The first leg of the Michigan MAC Trophy is on the line this weekend, as the Eastern Michigan Eagles (1-3) travel to Mt. Pleasant to take on the Central Michigan Chippewas (2-2) to open the conference
season for both programs.
The series has been electric over the last four years, with the home team winning in each game. The last two contests, in fact, have been decided by a score or less. Outside of a short stretch from 2019-2021, CMU and EMU have alternated wins since 2015. If you’re looking for a series emblematic of the MAC’s propensity for parity, this is a pretty prime example of it.
Two teams in very different parts of their build hope to get a leg up in the early going as the fall air starts to crisp up.
Game notes
- Time and date: Saturday, September 27th, 2025 at 1 p.m. Eastern time
- Location: Kelly/Shorts Stadium in Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
- TV network options: The game will be streamed exclusively on ESPN+; a valid subscription is required for viewing. Coverage by Doug Sherman (play-by-play) and Marcus Ray (color analyst).
- Radio options: Adam Jaksa (play-by-play) and Brock Gutierrez (color) will provide the Central call for 98.5 WUPS-FM; Doug Karsch (play-by-play) and Tom Helmer (play-by-play) and Rob Rubick (color) will provide the EMU call for WEMU-FM 89.1.
- Gambling considerations: Central favored by 3.5 points, with an over/under of 54.5, per FanDuel.
- All-Time Series: Central holds the all-time lead over 102 meetings, with a 64-32-6 overall record over Eastern. The Eagles won last season’s contest 38-34, marking the fourth-straight year where the home team won.
About the Central Michigan Chippewas
The Chippewas are coming off a home-opening win against the Wagner Seahawks last weekend, which moved the squad to 2-2 on the year. They’re under the tutelage of first-year head coach Matt Drinkall, whose unique on-field philosophies have attracted a lot of attention in his short tenure in Mt. Pleasant.
They’re officially listed as a power spread offense, and play like it, with a run-pass ratio of 173:78. Central looks to establish a downhill run game to out-possess the opposing offense and wear down defenses for opportunistic pass plays.
CMU utilizes two quarterbacks in their offense— and weren’t afraid to play three prior to Jadyn Glasser’s season-end injury— in order to press their advantages. Joe Labas is the “primary” quarterback utilized often in more conventional formations, while backup Angel Flores, an Northern Arizona transfer, is utilized to run more option-based approaches. Labas sits at 34-of-46 on pass attempts for 422 yards, four touchdowns and an interception, while Flores is 13-of-19 for 115 yards and a passing touchdown— with two additional scores and 155 net yards on the ground.
Tulane transfer Trey Cornist leads the team in rushing with 43 carries for 181 yards and a touchdown, splitting the workload with Nahree Biggins. Biggins, a former safety, has found a role as a power rusher, compiling 33 carries for 129 yards while also tied for the team lead in receptions (eight) and touchdowns (one) and sitting second in yards (123.)
Receiving is up-and-down depending on the day, but is led on the outside by Tyson Davis (eight catches, 77 yards, touchdown) and Langston Lewis (seven receptions, 78 yards). Lewis in particular is an intriguing piece, as he is utilized as a rusher on jet sweeps and also checks in as one of CMU’s best blocking receivers despite his six-foot, 195 lbs. frame. Tommy McIntosh has been a reliable big-play option as a big slot at six-foot-five, 210 lbs., leading the team with 124 receiving yards on seven catches, scoring once.
Defensively, Central is a team which relies on stopping the run first and then clamping down in the secondary. Their overall numbers are painted by two blowout losses to Michigan and Pitt, but against San Diego State and Wagner, the Chips found a lot of room to dictate the pace. In fact, CMU has already eclipsed the total amount of forced turnovers from last season (five), with five interceptions and two fumble recoveries over the last four games, averaging 1.75 turnovers gained per contest.
All-MAC linebacker Jordan Kwiatkowski has led the defensive effort with 24 total tackles, an interception and two pass break-ups. Overall, 11 Chips have collected at least 10 tackles, with three collecting over 20 stops. Last week’s hero Dakota Cochran had a pick-six and a fumble recovery vs. Wagner to add to his 23 total tackles, with defensive lineman Michael Heldman notching two forced fumbles.
