Community Picks: Western Michigan 0% vs Ball State 0%

Tim Lester knows he's got a tough act to follow at Western Michigan. ''I'll do it my way, but the results need to be the same,'' Lester said at an introductory news conference Saturday at Western Michigan. ''I won't fight the past, because I like the way he built it,'' Lester said. Continue to Article

January 14, 2017 4:05:pm EST

Western Michigan coach P.J. Fleck hugged his athletic director while fighting his emotions on his way off the field after a Cotton Bowl loss to Wisconsin that denied the Broncos an undefeated season. About three hours earlier, the fourth-year coach delivered a fiery speech in the locker room, reminding his players about the people who didn't think the 12th-ranked Broncos belonged in a New Year's Six bowl despite their perfect season in the Mid-American Conference. As the final seconds ticked away in the 24-16 defeat to the No. 8 Badgers on Monday, Fleck gathered his players on the sideline to remind them to lose with pride - his way of pointing out that it had been 14 months since the Broncos had such a feeling. Continue to Article

January 02, 2017 6:46:pm EST

Western Michigan running back Jarvion Franklin remembers the initial reaction when the Cotton Bowl logo flashed on the screen during a team meeting nearly a year ago, only days after the Broncos' first-ever bowl victory. The 12th-ranked Broncos (13-0) made it from Kalamazoo to the Cotton Bowl with their Fleck-ingrained ''Row The Boat'' mantra. Three years after winning only once in Fleck's first season, Western Michigan is now the only FBS team other than No. 1 Alabama with a chance to finish undefeated. Continue to Article

January 01, 2017 4:59:pm EST

No. 12 Western Michigan (13-0, Mid-American) vs. No. 8 Wisconsin (10-3, Big Ten), 1 p.m. EST (ESPN), Arlington, Texas. Continue to Article

January 01, 2017 2:54:pm EST

Western Michigan coach P.J. Fleck has no interest in a playoff specifically for Group of Five teams. Fleck responded Saturday to comments by Northern Illinois athletic director Sean Frazier, who said recently that it's time for a conversation about creating a playoff for the Group of Five . Northern Illinois is in the Mid-American Conference with Western Michigan. Continue to Article

December 31, 2016 4:48:pm EST