Central Michigan University Athletics
Saturday, October 5
Mount Pleasant, Mich.
3 p.m.
Central Michigan University
vs
Eastern Michigan
Photo by: Benjamin Suddendorf
Chippewas Look To Rebound Against Eastern
10/4/2019 5:34:00 PM | Football
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – It's next week.
Central Michigan football coach Jim McElwain said after the Chippewas' 31-15 loss at Western Michigan last week that "we'll find out who we are next week."
The Chippewas entertain Eastern Michigan on Saturday (3 p.m.) in a Mid-American Conference game at Kelly/Shorts Stadium. CMU is 2-3, 1-1 MAC. It's the MAC opener for the Eagles, 3-1, who have won two straight games, including 34-31 at Illinois three weeks ago.
"This game coming up, obviously, is a huge game for us," said McElwain, whose team has lost two straight. "From the standpoint (that) we're a game down now (in the standings) with our last loss.
"It's really important to win at home and obviously against and instate team, that is a true rival. I just know that they've got a 'Michigan' on the end of their jersey, just like we do. Theirs says Eastern, ours says Central. To me it's a huge rivalry.
"I like this team; we're starting to come together."
The Chippewas committed 15 penalties against the Broncos. Eight of those were for offsides. McElwain pinned the blame on himself for that, and other miscues. That said, he was inspired by his players' reaction to the loss.
"What showed me a lot as a coach is the temperament on that bus, on the way home, it was a long quiet ride so that tells me that some of the guys were thinking about it," McElwain said. "Understand that no matter what you do, in whatever your life is, you don't get do-overs. There's no second chance. We have to go out and take it every time we play."
Coming Back
CMU running back Jonathan Ward, a senior, returned the lineup against Western after missing the previous two games with an injury. He ran inspired against the Broncos, carrying 19 times for 107 yards.
"Jonathan Ward Just continues to really impress me with his toughness," McElwain said. "He took some shots in that game and he took some shots at practice. He's done a really good job that way so that's a good thing."
Starting quarterback Quinten Dormady, a senior, was back at practice this week after missing two weeks. He, like Ward, was injured in the Chippewas loss at Wisconsin.
Junior David Moore has stepped in and performed admirably in Dormady's absence. He has completed 57.1 percent of his passes for 547 yards in his two starts, the first at Miami (Fla.) and the second at Western. He threw for one touchdown against three interceptions combined in the two games.
Chippewa notes
• The Chippewas have spread the ball around in the passing game with four receivers having registered at least 15 receptions this season. Sophomore Kalil Pimpleton leads the Chippewas with a MAC-leading 35 catches, while Ty Scott has 18 for 325 yards. He ranks second in the league in receiving yardage. Tight end Tony Poljan has 17 receptions and running back Kobe Lewis had 15.
• Lewis, who has rushed for 252 yards and has amassed 78 yards in returns, ranks eighth in the MAC in all-purpose yards, averaging 89 per game.
• The Chippewas have converted on eight of their 12 fourth downs this season after going six for 13 a year ago.
• CMU's defense ranks second in the league in rushing yards allowed per game (105).
• The Chippewas have recorded 12 sacks among 29 tackles-for-loss in their past three games. Eight of those sacks came in a 45-24 win over Akron. That tied for the most by a CMU defense in a single game over the past 15 years. CMU has recorded a league-high 13 sacks and its 39 tackles-for-loss is 17th best in the nation.
Captains
The Chippewas name captains on a game-by-game basis. Pimpleton, Poljan, safety Devonni Reed, and linebacker Michael Oliver will serve in that role against Eastern.
Scouting
• Eastern quarterback Mike Glass leads the MAC with 12 TD passes and is averaging 280 yards per game through the air. He ranks third in the league in that category and is second in the conference in completion percentage at 68.7.
• Eastern is the least-penalized team in the conference and is 12th nationally with 39.5 penalty yards per game. The Eagles are plus-5 in turnover margin, which is second best in the MAC.
• The Eagles were off last weekend. The week before, they defeated Central Connecticut State, 34-29, scoring the game-winning TD on a blocked punt with 18 seconds remaining.
• Eastern ranks fourth in the MAC in total defense and fifth in total offense.
Next
The Chippewas will celebrate homecoming on Saturday, Oct. 12 (3 p.m.) when New Mexico State comes to Mount Pleasant for a nonconference game, CMU's last of the season. The Aggies are 0-5 and lost last week at home to Fresno State, 30-17. They are scheduled to play on Saturday night at home against Liberty.
