While the bowl had tie-ins with the Mid-American Conference (MAC) and the Big Ten Conference , the actual participants were from the MAC and Mountain West Conference (MWC). This was the first time that Western Michigan and Nevada ever played each other.[ 4]
Western Michigan Broncos
edit
Western Michigan finished its regular season with a 7–5 record (4–4 in MAC games). The Broncos won four of their first five games, then lost four of their final six. The team was 1-1 in games against ranked opponents, with a loss to #2 Michigan , and a shocking win over #12 Pitt.
Nevada finished their regular season with an 8–4 record (5–3 in Mountain West games). The Wolf Pack played to a 5–1 record in their first six games, then went 3–3 in their final six games. The team played one ranked opponent, losing by two points to San Diego State in mid-November. Following the regular season, head coach Jay Norvell , offensive coordinator Matt Mumme , and multiple other coaches left the Nevada program to take jobs at Colorado State .[ 5] Vai Taua .
Starting quarterback Carson Strong , who won back-to-back Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Year awards in 2020 and 2021, opted out of the game in order to prepare for the 2022 NFL draft .[ 6] Tory Horton and Melquan Stovall, transferred to Colorado State to remain with Norvell and did not play in the game.[ 7]
2021 Quick Lane Bowl
Quarter
1
2
3 4 Total
Western Michigan
14
17
7 14 52
Nevada
3
7
7 7 24
at Ford Field • Detroit, Michigan
Date : Monday, December 27, 2021Game time : 11:00 a.m. EST Game weather : n/a (game played indoors) Game attendance : 22,321Referee : Edwin LeeTV announcers (ESPN ) : Bill Roth (play-by-play), Dustin Fox (analyst), and Taylor McGregor (sideline)Box score
Scoring summary
Quarter
Time
Drive
Team
Scoring information
Score
Plays
Yards
TOP
WMU
NEV
1
10:17
9
67
4:43
Nevada
32-yard field goal by Brandon Talton
0
3
1
10:04
Western Michigan
Sean Tyler 100-yard kickoff return for touchdown, Parker Sampson kick good
7
3
1
6:31
6
95
2:39
Western Michigan
Corey Crooms 74-yard touchdown reception from Kaleb Eleby , Parker Sampson kick good
14
3
2
14:15
10
72
5:37
Western Michigan
22-yard field goal by Parker Sampson
17
3
2
11:15
7
57
2:54
Nevada
Devonte Lee 1-yard touchdown run, Brandon Talton kick good
17
10
2
7:48
7
63
3:20
Western Michigan
Brett Borske 20-yard touchdown reception from Kaleb Eleby, Parker Sampson kick good
24
10
2
2:01
8
72
3:43
Western Michigan
Jaxson Kincaide 7-yard touchdown run, Parker Sampson kick good
31
10
3
12:27
5
75
2:33
Western Michigan
Kaleb Eleby 1-yard touchdown run, Parker Sampson kick good
38
10
3
1:33
9
70
5:30
Nevada
Toa Taua 1-yard touchdown run, Brandon Talton kick good
38
17
4
8:57
9
61
4:25
Western Michigan
Jaxson Kincaide 7-yard touchdown run, Parker Sampson kick good
45
17
4
5:05
8
66
3:52
Nevada
Jamaal Bell 18-yard touchdown reception from Nate Cox, Brandon Talton kick good
45
24
4
1:36
8
48
3:29
Western Michigan
Trae Allen 3-yard touchdown run, Parker Sampson kick good
52
24
"TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football .
Statistics
WMU
NEV
First downs
23
16
Plays–yards
66–514
54–242
Rushes–yards
52–352
31–121
Passing yards
162
121
Passing: comp –att –int
8–14–1
12–23–1
Time of possession
32:32
27:28
Team
Category
Player
Statistics
Western Michigan
Passing
Kaleb Eleby 8/14, 162 yards, 2 TD, 1 INT
Rushing
Sean Tyler
14 carries, 146 yards
Receiving
Corey Crooms
1 reception, 74 yards, 1 TD
Nevada
Passing
Nate Cox
12/23, 121 yards, 1 TD, 1 INT
Rushing
Devonte Lee
7 carries, 85 yards, 1 TD
Receiving
Jamaal Bell
7 receptions, 75 yards, 1 TD
^ @quicklanebowl (December 27, 2021). "The 2021 Quick Lane Bowl MVP: Sean Tyler" (Tweet ). Retrieved December 27, 2021 – via Twitter . ^ "2021-22 bowl officiating assignments" . footballzebras.com . December 6, 2021. Retrieved December 11, 2021 .^ "2021 College Football Bowl Schedule" . FBSchedules.com . Retrieved June 16, 2021 .^ "Winsipedia - Nevada vs. Western Michigan" . Winsipedia.com . Archived from the original on September 15, 2015. Retrieved December 5, 2021 .^ "Jay Norvell to be named CSU Rams football coach, source says" . The Denver Post . Retrieved December 6, 2021 .^ "MW Announces 2021 Football All-Conference Teams and Individual Honors" . Mountain West Conference . Retrieved December 6, 2021 .^ "Daiyan Henley transfers to Washington State over USC, UW, Kansas State" . Nevada Sports Net . December 8, 2021. Retrieved December 29, 2021 .
