2007 Western Michigan Broncos football team

The 2007 Western Michigan Broncos football team represented Western Michigan University in the 2007 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The team was coached by Bill Cubit and played their homes game in Waldo Stadium in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The Broncos finished the season 5–7 overall and 3–4 in the Mid-American Conference. The highlight of the season was the 28–19 road victory over the Iowa Hawkeyes, a team that finished fifth in the Big Ten Conference .

2007 Western Michigan Broncos football
ConferenceMid-American Conference
DivisionWest
2007 record5–7 (3–4 MAC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorBill Cubit
Offensive schemeMultiple
Defensive coordinatorBill Miller (1st season)
Base defense4–3
Home stadiumWaldo Stadium
(Capacity: 30,200)
2007 Mid-American Conference football standings
Div  Conf  Overall
Team W L    W L    W L 
East Division
Miami xy  4 2     5 2     6 7  
Bowling Green x  4 2     6 2     8 5  
Buffalo x  4 2     5 3     5 7  
Ohio  3 3     4 4     6 6  
Temple  3 3     4 4     4 8  
Akron  2 4     3 5     4 8  
Kent State  1 5     1 7     3 9  
West Division
Central Michigan xy$  4 1     6 1     8 6  
Ball State x  4 1     5 2     7 6  
Eastern Michigan  3 2     3 4     4 8  
Western Michigan  2 3     3 4     5 7  
Toledo  2 3     3 5     5 7  
Northern Illinois  0 5     1 6     2 10  
Championship: Central Michigan 35, Miami 10
  • $ Conference champion
  • x Division champion/co-champions
  • Due to an unbalanced conference schedule, the team with best division record within each division was awarded that division's championship game berth.

Preseason

The 2007 Bronco team returned 17 starters from an 8–5 team that finished 6–2 in the Mid-American Conference and participated in the 2007 International Bowl. While the team lost the bowl game 27–24, Western Michigan was picked to finish first in the MAC West Division and to win the MAC Championship Game by the MAC News Media Association.[1]

Watch lists

All-MAC preseason teams

  • First team
    • London Fryar, CB
    • Robbie Krutilla, C
    • Jamarko Simmons, WR
  • Second team

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentSiteTVResultAttendance
September 13:30 pmat No. 3 West Virginia*ESPN+L 24–6260,563
September 88:00 pmIndiana*ESPNUL 27–3732,129
September 152:00 pmat Missouri*L 24–5253,480
September 227:00 pmCentral Connecticut State*
  • Waldo Stadium
  • Kalamazoo, MI
W 51–1415,718
September 297:00 pmat ToledoBCSNW 42–2818,542
October 67:00 pmAkron
  • Waldo Stadium
  • Kalamazoo, MI
L 38–3925,610
October 134:00 pmat Northern IllinoisCSNCW 17–1323,057
October 202:00 pmBall State
  • Waldo Stadium
  • Kalamazoo, MI
Comcast LocalL 23–2717,892
October 273:30 pmat Eastern MichiganComcast LocalL 2–197,002
November 67:30 pmCentral Michigan
ESPN2L 31–3416,952
November 173:30 pmat Iowa*BTNW 28–1970,585
November 242:00 pmTemple
  • Waldo Stadium
  • Kalamazoo, MI
W 16–38,662
  • *Non-conference game
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Eastern time

Roster

Wide receiver

  • 37 Brooks Bunbury - Freshman
  • 35 Nick Davis - Freshman
  • 26 Kurt Ferrell - Freshman
  • 11 Schneider Julien - Junior
  •  5 Deshon Lawrence - Freshman
  •  7 Herb Martin - Senior
  • 86 Kelly Martin - Senior
  • 89 Kyle McDowell - Freshman
  •  4 Jamelle Murray - Freshman
  • 81 Juan Nunez - Freshman
  • 27 Jamarko Simmons - Junior
  • 43 Tyler VanZandt - Freshman
  • 83 Jordan White - Freshman
  • 36 Tyler Aldridge - Sophomore

Center

  • 78 Robbie Krutilla - Senior
  • 63 Paul Wasikowski - Sophomore

Offensive guard

  • 61 Nick Clemens - Freshman
  • 60 Nick Mitchell - Freshman
  • 65 Phillip Swanson - Freshman
  • 64 Schyler Truesdell - Junior
  • 62 Matt Williams - Senior

