Chippewas Back At It With MAC Game at Bowling Green

MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Back at it.

The Central Michigan football team took a much-needed break last week and now is set to go to Bowling Green for a Mid-American Conference game on Saturday, Oct. 18 (noon, CBS Sports Network national broadcast).

Both teams are 3-3, 1-1 MAC. The Chippewas dropped a 28-22 decision at Akron on Oct. 4. The Falcons, under first-year coach Eddie George – yes, that Eddie George, who won the Heisman Trophy in 1995 at Ohio State -- are coming off a 28-23 home win over Toledo, which finished first in the league coaches preseason poll.

The Falcons overcame a 21-0 deficit in topping their rivals 20 minutes north on I-75 before a sold-out crowd on their home field, Doyt Perry Stadium.

"I watched every snap of the entire game," first-year CMU coach Matt Drinkall said. "You can tell that everyone over at Bowling Green is pulling the same rope in the same direction, and it's awesome."

The similarities – a first-year coach building from the ground up – between the CMU and BG programs are many. Both Drinkall and George have emphasized the run game, controlling the clock, and winning the turnover battle.

"It's two offenses that want to be physical and downhill, and two defenses that take a lot of pride in being really fast and physical," Drinkall said. "The environment's going to be great. It's going to be a physical, old-school football game like the way it should be played."

While the Falcons were able to bounce back and beat Toledo, the Chippewas were just the opposite. Their slow start at Akron, and an all-day inability of its defense to stop the Zips on third and fourth downs, spelled doom and it ended in CMU's ninth consecutive MAC road loss.

"I don't think emotionally we were ready to go, which is obviously a shortcoming (on me)," Drinkall said. "We started slow, and we didn't execute clean. It was really frustrating. It forced us to play a game that we really don't want to play, where you're playing from a couple scores behind, you're having to throw it more than you're running it.

"It reminded me of the PItt game (45-17 loss) where we had a lot of false starts and procedural issues that turned manageable (situations) into very difficult situations repeatedly through the whole first half and it killed us on third down. That's been a huge point of emphasis for us on the bye week."

The week off provided Drinkall, his coaching staff, and the Chippewa players an opportunity to regroup and reassess. But most importantly, it gave them a chance to recharge and get some much-needed rest.

"We have been killing these guys since we got here in January," Drinkall said. "Every aspect of their lives, we have flipped upside down and we have been driving them very, very hard. These dudes have been drinking from a fire hose since I got here."

Saturday's game begins the second half of the season and is obviously critical for the Chippewas as they look to remain in the hunt for a spot in the MAC Championship Game. CMU entertains UMass in its homecoming game on Oct. 25 and then goes to Western Michigan on Nov. 1.

"It's kind of (about) remembering what our goal is, what our purpose is," wide receiver Tyson Davis said. "It was much needed. Focusing on ourselves, focusing on what we need to do as much as it is focusing on the opponent."

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Players Mentioned

Tyson Davis

Central Michigan University Athletics