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Fall camp has officially started and that means it's time for some predictions!
Any format you'd like, give us your predictions for the upcoming season.

This is how I currently see things...

Positives:

- Much more experience across the board.
- Senior all-MAC QB, senior all-MAC center, senior all-MAC RB, senior all-MAC tight end. Wassink, Juriga, Bellamy, Ricci. These guys are going to lead the offense to great success.
- 10 returning starters on D, Espo promoted to DC. I think the defense will see a marked improvement this season.
- Dedicated ST coach, and a good one at that. Coach Palcic was great at Miami and I think special teams will improve by leaps and bounds.
- The MAC is wide open. I don't see any dominant teams in the MAC this year and WMU should be right in the mix for a championship.

Question marks:

- Just how much will the D improve? Our corners got shredded last year (losing Phillips, Beal and the Jacksons will do that to you). Let's hope the holes have been plugged.
- Special teams. I think they will be very much improved, but we don't just need improvement. The unit needs to take a huge leap into competency. Palcic, work your magic!
- Lester. I hate it, but it needs to be said. I love the guy, and he loves WMU. But he has yet to win a big game. NIU and EMU were solid wins last year, but they were ultimately meaningless...and we got really lucky in the EMU game. In the 6 losses last year, we got outscored 305 to 142. And that Ohio game was a biggest sh!tshow I've ever seen. 4 of our 5 MAC wins were by one score. Lester and staff NEED to do better. I will give him props for shaking up the staff in the offseason though, something that a lot of us questioned whether or not he had the stones to do.
- Tough schedule. Two P5s on the road and then @Toledo, @EMU, @Ohio, @NIU. That's rough.


Prediction:

I'm going to say 8-4. We lose the OOC games we expect to lose, plus drop 1 or 2 to those MAC road opponents. This team has the talent to compete with anyone on the schedule, but it's on Lester to figure out how to use it. A few bounces go our way and 9 or 10 wins isn't outside the realm of possibility. If we end our season at .500 again, we will need to start questioning if Lester is the guy or not.

(08-02-2019 07:04 PM)ColinApocalypse Wrote:  This team has the talent to compete with anyone on the schedule, but it's on Lester to figure out how to use it.

Amen.

7-5

I'll do a game-for-game prediction later, but I see anything more then 6-6 a struggle.

7-5

6-0 at Waldo
1-5 on the road

A few things we can not afford this year. Injuries to skill players on offense would be devastating. Bellamy going down without clear depth at RB is worrisome. Young WR could also spell disaster if we face injuries at that position.

On defense, the same holds true. Injuries to CB would be tough to overcome. We have good depth on the Dline and LBs.

I hope we can have a run at a MAC title, but scoring and scoring often is key in the MAC. I Don't see better than 7-5.

7-5

With our schedule we are going to have to be much better on defense and special teams to win more than seven games.

Not that it isn't possible.

Having 17 starters back is a good starting point.

8-5

Upset: Syracuse
Worst loss: Ball State

Optimistic prediction of 8-4

Right now we should be favored to beat Monmouth, Georgia State, CMU, Miami, EMU, BG, Ball State, and NIU.

Underdogs vs. Cuse, MSU, UT, and Ohio.

However as we know things change during the season - momentum, injuries, breakout players, etc.

Thus road games at EMU and NIU are problematic.

NIU could be much better at end of season than beginning as they adjust to new coaching-systems. Or struggling for same reasons.

(08-03-2019 01:31 PM)Fthechips Wrote:  Optimistic prediction of 8-4

If this team can win 8, they can win 10 + the MAC Championship.

7 was my optimistic win total.

Big question marks at pass defense, special teams and a very young WR corps.

If Esposito works some magic and a couple of the heralded new receivers can strike gold, taking heat off Bellamy, sure... we can make a good run at the division title.

But if not, then it's simply 6-6 territory.

Monmouth: W
@Michigan St: L
Georgia St: W
@Syracuse: L
Central Michigan: W
@Toledo: L
Miami OH: W
@Eastern Michigan: L
Bowling Green St: W
Ball St: W
@Ohio: L
@Northern Illinois: W

So 7-5, but 6-6 seems more likely then 8-4.

----I think Ws vs MSU and SU are possible, but unlikely.

----We haven't lost to EMU since 2013.......I'm afraid we're due for a Loss vs them. They are better then they used to be and winning in Ypsilanti can be tough. If they're having a good season (and they could be 5-1 going into our game), and Rynearson is pretty full, going to be trouble. I think they have a new QB though.

----Like EMU, MU also scares me. I would imagine next to Frank Solich, there's as much pressure on Chuck Martin, only if Solich loses he's not on the hotseat like Martin is. He's been building/trying-to-build-a-program and this might be the year he breaks through.