Offensive tackle

  • 75 James Blair - Senior
  • 76 Steve Ellingsen - Junior
  • 67 Rob Johnson - Junior
  • 56 Andy Laue - Sophomore
  • 77 Matt Lochmann - Sophomore
  • 72 Anthony Parker - Freshman

Offensive line

  • 73 Josh Droppers - Freshman
  • 79 Jonathan Jack - Freshman
  • 58 Lee Pethan - Freshman
  • 52 Andrew Yuds - Freshman

Tight end

  • 42 Chad Baliko - Sophomore
  • 82 Branden Ledbetter - Junior
  • 88 Anthony Middleton - Freshman
  • 32 James O'Neill - Freshman
  • 80 James Randall - Sophomore
  • 87 Keith Schultz - Senior
  • 84 Matt Stevens - Sophomore
  • 85 Joel Workman - Freshman
 

Quarterback

  • 12 Robert Arnheim - Freshman
  • 18 Drew Burdi - Freshman
  • 20 Caleb Clark - Sophomore
  •  3 Tim Hiller - Sophomore
  • 14 Thomas Peregrin - Senior
  • 10 Dennis Reedy - Junior

Tailback

  • 34 Mark Bonds - Senior
  • 24 Bobby Crawford - Freshman
  • 36 Jaron Deshazor - Freshman
  • 40 Kirk Elsworth - Junior
  • 22 Glenis Thompson - Sophomore
  •  2 Brandon West - Sophomore

Fullback

  • 23 Nic Saad - Senior

Nose tackle

  • 68 Cody Cielenski - Sophomore
  • 98 Cory Flom - Junior

Defensive tackle

  • 92 Kevin Cryille - Freshman
  • 55 Dezmond Gray - Senior
  • 57 Jacoby Love - Freshman
  • 91 Grant Nemeth - Junior
  • 95 Chris Pyant - Freshman
  • 93 John Russell - Junior
  • 99 Nick Varcadipane - Junior

Defensive end

  • 94 Alvin Almicar - Freshman
  • 96 Mark Berghuis - Sophomore
  • 48 Justin Braska - Sophomore
  • 90 Zach Davidson - Junior
  • 54 Greg Marshall - Junior
  • 97 Andrew Wersel - Freshman
  • 16 Anthony Williams - Freshman
 

Cornerback

  •  1 E. J. Biggers - Junior
  • 28 Keith Dixson - Freshman
  • 15 Andy Dorcely - Sophomore
  •  6 Londen Fryar - Junior
  • 25 David Lewis - Freshman
  • 46 Desman Stephen - Junior
  • 30 Dervon Wallace - Freshman

Linebacker

  •  8 Darrell Copeland - Senior
  • 59 Dustin Duclo - Junior
  • 80 Fernand Kashama - Junior
  • 41 Dan Krasinski - Sophomore
  • 43 Boston McCornell - Junior
  • 53 Matt Pickens - Freshman
  • 51 Harrison Porter - Freshman
  • 35 Austin Pritchard - Junior
  • 19 Cornelius Robinson - Junior
  • 50 Garrett Sosnovich - Junior
  • 45 Shaun Vernon - Freshman
  • 42 Mitch Vorick - Freshman

Free safety

Strong safety

  • 21 Antwain Allen - Senior
  • 33 Mario Armstrong - Freshman
  • 29 Scott Gajos - Junior
  • 31 Nick Hunter - Freshman
  • 26 C. J. Wilson - Junior
  • 47 Jonathan Wright - Sophomore

Long snapper

  • 69 Tom Harrington - Sophomore
  • 71 Brian Bailey - Junior

Punter

  • 37 Ben Armer - Freshman
  • 66 Tim Balice - Freshman
  • 39 Jim Laney - Senior

Place kicker

  • 17 Mike Jones - Senior
  • 26 Caleb Morris - Freshman
  • 41 Dylan VanFossen - Freshman

Updated September 11, 2007
Sources: 2007 WMU Football Media Guide, WMUBroncos.com
Projected starters are in
bold.
Players who left the team are struck out.

