2012 Record: 7-6 (4-4, 4th in MAC West)
Head Coach: Dan Enos (fourth year, 13-24)
Last Bowl Game: 2012 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl: defeated Western Kentucky 24-21
Stadium: Kelly/Shorts Stadium, Mount Pleasant, Mich (capacity: 30,255)
Schedule:
Big Games: 8/31 at Michigan, 9/28 vs. NC State, 10/19 vs. Northern Illinois, 11/29 vs. Eastern Michigan
2012 Overview:
Football Outsiders 2012 FEI Ranking: 100th out of 124 teams
Personnel:
Returning Starters: 6 offense, 7 defense, 1 special teams
Key Players: RB Zurlon Tipton, WR Titus Davis, OL Jake Olson and Nick Beamish, DL Jabari Dean and Leterrius Walton; LB Justin Cherocci
Insider’s view with Ron Balaskovitz of HustleBelt:
CFBZ: A lot has been made of the quarterback battle between Cody Kater (Jr), Alex Niznak (So) and Cooper Rush (Fr). There was no heir apparent to Ryan Radcliff (3,158 yds, 23 TDs) coming out of the spring session. What can you tell us about each of the contenders, and is anyone emerging as a front runner in camp?
Ron Balaskovitz: Coming into spring ball, and even as fall camp started, head coach Dan Enos constantly stated that it was going to be an open competition with no clear front runner for the job. Cody Kater is probably the most balanced of the three candidates, and while he’s nowhere near former CMU quarterback Dan LeFevour (2006-09), he plays in that same style, not going to wow you with his arm strength, but is accurate, and has the ability to scramble and make plays with his feet.
Alex Niznak is the local boy, having played high school football 15 minutes down the road in Ithaca, Mich., who the townies in Mount Pleasant would love to see start. He is more of a dual threat than a traditional drop back passer, and with CMU playing more of a pro-style offense under Enos, I consider that to be a strike against him in the race for the starting quarterback.
Cooper Rush is probably the best passer of the group. Since arriving in Mount Pleasant, the coaches have done nothing but praise how accurate he has been in drills and practice.
Enos has dropped hints that Kater has taken the lead over the other two competitors for the right to be the starter. He’s consistently mentioned him first in interviews, praised almost everything he’s done in the days leading up to the season starting, and Kater has taken the most reps with the first team offense.
Kater is the only quarterback on the roster with experience at any level of college football. He appeared in a couple games for CMU last year, and prior to that was the starter on a very good Grand Rapids Community College (JUCO) team. I would bet on Kater being the starter for week one at Michigan, but wouldn’t be surprised to see the other two candidates get playing time this year.
CFBZ: Wide receiver Titus Davis (860 yds/8 TDs) returns for the Chippewas, but Cody Wilson (840/4) and tight end Caleb Southworth have departed. How does the receiving corps stack up this year and who will take these roster spots?
Ron Balaskovitz: Despite losing Cody Wilson, I think this is the deepest that CMU has been at the wide receiver position under Enos. While Wilson was like a poor man’s Wes Welker, he wasn’t the most explosive player at the position.
Replacing him are Courtney Williams (Jr) and Andrew Flory (So). Both of these guys are bigger and faster than Wilson was. Williams caught 24 passes last year, and averaged just over 10 yards a catch, so he seems to be the most logical choice to step in for Wilson. The player to watch though is Flory, who played in 12 games last year, and despite catching only 17 passes, made them count, scoring four times, and averaging 20 yards per catch. He had a great game against Eastern Michigan, catching nine balls for 117 yards, and two touchdowns. He could be the breakout player for the Chippewas this season.
As for Southworth, he’s not really that big a loss. Even though Enos has made it a pro-style system, the tight end really hasn’t been utilized that often. The tight ends who get the most time are the ones who can block.
CFBZ: The Chippewas travel to Ann Arbor to open the season at Michigan in the Big House. Though only a two hour drive from your campus in Mount Pleasant, the two teams have only met three times since 1931, the last being in 2006. The Wolverines have a perfect 3-0 record against Central Michigan and will be heavily favored Aug. 31 What does your team need to do to establish itself for the 2013 season in this game?
Ron Balaskovitz: To set the tone for 2013, Central needs to avoid getting embarrassed. Last year, CMU played Michigan State at home in week two and got stomped 41-7. It was deflating to be embarrassed like that. Thankfully the team rebounded late in the year and went on a run that got us to a bowl game win.
CMU is probably not going to win at the Big House, but if they can keep the game respectable, put up a few points, establish a run game, and get decent quarterback play, they’ll have a good list of positives going forward.
CFBZ: The team has had a signature win in each of the last two seasons. Last season the Chippewas were a two-touchdown underdog at Iowa and won 32-31. In 2011 they were getting nine points at home against Northern Illinois and prevailed 48-41. Is there a matchup on the 2013 schedule that has the makings of another upset victory?
Ron Balaskovitz: Two home games could really impact the MAC championship race: Toledo and Northern Illinois. CMU was able to knock of NIU in 2011, and last year hung with Toledo on the road before a fourth quarter implosion. CMU has been very tough at home, and one of the few breaks on a tough schedule is that they get the two West Division favorites at home.
A game I have my eye on is at North Carolina State. The Wolfpack is coached by former NIU head coach, Dave Doeren, so they should be familiar with the way he plays, and of his four losses at NIU, one was to CMU.
CFBZ: CMU has struggled mightily on defense the past couple years, what needs to change if the Chippewas are going to improve on that side of the ball, especially in the always high scoring MAC?
Ron Balaskovitz: It starts with getting more pressure on the quarterback. The Chippewas play a 4-2-5 scheme — a bend-but-don’t-break style of defense, where you don’t typically see blitzes. The defense relies heavily on the secondary getting good coverage, the linebackers making lots of tackles, and the front four getting to the quarterback if the coverage breaks down.
The linebackers weren’t the problem. Both starters registered over 100 tackles. CMU also has a very experienced secondary, despite losing its best player in Jahleel Addae. But again, they need pressure from the line. One player who should help the cause is defensive end Jeremy Gainer, a Michigan State transfer who will play his final season of eligibility for the Chippewas. He was a four-star prospect and has drawn rave reviews from the coaching staff so far.
Pete’s Bottom Line:
Dan Enos bought himself some extra time under contract with three wins to complete the 2012 regular season (34-31 at Eastern Michigan, 30-16 vs. Miami [Ohio] and 42-21 at UMass) and a bowl win (24-21) over Western Kentucky. Without the strong showing to close the schedule, the Chippewas would likely be under a new staff.
That said, the team still has voids to fill at quarterback, the defense needs to be more stable, and key playmakers need to shine.
Enos is a former Michigan State quarterback who beat Michigan in his senior year. His team doesn’t have the personnel to knock off Big Blue this year however. Expect a result similar to the last two meetings (2003 and 2006) which resulted in an average score of 43-12. Everything looks brighter after week one, but the schedule is not without its tests. Five of CMU’s first eight games are on the road, including trips to UNLV and NC State in addition to Michigan. They close with two straight at home – their only consecutive home dates all season – against MAC foes UMass and Eastern Michigan.
Fans will be eager to see the Chippewas return to postseason play, but this isn’t the season to bank on it.
Prediction: 4-8
Previous 2013 Pre-Season Previews:
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