Several transfers have also played their way into crucial roles, including former Saginaw Valley State Cardinal Elijah Gordon (21 tackles as a rotation safety), former Cincinnati Bearcat Kalen Carroll (16 tackles, three pass break-ups, QB hurry as a starting cornerback) and former Nebraska Cornhusker defensive end Korver Demma (11 tackles, 2.5 TFLs, sack, PBU, three QBHs.)
About the Eastern Michigan Eagles
The Eagles finally snapped their nebulous eight-game losing streak last week against 2024 Sun Belt runner-up Louisiana in a back-and-forth, emotion-laden shootout. They sit at 1-3 through their first four contests, and could use another win badly to reboot their bowl bid aspirations.
EMU is in their 12th season under the leadership of Chris Creighton, who has done an underrated job pulling the Eagles out from the dredges of college football irrelevancy into a program the surrounding community can be proud of— even if results have been less-than-stellar over the least calendar year.
Due to recent rivalry trends, the Eagles haven’t won in Mt. Pleasant since 2011, when quarterback Alex Gillett scored a go-ahead 30-yard touchdown with less than a minute left and cornerback Marcell Rose intercepted a Ryan Radcliffe pass in front of the endzone to secure the win.
Unlike most EMU teams of recent years, this one has been reliable on the offensive side of the ball so far in 2025. They lead the conference in passing offense (248.3 yards per game) and sit at third in the conference in total offense (393 yards per game).
That rushing attack came alive in a big way last week vs. Louisiana, with EMU picking up 183 rushing yards and three touchdowns to pace the offense. Dontae McMillian (49 carries, 345 yards, one TD in ’24) scored his second 100+ yard effort of the campaign, with 126 yards on 19 carries, while Tavierre Dunlap scored two of the team’s touchdowns in short-yardage situations.
Noah Kim, the former Coastal Carolina and Michigan State starter, is the signalcaller for the Eagles and has been an instant impact contributor. Kim is third-best in rushing, with 124 pre-sack yards and a score on the ground, while also spreading the ball to the tune of 993 yards for five touchdowns and two interceptions on a 64 percent completion rate.
Four receivers have hit the century mark in the first four contests, with Terry Lockett sitting as the clubhouse leader in receptions (18) and yards (259). Joshua Long has been the other consistent contributor, with 150 yards and two touchdowns on 11 catches. Watch for halfback McMillian to figure into the receiving game as well; he has nine snags for 101 yards and a touchdown, good for fourth on the team.
Defense has been the weak spot for the Eagles, with EMU sitting near the bottom of the NCAA in total yards allowed (507.0, 133rd of 136 NCAA programs), opposing third-down percentage (55 percent, 131st) and scoring defense (39.6, 130th). They’re particularly exploitable on the ground, with 272.2 yards allowed per rush (133rd).
It’s not necessarily a surprise EMU is experiencing struggle on that side of the ball, as they return only two starters from last year’s defense, but the falloff has been immense through the first third of the season.
Safety Bryce Llewellen sits as the team leader in tackles, with 30 tackles, two TFLs and an interception. Marco Patierno mans the middle of the defense at the linebacker position, with 22 tackles, a half-TFL and a QB hurry. Caleb Hobbs notched an interception in the fourth quarter last week to help save EMU’s chances alongside Llewellen. Carter Evans, Mahki Gilbert and Messiah Blair have combined for five TFLs on the season, with Blair bringing in one of the team’s two sacks.
Final Thoughts
The key matchup in this game will be the Eastern Michigan offense vs. the Central Michigan defense. Outside of special teams, this is the one unit where EMU has a potential on-paper advantage.
Central has a strong, senior-laden defense, which has gone through a veritable sawmill of offenses so far in 2024 and should give Eastern some pushback. However, as shown last week, the Eagles have a balanced, effective offense which can score in bunches. If EMU can dictate the terms of engagement on offense and force CMU into suboptimal situations on defense, there’s a chance to take an upset win.
If Eastern can’t take advantage on offense, Central’s better-than-average ability to maintain time of possession will certainly come in handy in closing the game out.
Either way it goes, CMU head coach Matt Drinkall expressed his excitement about facing his peer Chris Creighton, who Drinkall has admired from afar throughout his coaching career. Drinkall and Creighton both came up through the NAIA and NCAA Division III ranks as Midwestern coaches, taking unique paths to their current spots.
You can be guaranteed a competitive, passionate contest on Saturday.
