Football rides defense to first win, looks to improve offense
After stunning the college football world last year with an upset victory at Oklahoma State, the Central Michigan football team nearly fell victim to a similar upset on Thursday.
A mere few feet stood between an expected victory and a disastrous loss as Rhode Island missed a 33-yard field goal in double overtime which would have given the Division 1-AA Rams — who went 2-9 in 2016 — a win at Kelly/Shorts Stadium.
The kick was missed wide right and the two teams went to triple overtime. With third and goal and the ball at the four-yard line, senior running back Devon Spalding ended all speculation with a touchdown run to give the Chippewas the 30-27 victory.
Breaking in the New Offense
The debut of CMU’s spread offense did not go quite as expected. The Chippewas had few problems moving the ball, but finishing drives and scoring points were an issue.
Central Michigan finished with 499 yards on offense, but eight penalties and four turnovers killed the team’s momentum on several occasions.
Head coach John Bonamego said limiting a few mistakes can be the difference between a high scoring performance and an average one.
“We missed throws and there were some drops, but there is plenty of blame to go around," Bonamego said. "We just stalled. You fumble a snap, you drop a pass or you sail one over someone’s head. There’s a fine line between scoring 60 and only scoring 21. Sometimes it’s just one or two plays.”
Senior quarterback Shane Morris got the start under center and played most of the game. In his CMU debut, the 6-foot-3, 210-pounder went 25-of-49 passing for 226 yards and a touchdown. He also threw an early interception.
Morris made some throws downfield and showed some athleticism, but also missed passes and had several throws go through the hands of his receivers. The graduate transfer from the University of Michigan said he has to play better going forward.
"There's obviously a lot of things offensively we need to do better," Morris said. "I need to make smarter decisions, I need need to play better and make more passes."
On the ground, the Chippewas rushed for 246 yards on the night, an improvement from a unit that finished last in the Mid-American Conference the past two season. Sophomore Jonathan Ward rushed for 147 yards and a touchdown, while Spalding added 70 yards and his game-winning score.
Defense Saves the Day
While the offense was inconsistent in the season opener, the defense stood tall throughout the contest
The Chippewas’ defense, constantly starting in its own territory due to offensive turnovers, held the Rams to 108 yards rushing and tied a program record with six interceptions.
Junior linebacker Alex Briones was all over the field and finished with 11 tackles and an interception. Briones said the performance gives the unit confidence going forward.
“It gives us a lot of confidence,” he said. “Everyone was flying around, corners were playing well in coverage. Those interceptions were big, honestly, they kept us in the game. I’m just proud of the guys flying around and creating turnovers.”
Next Game
CMU heads to Kansas on Saturday. Bonamego said the Jayhawks present a much harder test and the team must improve to come out with the win.
“We got to get better in a hurry because we are playing a Big 12 team next week and they won’t give us as many opportunities to stay in the game as Rhode Island did,” he said.
Kansas won its home opener on Saturday against Southeast Missouri State by a score of 38-16. KU had 437 yards of total offense and 364 passing yards.
The game is set to kick off at 3 p.m. at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas.
