Football to spend Thanksgiving in hotel

While most CMU students will be at home on Thanksgiving, the football team will be at the Comfort Inn.

For the fourth consecutive season, the Chippewas will play a game the day after Thanksgiving. The team plays Northern Illinois at 1 p.m. Friday in Kelly/Shorts Stadium.

The game against the Huskies is the third consecutive game not being played on a Saturday. The team’s two previous games were on Wednesday nights.

Having the team used to playing on a scattered schedule makes the game against NIU not as uncommon, said coach Butch Jones.

“With it being a holiday is very challenging,” Jones said. “But you try to keep the same focus, the same schedule we have been doing. So there is not much difference.”

In the previous three years, the team has gone 2-1 the day after Thanksgiving, winning at Buffalo 55-28 in 2006 and at Akron 35-32 in 2007. Its lone loss during came last year in a 56-52 loss to Eastern Michigan in Ypsilanti.

It is the first time the team will play at Kelly/Shorts Stadium after Thanksgiving in the four-year stretch.

“I think it takes a little bit more focus playing at home just because of the distractions,” Jones said. “When you’re on the road, you’re kind of secluded, away from everything.”

Out of class

For the first time in almost a month, the team will not have to work around classes. The past two games were played on Wednesdays, and the previous game against Boston College involved a flight, which also caused some missed classes.

For some of the freshmen, it will be their first time away from home during Thanksgiving.

“It will be little different just not (being) with my family,” said freshman wide receiver Cody Wilson.

Wilson said many of the freshmen will head to the hotel Wednesday because the residence halls close at 7 p.m. until noon Sunday.