Dave Zapotosky

TOLEDO, Ohio – Ontario Sneed did not like having to sit out his final Western Michigan game on Oct. 18.

One week later, it showed.

The senior running back, typically known for his speed and finesse, ran with aggression Saturday, lowering his shoulder into Toledo defenders and pounding his way forward on many of his carries.

Sneed, who missed CMU’s 38-28 win over WMU because of a leg injury and battled other small injuries through the first half of the season, finished with a team-high 72 yards and one touchdown on 19 rushes in CMU’s 24-23 win over the Rockets.

“Thats just from sitting out last week,” he said, smiling. “This week, I had a lot of aggressiveness to take out – to help the team win.

“Coming into Toledo, that’s like our rival too, them and Western. I was hungry to get back on the field.”

Sneed’s biggest play was his last. With CMU maintaining a 24-23 lead in the final minutes, Sneed caught a screen pass on a 3rd and 8 and ran it 19 yards through open field to CMU’s 47-yard line and a first down.

The play allowed the Chippewas to run the clock down to zero and preserve the one-point victory.

“There wasn’t any bigger play than that 3rd-and-8 pass to him that helped seal the win,” coach Butch Jones said of Sneed. “I can’t say enough about him and his leadership that he’s brought to our running backs. He stepped up when we needed it – that was big. That’s what we expect from a senior.”

CMU also received contributions from a pair of freshman running backs.

Bryan Schroeder, who led all rushers last week with 106 yards, gained 29 yards on seven carries, while Paris Cotton rushed for 29 yards on eight carries.

“I think just seeing the way that we were able to run the ball, that set up the pass a lot of times,” said junior quarterback Dan LeFevour. “Anytime we can do that, that’s great.”

Many backs have stepped up thus far in what seems like a CMU running backs carousel.

Sophomore tailback Carl Volny began the season as the starter, but saw little playing time after the first few games. Senior Justin Hoskins also saw sporadic playing time through the first half of the season, but made his biggest impact last week against Western, when he took a screen pass 52 yards to set up CMU’s final score.

Bringing fresh legs into the mix is critical for a football team’s success, Jones said.

“Being a former running backs coach, I know that if you want to be a physical football team, you can’t have enough running backs in your football program,” he said. “We’ll continue to bring running backs into the program because it’s a physical game.”

bmanzullo@cm-life.com

E-mail the author: Brian Manzullo