Central Michigan Football: Season preview, prediction for 2019

How will Central Michigan football fare this football season with new head coach Jim McElwain at the helm? We preview the Chippewas’ 2019 outlook.

Things were anything but pleasant at Central Michigan last season with the Chippewas going an abysmal 1-11 last year. In comes former Colorado State and Florida head coach Jim McElwain.

The positive — if there is one — about going 1-11 is you have nowhere to go but up. How will Central Michigan do this upcoming season? Who will start at quarterback? Who will step up and replace key pieces on defense?

Here’s a look at the offense, defense and a 2019 prediction.

Previewing the offense

The Chippewas could not muster many points last season — they scored 20 or more points a mere four times in 2018. Although they weren’t shut out last year, they were held to seven points twice.

According to collegefootballnews.com, Central Michigan was dead-last in first downs, and next to last in the nation with a meager 255 yards and 15 points per game. Jim McElwain and offensive coordinator Charlie Frye have to fix the quarterback position. Last season was a quarterback carousel. As the cliche goes, if you have two quarterbacks you don’t have any.

Bill Connelly of SB Nation wrote that at least four quarterbacks threw at least 22 passes and no quarterback threw 150 total. McElwain needs to establish some stability at quarterback.

There is some hope for the offense, however. Both Houston transfer quarterback Quinten Dormady and Virginia Tech transfer running back Khalil Pimpleton were brought in to bolster a skill position group that had neither a 1,000-yard passer, neither a 500-yard rusher.

Also former four-star athlete Tony Poljan was converted from quarterback to tight end to add size to a rather weak receiving corps.