Chippewa Great Bentley Returns to Mount Pleasant
10/7/2015 12:00:00 AM | Football
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - Central Michigan Hall of Famer Ray Bentley will be in Mount Pleasant on Thursday for book signings at two locales.
Bentley, who was inducted into the Central Michigan University Marcy Weston Athletics Hall of Fame in 1994, will be signing copies of his first novel "Driftwood" along with copes of his children's books at Max & Emily's Eatery and at Cranker's Restaurant and Brewery.
Bentley, who works as an ESPN college football analyst, will be Max & Emily's, 125 E. Broadway, from noon-1:30 p.m. He will be at Cranker's, 1207 E. Pickard, from 6-7:30 p.m.
Earlier in the day, he will visit with coach John Bonamego and the CMU football team as it prepares for Saturday's game at rival Western Michigan.
"I'm so excited to go back to Mount Pleasant and the CMU campus," Bentley said. "I've got a lot of great friends and fantastic memories from there. I never lost to Western back in my days and I'm hopeful that will rub off on coach Bono's squad."
Bentley, who has written seven children's books, is in his 12th year as an analyst with ESPN. He played 10 years of professional football, seven in the NFL and three in the USFL. He played in two Super Bowls with the Buffalo Bills. "Driftwood" is the fictional account of a professional football veteran linebacker.
Bentley was the 1982 Mid-American Conference Most Valuable Player and was a two-time First Team All-MAC selection as a linebacker while playing at CMU.
He holds the Chippewa single-season record for tackles (173) and ranks fourth in CMU history with 443 career stops.