The 1990 Central Michigan Chippewas football team represented

Central Michigan University Central Michigan University (CMU) is a public research university in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. Established in 1892 as the Central Michigan Normal School and Business Institute, the private normal school became a state institution and renamed Cen ...

in the

Mid-American Conference The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I collegiate athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twel ...

(MAC) during the

1990 NCAA Division I-A football season The 1990 NCAA Division I-A football season ended with a split national championship and the ensuing controversy helped lead to the creation of the Bowl Coalition, a precursor to the Bowl Championship Series. The national title was split between th ...

. In their 13th season under head coach

Herb Deromedi Herb Deromedi (born May 26, 1939) is a retired American football coach and college athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Central Michigan University from 1978 to 1993, compiling a record of 110–55–10. His 110 wins re ...

, the Chippewas compiled an 8–3–1 record (7–1 against MAC opponents), tied with Toledo for the MAC championship, lost to

San Jose State San José State University (San Jose State or SJSU) is a public university in San Jose, California. Established in 1857, SJSU is the oldest public university on the West Coast and the founding campus of the California State University (CSU) sy ...

in the

California Bowl The California Bowl (later the California Raisin Bowl) was a post-season college football bowl game played annually at Bulldog Stadium in Fresno, California, from 1981 to 1991. The game featured the champions of the Big West Conference (known p ...

, and outscored their opponents, 283 to 146. The team played its home games in

Kelly/Shorts Stadium Kramer/Deromedi Field at Kelly/Shorts Stadium is an American football stadium in Mount Pleasant, Michigan. It serves as the home field for the Central Michigan University Chippewas. The stadium opened in 1972 and holds 30,255 spectators, making i ...

Mount Pleasant, Michigan Mount Pleasant is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. Located in Central Michigan, the city is the county seat of Isabella County. The population was 21,688 as of the 2020 United States census. It is surrounded by Union Township but is politic ...

, with attendance of 121,270 in six home games. Led by a strong defense, the team shut out

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

(34–0),

Bowling Green A bowling green is a finely laid, close-mown and rolled stretch of turf for playing the game of bowls. Before 1830, when Edwin Beard Budding of Thrupp, near Stroud, UK, invented the lawnmower, lawns were often kept cropped by grazing sheep on ...

(17–0), and

Kent State Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in Ash ...

(42–0), and held nine of twelve opponents to fewer than 14 points. On September 22, 1990, the defensive unit set a school record, holding Bowling Green to only two first downs in a 17-0 victory.2015 Media Guide, p. 86. The following week, the defense set another school record with six interceptions in a 31–7 victory over the

Miami Redskins The Miami RedHawks are the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Miami is a member of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) East Divis ...

. The team also set a school record with 83 punts forced over the course of the 1990 season. The team's statistical leaders included quarterback Jeff Bender with 1,978 passing yards, tailback Billy Smith with 1,047 rushing yards, and flanker Ken Ealy with 916 receiving yards. Ealy's 916 receiving yards was a single season school record until 1996 when the record was broken by Reggie Allen. Bender received the team's most valuable player award and also received the MAC's Vern Smith Leadership Award and the MAC Offensive Player of the Year award. Eight Central Michigan players (WR Ken Ealy, OG Paul Jacobson, QB Jeff Bender, RB Billy Smith, DL J.J. Wierenga, ILB Rich Curtiss, DB David Johnson, and DB Ken Strong) received first-team All-MAC honors. Coach Deromedi received the MAC Coach of the Year award.2015 Media Guide, p. 91.

Schedule

References

Central Michigan Central Michigan, also called Mid Michigan, is a region in the Lower Peninsula of the U.S. state of Michigan. As its name implies, it is the middle area of the Lower Peninsula. Lower Michigan is said to resemble a mitten, and Mid Michigan cor ...

Central Michigan Chippewas football seasons Mid-American Conference football champion seasons

Central Michigan Chippewas football The Central Michigan Chippewas are a college football program in Division I FBS, representing Central Michigan University (CMU). CMU has the 30th highest overall winning percentage of programs playing in NCAA Division I. The Chippewas have pla ...

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