Miami is one win away from bowl eligibility.
With a little help, the RedHawks are also one win away from a Mid-American Conference East Division title.
With a win against Ball State, and an Ohio loss to Akron on Tuesday, the RedHawks would play in the MAC Championship Game.
Earlier this season, Ohio beat Miami 17-7.
Coach Chuck Martin is not looking back at that loss with regret, however, but as a turning point in his team’s season.
“That was a day that actually built some of our confidence, because we knew we didn’t have most of our good players on offense even playing, and we hung in there with a great, great, football team,” Martin said.
Davis setting records
On one of Western Michigan’s biggest stages so far this season, Corey Davis put his name in the record books.
Davis became the MAC all-time reception leader with 310, passing former Bronco receiver Jordan White. He also set the MAC record for career touchdown catches at 49.
He is 19 yards shy of setting the Football Bowl Subdivision record for receiving yards in a career, with three games ahead of him.
“When your best players are your hardest workers, you have got something very special, and you’ve got a real culture,” coach P.J. Fleck said of Davis. “I think that’s what really impressive about him.”
What bowl eligibility means
When a team gets six wins, they become bowl eligible. They get the opportunity to play in a postseason game, which could include a trip to somewhere warm in December or January, gift bags, and a payout to the university.
In addition, going to a bowl means a couple more weeks of practice, which is a big deal for the younger players on the team who may not get a lot of game experience, but can get more practice reps to prepare for taking over from the departing seniors.
Akron is one win away from bowl eligibility, and coach Terry Bowden knows how important those weeks of practice are.
“It’s like an extra spring practice,” Bowden said. “You’ve almost got two full weeks, you’ve almost got spring practice another time through, so that can be very valuable.”