Coaching staff

  • Bill Cubit (Head coach)
  • Bill Miller - Defensive coordinator
  • Tim Daoust - Defensive secondary
  • Grant Heard - Wide receivers
  • Scott Kavanagh - Quarterbacks
  • Peter McCarthy - Defensive line
  • Jake Moreland - Tight ends
  • Steve Morrison - Linebackers, recruiting coordinator
  • Bob Stanley - Offensive line
  • Chris Tabor - Running backs, special teams
  • Tim Knox - Director of Football Operations
  • Matt Ludeman - Defensive Graduate Assistant
  • A. J. Ricker - Offensive Graduate Assistant

Game summaries

West Virginia

1 2 3 4 Total
Broncos 6 8 7 3 24
Mountaineers 14 14 21 13 62

Jamarko Simmons' 144 receiving yards on 14 catches with two touchdowns were not enough for Western Michigan to upset the #3 West Virginia Mountaineers. West Virginia nearly doubled WMU's offensive production (542 yards to 277 yards) and cruised to a 62–24 victory behind two passing touchdowns by Pat White and four touchdowns (three rushing) by Steve Slaton.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Indiana

1 2 3 4 Total
Hoosiers 10 21 3 3 37
Broncos 7 0 7 13 27

WMU is 0–3 all-time vs Indiana. The most recent meeting was in 2006 when the Hoosiers won 39–20. All three games have been in Bloomington, Indiana.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Missouri

1 2 3 4 Total
Broncos 0 3 7 14 24
Tigers 14 17 7 14 52

In 1999, Missouri beat the Broncos 48–34. That was the only meeting between the two schools.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Central Connecticut State

1 2 3 4 Total
Blue Devils 0 7 0 7 14
Broncos 17 14 6 14 51

Central Connecticut State is the only Division I Football Championship Subdivision team on WMU's schedule. This is the first ever meeting between the two schools.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Toledo

1 2 3 4 Total
Broncos 0 20 15 7 42
Rockets 7 7 7 7 28

This game is the Mid-American Conference conference opener for WMU. Western Michigan defeated Toledo 31–10 in 2006 for the first time since 2000. WMU has not won at the Glass Bowl since 1988 (31–9 victory). Toledo leads the all-time series 36–25.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Akron

1 2 3 4 Total
Zips 10 14 0 15 39
Broncos 10 7 14 7 38

After shutting out Akron last season 17–0, WMU leads the all-time series 11–3 (8–1 at Waldo Stadium).

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Northern Illinois

1 2 3 4 Total
Broncos 3 7 7 0 17
Huskies 10 3 0 0 13

WMU leads the all-time series against Northern Illinois 20–11, including a 16–14 victory in 2006.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Ball State

1 2 3 4 Total
Cardinals 0 10 3 14 27
Broncos 3 10 0 10 23
WMU with possession of the football vs. Ball State.

After losing to WMU 41–27 last season, Ball State went on to finish the season 3–1, with the lone loss being 34–26 against then-#2 ranked University of Michigan. WMU leads the all-time series 19–14. This game is WMU's Homecoming.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Eastern Michigan

1 2 3 4 Total
Broncos 2 0 0 0 2
Eagles 0 3 6 10 19

This game is the first of the 3 games that will determine the 2007 Michigan MAC Trophy winner (Central Michigan vs. WMU November 17 and CMU vs. Eastern Michigan November 17). Western leads the all-time series 26-14-2 and has not lost in Rynearson Stadium since 1991 (7 wins).

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Central Michigan

1 2 3 4 Total
Chippewas 0 3 7 24 34
Broncos 7 0 0 24 31

In a nationally televised Tuesday night game, WMU leads the all-time series against CMU 43-32-2 and has not lost at home to Central Michigan since 1993 (6 wins).

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Iowa

1 2 3 4 Total
Broncos 12 7 6 3 28
Hawkeyes 0 6 7 6 19

The final non-conference game of the season is the first between WMU and Iowa since WMU won 27–21 in 2000. That was the only meeting between the two schools.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Temple

1 2 3 4 Total
Owls 0 3 0 0 3
Broncos 0 6 10 0 16

WMU defeated Temple 41–7 last season in a year when Temple finished the season 1–11. WMU has never lost against Temple and leads the series 5–0.

