CollegeFootballDigestfrom CooperSearch

1988 Western Michigan

9–⁠3 (7–⁠1 Mid-American Conference), coached by Al Molde.

Schedule and results

Western Michigan in 1988, game by game: won at Wisconsin 24–14; won at Toledo 31–9; won vs. Illinois State 44–14; won vs. Bowling Green 37–10; won at Miami (OH) 41–18; lost vs. Kent State 28–45; won at Eastern Michigan 31–24; won vs. Central Michigan 42–24; won at Ball State 16–13; lost at Northern Illinois 7–15; won vs. Ohio 23–16; lost vs. Fresno State 30–35+30−17Won 24–14 at Wisconsin+10WisconsinWon 31–9 at Toledo+22ToledoWon 44–14 vs. Illinois State+30Illinois StateWon 37–10 vs. Bowling Green+27Bowling GreenWon 41–18 at Miami (OH)+23Miami (OH)Lost 28–45 vs. Kent State-17Kent StateWon 31–24 at Eastern Michigan+7Eastern MichiganWon 42–24 vs. Central Michigan+18Central MichiganWon 16–13 at Ball State+3Ball StateLost 7–15 at Northern Illinois-8Northern Illino…Won 23–16 vs. Ohio+7OhioLost 30–35 vs. Fresno State-5Fresno State
Each game’s margin, wins above the line and losses below.
DateOpponentResultElo
Sep 3atWisconsinW 24–⁠1446%
Sep 10atToledoW 31–⁠948%
Sep 17vsIllinois StateW 44–⁠1479%
Oct 1vsBowling GreenW 37–⁠1076%
Oct 8atMiami (OH)W 41–⁠1863%
Oct 15vsKent StateL 28–⁠4574%
Oct 22atEastern MichiganW 31–⁠2437%
Oct 29vsCentral MichiganW 42–⁠2456%
Nov 5atBall StateW 16–⁠1341%
Nov 12atNorthern IllinoisL 7–⁠1563%
Nov 19vsOhioW 23–⁠1681%
Dec 10Bowls & playoffvsFresno StateCalifornia BowlL 30–⁠3542%

Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.

How it ended: Lost to Fresno State 35–⁠30 in the California Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; Mid-American Conference champions.

In program history: The 13th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 83 on file).

Players on this team

Before 2004 our records hold honors and the draft; these are the players whose college years here, from their Wikipedia articles or their honors, include 1988.

Mid-American Conference champions7–⁠1 in the conference

Record
9–⁠3
Conference
7–⁠1 first in Mid-American Conference
AP final
Unranked
Points
354–⁠237
Coach
Al Molde
Elo
1535 +95 this season
SP+ rating
5.1 No. 41 of 102; offense No. 36, defense No. 52
SRS
−7.2 No. 74 of 105 in Division I-A
Recruiting class
—
Defensive coordinator
Larry Edlund

Drafted in 1989

The 1989 draft
Rd 5Kevin Haverdink OTNew Orleans Saints

1988 Mid-American Conference standings

Conference page
TeamConf.OverallAP final
Western Michigan7–⁠19–⁠3
Eastern Michigan5–⁠2–⁠16–⁠3–⁠1
Ball State5–⁠38–⁠3
Central Michigan5–⁠37–⁠4
Ohio4–⁠3–⁠14–⁠6–⁠1
Toledo4–⁠46–⁠5
Kent State3–⁠55–⁠6
Bowling Green1–⁠6–⁠12–⁠8–⁠1
Miami (OH)0–⁠7–⁠10–⁠10–⁠1

Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.