Bahamas Bowl 2015: Middle Tennessee vs. Western Michigan TV Info, Time and Odds
The Popeyes Bahamas Bowl seems set to host fireworks for the holidays Thursday when it sets the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders against the Western Michigan Broncos.
Western Michigan posted an impressive seven-win season this year topped off by an upset of then-No. 24 Toledo to close on a strong note. Middle Tennessee posted the same record while strong-arming its way through Conference USA and finished the season with four eye-popping wins in a row.
Thanks to star quarterbacks and wideouts almost guaranteed to hit the NFL and make impacts, this one has the looks of one of the week's best shootouts. Here's everything to know about the intriguing matchup.
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Game Details
When: Thursday, December 24, at noon p.m. ET
Where: Thomas Robinson Stadium in Nassau, Bahamas
Television: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN
Tickets: ScoreBig.com
Over/Under: 63.5
Spread: Western Michigan (-4.5)
Team Injury Reports
| Jeremy Cutrer | CB | Ques Thurs |
| Tyler Barron | TE | Ques Thurs |
| Anfornee Stewart | LB | Ques Thurs |
| Jahmal Jones | DE | Ques Thurs |
| Myles Harges | LB | Ques Thurs |
| Jeremiah Bryson | RB | Ques Thurs |
| Adam Stickel | OL | Out for season |
| Nick Beasley | S | Out for season |
| James Kristof | G | Out for season |
| Justin Tranquill | DB | Out for season |
Injury reports courtesy of USA Today.
Bucking Inexperience
One would suppose a team starting a freshman quarterback would have its fair share of troubles.
That just hasn't been the case for the Blue Raiders. Brent Stockstill orchestrated the spread offense in elite fashion this year, bringing home the Conference USA Freshman of the Year award by way of completing 66.7 percent of his passes with 3,678 yards, 27 touchdowns and eight interceptions.
"He's a very humble young man," head coach Rick Stockstill said, according to STATS LLC (via CBSSports.com). "He's an extremely hard worker and has shown that since he's been in our program. He's had a lot of good people around him to help him achieve what he has."
The young quarterback certainly has a strong cast of weapons around him to help. Six different runners have scored at least two touchdowns this year, and wideout Richie James, who has 100 catches for 1,220 yards and six touchdowns, might be the most talented player on the field Thursday.
Stockstill's spread has hit its peak over its last two games too, blowing away North Texas 41-7 and mopping up UTSA on the road 42-7. The key now is to keep the trend alive against a game opponent on a neutral field.
Improving on Last Year
The Broncos have had quite the successful season, but anyone familiar with the program has to wince a little at the thought of facing another high-octane offense in a bowl game.
Last year, defensive coordinator Ed Pinkham had to alter his scheme to face Air Force in the Idaho Potato Bowl, a case of too little, too late as the team suffered a 38-24 blowout to end the season on a sour note.
Pinkham won't allow his team to fall complacent just because it doesn't have to alter the scheme this year. He spoke with David Drew of MLive.com about how much trouble the Blue Raiders could give his defense:
"They're a team that presents you an awful lot of problems. They'll give us a lot of empty sets with five receivers to try to get matchups that work in their favor. They even put their receiver in the backfield and try to get mismatches. You have to be on your toes. They do stress you a lot with what they do. It's a well thought-out scheme.
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Luckily for the Broncos, they won't have to only lean on the defense. Zach Terrell's had an impressive year under center, completing 66.8 percent of his passes with 3,255 yards and 27 touchdowns to eight interceptions. His offense has five runners with two or more scores.
Terrell also happens to have an elite wideout to lean on thanks to Daniel Braverman, who owns 103 grabs for 1,266 yards and 12 touchdowns. Running mate Corey Davis isn't far off behind him with 82 for 1,253 and 11.
If Western Michigan is to put last year's bowl hiccup behind the program, the defense will need to rise to the task of an elite offense while remaining potent in its own right. As last year showed, though, that's not always the easiest feat.
Prediction
Western Michigan has something to prove.
MAC school or not, it's hard to forget how well the Broncos played the then-No. 5 Michigan State Spartans, losing 37-24 in the season opener well before just missing out on the MAC title game.
Middle Tennessee touts an offense oddly similar to what the Broncos trot out, but the level of competition just hasn't been the same. Stockstill and Co. have plenty to build on in the coming years, and the future looks quite bright. But the offense doesn't have enough experience just yet to match the Broncos.
Look for Western Michigan to pull ahead late and secure this win, besting a team on the rise that's not quite there yet.
Prediction: Broncos 42, Blue Raiders 35
Statistics courtesy of ESPN unless otherwise specified. All betting information courtesy of Odds Shark.
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