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BOISE — One team will kick off Friday afternoon’s Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on the famed blue turf with a freshman quarterback, a run-heavy offense, and a top-30 defense.
And that team will be playing BYU (6-6), when Western Michigan kicks off Friday at 2 p.m. MST (ESPN, KSL Newsradio).
Behind the star-studded arm of freshman quarterback Kaleb Eleby, the Broncos (7-5) hope to do something the other Broncos (Boise State) do on the blue turf regularly: beat BYU.
“When we recruited him, he had an unbelievable maturity about him,” said Western Michigan coach Tim Lester, who played quarterback for the Broncos from 1996-99. “Even when he came in last January, he’s been here nine months and he has a way about him. I remember seeing it the first time in his living room, the way he handled his little brother.
“(Leadership) comes naturally to him. When he had to take over, we knew he would take his lumps — but the special thing about him is his arm. He throws as good of a ball as I’ve ever seen and anyone I’ve ever coached.”
Eleby’s inaugural season wasn’t supposed to come into play this year.
In the Broncos' 51-24 loss to Toledo, starting quarterback Jon Wassink suffered a season-ending foot injury. Eleby finished out the loss to the Rockets, and after back-to-back losses to Ohio and Ball State, Western Michigan finished off its regular-season schedule with a 28-21 win over eventual MAC champion Northern Illinois on Nov. 20 to right the ship.
Eleby, a 6-foot-1, 205-pound pocket passer from Missouri, finished the season throwing for 917 yards and four touchdowns with two interceptions in four games.
“Kaleb has a sense of swagger about him,” offensive lineman John Keeny said. “You can see it in the way he acts on a daily basis. He’s really been a sponge, even before Jon went down; he learns quickly and adapts. You rarely see him make the same mistake twice.
It took a little time for the Broncos to adjust to Eleby under center, but Western Michigan has found itself to finish bowl-eligible for the second consecutive year, and added the No. 1-rated recruiting class in the Mid-American Conference on Wednesday.
But with an experienced offensive line and a running back like LaVante Bellamy, who has run for 1,172 yards and six touchdowns as a junior, it was easier.
It wasn’t just Eleby adapting to the Broncos; the Broncos adapted to Eleby.
“He’s fun to play with,” Keeny said. “Like coach said, he’s got a special arm talent, Sometimes in practice, he makes some throws that make you think ‘this kid is going to be really good.’ He’s a great kid, a great leader, and he’ll be special here someday.”
The Broncos have won 13 games in Lester’s first two seasons, and hope to improve on that mark with an improving quarterback and a coach who signed a two-year contract extension through the 2023 season.
They’ll hope for win No. 14 on Friday.
“This is home for me,” Lester said. “This is where I played, the same logo that I put blood, sweat and tears in, and it feels really great. I want to wear it as long as I can. I love these guys; they are doing all the right things. I’m proud of their growth, and we’ve got another opportunity tomorrow to continue to grow our program and our brand.
“I like the direction we are going.”
