W. Michigan 28, Iowa 19

11/17/2007 6:33 PM

By LUKE MEREDITH
AP Sports Writer

IOWA CITY, Iowa (AP) -Tim Hiller threw for 367 yards and three touchdowns and Western Michigan stunned Iowa 28-19 on Saturday, putting the Hawkeyes' bowl hopes in jeopardy.

Chris Kelly kicked a 30-yard field goal with 1:13 left and Brandon West added 116 yards rushing and 93 receiving for the Broncos (4-7), who raced out to a 19-0 lead and hung on to snap a three-game losing streak.

Iowa (6-6), one of 10 bowl-eligible Big Ten teams, must now wait and see if it can back into a bid. The Hawkeyes had won three straight to end conference play, but they tied a season-high by allowing 489 yards of total offense to the Broncos.

Western Michigan led 25-19 with 5:11 left when Desman Stephen picked off Iowa quarterback Jake Christensen and returned it to the Iowa 38. The Broncos milked the clock, and Kelly's field goal pushed the lead to nine.

Christensen was 20-of-37 for 249 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions, and Albert Young rushed for 95 yards for Iowa.

The Hawkeyes fell behind 19-0 midway through the second quarter. But they blocked their second field goal of the game early in the third, and later scored on a 3-yard TD reception by Tom Busch to make it 19-13.

Western Michigan responded with a gutsy 81-yard scoring drive that ended when Hiller found Anthony Middleton for a 7-yard TD pass to make it 25-13 late in the third quarter. The Broncos missed the two-point conversion.

Iowa pulled within 25-19 on a 3-yard TD catch by Brandon Myers with 12:14 left. Daniel Murray missed the extra point.

Iowa came out flat and Western Michigan took advantage.

West took a screen pass 32 yards for a touchdown on the Broncos' opening drive. Mike Jones, who missed the extra point, hit field goals of 30 and 23 yards to push the lead to 12-0 by the end of the first quarter.

On fourth-and-1 in Iowa territory, Hiller play-faked and the entire Hawkeyes defense bit. Middleton broke open down the field and his 35-yard catch gave the Broncos a 19-0 lead with 6:52 left in the first half.

Christensen got the Hawkeyes within 19-6 on an 11-yard touchdown pass to Trey Stross late in the second quarter. Iowa blocked Jones' 36-yard field goal try at the end of the half.

The loss caps a miserable week for Iowa.

Three of its players were questioned in connection with an alleged sexual assault in a campus dormitory, according to university police. No arrests have been made and the identities of the players are being withheld.