It was only two games, and one was against a hapless Akron team.
One of the Week 2 touchdowns was the result of trick play after an improbable onside kick.
There were several reasons to take a skeptical look at Western Michigan’s standing atop the NCAA’s scoring offense leaderboard after two weeks, but Wednesday’s 52-44 road win over rival Central Michigan proved the Broncos’ unit is legit.
The Chippewas entered the 2020 Battle for the Victory Cannon with a defense that ranked No. 3 nationally in third-down percentage (23.1), ninth in rushing defense (92 yards allowed per game) and eighth in total defense (294.5), and the Broncos carved them up like a plump Thanksgiving turkey.
Sophomore quarterback Kaleb Eleby showed his command by connecting on seven pass plays of 20 yards or more, and the 6-foot-1, 215-pound gunslinger displayed a powerful right arm throwing downfield or on slants and hitches that reached receivers in a hurry, allowing them to turn upfield for big gains.
Eleby set career highs in yards (382) and touchdowns (five) on 12 of 20 passing to finish with a sterling quarterback rating of 292.9.
As good as Eleby’s final stat line looked, the start was less promising.
After CMU took an early 7-0 lead on a 65-yard touchdown run from receiver-turned-wildcat-quarterback Kalil Pimpleton, Eleby threw an interception off the hands of tight end Brett Borske, allowing the Chippewas to take over on the Broncos’ 24-yard line.
Five plays later, running back Kobe Lewis took his turn as a wildcat quarterback and scooted into the end zone from 3 yards out to give CMU a 14-0 lead less than four minutes into the game.
It couldn’t have looked much worse for WMU, but the Broncos answered with a 4-yard touchdown run from Eleby and a 6-yard score from running back Sean Tyler.
They took a 21-14 lead on a 33-yard touchdown pass from Eleby to senior Dee Eskridge, who caught a quick slant and used his 4.3 speed to leave the CMU defensive backs in his dust on the first play of the second quarter.
WMU would hold on to the lead for the final three stanzas, scoring 38 unanswered points and seeing a career game from Eskridge, who four passes for 212 yards and two more touchdown grabs of 85 and 72 yards.
But perhaps his biggest catch of the game was on an onside kick following CMU’s final touchdown with 2:32 left in the fourth quarter.
After trailing by as many as 22 points in the final frame, the Chippewas put together a pair of quick scoring drives in the final minutes to make it a 52-44 contest, and WMU fans watched anxiously as CMU lined up for an onside kick, well aware of how the Broncos’ Week 2 comeback against Toledo went down.
But the Chippewas could not repeat last week’s miracle comeback in Kalamazoo, as Eskridge leapt for the football and allowed WMU to run out the clock against a CMU team without any timeouts.
CMU quarterback Daniel Richardson completed 13 of 19 passes for 157 yards and a touchdown, but also took four sacks.
Former Muskegon High star Pimpleton finished with 108 yards and three touchdowns on seven carries, while adding 42 yards on three catches and tossing a 30-yard pass to former Big Reds teammate JaCorey Sullivan.
Kobe Lewis led CMU’s ground game with 16 carries for 127 yards and two touchdowns, including a 69-yard scoring run that made it a 45-28 game with 9:35 left in the third quarter.
The win moves the Broncos to 3-0 and gives them six victories in the last seven meetings with the rival Chippewas, including five in a row in Mount Pleasant.
It also puts them in sole possession of first place in the MAC West, with preseason favorites CMU (2-1) and Toledo (2-1) having some ground to make up.
WMU has 10 days to prepare for its next game against Northern Illinois (0-3), which kicks off noon Saturday, Nov. 28 at Waldo Stadium.
Those extra three days of rest will be big for the health of a team that played without several starters on both sides of the ball, including defensive ends Ali Fayad and Andre Carter, running back Jaxson Kincaide and freshman All-American receiver Skyy Moore.
Running back Sean Tyler also went down with an apparent ankle injury in the third quarter, leaving Michigan State transfer La’Darius Jefferson to bull his way to 153 yards on 33 carries.
With so much depth at the skill positions, it’s no fluke that WMU only upped its scoring average from 49.5 points per game, though it did fall behind fellow Mid-American Conference squad Kent State on the points-per-game leaderboard heading into Week 4, after the Golden Flashes defeated Akron 69-35 on Tuesday to boost their average to 52.7.
With so much fire power in the conference, WMU having its full complement of players going forward could mean the difference between a good team with a strong offense and Mid-American Conference champions.
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