It’s been a while since I wrote one of these (the previous one was posted on Aug. 23). However, Northwestern football has a 13th game on its schedule, the Mid-American Conference’s Central Michigan Chippewas.
As the two teams are set to face each other at Ford Field in the GameAbove Sports Bowl on Friday, Dec. 26 at 12 p.m. CST for the first time since Northwestern’s 30-25 win on Sept. 25, 2010 (the only ever matchup between the two squads). The Chippewas finished the season at 7-5, but are currently 10.5-point underdogs against the ‘Cats. Here’s everything to know about CMU:
The Basics
2025 Record: 7-5 (5-3 MAC)
Head Coach: Matt Drinkall (first season)
The Stats
2025 SP+ Overall: 90th
2025 SP+ Offense: 115th
2025 SP+ Defense: 55th
2025 SP+ Special Teams: 87th
2025 Season Recap
In Coach Drinkall’s first season at the helm, the Chippewas finished at a respectable and promising 7-5 after three straight losing seasons. While they didn’t play for the MAC title, they still finished with the fifth-best conference record behind Western Michigan, Ohio, Toledo and Miami (OH). CMU started the season with a 16-14 win over San Jose State before losing its next two games to its Power Four opponents in Pitt and Michigan. The Chippewas followed that game by beating FCS school Wagner before winning their first conference game of the season over Eastern Michigan. After losing the following week to Akron, CMU took down Bowling Green (to snap a 10-game road losing streak) and UMass. The Chippewas then lost their next game to the eventual MAC champions (Western Michigan) by just three points, before defeating Buffalo and Kent State. They did lose to Toledo in their final game of the season, but for a first-year head coach, 7-5 isn’t too shabby.
Offensive Overview
Redshirt senior quarterback Joe Labas started all games for CMU in 2025. He led the Chippewas in passing, going 126-of-183 passing for 1,676 yards, 12 touchdowns and six interceptions. While he didn’t put up the most stellar of statistics, his team did win seven games. In all but Week 1, CMU won by more than one possession in its victories. Additionally, two of the Chippewas’ three conference losses were by just one possession. Labas, while not popping off the stat sheet, did his job. In addition to Labas playing quarterback, junior Angel Flores made his fair share of appearances. In eight games, Flores completed just 18 of his 27 passes. What he was used for was running the ball. Among MAC quarterbacks, Flores was fourth in rushing yards with 519 and tied for second in rushing touchdowns with eight. He did miss the final four games of the season with an injury he suffered against UMass, and his status is in question for the bowl game right now.
Apart from Flores, CMU had a variety of running backs perform. Finishing two spots ahead of Northwestern with the 58th most rushing yards per game (169.5), the Chippewas saw major production on the ground from three guys not named Flores. Nahree Biggins was the lead back, as he turned 105 carries into 540 yards and two touchdowns. In addition to his rushing, Biggins caught 19 passes for 185 yards and a touchdown. Coming in at the third leading rusher on the team behind Biggins and Flores is Trey Cornist, who rushed for 404 yards and a touchdown in his 94 carries. Unlike Biggins, Cornist didn’t catch a single pass. Brock Townsend was the third running back to rush for over 300 yards for the Chippewas. Townsend’s four rushing touchdowns led his team outside of Flores, as he rushed for 394 yards on just 75 carries. He was also featured in the receiving game, catching 12 passes for 142 yards and three touchdowns. Utilizing the running backs will almost certainly be a focus for CMU.
In terms of receiving, Langston Lewis and Tommy McIntosh were the two main targets. Lewis hauled in 35 passes for 513 yards and three touchdowns, while McIntosh caught 27 balls for 401 yards and three touchdowns. Lewis was also named to the 2025 All-Mac Third Team Offense. Tyson Davis followed behind with 20 receptions himself for 270 yards and two scores. The fourth and fifth leading receivers were Biggins and Townsend, followed by tight end DeCorion Temple, who caught 15 passes for 131 yards and two touchdowns. No other player for the Chippewas caught 10 or more passes, nor eclipsed 100 yards receiving.
CMU’s offensive line isn’t anything super special. The Chippewas unit up front finished as the second-lowest PFF graded pass blocking unit in not only the MAC, but also in the entire country, with a 30.8 PFF pass blocking grade. They didn’t fare too much better in run blocking, as they finished the regular season as the fourth-lowest in their conference with a 57.7 PFF run blocking grade. The O-line did allow 19 sacks, which was around the middle of the pack in terms of sacks allowed. Nonetheless, the offensive weakness of the Chippewas is their blocking.
Defensive Overview
Now it’s time to look at the defense for CMU. Starting with the defensive line, the first name to mention is Michael Heldman. He finished the season with 10.5 sacks, tied for the 10th most in the country. Apart from his ability to bring down opposing quarterbacks, Heldman had 47 total tackles (24 solo, 23 assists) and two forced fumbles, earning him a spot on the 2025 All-MAC First Team Defense. Behind Heldman, the next closest player in sacks for the Chippewas was Korver Demma with 3.5. He had 27 total tackles, the second most on his team of the defensive linemen, while also forcing a fumble. Keyshawn Hayden had a single sack this season, but he graded out as the second-best pass rusher on CMU per PFF behind Heldman.
Heldman is one of two stars on this Chippewa defense. The other is linebacker Jordan Kwiatkowski. The senior finished the season with 109 total tackles (49 solo, 60 assists) as listed on the Central Michigan website, which ties him with NU’s Robert Fitzgerald in tackles. ESPN has Kwiatkowski at 105 total tackles (48 solo, 57 assists). Nonetheless, Kwiatkowski was making tackles all over the field to go along with three sacks, three interceptions and three forced fumbles, garnering him a spot alongside Heldman on the 2025 All-MAC First Team Defense. Dakota Cochran was second on CMU in tackles with 77 (40 solo, 37 assists). The redshirt senior also had 0.5 sacks, an interception, two forced fumbles and a blocked kick. He was named to the 2025 All-MAC Second Team Defense. Kwiatkowski and Cochran are the two main guys at linebacker for the Chippewas. Between them, they scored three touchdowns: Kwiatkowski with a pick six, Cochran with a pick six and a fumble return.
Now onto the secondary. Caleb Spann led CMU’s defensive backs in tackles with 48, finishing third on the team in that statistic. The redshirt senior also had one interception in 2025. Kalen Carroll finished tied for fourth on his team in tackles with 47 per the CMU website, while also forcing a fumble and intercepting a pass this season. He was the highest graded player in pass coverage for the Chippewas, per PFF, for players with 50 or more coverage snaps. Elijah Gordon was also a big contributor in the secondary, as he finished the season with 46 tackles and an interception. As a unit, CMU allowed 207.2 passing yards per game, putting them around the middle of the FBS.
