And So It Begins, WMU Gets Ready for Illinois

KALAMAZOO, Mich. - The unofficial official beginning of the WMU football season started in Sunday's practice, as the Broncos started to implement the game plan to face Illinois this Saturday. Much of the practice was predicated around the offense and the need for speed during the hurry up.

The defense also got a fresh look at the Illini offense with some team drills that focused heavily just on the Illini offense. The offensive line got their first look at a defensive line that is big and fast and will be an x-factor in Saturday's game. Keeping the pass-rush to a minimum is key for the Broncos to come away with the win.

"Facing a Big Ten opponent, they're going to be larger, taller, bigger guys," said senior Kevin Galeher. "We just got to focus on staying low on our blocks and executing."

WMU is playing their third Big Ten team in two years and have had success against those teams. It's the mentality of Galeher and the rest of the WMU team that make them a threat to win in each game.

"An opponent is an opponent, they all should be treated the same," Galeher said. "Whether MAC or Big Ten."

This mentality has spilled over across the whole team as today's practice, though head coach Bill Cubit was intense, the players understood that this week's game is big and every player on the team simply needs to be perfect.

"We have to communicate," Galeher said. "We need to just execute and make no mental mistakes."