Central Michigan University Athletics
Hall of Fame 2026: Hardwood Success Helped Draw All-Time Football Great to CMU
10/12/2026 6:28:00 AM | General, Our Stories
Fifth in a series of profiles of members of the 2026 Class of the Marcy Weston CMU Athletics Hall of Fame. The class comprises basketball player Amy Backus, wrestler David Bolyard, football player Ken Ealy, coach Jim Hornak, volleyball player Kaitlyn (McIntyre) Renzi and gymnast Brittany (Petzold) Franklin. The Class will be inducted during a ceremony in McGuirk Arena at 6 p.m. Friday, Oct. 16. Admission to the induction ceremony is free and open to the public. The six members will be introduced during the CMU-Western Michigan football game at Kelly/Shorts Stadium on Saturday, Oct. 17. Kickoff is scheduled for 1:30 p.m.
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. – Ken Ealy had never heard of Mount Pleasant, let alone visited the small town in the middle of Michigan.
A prod from his high school track & field coach in Ellenwood, Ga., changed that, and it helped changed the trajectory of Central Michigan football history.
Ealy played wide receiver for the Herb Deromedi-coached Chippewas from 1988-91 and was a two-time All-Mid-American Conference honoree, twice caught three touchdown passes in a game, and still ranks in the top 10 in program history in career yards per reception and season yards per reception.
He also stands among the top 10 in program history in TD receptions for a career and for a season.
Remarkable, considering that Ealy played in an era of CMU football where the run game was strongly emphasized.
"I learned from the guys who came before me: 'We don't throw much, but when we do it's coming to you,'" said Ealy, who helped the Chippewas to the 1990 MAC championship and was named CMU's Most Valuable Player in the 1990 California Raisin Bowl. "When it's time to throw, you're going to get the ball, and you better make it happen.
"And that was the attitude that I took. You know, I'm not going to get a lot of looks, but when I do it's going to be a big deal and I'm going to have to step up and make whatever play they're asking me to make. That's the attitude that all the receivers took."
Ealy grew up in Ellenwood and a connection to CMU came by happenstance with his high school track & field coach.
"I really didn't have any (college scholarship) offers and I had a track coach who put Central on the radar for me," he said, adding that that particular coach also got Ealy to realize his potential. "He was instrumental opening those lines of communication and also turning me into a serious athlete as well. I was a goof off. He got me in the right mindset to be able to take track seriously and then also get to that next level and ultimately to a scholarship."
Deromedi invited Ealy to Mount Pleasant for a December visit during Ealy's senior year of high school in 1987-88.
"I think i caught something like 10 passes my senior year in high school," Ealy said. "I'm going to be honest with you, there was no way I was going to Central until I went for a visit my senior year."
Ironically, it was CMU's basketball success that helped sell the speedy Georgian on becoming a Chippewa.
"I was blown away when I got up to Central," he said. "It was a lot bigger and a lot more accomplished than I thought it was. I mean, definitely (Deromedi) sold it.
"I came up for a basketball game, and Central was playing Wisconsin. I sat down for that basketball game, watched Dan Majerle and that team beat Wisconsin, and then I was like, 'OK, this, Central, is kind of a big deal. They have some pretty good athletes in football and they have this guy who looks like he can go to the NBA playing for their basketball team.' That is what sold me."
Ealy, who was a member of the first CMU team (1991) to defeat Michigan State in Spartan Stadium, earned a sociology degree from Central Michigan and then went on to Kennesaw State to earn a second bachelor's degree, this one in education. He has since earned a master's degree and a doctor of education and today serves as an assistant principal at Kell High School in suburban Atlanta.
And while his high school track & field coach deserves much of the credit for helping Ealy discover Central Michigan and begin to realize his athletic potential, he credits his time at CMU for helping him to move beyond.
"I could talk about probably 15, 20 different people that influenced me," he said, pointing out former teammate Billy Smith, a 2008 hall of fame inductee, as having a particularly strong influence. "Billy Smith is one of the toughest people I know. He put the work in, and in his mind, the only way to solve a problem was to go through it.
"That toughness and that preparation is what prepared me for everything after that."
A prod from his high school track & field coach in Ellenwood, Ga., changed that, and it helped changed the trajectory of Central Michigan football history.
Ealy played wide receiver for the Herb Deromedi-coached Chippewas from 1988-91 and was a two-time All-Mid-American Conference honoree, twice caught three touchdown passes in a game, and still ranks in the top 10 in program history in career yards per reception and season yards per reception.
He also stands among the top 10 in program history in TD receptions for a career and for a season.
Remarkable, considering that Ealy played in an era of CMU football where the run game was strongly emphasized.
"I learned from the guys who came before me: 'We don't throw much, but when we do it's coming to you,'" said Ealy, who helped the Chippewas to the 1990 MAC championship and was named CMU's Most Valuable Player in the 1990 California Raisin Bowl. "When it's time to throw, you're going to get the ball, and you better make it happen.
"And that was the attitude that I took. You know, I'm not going to get a lot of looks, but when I do it's going to be a big deal and I'm going to have to step up and make whatever play they're asking me to make. That's the attitude that all the receivers took."
Ealy grew up in Ellenwood and a connection to CMU came by happenstance with his high school track & field coach.
"I really didn't have any (college scholarship) offers and I had a track coach who put Central on the radar for me," he said, adding that that particular coach also got Ealy to realize his potential. "He was instrumental opening those lines of communication and also turning me into a serious athlete as well. I was a goof off. He got me in the right mindset to be able to take track seriously and then also get to that next level and ultimately to a scholarship."
Deromedi invited Ealy to Mount Pleasant for a December visit during Ealy's senior year of high school in 1987-88.
"I think i caught something like 10 passes my senior year in high school," Ealy said. "I'm going to be honest with you, there was no way I was going to Central until I went for a visit my senior year."
Ironically, it was CMU's basketball success that helped sell the speedy Georgian on becoming a Chippewa.
"I was blown away when I got up to Central," he said. "It was a lot bigger and a lot more accomplished than I thought it was. I mean, definitely (Deromedi) sold it.
"I came up for a basketball game, and Central was playing Wisconsin. I sat down for that basketball game, watched Dan Majerle and that team beat Wisconsin, and then I was like, 'OK, this, Central, is kind of a big deal. They have some pretty good athletes in football and they have this guy who looks like he can go to the NBA playing for their basketball team.' That is what sold me."
Ealy, who was a member of the first CMU team (1991) to defeat Michigan State in Spartan Stadium, earned a sociology degree from Central Michigan and then went on to Kennesaw State to earn a second bachelor's degree, this one in education. He has since earned a master's degree and a doctor of education and today serves as an assistant principal at Kell High School in suburban Atlanta.
And while his high school track & field coach deserves much of the credit for helping Ealy discover Central Michigan and begin to realize his athletic potential, he credits his time at CMU for helping him to move beyond.
"I could talk about probably 15, 20 different people that influenced me," he said, pointing out former teammate Billy Smith, a 2008 hall of fame inductee, as having a particularly strong influence. "Billy Smith is one of the toughest people I know. He put the work in, and in his mind, the only way to solve a problem was to go through it.
"That toughness and that preparation is what prepared me for everything after that."
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