en:1999 MAC Championship Game

{{Infobox college football game

| name =

| year_game_played = 1999

| game_name = MAC Championship Game

| subheader = Conference Championship

| football_season = 1999

| visitor_name_short = Western Michigan

| visitor_nickname = Broncos

| visitor_school = Western Michigan University

| home_name_short = Marshall

| home_nickname = Thundering Herd

| home_school = Marshall University

| visitor_record = 7–4

| home_record = 11–0

| visitor_coach = Gary Darnell

| home_coach = Bob Pruett

| home_rank_AP = 11

| home_rank_coaches = 11

| home_rank_BCS = 12

| visitor_1q = 10

| visitor_2q = 10

| visitor_3q = 3

| visitor_4q = 7

| home_1q = 0

| home_2q = 0

| home_3q = 20

| home_4q = 14

| date_game_played = December 3

| stadium = Marshall Stadium

| city = Huntington, West Virginia

| MVP = QB Chad Pennington (Marshall)

| odds = Marshall by 20.5

| attendance = 28,069

| us_network = ESPN2

}}

The 1999 Mid-American Conference Championship Game was played on December 3, 1999, at Marshall Stadium, now known as Joan C. Edwards Stadium, in Huntington, West Virginia.{{cite press release |title=MAC Football Matchups and Notes |url=https://www.nmnathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=42968&SPID=3802&DB_OEM_ID=9400&ATCLID=1088924 |publisher=MAC-Sports.com |accessdate=September 22, 2009 |archiveurl=https://archive.today/20240524121014/https://www.webcitation.org/5k4Dt5RQQ?url=https://www.nmnathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml%3FSPSID=42968&SPID=3802&DB_OEM_ID=9400&ATCLID=1088924 |archivedate=May 24, 2024 |url-status=live }} The game featured the winner of each division of the Mid-American Conference. The game featured the Marshall Thundering Herd, of the East Division, and the Western Michigan Broncos, of the West Division. The Thundering Herd came back from a 23−0 third-quarter deficit to defeat the Broncos 34−30, preserving Marshall's perfect season.{{cite press release |title=Marshall Rallies For MAC Championship |url=https://www.nmnathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=42968&SPID=3802&DB_OEM_ID=9400&ATCLID=1089000 |publisher=MAC-Sports.com |date=December 3, 1999 |accessdate=September 22, 2009}}

Teams

=Western Michigan=

Western Michigan entered the championship game as West Division champions, having compiled a 7–4 record, 6–2 record in MAC play. The Broncos started the season 7–2 and 6–0 in MAC play before losing the final two games of the regular season, including a 31–17 loss to Marshall on November 13.

=Marshall=

Marshall entered the championship game as East Division champions, having compiled an undefeated 11–0 record, 8–0 record in MAC play. Marshall has spent eleven consecutive weeks the AP Top 25 after defeating Bowling Green on September 18. They entered the MAC Championship game at No. 11 in the AP and Coaches poll.

Game summary

{{Americanfootballbox

|titlestyle= {{CollegePrimaryStyle|Mid-American Conference|color=white}}; text-align:center;

|state=autocollapse

|bg=#fff

|bg2=#eee

|title=1999 MAC Championship Game

|date=Friday, December 3, 1999

|time= 8:00 p.m. EST (7:00 p.m. CST)

|road=Western Michigan

|R1=10|R2=10|R3=3|R4=7

|home=No. 11 Marshall

|H1=0|H2=0|H3=20|H4=14

|stadium= Marshall University Stadium • Huntington, West Virginia

|attendance=28,069

|weather=Cloudy • Temperature: {{convert|59|F|C}} • Wind: S 5–10 mph

|referee= Ray Vaughn

|TV=ESPN2

|TVAnnouncers=Rich Waltz (play-by-play), Mike Gottfried (analyst)

|reference=

|scoring=

;First quarter

(6:47) WMU – Corey Alston 16 yard pass from Tim Lester, Brad Selent kick (Western Michigan 7–0)
(0:37) WMU – Brad Selent 31 yard field goal (Western Michigan 10–0)

;Second quarter

(10:48) WMU – Robert Sanford 1 yard rush, Brad Selent kick (Western Michigan 17–0)
(0:00) WMU – Brad Selent 32 yard field goal (Western Michigan 20–0)

;Third quarter

(8:34) WMU – Brad Selent 36 yard field goal (Western Michigan 23–0)
(5:56) MRSH – Nate Poole 38 yard pass from Chad Pennington, Billy Malashevich kick (Western Michigan 23–7)
(3:37) MRSH – Doug Chapman 24 yard rush, Chad Pennington pass failed (Western Michigan 23–13)
(2:13) MRSH – James Williams 17 yard pass from Chad Pennington, J. R. Jenkins kick (Western Michigan 23–20)

;Fourth quarter

(12:36) MRSH – Doug Chapman 2 yard rush, J. R. Jenkins kick (Marshall 27–23)
(7:20) WMU – Jake Moreland 4 yard pass from Tim Lester, Brad Selent kick (Western Michigan 30–27)
(0:04) MRSH – Eric Pinkerton 1 yard pass from Chad Pennington, J. R. Jenkins kick (Marshall 34–30)