receiver is sophomore tight end and overall tall human being Tanner Kozoil. The 6-foot-7 target has 19 receptions for 156 yards and one touchdown. Sophomore wide out Qian Magwood is second on the team with 15 receptions for 131 yards.
- Marquez Cooper has more than double the carries as anyone else on the team and leads the team in rushing with 234 yards and one touchdown. Cooper is averaging 4.0 yards per carry this season.
- The Cardinals are averaging 285.2 yards per game this season and allowing 383.5.
- BSU has shown a knack for getting to the quarterback so far this season with seven sacks. Linebacker Sidney Houston Jr. leads the team with 2.5.
- Senior defensive back Tyler Potts leads the team with two interceptions.
 
NUMBER SIX
Western Michigan redshirt freshman running back Jalen Buckley continued his fantastic start of the season after rushing for a career-high 196 yards rushing and two touchdowns against Toledo. His 507 yards on the ground rank him sixth in the NCAA and tops in the Mid-American Conference. He also ranks sixth in rushing yards per game at 126.8 and is 24th the nation in yards per carry at 6.26.
 
MORE ON BUCKLEY
How does Buckley's fantastic start measure up to previous strong starts by Bronco running backs? Buckley's name is in good company. Since 2014 his 507 yards rushing in the first four games of the season ranks only behind Jarvion Franklin and Jamauri Bogan. Franklin had 606 yards to open his freshman season in 2014. Bogan had 527 in 2015. Buckley ranks ahead of former MAC MVP LeVante Bellamy, whose best first four game stretch was 454 yards in 2019.
 
POINTS FOR THE DEFENSE
WMU senior cornerback Keni-H Lovely scored his second career defensive touchdown in the loss at Toledo. He stripped, scooped and scored to put the Broncos up late in the second quarter. This was the first defensive touchdown by a Bronco…. since Keni-H Lovley had a pick six against the Rockets to close out the 2022 season.