Central Michigan — Mid-American
HC
Matt Drinkall · Kelly/Shorts Stadium · Mount Pleasant, MI · 30,255 cap
PPA off / def
0.14 / 0.08
2025
Class rank
#95
class of 2026
Returning PPA
54%
returning production
2026 schedule
2025 results (7–6)
Statistical comps — 2025 Central Michigan's closest analogs
Nearest neighbors by z-scored success rate, explosiveness, run rate & havoc (offense + defense), 2015–25.
2025 leaders
Transfer portal — 2026 (12 in / 17 out)
| Incoming |
|---|
| Justin Taylor | S | ← Wyoming | ★★★ |
| Nic DiSanto | OT | ← Eastern Illinois | ★★★ |
| Darrell Bryant Jr. | S | ← Northern Colorado | ★★★ |
| Dontae Robinson | TE | ← Sacramento State | ★★★ |
| Shawn Foster | WR | ← Michigan State | ★★ |
| Jaden Allen | TE | ← Fordham | ★★ |
| Gavin Spillers | TE | ← Mars Hill | |
| Donavan Philord | CB | ← Campbell | ★★★ |
| + 4 more |
| Outgoing |
|---|
| Brenden Deasfernandes | CB | → Northwestern |
| Langston Lewis | WR | → uncommitted |
| Apisa Poumele | IOL | → Coastal Carolina |
| Tyson Davis | WR | → Virginia |
| Kalen Carroll | CB | → TCU |
| Travis Ambrose | TE | → uncommitted |
| Bryce Rowe | CB | → uncommitted |
| Jordan Kelly | WR | → uncommitted |
| + 9 more |
Origins
LeFevour threw and ran for more than 15,000 combined yards and won three MAC titles between 2006 and 2009. Butch Jones and Brian Kelly both left here for bigger jobs.
Founded 1892 · A private normal school the state absorbed in 1895 · first football 1896 · defined by Dan LeFevour
All-time record
All-time
319–285–11
1931–2025
Win %
52.8%
67 seasons played
Winning seasons
31
46% of seasons
By level: ii/iii 2–10 (1931–1969) · D-II 4–6 (1970–1974) · FBS 313–269–11 (1975–2025)
| Best seasons | W | L | Conference |
|---|
| 2009 | 12 | 2 | Mid-American |
| 1979 | 10 | 0 | Mid-American |
| 1977 | 10 | 1 | Mid-American |
| 2006 | 10 | 4 | Mid-American |
| 1980 | 9 | 2 | Mid-American |
Season records from CollegeFootballData, which is why the span starts at 1931 — that is where its coverage of this program begins, not necessarily the first year it fielded a team.
Play-calling tendencies (2025 · garbage time excluded)
| Situation | Plays | Run % | Success % | Nat'l | Avg yds | Expl % |
|---|
| 1st down | 297 | 67% |
43% | 80 of 136 | 5.7 | 11% |
| 2nd down | 229 | 65% |
40% | 90 of 136 | 5.6 | 10% |
| 3rd & short (≤3) | 39 | 87% |
56% | — | 0.1 | 3% |
| 3rd & medium (4–7) | 41 | 56% |
37% | — | 4.3 | 10% |
| 3rd & long (8+) | 64 | 39% |
20% | — | 7.4 | 9% |
| 4th down | 22 | 59% |
64% | — | 4.2 | 18% |
143 drives · 27% ended in points · 7.1 plays and 35.7 yards per drive · 0.70 PPA per drive
Success: 50% of yardage needed on 1st, 70% on 2nd, 100% on 3rd/4th. Explosive: 12+ yd rush / 16+ yd pass. National rank is shown only for 1st and 2nd down, where every team has 100+ plays; the later buckets average 18-43 and a rank there would be noise.
League leaderboard →Most valuable plays (by PPA, 2025)
| Wk | Opp | Play | Yds | PPA |
|---|
| 4 | Wagner |
Joe Labas pass complete to Nahree Biggins for 88 yds for a TD (Cade Graham KICK) |
88 | 6.73 |
| 10 | Western Michigan |
(07:35) Shotgun #2 J.Labas pass complete short middle to #20 L.Lewis caught at CMU36, for … |
77 | 6.21 |
| 12 | Buffalo |
J. Labas pass to L. Lewis for 75 yds, for a TD (C. Graham KICK) |
75 | 6.08 |
| 9 | Massachusetts |
(13:17) Shotgun #2 J.Labas pass complete short right to #22 B.Townsend caught at UMass45, … |
51 | 4.76 |
| 8 | Bowling Green |
Joe Labas pass complete to Collin Payne for 63 yds to the BGSU 16 for a 1ST down |
63 | 4.62 |
| 10 | Western Michigan |
(14:58) Shotgun #10 M.Beamon pass complete deep left to #3 T.Davis caught at WMU02, for 33… |
33 | 4.40 |
| 14 | Toledo |
(04:18) Shotgun #2 J.Labas pass complete deep right to #3 T.Davis caught at Toledo40, for … |
36 | 4.07 |
| 6 | Akron |
Brock Townsend run for 46 yds to the AKR 34 for a 1ST down |
46 | 4.06 |