DeBord looks for first win against BSU
Amanda Papke
A win against Ball State is something that has evaded Mike DeBord during his three years in Mount Pleasant.
Two seasons ago, the Chippewas were beating BSU, but a late-game score gave the Cardinals a 38-33 victory. Last year, CMU hosted a depleted Ball State, but fell 38-21. All in all, DeBord is 0-3 against the MAC West rivals.
The CMU coach is looking for a little revenge Saturday, when his squad plays in Muncie for the conference opener.
“We have really focused on this game and want to do what we can do to win it,” DeBord said.
Ball State (1-2) comes into the game following a strong first half performance at No. 9 Pittsburgh last Saturday. The game was tied at 14 at halftime, before the Panthers high-octane offense took over in the third quarter.
“Any experience like that is a great learning tool,” said BSU first-year Head Coach Brady Hoke. “I was proud of the way the kids fought and got two scores in the second quarter. I thought we played awful well defensively in the first half. But the bottom line is that we lost the game.”
The prior week, the Cardinals fell victim to No. 23 Missouri — another team with a potent offense — 35-7. In that game, BSU trailed the Tigers by only seven points at halftime.
“They lost to two very good football teams,” DeBord said. “They are a team that has played people pretty respectively.”
Unlike the Cardinals, the Chippewas have struggled at the beginning of games, taking halftime deficits against Division I-AA opponents New Hampshire and Eastern Kentucky the past two weeks. DeBord said starting strong has been a focal point during this week’s practice.
“We, just as a group have to come out of the locker room with a fire and get after it right away,” DeBord said. “I think we’ve had an attitude of, ‘hey, let’s play and they’ll give it to us.’ Nobody’s going to give you anything. We have to be aggressive and attack more.”
One person CMU will not be attacking is BSU quarterback Andy Roesch. The senior, who passed for 304 yards and five touchdowns in Mount Pleasant last year, injured his shoulder early in the season.
In his place is senior Talmadge Hill, who has started 24 career games, including victories against Central in 2000 and 2001. Hill passed for 192 yards and three touchdowns while not throwing an interception at Pittsburgh.
“Talmadge did a nice job and we expected him to — being that he is a fifth-year senior and a guy who has played a lot,” Hoke said. “He managed the offense well and was accurate in the passing game.”
The Cardinals employ a west-coast passing game, involving quick three and five step drops.
BSU has not enjoyed success in the running game, averaging just 2.4 yards a carry. Junior Scott Blair and sophomore Charles Wynn have gotten the majority of the carries.
“They’ve been struggling running the football, so we’ve obviously got to keep them at that.”
The Cardinal defense is led by athletic linebacker Lorenzo Scott. The senior has started all but four games of his collegiate career, and was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the 17th round of the 2003 Major League Baseball draft.
Senior cornerback Jesse Avant also displays consistency, having started every game in his four-year career.
“Their defense is the most complicated we’ve faced so far with coverages, blitzes and things like that,” DeBord said.
The Chippewas are banged up heading into the game, as senior halfback Terrence Jackson, junior linebacker Omari Colen and sophomore tackle Jeff Jenerou are doubtful for the game. Junior linebacker Jon Nelson suffered an arm injury last week, but will likely see time.
CMU does boast the MAC’s leading rusher in freshman Jerry Seymour and the conference’s leading tackler in junior safety James King.
In the MAC West preseason media poll, the Chippewas were tabbed fifth, one slot ahead of the Cardinals. Both teams know the game is of importance, especially for the Chippewas, who face four of the MAC’s best teams in succession after next week’s bye.
“As I told our football team, this is a very important game,” DeBord said. “I’ve asked them to put everything they have mentally and physically into this week. Next week we’re off, so we can rest.”
