Central Michigan University Athletics
Assistant Has Unique Perspective On Historic Wins
9/11/2016 12:00:00 AM | Football
Chippewas stun Oklahoma State | Notebook: More dramatics | Day after a whirlwind
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - In Central Michigan athletic lore, it will go down as one of those "I remember where I was" moments.
George Ricumstrict was there. Twice.
Ricumstrict, Central Michigan's defensive line coach, was on the sidelines Saturday when the Chippewas knocked off No. 22 Oklahoma State, 30-27, scoring the winning touchdown on a Hail Mary pass-and-lateral with no time remaining.
He was also there, as a graduate assistant coach, on the field in 1991 when the Chippewas upset then-No. 18 Michigan State, 20-3, at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing.
That was the first, and, until Saturday, the only time Central Michigan had beaten a ranked team. That game had become widely known as CMU's greatest gridiron triumph. Saturday's win over Oklahoma State has to be regarded in a similar vein.
"In '91 it was our first time playing (MSU), they were ranked going in, there had been a lot of talk coming out of there about what they were going to do to us," said Ricumstrict, who was a standout linebacker at CMU from 1985-88 and was named the Chippewas' most valuable player in his senior season.
"It was obviously sweet how it turned out," he said. "We handily won the game back in back in '91. I thought we physically ran the ball and dominated them back then and they were big, they had a bunch of guys who went on to play in the NFL off that team."
Ricumstrict said the `91 win over MSU - the first of back-to-back victories over the Spartans - rates higher in his book than Saturday's victory at Oklahoma State because of proximity and familiarity.
"To me, that one (MSU) was probably bigger than this last one," he said. "It was in-state, 50 minutes away, the guys know each other, play with each other or against each other in high school, and realistically a lot of our guys probably wished they had had the opportunity to go there.
"I think that one was probably bigger, but this last one was sweet too. And the way it ended -- it just capped it."
Ricumstrict said the hope is that a big win such as the one the Chippewas posted on Saturday at Oklahoma State creates momentum that will carry over in both the short term and the long term.
"That's what you want to have happen," he said. "Hopefully it pushes them to work harder in practice and they see that hey, the sky's the limit. We can be as good a football team as we want to be. The only limitations on us are the ones that we put on ourselves.
It's can also, he said, be reaffirming.
"It lets you know your hard work is paying off," he said. "It's a building block for us. I think we thought that last year (a 24-13 home loss to the Coweboys) we had a chance, we were there and we thought we let one slip away and I think it just shows how we've progressed that we were able to go down to their place, a hostile environment, and come away with the win."
The Chippewas are no strangers to playing opponents from Power 5 conferences. Last season, they played at Michigan State and at Syracuse; in 2014, they played three such teams, Syracuse, Kansas and Purdue, and beat the Boilermakers in West Lafayette, Ind.
In two weeks, the Chippewas will travel to Virginia, which is a member of the ACC.
"You feel like you have a little something to prove as a coach, as a player, across the board" when playing against a Power 5 school, Ricumstrict said, then added in regards to Oklahoma State. "Ranked team, good personnel, good program. I'm sure that if you look at their football budget compared to our football budget there's a big separation.
"But they have 85 scholarships, we have 85 scholarships and that's what we told our kids: Doesn't make a difference how much money you have as long as you put the work in. If you do that, obviously you see what can happen."
Some of our favorite tweets:
WOW
This might be the play of the year in college football
Central Mich. Beats Oklahoma St. On Hail Mary [VIDEO] https://t.co/Bqjc7ZEFWE-- 97.1 The Ticket (@971theticketxyt) September 10, 2016
What they know about them chips bruh lol ! 🔥👆🏾RT @show_case29: My bro @Do_OrAddae37 is dumb lit right now. Craz freakin play. 😳😳😳
-- Jahleel Addae (@Do_OrAddae37) September 10, 2016
There's never been a clearer example of why we cheer to the very last play. GREAT WIN CHIPS!
-- Marching Chips (@MarchingChips) September 10, 2016
Oh My God!!! Central Michigan
-- Jason Whitlock (@WhitlockJason) September 10, 2016
Central Michigan I like that!!
-- Antonio Brown (@AntonioBrown84) September 10, 2016
Reminder that Central Michigan was picked fourth in the MAC West. That's more of a statement on how top-loaded MAC West is.
-- Nate Schneider (@natejschneider) September 10, 2016
HOW ABOUT THOSE CHIPS!!!!!!! #FireUp #AChipNeverQuits
-- Dan LeFevour (@DanLeFevour13) September 10, 2016
Yesssssssssssssss!!!! WE WIN!!!!!!!!!!! Central Michigan 30, Oklahoma State 27 finall
-- Terry Foster (@TerryFoster971) September 10, 2016
"Central Michigan" is currently the No. 1 topic trending worldwide on Twitter. What a time ...
-- Dominick Mastrangelo (@DomMastrangelo1) September 10, 2016