Central Michigan University Athletics
CMU Welcomes Back 1979 MAC Championship Football Team
10/8/2009 12:00:00 AM | Football
As Central Michigan University celebrates Homecoming this weekend, the CMU Athletics Department is set to welcome back to campus members of one of the most successful football teams in school history.
Approximately 40 members of the 1979 Chippewa football team, the first Mid-American Conference football championship team at CMU, will return to Kelly/Shorts Stadium Saturday afternoon.
The team will be recognized on the field during CMU’s matchup with Eastern Michigan Saturday. Kickoff is set for noon, and the game will be televised on ESPN Plus, ESPN GamePlan and ESPN360.com.
Under second-year head coach Herb Deromedi, the 1979 Chippewas matched a school record for wins in a regular season with a 10-0-1 overall mark. CMU was 8-0-1 in conference games.
The Chippewas opened the season with a 10-0 win over Western Michigan in Mount Pleasant. It was one of four shutouts the defense would post during the season. CMU clinched the MAC title with a 37-14 win over Eastern Michigan in Mount Pleasant. The lone blemish on the record was a 7-7 tie with Toledo.
“One of the biggest challenges that team was faced was opening the season against Western Michigan,” Deromedi said. “We had closed the 1978 season by winning at Western Michigan, so we had to play them back-to-back.”
CMU’s 10 victories that season came by an average of more than two touchdowns apiece, but the Chippewas needed a pair of one-point victories early in the year to help secure the conference title. On Sept. 29, in front of a then stadium-record crowd of 24,348, Gary Hogeboom scored on an 11-yard run in the fourth quarter and Carl Word intercepted a pass in the end zone in the final minute to carry CMU to a 19-18 win over Miami.
Three weeks later in Muncie, Ind., Novo Bojovic’s 20-yard field goal with eight seconds remaining capped a comeback from an early 24-0 deficit and lifted the Chippewas to a 31-30 win over Ball State.
CMU’s win over Eastern Michigan on Nov. 10 clinched the MAC title, but two nonconference games remained on the Chippewas’ schedule: at Northwestern State (Nov. 17) and at San Jose State (Nov. 24). With the conference title already secured, the final two games took on the feel of postseason contests.
“We finished the season playing two outstanding football teams in Northwestern State and San Jose State,” Deromedi said. “The MAC did not have a bowl game to go to at that time, but San Jose had won their own conference so we had a matchup of conference champions.”
At the conclusion of the 1979 season, the Chippewas were riding a streak of 18 consecutive games without a loss. That streak extended to 23 during the 1980 season, which was capped with CMU’s second straight MAC title. That 23-game unbeaten streak remains the longest in school history.
Hogeboom was named MAC Offensive Player of the Year in 1979 and was one of seven Chippewas to earn All-MAC first team honors. Hogeboom threw for 1,404 yards and set a school record with 1,943 yards of total offense. Willie Todd rushed for 1,003 yards and was named to the All-MAC first team, while Darryl Tucker was an all-conference second team selection after rushing for 902 yards. Also earning All-MAC first team honors were offensive lineman Marty Smallbone, receiver Mike Ball, defensive lineman Bill White, defensive back Robert Jackson and linebacker Tim Hollingsworth. Offensive lineman Kurt Cheesbro and defensive back Rick Waters were second team all-conference selections.
Deromedi and three players from the 1979 team—Hogeboom, Jackson and Ray Bentley—are enshrined in the CMU Athletic Hall of Fame.
Deromedi sees several familiarities between his 1979 championship team and the current CMU squad.
"The main thing I see is the 1979 team was a really close-knit group and enjoyed playing together," Deromedi said. "There is a lot of chemistry here. The quarterback play is similar as well. Gary Hogebeoom was obviously a great player who went on to play in the NFL for several years, and Dan LeFevour obviously has had a lot of success."
The 2009 Chippewas enter Saturday’s Homecoming game 4-1 overall, 2-0 in MAC play, and riding a four-game winning streak. Of the last 19 CMU-EMU matchups, 14 have been decided by seven points or less or gone to overtime.
| 1979 Central Michigan Schedule and Results | |
| Sept. 8 vs. Western Michigan | W, 10-0 |
| Sept. 22 at Bowling Green | W, 24-0 |
| Sept. 29 vs. Miami | W, 19-18 |
| Oct. 6 vs. Ohio | W, 26-0 |
| Oct. 13 vs. Northern Illinois | W, 31-11 |
| Oct. 20 at Ball State | W, 31-30 |
| Oct. 27 at Kent State | W, 44-21 |
| Nov. 3 at Toledo | T, 7-7 |
| Nov. 10 vs. Eastern Michigan | W, 37-14 |
| Nov. 17 at Northwestern State (La.) | W, 28-0 |
| Nov. 24 at San Jose State | W, 34-32 |
