Central Michigan Chippewas — 2015 Syracuse Football preview

cmu
Enos left CMU after the 2014 season
cmu
Enos left CMU after the 2014 season

As we countdown to kickoff in September, we’re going to be doing a team-by-team preview each Wednesday over the summer. SU will continue its 2015 non-conference schedule when they play Central Michigan on Sept. 19.

WACKY BOWL, NEW COACH: There’s been plenty of change at Central Michigan since Syracuse last visited in the 2014 season. The Chippewas won five of their last six games to finish 7-5 in the regular season and qualified for the Bahamas Bowl. There, CMU fell behind 49-14 at one point against Western Kentucky before pulling to within one on a Hail Mary as time expired. Central Michigan elected to go for a two-point conversion rather than send the game to overtime, and the pass was blocked, leading to a 49-48 loss. That proved to be the last game for head coach Dan Enos, who left in January to take the offensive coordinator position at Arkansas.

» Related: Previewing SU’s ACC opener against Wake Forest

WHO TO WATCH FOR: The good news first: Quarterback Cooper Rush returns for his junior season. He threw for 3,157 yards and 27 touchdowns (to just 13 interceptions) in his sophomore campaign. Seven of those touchdowns came in the wild game against WKU, which is an NCAA bowl game record. Rush was also particularly sharp in the spring practice game, completing 22 of 26 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns. The bad news? Rush’s primary weapons are gone. The Chippewas will need to replace its top rusher (Thomas Rawls) and receiver (Titus Davis) from the 2014 team. That leaves openings for receivers Jesse Kroll, Corey Willis and Mark Chapman, who all looked in sync with Rush in the spring game. In the backfield, Devon Spalding is the team’s leading returning rusher (371 yards), but also lead the team with four fumbles.

PREDICTION: Syracuse won a lopsided 40-3 decision in Mount Pleasant last season, with the Orange sacking Rush five times and getting two scoring plays from its defense. The game should be closer this year, but SU should pull away on its home turf. SYRACUSE 31, CENTRAL MICHIGAN 21.

For more Syracuse coverage, Like our Facebook page and follow us @TheJuiceOnline.

Avatar photo
About Wes Cheng 2907 Articles
Wes has worked for Rivals.com covering the New York Knicks, as well as for Scout.com covering Syracuse athletics. Wes has also been a contributing writer for the South China Morning Post (Hong Kong), for SportsNet New York (SNY) as a news desk writer covering all of New York professional sports, and reported on the NBA and MLB for the New York Sportscene. A native of Long Island, New York, Wes graduated from Syracuse University in 2005 with a degree in journalism. Contact him at wes[at]sujuiceonline.com.