Football Notebook: Some Of The Best Of '17

Nov. 29, 2017

Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - As the Central Michigan football team awaits the announcement on Sunday of its bowl destination and opponent, here's a look back at some of the key and memorable moments of the 2017 regular season.

The Chippewas are 8-4, their most victories since 2009, and they finished 6-2 in the Mid-American Conference and tied for second place in the West Division after being picked to finish fifth in the preseason poll.

Bronco Buster

In one of the biggest plays in one of the biggest wins for Central Michigan in recent memory, quarterback Shane Morris and wide receiver Corey Willis connected on a 77-yard pass play with under 3 minutes remaining as the Chippewas came back from a two-touchdown deficit to stun rival Western Michigan, 35-28, on a miserable rainy and cold night in Kalamazoo. Jonathan Ward rolled up 213 all-purpose yards as the Chippewas snapped a three-game losing streak against their bitter rivals. It was third-year coach John Bonamego's first win against the Broncos: "I've never been more proud of a team in my life. The fight, the determination, the grit, and the will. They willed it."

Huge Comeback

Morris found Willis for a 29-yard TD on fourth down with under two minutes remaining to break a 24-24 tie and give the Chippewas a dramatic 31-24 victory over Northern Illinois in the regular-season finale at Kelly/Shorts Stadium. The Chippewas rallied from a 17-0 halftime deficit to extend their win streak to five games, the program's longest since 2009. The game-winning drive started with a 40-yard catch-and-run by senior Eric Cooper, putting the Chippewas at the NIU 35. Cooper, a senior, was wearing the No. 21 jersey in honor of the late Derrick Nash and he produced one of his very best performances in his career with five catches for 58 yards. Willis, who was wearing No. 21 when he scored the game-winning TD at Western Michigan: "I think anybody who wears 21 kind of has those types of plays where it's like, that really wasn't me, that was 21 above."

A State Sweep

Jonathan Ward's late-season surge included a monster 186-yard effort in leading the Chippewas to a 42-30 win at home over Eastern Michigan as the Chippewas captured the Michigan MAC Trophy for the first time since 2013. Ward, who scored twice, rushed for a career-best 159 yards and caught one pass for 27. His career-long 79 yard TD run put CMU in front for good, 14-7. After EMU closed to 35-30 in the fourth quarter, senior cornerback Amari Coleman sealed the victory when he returned an interception 33 yards for a TD with under a minute to play. It was the Chippewas' fifth pick of the game. Wide receiver Corey Willis: "Jonathan Ward has been running like a mad man the past couple weeks and he's been running angry, so I'm just trying to figure out what he's mad about and I'm going to keep getting him mad."

Bustin' Out

Jerrod Davis returned a kickoff 98 yards for a TD to give the Chippewas a 7-3 lead en route to a 42-23 victory at Kent State. It was Davis' first career score, and it was CMU's first kickoff return for a score since 2013. Davis returned four kickoffs in the game for 206 yards, a 51.5-yard average.

Welcome Back, Conklin

Senior tight end Tyler Conklin made his 2017 debut in the Chippewas' sixth game of the season, at Ohio, catching 10 passes for 136 yards and two touchdowns to spark a 26-23 victory over the defending MAC East champions. Both Conklin's receptions and yardage totals were career highs. Conklin, who missed the first five games of the season with an injury: "You sit out the first five games of your senior year, it was tough. To come in here and beat a team that was in the MAC Championship (game) last year, that's huge."

Rebound

A week after losing at home to Toledo, the Chippewas rebounded in style, pasting Ball State 56-9 in Muncie, Ind. The Chippewas did it the old fashioned way, with strong defense, a solid run game that produced 256 yards, and big plays from its special teams unit. Jarrod Davis blocked a punt, redshirt freshman Alonzo McCoy returned a fumble for a touchdown and running back Jonathan Ward ran for 97 yards and two touchdowns. The CMU defense recorded eight sacks - four by Joe Ostman -- and held the Cardinals to three field goals. The point total was CMU's highest in eight years, and it provided a shot of momentum as the Chippewas looked ahead to rival Western Michigan. Ostman: "We know that Western's next. We didn't talk about it much this week, we had to focus on Ball State. Western's a huge game for us, that goes without being said."

Coming Out Party

Morris, a graduate transfer from Michigan playing in his second game in a CMU uniform, tossed five touchdown passes - three of them to Mark Chapman - as the Chippewas dominated Kansas, 45-27. It was CMU's second consecutive victory over a Big 12 opponent, both on the road, after last season's 30-27 Hail Mary stunner at Oklahoma State. Morris, who threw for 467 yards in the game: "We started clicking. It's a beautiful thing, football, when you execute what you practice all week."

Good Start

Devon Spalding scored on a 4-yard run in the third overtime as the Chippewas survived to post a 30-27 victory over Football Championship Subdivision Rhode Island in the season opener. Bonamego: "I think there are a lot of lessons that are going to be learned from this game."