Central Michigan University Athletics
Football Travels To Eastern Michigan
10/30/2000 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 30, 2000
THE GAME: Central Michigan University hits the road for a Mid-American Conference (MAC) West Division clash at Eastern Michigan University on Saturday, Nov. 4.
KICKOFF: 1 p.m. (EST).
STADIUM: Rynearson Stadium (30,200).
THE RECORDS: Central Michigan (Mid-American Conference) is 1-7 overall, 0-2 in MAC West action and 1-4 in overall MAC play. CMU has lost six in a row after recording a 17-7 home win over Akron. The Chippewas opened the season with a 48-0 loss at No. 15-ranked Purdue before stopping Akron. Central has lost in succession to Wyoming (31-10), Boise State (47-10), Toledo (41-0), Kent (24-21/2 OT), Ohio (52-3) and Ball State (38-34).
Eastern Michigan (Mid-American Conference) has lost seven in a row and sports a 1-7 overall record, an 0-4 MAC mark and an 0-2 MAC West slate. The Eagles opened the season with a 32-25 home win over Connecticut but since have lost to Miami (34-17), South Carolina (41-6), Temple (49-40), Central Florida (31-10), Toledo (42-14), Ball State (33-14) and Bowling Green (20-6).
THE COACHES: Mike DeBord (Manchester, 1978), Central Michigan, first season, 1-7, Jeff Woodruff (Kent State, 1979), Eastern Michigan, first season, 1-7.
THE SERIES: Central holds a 49-22-6 lead in the series that began in 1902 with a 10-0 Chippewa win, CMU has won the last two games and is 17-5-2 in MAC games against the Eagles.
LAST MEETING: CMU won a 29-26 decision at home after rolling to a 20-9 lead at the half and then holding on in the second half. EMU QB Walter Church completed 27-of-49 passes for 309 yards and a TD. CMU QB Pete Shepherd hit 12-of-19 passes for 217 yards and two scores, and also caught a 34-yard TD pass from Ira Gooch. Jammarl O'Neal grabbed three passes for 135 yards, one an 80-yard scoring strike. EMU's Toller Starnes booted four field goals and CMU's Paul Savich three.
LAST WEEK: Eastern Michigan was idle last week. The Eagles lost at Bowling Green, 20-6, on Oct. 21.
The Chippewas led most of the game with Ball State but couldn't move the ball in the second half as BSU claimed a 38-34 win in Kelly/Shorts Stadium. Ball State held a 609-236 edge in total offense, gaining 381 yards on the ground behind Marcus Merriweather's 257 yards. Central had one first down and six yards in offense in the final two quarters. The defense provided both of CMU's scores in the second half, Marvin Smith rumbling 20 yards with a fumble recovery and Rodrico Epps scampering 63 yards with an interception. Epps was one tackle short of the stadium and school record with 23 as the Cardinals ran 98 plays to Central's 59.
TV SHOW: The CMU Football Review is aired weekly with head coach Mike DeBord and host Ed Phelps. The one-half hour show is on CMU Public TV on Mondays at 7:30 p.m. Fox 33 in Cadillac will also show it on Tuesday nights at 11 p.m.
RADIO SHOW: Central Michigan University will have a weekly coaches radio show on WUPS-FM (98.5) on Thursday nights from 7-8 p.m. Stan Shingles will be the host from Buffalo Wild Wings in Mt. Pleasant.
RADIO INFO: The game will be broadcast live on the CMU Football Network beginning at 12:30 p.m. (EST). A total of 12 radio stations throughout Michigan will carry the game with the broadcast team of Ed Phelps and Herb Deromedi doing the game. The stations the on the network include: WFYC-AM (1280) - Alma, WJKN-AM (1510) - Jackson, WKJF-AM (1370) - Cadillac, WVFN-AM (730) - Lansing, WCBY-AM (1240) - Cheboygan, WLSP-AM (1530) - Lapeer, WYUR-AM (1310) - Detroit, WUPS-FM (98.5) -- Mt. Pleasant, WTKG-AM (1230) -- Grand Rapids, WOAP-AM (1080) - Owosso, WPLB-AM (1380) - Greenville, WCCW-AM (1310) -- Traverse City, WHGR-AM (1290 - Houghton Lake
Chippewa broadcasts can also be heard anywhere in the world via the Internet through CMU's athletics home page at www.cmuchippewas.com.
CMU AIMS TO END LOSING SKID AT EASTERN
MOUNT PLEASANT - Two struggling Mid-American Conference (MAC) football teams will square off Saturday afternoon when Central Michigan University plays at Eastern Michigan University.
Kickoff in Rynearson Stadium in Ypsilanti is set for 1 p.m.
The Chippewas, 1-7 for the season, 1-4 in MAC action and 0-2 in division play, lost their sixth straight at home this past Saturday, falling to Ball State, 38-34.
Eastern was idle and enters the contest with a 1-7 overall slate and marks of 0-4 in all MAC games and 0-2 in MAC West play.
"It's a big game for us because we're playing a team from Michigan and we have to be ready," said Chippewa head coach Mike DeBord. "It was a tough loss to Ball State but we just have to bounce back and get fired up once again.
