Defensive line

A defense that gives up 43 points per game is nothing to brag about. Central Michigan University came into the season picked to finish second in the MAC West but is 1-3 and ranked in ESPN’s bottom 10, thanks to a defense that gives up 509 yards of total offense a game.

NIU defensive end Larry English has more sacks than the entire Chippewas team combined.

Out of four total team sacks, CMU sophomore defensive end Larry Knight has two of them. Knight also leads the D-line with 22 tackles. After being an All-MAC second team selection last year, senior Steven Friend has taken a step back with only 10 tackles in four games. Friend was second on the team in sacks last year behind former Chippewa and current Chicago Bear Dan Bazuin.

Senior nose guard Casey Droscha broke into the starting line up during the second half of last season and led the team in tackles during the MAC Championship game against Ohio.

Sophomore Frank Zombo moved from tight end to defensive end before last season and saw limited action before being named a starter this year. Zombo currently ranks second in tackles among the D-line with 17.

Grade- D+

Linebackers

If there is one strength for CMU on defense, it’s the linebacking corps. The group consists of the top three leading tacklers on the team.

Senior Red Keith currently leads the team with 45 tackles and is the fifth-leading tackler in the MAC. Keith has led the Chippewas in tackles each of the last three seasons and leads all returning players in Football Bowl Subdivision with 326 career tackles. Also, his 9.05 tackles per game is second-best among returning FBS players.

Senior Ike Brown moved to linebacker in 2005 but an injury last year forced him to miss all but two games.

True Freshman Nick Bellore is the middle linebacker and has made an immediate impact, collecting 33 tackles in four games.

Grade- B-

Secondary.

CMU has one of the worst secondaries in all of college football. The Chippewas have given up 327.5 passing yards per game, giving them the worst pass defense in the MAC. Opponents have an eye-popping 71.6 passing percentage against the Chippewas.

Part of the reason why CMU hasn’t had much success in the secondary is because each of its starters is only sophomores. Free safety Calvin Hissong was an honorable mention Freshman All-America selection by Sporting News last year and is the team’s fourth-leading tackler.

Cornerback Chaz West is the only other player among the secondary with experience in the backfield as he played in all 14 games last year.

Grade- D-

Special Teams

Kick returner Antonio Brown is fifth in the MAC in returns with an average of 25.9 per return. The true freshman also averages 12.4 yards per punt return, good enough for third in the MAC.

The kicking game is the downfall of the CMU special teams. Chippewa punter Tony Mikulec is last in the MAC in punting, averaging only 39.2 yards per punt. However, CMU has only made one field goal so far this year.

Grade- C