---- I get they're defending MAC Champs, but I haven't been impressed with NIU lately. I don't buy we beat them because 'they bagged it in' last year. We had them on the ropes most of 2017. Don't see why we can't win again. We haven't won in DeKalb in forever, though.

---OU and UT seem like guaranteed losses, could arguably be tougher then MSU and SU.

---Hopefully with the recent Ls vs bad UA, CMU, and BSU teams, we can avoid Ls vs bad BSU, CMU, BGSU, and GSU teams. Can't pencil in a W till they're over!

(08-03-2019 01:17 PM)WMU2013 Wrote:  8-5

Upset: Syracuse
Worst loss: Ball State

I don't see a L to a bad Ball St team 2 years in a row, unless we're substantially worse or Ball St is substantially better.

Boy would I ever like to predict an 8-4 regular season finish with a MAC West championship. But history shows this to be a long shot.

My prediction: we are 5-1 in conference (7-3 overall) going into the last two road games in which we come up empty. Regular season ends at 7-5. Tim Lester shows a marked improvement in game management and decision making.

The offense is formidable enough to keep us in games with MSU and SU. Defense plays inspired against early MAC foes but can't sustain the hyped level of play due to bumps, bruises and season fatigue.

Special teams are shaky in the first four games but pull it together by mid season so as not to be a liability. A couple key offensive skill player injuries negatively impact the last two games.

In the end, the lack of depth and big bodies at the DL position cause a breakdown in run defense and is exploited by Ohio and NIU.

Monmouth: W
@Michigan St: L
Georgia St: W
@Syracuse: L
Central Michigan: W
@Toledo: L
Miami OH: W
@Eastern Michigan: W
Bowling Green St: W
Ball St: W
@Ohio: L
@Northern Illinois: L

(08-05-2019 11:06 AM)DrDavis Wrote:  Boy would I ever like to predict an 8-4 regular season finish with a MAC West championship. But history shows this to be a long shot.

My prediction: we are 5-1 in conference (7-3 overall) going into the last two road games in which we come up empty. Regular season ends at 7-5. Tim Lester shows a marked improvement in game management and decision making.

The offense is formidable enough to keep us in games with MSU and SU. Defense plays inspired against early MAC foes but can't sustain the hyped level of play due to bumps, bruises and season fatigue.

Special teams are shaky in the first four games but pull it together by mid season so as not to be a liability. A couple key offensive skill player injuries negatively impact the last two games.

In the end, the lack of depth and big bodies at the DL position cause a breakdown in run defense and is exploited by Ohio and NIU.

Monmouth: W
@Michigan St: L
Georgia St: W
@Syracuse: L
Central Michigan: W
@Toledo: L
Miami OH: W
@Eastern Michigan: W
Bowling Green St: W
Ball St: W
@Ohio: L
@Northern Illinois: L

Select opponent rushing yds vs WMU 2018:
Toledo 268 yds
Ohio 256 yds
NIU 106 yds

(08-05-2019 11:06 AM)DrDavis Wrote:  The offense is formidable enough to keep us in games with MSU and SU.

MSU might have a Top 10 defense this season. The game will probably look similar to our 2017 matchup.

(08-05-2019 11:56 AM)Motown Bronco Wrote:  

(08-05-2019 11:06 AM)DrDavis Wrote:  The offense is formidable enough to keep us in games with MSU and SU.

MSU might have a Top 10 defense this season. The game will probably look similar to our 2017 matchup.

According to brovol all we have to do is be "unpredictable" offensively.

Monmouth: W
@Michigan St: L
Georgia St: W
@Syracuse: L
Central Michigan: W
@Toledo: L
Miami OH: W
@Eastern Michigan: W
Bowling Green St: W
Ball St: W
@Ohio: W
@Northern Illinois: L

Optimistic 8-4, but Ohio and EMU on the road might make that tough. I could see us at 6-6, too.

(08-05-2019 03:57 PM)broncofan1 Wrote:  Monmouth: W
@Michigan St: L
Georgia St: W
@Syracuse: L
Central Michigan: W
@Toledo: L
Miami OH: W
@Eastern Michigan: W
Bowling Green St: W
Ball St: W
@Ohio: W
@Northern Illinois: L

Optimistic 8-4, but Ohio and EMU on the road might make that tough. I could see us at 6-6, too.

I think our last 4 road games are L’s.

My imperfect prediction..
Monmouth W W
@MSU L L
Georgia St W W
@Syracuse W upset special L
CMU W W
@Toledo L L
Miami OH W W
@ EMU W L
Bowling Grn W W
Ball St W W
@Ohio L L
@NIU W W

Optimistic 9-3 Realistic 7-5

We will have trouble scoring on MSU defense
Syracuse will be ripe for an upset. Can we deliver?
We will not beat Toledo on the road
Will we beat EMU but on the road?
I don't see Tim Lester ever beating Frank Solich @ Ohio. Tim is hands down a better recruiter, Frank hands down a better coach
Our year to win @ NIU