Recap | Boxscore | WMU pregame notes

Awards

Mid-American Conference Player of the Week

  • Offense
    • Mark Bonds, RB, week 5 (26 car, 143 yds, 2 TD, 1 rec vs. Toledo)
    • Tim Hiller, QB, week 12 (26–45, 367 yds, 3 TD, 0 INT vs. Iowa)
    • Jamarko Simmons, WR, week 1 (14 rec, 144 yds, 2 TD vs. West Virginia)
  • Defense
  • Special Teams
    • Mike Jones, PK, week 7 (21 yard field goal, 2 punts inside 20-yard line vs. Northern Illinois)
    • Jim Laney, P (2), week 1 (50.7 avg, 3 inside 20 vs. West Virginia), week 13 (40.2 avg, 2 inside 20, long punt of 57 yds vs. Temple)
    • Brandon West, KR, RB (3), week 2 (5 ret, 212 yds, 42.4 avg, TD vs. Indiana), week 6 (5 ret, 120 yds, 24.0 avg vs. Akron), week 12 (30 car, 116 yds, 9 rec, 93 yds, 4 ret, 82 yds vs. Iowa)

Mid-American Conference Scholar-Athlete of the Week

Academic All-District

  • Anthony Gebhart, S, First Team ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District IV

John Mackey Tight End of the Week

Statistics

Team

TeamOpp
Scoring223245
  Points per Game31.935.0
First Downs157144
  Rushing5970
  Passing9160
  Penalty714
Total Offense27993042
  Avg per Play5.06.1
  Avg per Game399.9434.6
Fumbles-Lost12–924–11
Penalties-Yards65-52944-378
  Avg per Game75.654.0
TeamOpp
Punts-Average35–43.828–41.1
Time of Possession/Game32:1827:42
3rd Down Conversions45/113 40%48/105 46%
4th Down Conversions10/18 56%4/12 33%
Touchdowns Scored3032
Field Goals/Attempts5/67/11
PAT/Attempts24/2730/31
Attendance73,457155,642
  Games/Avg per Game24,48638,910

Rushing

Player Att Yards Yds/Att TD Yds/Game
Mark Bonds1094924.5670.3
Brandon West1014614.1358.6
Glenis Thompson24883.7112.6
Schneider Julien3113.701.6
Herb Martin188.001.1
Bobby Crawford362.006.0
Thomas Peregrin510.200.3
Jamarko Simmons3−8−2.70−1.1
Drew Burdi3−11−3.70−5.5
Tim Hiller30−48−1.61−6.9

Passing

Player Cmp Att Pct Yds TD Int Avg Rating
Tim Hiller15924465.21713138244.7135.16
Thomas Peregrin152462.51291132.2113.07
Drew Burdi231866.7109.0227.07
Herb Martin11100.014102.0547.60

Receiving

Player Rec Yds Yds/Rec TD Yds/G
Jamarko Simmons6069611.6699.4
Branden Ledbetter2730811.4444.0
Brandon West252138.5130.4
Herb Martin2125112.0135.9
Juan Nunez1016916.9124.1
Mark Bonds8344.204.9
Schneider Julien7497.007.0
Anthony Middleton5469.216.6
Keith Schultz5346.814.9
Jordan White4338.208.2
Jamelle Murray3279.016.8
Glenis Thompson188.001.1
Kelly Martin166.003.0

Tackles

Player Solo Ast Total TFL Sacks Fumble force Fumble rec
Anthony Gebhart1516311000
C.J. Wilson10162612010
Dustin Duclo1312252000
Boston McCornell8152321210
Londen Fryar1511260000
E. J. Biggers124161011
Zach Davidson69154 121 1200
Nick Varcadipane39121000
Austin Pritchard56110000
Mark Berghuis4481 121210
Justin Braska358121200
Cody Cielenski44821200
Greg Marshall2681 121200
Andy Dorcely5270000
Cory Flom16712000
Harrison Porter1670000
Desman Stephen2350000
Cornelius Robinson1340000
Mario Armstrong3140000
Matt Pickens1230000
Scott Gajos2130000
Grant Nemeth0330000
Garrett Sosnovich1230000
Fernand Kashama1120000
Louis Delmas1120000
Brandon West2020000
Antwain Allen0110000
Nic Saad0110000
Herb Martin1010000
Mike Jones1010000
Glenis Thompson1010000
Phillip Thompson1010000
Jim Laney1010000
Phillip Swanson1010000
Kirk Elsworth1010000
Tom Harrington0000001

Interceptions

Player Int Yds Break Up
Anthony Gebhart1242
C.J. Wilson1461
Andy Dorcely151
E. J. Biggers003
Londen Fryar616724
Nick Varcadipane002
Dustin Duclo002
Cory Flom001
Garrett Sosnovich001

See also

References

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