Jan 6, 2007, 21:20 GMT
Toronto, ON - Kevin Lovell kicked a 33-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to give Cincinnati the lead and Western Michigan's Nate Meyer missed from 51 yards away with just over a minute remaining, as the Bearcats held on for a 27-24 victory over the Broncos in the inaugural International Bowl at Rogers Centre.
Nick Davila threw for 214 yards with a pair of touchdowns and two interceptions for Cincinnati (8-5), which blew a 24-0 lead before giving new head coach Brian Kelly a win his debut. Kelly left Central Michigan in early December to take over the Cincinnati post, which became vacant when Mark Dantonio left to take over at Michigan State.
The Bearcats concluded their season with three straight wins and gave the Big East a perfect bowl record this postseason. Louisville, West Virginia, Rutgers and South Florida also won bowl games for the conference.
Butler Benton ran for 62 yards on 10 carries for the Bearcats and came up with a couple of huge plays on Cincinnati's go-ahead drive. Dominic Goodman hauled in seven passes for 109 yards with a pair of scores in the victory and was named the game's MVP.
Ryan Cubit threw for 184 yards with a touchdown and two interceptions for Western Michigan (8-5), which lost three of its last four games. Brandon West ran for 109 yards with a touchdown on 21 carries in defeat, while Jamarko Simmons caught 13 passes for 172 yards with a score.
Western Michigan rallied from a 24-0 deficit and finally tied the game in the fourth quarter.
Paul Tithof picked off a Davila pass near midfield and the Broncos followed with a 47-yard drive for the tying score. Cubit kept the march alive with a 12-yard pass on 3rd-and-10, and West did the rest. He carried three times for 35 yards, scoring on a seven-yard run with 10:53 remaining.
The Bearcats answered with an 81-yard drive for the go-ahead field goal.
Starting from the eight-yard line after the kickoff, Davila converted a short third down with a two-yard pass early in the series and Benton followed with runs of 17 and 26 yards to put Cincinnati into Western Michigan territory.
Davila then found Benton with a 19-yard screen pass on 3rd-and-2, setting up a first down at the Western Michigan 11. The Broncos stiffened and forced Lovell's 33-yard kick with 6:11 to play.
Western Michigan then drove from its own 20 to the Cincinnati 30, but a false start penalty pushed the Broncos back five yards and they managed to gain only two back before Meyer came on for the long kick that was short and wide right.
Cincinnati's defense accounted for the game's first points when John Bowie picked off Cubit on Western Michigan's third play and returned the interception 26 yards for a touchdown.
After the Broncos punted, Davila directed a 64-yard drive for another Cincy touchdown. He capped the five-play series with a 21-yard strike to Goodman for a 14-0 lead.
Davila and Goodman hooked up again on the next Bearcats series, as another 21- yard scoring strike finished an 11-play, 74-yard march in the first minute of the second quarter.
Lovell tacked on a 37-yard field goal a few minutes later to give Cincinnati a commanding 24-0 lead, but Western Michigan quickly turned it around with some trickery on its next offensive play.
After the kickoff, cornerback E.J. Biggers found Simmons with a 76-yard touchdown pass to start a string of 17 Bronco points to end the half.
Western Michigan got the ball right back after a punt and drove 56 yards for another touchdown, as Cubit hit Herb Martin with a 30-yard scoring toss to make it a 24-14 game with 5:35 to play before the intermission.
Davila was picked off by Matt Ludeman with 41 seconds left in the half, giving the Broncos enough time to add a 30-yard field goal by Meyer for a seven-point margin at the break.
A scoreless third quarter featured a pair of turnovers. Cubit was picked off by Mike Mickens near midfield midway through the period and Cincinnati followed with a drive to the Western Michigan three before Davila was sacked and lost a fumble.
Game Notes
Cincinnati improved to 5-4 in bowl games.Western Michigan fell to 0-3 in bowl games.The Bearcats have won all three meetings with the Broncos, but the teams hadn't met since 1950.This was the first bowl game played outside of the United States since the 1937 Bacardi Bowl in Havana, Cuba.
Cincinnati improved to 5-4 in bowl games.
Western Michigan fell to 0-3 in bowl games.
The Bearcats have won all three meetings with the Broncos, but the teams hadn't met since 1950.
This was the first bowl game played outside of the United States since the 1937 Bacardi Bowl in Havana, Cuba.
© 2007 The Sports Network
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