The Mid-American
Conference’s Central Michigan Chippe was and Conference USA’s WKU Hilltoppers
have accepted bids to play in the inaugural Popeyes Bahamas Bowl on Wednesday,
December 24 in Nassau’s Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium at Noon ET. The
game will be televised on ESPN and carried by ESPN Radio.
The 7-5 Chippe
was and 7-5 Hilltoppers will be the first two teams to play a postseason NCAA Football
Bowl Subdivision (FBS) game outside of either the United States or Canada since
the 1937 Bacardi Bowl, a 7-7 tie between Auburn and Villanova.
This will be a
rematch of the 2012 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, a 24-21 Central Michigan victory
over WKU in Detroit on December 26, 2012 – the only previous meeting between
the schools and the last bowl game appearance for each institution.
Central
Michigan, coached by
Dan Enos(26-35 in five seasons overall and at
Central Michigan), battled its way through a tough MAC West Division. The
Chippewas won five of their last seven regular-season games, including three of
their final four contests behind a conference-leading five first-team All-MAC
players.
“I want to thank
the Popeyes Bahamas Bowl for the invitation to be a part of its inaugural
game,”
Enos said.
“Playing in our sixth bowl game in the past nine seasons is a great
accomplishment for this program. WKU is a great team, and I expect a hard
fought game when we face off on December 24. I know our players are extremely
excited to have this opportunity and can’t wait to get going with bowl camp
later this week.”
WKU, coached by
Jeff
Brohm (7-5 in one
year overall and at WKU), boasts one of Conference USA’s top offensive teams.
The Hilltoppers enter the bowl with a four-game winning streak, including a
67-66 overtime victory in their regular-season finale over then-No. 19
Marshall.
“It is a
tremendous reward and opportunity for our players and coaches who have worked
incredibly hard this season,”
Brohm said. “A bowl game is one of our goals
at the beginning of every season, and to be able to realize and achieve that
goal is a credit to their attitude and willingness to put in the effort to get
better each and every week. We look forward to getting back to practice and
preparing for our second bowl game in school history.”
The Chippewas
have the strongest defensive unit in the MAC. Central Michigan led the
conference in total defense (331.2 yards per game), rushing defense (119.8
yards per game), passing defense (211.4 yards per game), interceptions (24) and
were second in the conference in scoring defense (23.2 points per game). CMU
also had a knack for controlling the clock as the Chippewas led the MAC and
were eighth in the FBS in average time of possession (33:27 per game) and had
two games with more than 40 minutes of offensive possession time.
Central Michigan
sophomore quarterback
Cooper Rush has completed 63 percent of his passes
for 2,664 yards and 20 touchdowns. His favorite receiver is senior
Titus
Davis, who has 54 receptions for 843 yards and nine touchdowns
and was named to the first-team All-MAC squad for the second-consecutive
season. Senior
Thomas Rawls leads the Chips in rushing yards with
210 carries for 1,103 yards and 10 touchdowns.
On defense, senior
linebacker and first-team All-MAC performer
Justin Cherocci leads Central Michigan with 107 total
tackles and is tied for the team lead with four sacks. Sophomore safety
Tony
Annesse tied for
the team lead with junior corner back
Brandon Greer with three interceptions and paced the
Chips with 10 pass breakups.
“We are thrilled
to take part in the inaugural Popeyes Bahamas Bowl,” CMU Athletic Director
Dave
Heeke said. “It is a fantastic opportunity for our football
program and Central Michigan University. It is great to see our
student-athletes rewarded with a chance to play in the Bahamas against a strong
opponent in WKU. I want to thank Mid-American Conference Commissioner Jon
Steinbrecher and his staff for their hard work in this process.”
WKU’s prolific
offense averages 44 points per game, and scored 50 or more points in six games,
including 60 or more in two contests.
Hilltopppers
redshirt senior
Brandon Doughty leads the FBS with 4,344 yards and 44
touchdowns, averaging 362 passing yards per game (second in FBS) as he has
completed 67.5 percent of his passes. Five receivers have more than 30 catches,
led by junior
Jared Dangerfieldwith 64 receptions for 738 yards and
10 TD. WKU can run the ball, too, as junior running back
Leon
Allenhas 259
carries for 1,490 yards and 12 TD.
The Hilltopper
defense, especially in the red zone, has been stout. WKU is the only team in
FBS with four defensive touchdowns of 80 yards or more (the four longest plays
of the year for the team), and the Hilltoppers have five defensive touchdowns
in 2014, including three from red shirt junior
Wonderful Terry.
Junior
linebacker
Nick Holt leads WKU in total tackles with 103,
including seven for loss. Redshirt sophomore
Branden Leston leads the Hilltoppers with four
interceptions.
“We are excited
to be taking part in our second bowl game in program history in our first
season as Conference USA members,” WKU Director of Athletics
Todd
Stewartsaid.
“I’d like to thank C-USA for allowing us to participate in this unique
opportunity as well as our coaches and student-athletes for their hard work in
getting our program to this point. It will be an exciting game, and WKU is
proud to represent our league in the inaugural Popeyes Bahamas Bowl.”
Fans wanting to
purchase travel packages to the bowl can visit
BahamasBowlTravel.com,
call toll-free
888-613-2666or email
info@
millergt.com for
information. In keeping with the bowl’s theme of
#PassportToKickoff, United States
citizens are reminded that they must have a valid passport to travel to the
Bahamas. More information on passports can be found at
passports.state.gov.
Central Michigan
and WKU are expected to arrive in Nassau on December 20 for a bowl week full of
events at
Atlantis Bahamas,
the official resort of the bowl, along with community relations appearances in
the Nassau area. More information on the game and related activities will be
released in the coming days.
For more
information on the 2014 Popeyes Bahamas Bowl, visit
PopeyesBahamasBowl.com.