Miami Ohio Red Hawks vs Western Michigan Broncos, 10/14/2023, 3:30pm
Miami O 34 – Western Michigan 21, Attendance: 20,039
Weather: Rain, 50; Ticket: $24 Stubhub, Face: $35, Parking: $0
Where’s Waldo? by Tree
The Logistics:
Western Michigan University (WMU) is in Kalamazoo, Michigan, which is about the same distance from either Detroit or Chicago at about two and half hours. Deciding which route to take is a Faustian bargain. Flying into O’Hare will likely present more options and be cheaper, while coming from Detroit will have less options but is probably less likely to present you with hours of stop and go traffic. For our visit, we were wrapping this in with a noon game at Eastern Michigan (EMU) which is about an hour and half away. WMU is within reasonable proximity to EMU, CMU (Central Michigan) and the University of Michigan so a double weekend is a possibility. I will tell you, however, that it took years for me to find a weekend where seeing two of those teams (EMU and WMU) on the same day was possible.
Since we came over from the EMU game, we really didn’t see much of Kalamazoo. I can’t say whether it is a good spot or bad spot. However, in any case, you can be sure lodging on game weekends will be expensive and in short supply. Navigating to the stadium was straight-forward.
The Site:
Full disclaimer, we missed the tailgating at WMU. We didn’t get to the game until mid-first quarter. There was no option to buy parking spaces online either at the school site or at third parties, so we just rolled the dice. I was a bit worried given we would be arriving late and that it was homecoming. The lot signage wasn’t great, but we drove past the stadium with our fingers crossed. Oddly enough there was a big lot where folks had clearly tailgated, but there were also plenty of open spots. There was no one taking money, so we simply pulled in and grabbed a spot. Accordingly, I guess the tailgating at Western Michigan is a combination of paid and free lots. As we pulled in, we were mistakenly identified as Miami of Ohio fans because we got a nice “Eff you Miami” as we drove by a car. It was about the only interaction I had with Broncos fans that day. There was a fair bit of trash in the lot, so the tailgating was probably average when you factor in the empty spots. Our walk to the stadium was a short one.
Waldo Stadium is home for the Broncos. It sits on the fringe of campus, and it is small. However, it fits into the side of a hill, which gives it a nice bowl feel. It has three video scoreboards which is not something you see often, even at Power Five schools. Most of the seats are bleachers with some seatbacks in the center. The concessions were disappointing with a standard menu, and they were not offering a souvenir cup. There is a large grass hill on the one corner of the stadium and as expected kids were sliding down the hill most of the game. Given the small size, any seat is serviceable and the three video scoreboards help to enhance the experience.
The crowd for our game was sparse for a big weekend and I don’t recall any specific or noteworthy cheers. It was not a vibrant environment with the rain and despite it being two thirds full. The homecoming crowd could have been a bit louder. They did have a few bits, including a dance off with Buster the Bronco. The band was good, but I was surprised that they get to sit in the prime seats right in the middle of the stadium. They must have quite a bit of pull. Nothing unusual in terms of attire mostly because there was a light rain to open the game. I like the Broncos uniforms and color scheme. For some reason, brown and yellow resonates with me. It did occur to me that they look an awful lot like Wyoming. If the Broncos played the Cowboys, it would feel like an intrasquad scrimmage.
The Game:
This did not look to be a good game with Miami (O) coming in at 6-1 while WMU was 2-5. Nonetheless, the Broncos managed to keep it competitive albeit with a little help from Red Hawk turnovers. Every time Miami(O) would score, Western was usually quick to answer. Unfortunately, most times their answer to a touchdown was a field goal. The Red Hawks scored first after they stopped the Broncos on an aggressive 4th and 3 attempt at midfield. WMU answered with a field goal but a nice return by Miami set them up for another short drive again starting at midfield. After a long pass, the Red Hawks scored again making it 14 – 3 at the end of the first quarter with the Broncos continuing to struggle.
As WMU punted at the start of the 2nd quarter, it appeared Miami was going to run away with it. However, an interception by the Broncos gave WMU the ball on the Miami 28. Finally, a short drive by the Broncos resulted in a touchdown for WMU.
Miami continued the goodwill on their next series by fumbling and giving WMU great field position again. The Red Hawk defense, however, answered the sudden change with a stiff defense and the Broncos botched a 47-yard field goal. Miami then mixed up the run and pass on a long drive resulting in another touchdown. It was Red Hawks 21 and the Broncos 10 as the half ended.
In the second half, the Broncos did manage to score first but again with a field goal instead of a touchdown. The Red Hawks then answered with, you guessed it, another touchdown. This made it Miami 28 and WMU 13. The Broncos then managed to close it to a one game score at 28-21. Alas, it was all Red Hawks from this point on. They tacked on two more field goals with a final score of Miami 34 – WMU 21. Statistically, the teams were close and considering Miami turned the ball over twice, WMU should have made this game closer than it was.
Personal Notes:
It should be no surprise that generally college campuses tend to skew liberal although certainly geography plays a large part in this. One of my barometers to assess the general political mood of a campus is to see how many men are on the band’s drill team / flag squad. To my surprise, WMU had at least three guys on the drill team which was much more than normal. The real clincher however was the homecoming court where one couple in the election consisted of two women. I was even more surprised when the court winners were a queen and a queen. We definitely were not in the SEC, but one doesn’t exactly think of the state of Michigan as a liberal hotbed either. But there it was, a very diverse homecoming court and no boos from the stands either. There’s also the “We Must Unite” slogan of the Bronco’s Diversity Task Force.
Given our short stay in Kalamazoo, I really don’t have any other observations. I would almost have to grade the experience as an incomplete. However, here at Somanystadiums we don’t hesitate to make broad edicts on a limited sample size. Western Michigan is fairly similar to Eastern Michigan. It is not a must-see, but I would not necessarily avoid it either. The stadium, with its three video scoreboards, is a plus. Kalamazoo is not too far from Chicago or Detroit, so you do have travel options. The games will not be expensive either. The big question is the quality of tailgating. It will likely depend on the opponent and the time of the year. In any case, I wouldn’t necessarily avoid Waldo stadium, but I would not exactly be looking for it either.
