Friendly foes
Greg Burghardt
When Central Michigan Head Coach Mike DeBord leads his squad into Michigan Stadium, he will be treading on familiar ground.
A U-M assistant for nine seasons, DeBord will make his first trip into the ‘Big House’ since accepting the Central post in 2000.
“I don’t know if I will have a rush,” DeBord said. “I did not think that it was going to be that hard. I thought that it was Central Michigan versus Michigan. But it is hard, because you have to create a greater focus on your team.”
DeBord will battle against longtime friend and mentor, Lloyd Carr. While the Central program has sputtered since DeBord’s hiring, Carr is outspoken about DeBord’s program and coaching ability.
“I love (him) like a brother,” Carr said. “I also respect him as a coach. He’s going to have a great future in the profession and I know he’s going to be bringing his best team here. He has a passion to win and loves the game.”
Carr had second thoughts about coaching a game against his friend. However, a convincing pitch by DeBord eventually swayed his mind.
“He did not want to play us, not that he was scared,” DeBord said. “He just didn’t want to play because of our friendship. I urged him to let us have the same experience other (MAC) schools had. When I said that, he agreed.”
When game time rolls around, all ties will be severed.
“We’ll still be good friends after the game,” DeBord said. “He’s going to try to kick my rear end and I’m going to try to kick his. Afterwards that doesn’t mean we don’t think the world of each other.”
The Chippewas were to play at Arizona State originally, but DeBord thought playing Michigan would outweigh a trip out west.
“We would have to play late because of the heat there,” DeBord said. “We’d have to fly clear across the country and then we wouldn’t get back until late. This is a great opportunity for our team and players to be able to go in and play at Michigan Stadium.”
With his longtime ties to Ann Arbor, DeBord knows the Wolverines well. He even helped recruit and coach current fifth-year seniors like quarterback John Navarre and tackle Tony Pape.
“He was here my first year, I knew him pretty well,” Navarre said. “It is a little different, but it will be good to see him. There are a lot of ties, and it’s going to be an exciting battle and I am looking forward to it.”
DeBord and Carr were brought together on the Michigan staff in 1992 when DeBord joined Carr on Gary Moeller’s staff as offensive line coach.
Carr took the head coaching job in 1995, at which time he promoted DeBord to offensive coordinator. The two shared a national championship in 1997, when Michigan defeated Washington State in the Rose Bowl.
While the two friends vacationed together the summer, their conversation deviated from football.
“It was a very casual vacation sort of thing,” DeBord said. “We didn’t talk about football, we talked about a lot of other things. After we saw each other over the summer, we knew that it was time to focus in and get our football teams ready for the game.”
Despite future high-stakes matchups with the likes of Notre Dame, Purdue and Ohio State, Carr has been focusing on the Chippewas since the onset of training camp.
“(DeBord) will have his best team at Central Michigan,” Carr said. “I know what kind of effort and preparation he will bring into the game.”
Carr has extensive experience playing MAC schools. During his tenure, the Wolverines have played Bowling Green, Miami, Eastern Michigan and Western Michigan.
“I feel that if we’re going to play Mid-American teams, they should be within in the state .”
DeBord knows the importance of the game, as playing a team of Michigan’s caliber is momentous for his program. But, while the game will boost CMU from a financial and recruiting aspect, the team remains focused on one goal.
“Somebody asked me the other day about what our goal is,” DeBord said. “Our goal is to win. My gosh, we’re not going there just to show off our new uniforms.”
