The 53 players on the football team from the state of Michigan will take part in a nationally televised game against a team they may have watched growing up.

CMU will play Michigan State at noon Sept. 12 in East Lansing at Spartan Stadium. The game was recently chosen to be shown on ESPN or ESPN2. The channel will be determined a week before the game. Along with the MSU game being shown nationally, games against Bowling Green and Eastern Michigan have been added by the ESPN family of networks.

“In order to take our program to where we want to take it, we have to play these games,” said coach Butch Jones. “And obviously when you get a chance to play on national TV, you have to make the most of your opportunity as well.”

Although MSU has won the last four times the two schools have met on the football field, CMU is expected to be among the top teams in the Mid-American Conference again this year after winning the MAC two out of the last three years.

Jones said fans are looking to two games in the early ’90s where CMU beat MSU, 20-3 in 1991 and 24-20 in 1992.

“Our fans probably get very, very excited about it, especially with the tradition that lies there and the things that were able to be accomplished in the early 1990s with Coach (Herb) Deromedi,” he said. “It will be special for a lot of our Michigan kids going to East Lansing playing in front of 80,000 people in Spartan Stadium.”

During off-season coverage, ESPN college football analyst and former player Andre Ware called CMU quarterback Dan LeFevour the best college football player in Michigan.

Although Jones acknowledged LeFevour’s value to the team, he stressed the importance of the team as a whole.

“Obviously, Dan is very deserving of all the accolades he gets, but right now, everything is a team concept and he knows he wouldn’t be where he’s at without a great surrounding cast,” he said.

Junior offensive lineman Jeff Maddux lives in Monroe, and grew up a Michigan State fan. He said this is a special game for him.

“You grow up and everyone talks about Michigan and Michigan State,” Maddux said. “(Now) we’re on a level to compete with those teams. It means a lot as far as other things too, like recruiting.”

Maddux would know. Before deciding to come to CMU, he was recruited by the Spartans. Maddux said he thought he’d be given a better chance to play as a freshman at CMU.

Maddux was in attendance when the University of Michigan beat CMU 45-7 in 2003. He has seen how far the program has grown.

“It’s amazing … for us to be able to compete with these teams and compete with their recruiting and all that,” he said.

Jones said the national attention pays dividends when recruiting and visiting high schools.

“Anytime you’re mentioned on national TV, that’s great, great publicity and great recognition for our school, for our program,” he said. “(Recruits) understand what the Flying C is all about, and there is an identity there.”

Now, CMU has six games that will be shown on the ESPN family of networks. Games against Toledo, Ball State and Northern Illinois round up the six, with all three games being played on consecutive weeks to end the regular season. Games against Toledo and Ball State will be played on consecutive Wednesday nights.

But the game against MSU, albeit just a game, will be more special to some.

“That’s what you dream about as a little kid,” Maddux said. “To play in those big stadiums, especially in your home state.”

sports@cm-life.com

E-mail the author: Andrew Stover