Central Michigan football coach Jim McElwain said after the Chippewas' 31-15 loss at Western Michigan last week that "we'll find out who we are next week."
The Chippewas entertain Eastern Michigan on Saturday (3 p.m.) in a Mid-American Conference game at Kelly/Shorts Stadium. CMU is 2-3, 1-1 MAC. It's the MAC opener for the Eagles, 3-1, who have won two straight games, including 34-31 at Illinois three weeks ago.
"This game coming up, obviously, is a huge game for us," said McElwain, whose team has lost two straight. "From the standpoint (that) we're a game down now (in the standings) with our last loss.
"It's really important to win at home and obviously against and instate team, that is a true rival. I just know that they've got a 'Michigan' on the end of their jersey, just like we do. Theirs says Eastern, ours says Central. To me it's a huge rivalry.
"I like this team; we're starting to come together."
The Chippewas committed 15 penalties against the Broncos. Eight of those were for offsides. McElwain pinned the blame on himself for that, and other miscues. That said, he was inspired by his players' reaction to the loss.
"What showed me a lot as a coach is the temperament on that bus, on the way home, it was a long quiet ride so that tells me that some of the guys were thinking about it," McElwain said. "Understand that no matter what you do, in whatever your life is, you don't get do-overs. There's no second chance. We have to go out and take it every time we play."
Coming Back
CMU running back Jonathan Ward, a senior, returned the lineup against Western after missing the previous two games with an injury. He ran inspired against the Broncos, carrying 19 times for 107 yards.
"Jonathan Ward Just continues to really impress me with his toughness," McElwain said. "He took some shots in that game and he took some shots at practice. He's done a really good job that way so that's a good thing."
Starting quarterback Quinten Dormady, a senior, was back at practice this week after missing two weeks. He, like Ward, was injured in the Chippewas loss at Wisconsin.
Junior David Moore has stepped in and performed admirably in Dormady's absence. He has completed 57.1 percent of his passes for 547 yards in his two starts, the first at Miami (Fla.) and the second at Western. He threw for one touchdown against three interceptions combined in the two games.
Chippewa notes
• The Chippewas have spread the ball around in the passing game with four receivers having registered at least 15 receptions this season. Sophomore Kalil Pimpleton leads the Chippewas with a MAC-leading 35 catches, while Ty Scott has 18 for 325 yards. He ranks second in the league in receiving yardage. Tight end Tony Poljan has 17 receptions and running back Kobe Lewis had 15.
• Lewis, who has rushed for 252 yards and has amassed 78 yards in returns, ranks eighth in the MAC in all-purpose yards, averaging 89 per game.
• The Chippewas have converted on eight of their 12 fourth downs this season after going six for 13 a year ago.
• CMU's defense ranks second in the league in rushing yards allowed per game (105).
• The Chippewas have recorded 12 sacks among 29 tackles-for-loss in their past three games. Eight of those sacks came in a 45-24 win over Akron. That tied for the most by a CMU defense in a single game over the past 15 years. CMU has recorded a league-high 13 sacks and its 39 tackles-for-loss is 17th best in the nation.
Captains
The Chippewas name captains on a game-by-game basis. Pimpleton, Poljan, safety Devonni Reed, and linebacker Michael Oliver will serve in that role against Eastern.
Scouting
• Eastern quarterback Mike Glass leads the MAC with 12 TD passes and is averaging 280 yards per game through the air. He ranks third in the league in that category and is second in the conference in completion percentage at 68.7.
• Eastern is the least-penalized team in the conference and is 12th nationally with 39.5 penalty yards per game. The Eagles are plus-5 in turnover margin, which is second best in the MAC.
• The Eagles were off last weekend. The week before, they defeated Central Connecticut State, 34-29, scoring the game-winning TD on a blocked punt with 18 seconds remaining.
• Eastern ranks fourth in the MAC in total defense and fifth in total offense.
Next
The Chippewas will celebrate homecoming on Saturday, Oct. 12 (3 p.m.) when New Mexico State comes to Mount Pleasant for a nonconference game, CMU's last of the season. The Aggies are 0-5 and lost last week at home to Fresno State, 30-17. They are scheduled to play on Saturday night at home against Liberty.
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/ FootballFootball Insider - 10.24.25
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