Chippewas Football (MAC, 1984)

1984 Regular Season:
Chippewas vs. Western Michigan Broncos

     1984 was the 90th season of Chippewas football, and ninth in the Mid-American Conference. The Chippewas were coached by Herb Deromedi, who was in his fifth season at the helm. CMU played it's home games at Kelly/Shorts Stadium, which was renamed to honor former head coach Ken "Wild Bill" Kelly, who coached CMU to a 91-58-2 record from 1951-66.
     CMU Football was a strong mid-major program under Deromedi, and 1984 was no different. Coming off a 8-3 season in 1983, the Chips finished with a near identical 8-2-1 mark in 1984 (6-2-1 in the MAC), finishing in third place in the conference.
     The Chippewas were strong on both sides of the ball, especially on defense. CMU held opponents to a mere 12.8 points per game, which was 5th in the nation. The most points allowed by the Chips was 22 in a 45-22 win over Northern Michigan. In their two losses on the season, CMU allowed only 22 points total (8 vs. Northern Illinois, 14 vs. Toledo). Defensive back Mike Kenealy led the team with 4 interceptions, followed by Jim Bowman with 3.
     Central was 33rd in the nation on offense, scoring 25.6 points per game. The Chippewas' ground game was led by Curtis Adams, a 6', 185 lb. senior from Muskegon Orchardview High School. Adams, in his final year in Maroon and Gold, rushed for 1,204 yards and 13 touchdowns. Adams still holds the school record for career rushing yards, with 4,162 and rushing attempts, with 761. Adding to the run game was junior Tony Brown, who rushed for 475 yards on 81 attempts, with 2 touchdowns.
     The passing attack was led by senior Bob DeMarco. DeMarco, out of Monroe, went 98-173 for 1,427 yards, 12 touchdowns and 4 interceptions. Backup Ron Fillmore, a sophomore from Sanford-Meridian, went 18-24 for 277 yards and 3 touchdowns.

1984 CMU Chippewas Team Photo

     In the modern era, Deromedi's 1984 Chippewas would have easily qualified for a postseason bowl game. The same could be said for many CMU teams from Deromedi's coaching era. However, back in the 1980s, only the MAC Champions would qualify for a bowl game, the California Bowl vs. the champion of the Pacific Coast Athletic Association.
     This program is from the annual battle between the Chippewas and arch-rival Western Michigan. The Broncos were coached by former Michigan assistant Jack Harbaugh, whose sons, Jim and John, now coach the Michigan Wolverines and Baltimore Ravens, respectively. Western was coming into Kelly/Shorts with a 2-0 record (1-0 in the MAC) and was Central's first opponent in conference play. Deromedi was 5-0-1 against the Broncos in his career, and Western had not beaten CMU in the series since 1976. In front of the largest crowd of the season at Kelly/Shorts (28,463), the Chippewas downed the Broncos, 38-19. Western would go on to finish the year with a mediocre 5-6 record.
     I just got this program online a few days ago. It's 64 pages, all black-and-white, and loaded with local ads, articles and pictures. CMU was honoring the 1974 Division II National Championship squad at halftime of this game, and a recap of that year is featured on pages 62-63. Player profiles of defensive back Kevin Kolcheff and defensive tackle Greg Rehmann are on page 61. The Men's and Women's basketball schedules are included on page 54. Local advertisements include Brass Saloon (128 S. Main), The Morning Sun, The Student Book Exchange, Freddie's Bar, and Tuma's Country Store. There are even beer ads (odd, since alcohol isn't served at Kelly/Shorts Stadium), such as Stroh's, Labatt's and Miller High Life.
   

References:

"The Official 2018 Chippewa Football Media Guide", CMU Athletics

"1984 Central Michigan Chippewas Stats", from SportsReference.com