Central Michigan University
1-0
Eastern Illinois
0-1
Chippewas Top Eastern Illinois, 31-12, in Season Opener
8/29/2008 12:00:00 AM | Football
The Chippewas (1-0) won their first season opener since 2002, while Eastern Illinois fell to 0-1.
CMU took control of the contest late in the second quarter. Two plays after the offense was stopped short of a first down on fourth-and-1 from the EIU 19, Frank Zombo sacked Bodie Reeder and forced a fumble that Casey Droscha recovered. LeFevour connected with a diving Jean Pitts in the end zone on the next snap to give the Chippewas a 17-3 lead just 1:57 before intermission.
Tyler Wilke’s second 29-yard field goal of the game drew the Panthers within 17-6 and capped a 16-play drive that lasted 9:09 to open the second half for EIU.
CMU responded with a nine-play, 60-yard scoring drive of its own. LeFevour ran three times for 24 yards and completed all three of his pass attempts for 23 yards on the march, which culminated in a 5-yard scoring toss from LeFevour to Bryan Anderson.
Eastern Illinois’ lone touchdown came early in the fourth quarter, a 15-yard throw from Reeder to tight end Sean McGrath. LeFevour’s third touchdown pass of the night, an 11-yarder to Sean Skergan, capped the scoring midway through the final period.
Ontario Sneed ran for 88 yards and a touchdown and caught four passes for 43 yards in the win. Sneed accounted for six plays that covered 10 yards or more (four rushes, two receptions), including his 23-yard scoring dash in the second quarter that saw him spin out of a tackle and out-run the EIU secondary to the end zone.
LeFevour’s 21 completions were spread around to seven different receivers. Anderson led the way with nine catches for 66 yards, while Skergan’s touchdown catch was the first reception of his career.
Zombo finished with six tackles, including a career-high 2.5 sacks, to go along with his forced fumble. He and Bellore paced a CMU defense that allowed just 284 yards and 12 points, the fewest points allowed by the Chippewas in a nonconference game since a 14-10 win at Army in 2005.
The CMU defense forced Eastern Illinois into four punts and a fumble in six first-half possessions. The Panthers had 124 yards of offense, including 31 on the ground, at halftime.
The Chippewas open a three-game road swing next Saturday, visiting No. 1-ranked Georgia. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. at Sanford Stadium.
Team Stats
EIU 0, CMU 3
CMU - AGUILA, Andrew 20 yd field goal 8 plays, 78 yards, TOP 3:12
EIU 3, CMU 3
EIU - WILKE 29 yd field goal 12 plays, 80 yards, TOP 4:31
EIU 3, CMU 10
CMU - SNEED, Ontario 23 yd run (AGUILA, Andrew kick), 2 plays, 34 yards, TOP 0:27
EIU 3, CMU 17
CMU - PITTS, Jean 18 yd pass from LeFEVOUR, Dan (AGUILA, Andrew kick) 1 plays, 18 yards, TOP 0:06
EIU 6, CMU 17
EIU - WILKE 29 yd field goal 16 plays, 68 yards, TOP 9:09
EIU 6, CMU 24
CMU - ANDERSON, Bryan 5 yd pass from LeFEVOUR, Dan (AGUILA, Andrew kick) 9 plays, 60 yards, TOP 3:40
EIU 12, CMU 24
EIU - McGRATH 15 yd pass from REEDER (BESS rushfailed) 5 plays, 44 yards, TOP 2:13
EIU 12, CMU 31
CMU - SKERGAN, Sean 11 yd pass from LeFEVOUR, Dan (AGUILA, Andrew kick) 13 plays, 80 yards, TOP 4:27