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Nick's Pick for the 2006 International Bowl

Western Michigan (8-4) vs. Cincinnati (7-5)

Saturday, January 6 @ 12 pm kickoff (EST) - Toronto, Ontario - ESPN 2

Notes:

• Former Central Michigan head coach Brian Kelly will make his debut as Bearcats coach when they take on Western Michigan in the inaugural International Bowl at Rogers Centre (formerly the SkyDome) - Kelly guided Central Michigan to a 31-7 win over Western Michigan on November 10
• Cincinnati was put into a unique situation when Mark Dantonio took the coaching job at Michigan State on Nov. 27. The school originally named defensive coordinator Pat Narduzzi as the interim coach and planned to have him lead the Bearcats in their bowl game; that plan changed when Brian Kelly was named the team's new coach on December 3. Kelly comes to the Bearcats after three seasons at Central Michigan, leading the Chippewas to a 9-4 record and a 31-10 win over Ohio in the Mid-American Conference championship game this year.
• Western Michigan's eight wins were the school's most since it had nine during the 2000 season. The Broncos finished second in the MAC's West Division, closing the regular season with a 17-0 win over Akron.
• While Cincinnati has a strong defense that ranks 31st in the nation, Western Michigan's is even better. The Broncos boast the country's sixth-best rushing defense, limiting opponents to 71.9 yards per game, and tied Wake Forest for the most interceptions in the nation with 22 - The Bearcats average 20.6 points per game this season, ranking 84th in the nation.
• Cincinnati needed a win in its final game to finish above .500 but played a schedule that included five ranked opponents and was rated the second-most difficult by the NCAA.
• This will be Cincinnati's fifth bowl appearance in seven seasons and eighth overall. The Bearcats had lost three straight bowl games before a 32-14 victory over Marshall in the 2004 Fort Worth Bowl.
• Western Michigan will be playing in a bowl game for the first time since a 35-30 loss to Fresno State in the California Bowl on Dec. 10, 1988.
• Cincinnati is 2-0 against Western Michigan, but this is the first meeting since 1950 and UC is 2-0 versus the MAC in 2006.
• This is the first bowl game played outside the United States since the 1937 Bacardi Bowl in Cuba.

Nick’s Pick: Western Michigan 20 – Cincinnati 17

Line: Cincy by 7

Comment: Cincinnati has a solid defensive unit and an offense that can score points while Western Michigan is nearly a mirror image. Cincy has an advantage where Coach Kelly knows the Broncos talent and how to game plan against it while UC is a totally new opponent for WMU. Western has the advantage where their coaching staff has stayed intact over the past month and UC’s has not. In the end, give a small advantage to the Broncos in what should be a very good game that is defensive oriented.

Western Michigan Broncos

Sat, Sep 2 at Indiana L 20-39

Sat, Sep 9 Toledo W 31-10

Sat, Sep 16 at Virginia W 17-10

Sat, Sep 23 Temple W 41-7

Sat, Oct 7 at Ohio L 20-27

Sat, Oct 14 Northern Illinois W 16-14

Sat, Oct 21 at Ball State W 41-27

Sat, Oct 28 Eastern Michigan W 18-15

Sat, Nov 4 Miami (OH) W 27-24

Fri, Nov 10 at Central Michigan L 7-31

Sat, Nov 18 at Florida State L 20-28

Fri, Nov 24 at Akron W 17-0

Cincinnati Bearcats

Sat, Sep 2 Eastern Kentucky W 31-0

Fri, Sep 8 Pittsburgh L 15-33

Sat, Sep 16 at (1) Ohio State L 7-37

Sat, Sep 23 at (11) Virginia Tech L 13-29

Sat, Sep 30 Miami (OH) W 24-10

Sat, Oct 7 Akron W 20-14

Sat, Oct 14 at (7) Louisville L 17-23

Sun, Oct 22 South Florida W 23-6

Sat, Oct 28 Syracuse W 17-3

Sat, Nov 11 at (10) West Virginia L 24-42

Sat, Nov 18 (7) Rutgers W 30-11

Sat, Nov 25 at Connecticut W 26-23

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