Chippewas Football (MAC, 2001)

2001 Regular Season:
Chippewas vs. Toledo Rockets

      Head Coach Mike DeBord had his work cut out for him entering the 2001 season. Central Michigan finished the previous season at a forgettable 2-9, one of the worst seasons in program history. The program had been in steady decline since the 1994 MAC Title, and needed to be rebuilt.
     2001 wasn't much better for the Chippewas, as they finished 3-8 on the year (2-6 MAC). That was good enough for fifth place in the MAC West, just ahead of woeful Eastern Michigan.
     The Chips improved somewhat on offense and defense in 2001. On the offensive side of the ball, they were ranked 83rd in the nation, scoring 22.8 points per game. The starting quarterback that year was Derrick Vickers, a sophomore from Miami, who led CMU to a shocking win over arch-rival Western Michigan last season. Vickers completed 116 out of 221 passes for 1,156 yards, 7 touchdowns and 6 interceptions. On the ground, the agile Vickers also added 155 yards on 53 carries. Looking back, I think Derrick was a decent quarterback on a struggling team, and didn't have too much to work with in his career. His backup, Derek Gorney, completed 74 out of 150 passes for 831 yards, 5 touchdowns and 7 interceptions.
     The rushing game saw significant improvement this season, thanks to Terrance Jackson. Jackson, a sophomore out of Somerset, New Jersey, had a big season, rushing for 1,194 yards on 252 carries, scoring 10 touchdowns. A highlight of the season came in Week 9, when Jackson tore apart Eastern for 207 yards in a 35-30 CMU win in Mount Pleasant. He was placed on the Second Team All-MAC and named winner of the Herb Deromedi Most Valuable Player award.
     Helping out Jackson in the run game was Kenan Lawhorne,a sophomore from Miami. Lawhorne had a career year on the ground, rushing for 506 yards on 99 caries and 4 touchdowns. The leading receiver on the Chippewas was Rob Turner, a junior out of Fort Lauderdale, who caught 50 passes for 668 yards and 4 touchdowns, career highs.
     Defense also improved their rankings slightly. Central allowed about 31.5 points per game, ranked 87th in Division 1. The star of the defense that year would have to be defensive back James King, a sophomore from Oak Park. King was especially dangerous on special teams, blocking a school record 8 during the season. He had a monster of a game against Michigan State in Week 2, blocking 4 kicks against the Spartans, 2 of which were returned for touchdowns. For his effort in the 35-21 loss to MSU, King was awarded the FWAA Bronko Nagurski Defensive Player of the Week Award. At season's end, King was named to the Sporting News' Second Team Freshman All-American squad. He is still fourth on CMU's career tackles record.

2001 Chippewas team photo

     I went to a couple games this season. This program is from the September 22nd game vs. the Toledo Rockets. Toledo had a powerful team that year, finishing 10-2, winning the MAC Championship and the Motor City Bowl and finishing the season ranked #23 in the nation. The Chippewas were 1-1 heading into this game, but got run over by the Rockets, 52-28. CMU would go 2-7 the rest of the way, with wins over Buffalo and Eastern Michigan.
     While 3-8 isn't exactly an impressive year, there was talent on the roster. Terrance Jackson gave the run game a shot in the arm, and Vickers was a dual-threat quarterback. I remember hoping that the team would be a contender in the future.
     The programs for the 2001 season are nearly identical to the 2000 programs. They are 56 pages, all in black and white, and loaded with local ads, stats and articles. There are two Senior Profile articles. On page 2, linebacker Finley Carter is featured. Carter spent three seasons as a secondary backup before a position switch put him in the starting lineup. His goal was to get into law enforcement after his college career was over, and his dream was to work with the FBI or ATF. The second Senior Profile is on page 54, and features kicker Paul Savich. Savich's father, Rade, was kicker at CMU from 1976-79, and was (as of 2001) the school's all-time leading scorer, with 274 points. Paul ended his career with 208 points, then went on to play arena football in Peoria and Quad Cities.
     The Boyden Award winner of 2001 is announced on page 36. Star basketball player David Webber was that year's recipient. Webber helped raise money for youth groups and volunteered at hospitals and was member of the Student Athletic Advisory Board.
     Local advertisements include Blodgett Oil Company, Taco Boy, The Morning Sun and The Sweet Onion. The CMU Bookstore (located in the Bovee University Center) has a full page color ad on the back cover. Unlike the 1984 Chippewas program, there are no alcohol ads in this one.

References:

"2001 Central Michigan Chippewas Gameday Program"

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

"2001 Central Michigan Chippewas Stats", from Sports-Reference.com