"I challenged our football team all week long before the Ball State game to play with effort, play with emotion and win. We played with great effort and emotion ... we just didn't win."
The Chippewas return home on Saturday, Nov. 11, for a battle with rival Western Michigan at 1 p.m., and then close the season at Northern Illinois on Nov. 18 at 1 p.m. (CST).
DeBORD ON BALL STATE LOSS - "It was a tale of two halves. We moved the ball well in the first half but the defense struggled. I thought the defense made some good adjustments in the second half but then our offense bogged down.
"Ball State's kids have hung with the coaching staff and the program, and that's why they're winning now. We'll just have to fight through it right now."
DeBORD ON EASTERN MICHIGAN - "Eastern is a team similar to ours that has had problems getting it going this season. Walter Church is a proven quarterback and Kenny Christian has been an outstanding receiver. It's a big game for both teams. both of us need wins."
SCOUTING THE EAGLES - Walter Church has completed 170-of-289 passes for 1,705 yards and eight touchdowns. Kenny Christian has caught 62 passes for 639 and two scores while Kevin Walter caught 35 passes for 434 yards and four TDs. John White is the leading rusher with 401 yards in 115 carries. Place-kicker Toller Starnes has booted nine field goals in 12 tries and all 14 extra points.
MAC STATS - CMU is first in pass defense (158.1), 11th in total offense (273.0) and 12th in total defense (438.6 yards per game). Brian Leigeb is first in tackles (12.0) and Darvin Lewis (10.9) is second. Cornerbacker Tedaro France is fourth interceptions (0.5 per game) while punter Brian Brandt is eighth (39.7).
CHIPPEWA NOTES - Senior safety Brian Leigeb (Midland/Dow) had 15 tackles against Ball State and needs five more to become the CMU's career leader. Leigeb, who has been in twin figures in tackles in six games, has 439 in his career. Former NFL standout Ray Bentley (1979-82) is tops with 443. Leigeb leads CMU and the MAC with 96 this season.
Junior roverback Rodrico Epps (Oak Park/Orchard Lake St. Mary's) came within one tackle of tying the school and Kelly/Shorts Stadium record when he made 23 stops against Ball State. Epps also scored his first career TD when he raced 63 yards with his second career interception against BSU.
Sophomore Marvin Smith (Wellington, Fla./Suncoast) also scored his first collegiate TD when he returned a fumble 20 yards.
Senior Eric Salani (Hancock), who had caught only two passes in his career, has caught seven passes this fall with three of them going for touchdowns.
Redshirt freshman Derrick Vickers (Miami, Fla./Pace) started for the second time in his career against Ball State, completing just six-of-18 passes for 63 yards and one score. In his first start at Ohio, Derrick completed 12-of-28 passes for 142 yards.
Senior Pete Shepherd (Mount Pleasant) had his string of 28 straight games as a starter end at Ohio when Vickers got the call. The last player other than Shepherd to start at QB for CMU was Tim Crowley in the 1997 season.
Shepherd did play late in the BSU game and was zero-for-four in passing.
He is second to Jeff Bender (1988-91) in four career categories - yards passing (5,617/Bender has 6,528), passes attempted (853/960), passes completed (441/502) and total offense (5,655/6,518). He's tied for eighth in TD passes with 18.
Junior Vince Webber (Elgin, Ill.) has reclaimed his starting role at tailback after being slowed much of the season by a pulled hamstring. Webber rushed 23 times for 84 yards and a score against the Cardinals.
Injuries have forced CMU to use five different tailbacks this season. True freshman Kenan Lawhorne (Miami, Fla./Coral Park) and sophomore Tyrone Dalton (Pottstown, Pa./Valley Forge Military) should play at EMU. Sophomore Robbie Mixon (Detroit/Denby) is out while sophomore Alan Parks (Saginaw/Buena Vista) could play.
Junior place-kicker Paul Savich (St. Clair Shores/Lakeview) sustained a broken foot in a non-football-related injury last week and is lost for the season. Sophomore walk-on Adam Clyne (New Baltimore/Anchor Bay) handled the kicking chores against Ball and converted four-of-five extra points.
| MAC Standings |
| East Division | |||
| Team | MAC Division | MAC Overall | Overall |
| 1. Marshall | 3-0 | 3-2 | 4-4 |
| 2. Akron | 3-1 | 3-3 | 4-5 |
| 3. Miami | 2-1 | 3-2 | 4-4 |
| 4. Ohio | 2-1 | 3-2 | 5-3 |
| 5. Buffalo | 1-2 | 1-4 | 1-7 |
| 6. Bowling Green | 1-3 | 2-3 | 2-6 |
| 7. Kent State | 0-4 | 1-5 | 1-8 |
| West Division | |||
| 1. Western Michigan | 2-0 | 5-0 | 7-1 |
| 2. Toledo | 2-1 | 3-1 | 7-1 |
| 3. Ball State | 2-1 | 4-1 | 4-4 |
| 4. Northern Illinois | 1-1 | 3-1 | 5-3 |
| 5. Central Michigan | 0-2 | 1-4 | 1-7 |
| 6. Eastern Michigan | 0-2 | 0-4 | 1-7 |
