Central Michigan University Athletics
Football Notebook: Chippewas Get Down To Business in Boise
12/19/2017 12:00:00 AM | Football
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
BOISE, Idaho - The Central Michigan football team arrived in Boise on Monday and on Tuesday, the Chippewas got down to work in preparation for Wyoming in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl at Albertsons Stadium on the campus of Boise State University.
"Bowl games should be a reward for a job well done during the season," said CMU coach John Bonamego. "We addressed those things before we came out (to Boise). We talked about when it's time to have fun, but knowing when we have to flip the switch and get into work mode."
"This is s a great group. Whenever we've challenged them they've responded."
On Monday, the Chippewas and Cowboys squared off in a bowling battle and on Tuesday, the Chippewas went snow tubing at Bogus Basin Ski Resort. The Chippewas got their first look at the famed blue turf at Albertsons Stadium ahead of their first practice on Tuesday afternoon in the Caven-Williams Sports Complex, Boise State's Indoor practice facility.
They made the trip up in the mountains by bus to Bogus Basin.
"Those roads are pretty narrow, pretty winding and pretty steep," Bonamego said. "Hats off to our bus drivers. They're from here and they do that trip quite a bit. I don't know if I'd even want to drive it in my car let alone in a bus. But we managed to get up there and back in one piece and didn't get anybody hurt in the process. It was a fun day."
Happy Moment
Associate Vice President/Athletics Director Michael Alford addressed the Chippewa players and coaching staff at the end of Tuesday's practice. He announced to hearty cheers that the university had revised Bonamego's contract through the 2022 season.
Bonamego, a former CMU walk-on who is completing his third year in charge of the program, has said time and again that coaching the Chippewas is his "dream job."
"I was glad they celebrated," Bonamego quipped about his players' reaction. "It means a great deal to me. It means a lot for our staff, and our players and our program and our incoming recruits. It's not a job for me; it's something that I'm highly passionate about, it's highly personal, and I'm looking forward to continuing to lead this program and facing the challenges and hopefully have an opportunity to stick around as long as I'm wanted.
"It's a tremendous responsibility, one that I don't take lightly and I'm very appreciative of it. It's my school. It's where I played. I don't think you need any other reasons than that."
The Chippewas are 8-4, their highest win total since 2009, and are riding a five-game win streak. Among the highlights of Bonamego's tenure are two victories over teams from Power 5 conferences, a Mid-American Conference West Division co-championship, and a comeback from a 14-point fourth-quarter deficit to beat archrival Western Michigan in Kalamazoo earlier this season.
The Chippewas were picked to finished fifth in the six-team West in the preseason poll. They tied for second with a 6-2 league record.
Alford came to CMU in July and Bonamego expressed his heartfelt gratitude to both Alford and CMU President Dr. George E. Ross.
"He's been outstanding," Bonamego said of Alford. "He's come as advertised. He's very engaged with the program, not just (football), but the entire athletic department. He's visible. He and his family have been a welcome addition to the Mount Pleasant community and to CMU and our athletic department."
Eyeing the Cowboys
Wyoming enters Friday's game 7-5 having lost its final two regular-season games. The Cowboys played those games without injured quarterback Josh Allen, who has been projected to be selected among the first five picks in the NFL Draft in April.
The big question is whether Allen will play on Friday. If he does, he most certainly will present challenges to a CMU defense that ranks 23rd nationally against the pass.
Asked to compare Allen to a quarterback the Chippewas have faced during Bonamego's tenure, he offered another Cowboy, Oklahoma State's Mason Rudolph, one the nation's best. CMU upset Rudolph and the Cowboys, 30-27, last season in Stillwater, Okla.
"I think (Allen is) a better passer and I think Rudolph's outstanding, nothing against him, but this kid's really, really accurate," Bonamego said. "He's strong, hard to corral and hard to bring down. That was probably the most surprising thing when I started watching him, how athletic he is in the pocket. He's elusive, he's a determined runner, he doesn't go down easily."
