Tuesday Preview: CMU vs. WMU

When: 7:30 PM ET, ESPN2

Why You Should Care: Is Western Michigan going to roll over in this game? Trying to cap off a disappointing season (and a tough early OOC schedule), they could at least stop a little bit of the bleeding with a win over hated rival, Central Michigan. CMU has been great in MAC play, but awful out of it and, obviously, this is a conference game (meaning good CMU might show up).

Central Michigan Will Win Because...: The Chips aren't keen on running the football, but when they do, expect some fireworks. Western Michigan had a good rushing defense last year, but for some reason in 2007, they're just awful. Standing at 96th against the run, Justin Hoskins should have a good day. Plus, any time you've got Dan LeFevour, you have a chance to win football games. Western's offense has really been sputtering over the last few games here and Tim Hiller isn't getting a lot of help around him.

Western Michigan Will Win Because...: It's tough to say with the way they played against Eastern, but these guys have a real good chance to stick it to the defending MAC champions and play spoiler for a little bit. Ball State is still alive if they can defeat the Chips tonight. Hiller has some skill, it's just a matter of getting him in the right situations. They need to establish the running game as well. Also, Central Michigan's defense has done absolutely next to nothing all season long getting trounced when offenses execute halfway decently.

Keep an Eye on...: Red Keith. The guy just makes plays all over the place. By far and away the best CMU defender, Keith has a chance to keep the Bronco offense from doing too much tonight.

Prediction: This might be a little lower scoring than predicted. I think the weather situation might have an effect on that. The forecast calls for below-freezing temps (low 30's, high 20's), 10+ mph wind, and sleety/rainy/snowy forms of precipitation. However, this won't stop Dan LeFevour cold in his tracks (no pun intended). He'll be able to run and run and run and run against the Broncos and Hoskins has the potential for a big game. Still, with this being an in-state rivalry and all, Western won't roll over as badly as they did against Eastern. It'll be a battle, but Central will wind up on top at Waldo Stadium by a score of 34-28.