CHIPPEWAS FALL IN NEW MEXICO BOWL
2019 New Mexico Bowl
San Diego State 48, Central Michigan 11
Box Score
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. -- Central Michigan's remarkable turnaround season came to a disappointing end on Saturday with a 48-11 loss to San Diego State in the New Mexico Bowl at Dreamstyle Stadium. The Chippewas finished 8-6 after going 1-11 a year ago, and the seven-win improvement was the biggest among all Football Bowl Subdivision teams.
"It was an incredible year," said first-year CMU coach Jim McElwain, who has logged more than 30 years in the college football coaching game. "One of the most enjoyable years I've ever had doing this. Great people, great coaches, and a group of guys in that locker room that no one gave a chance. To our seniors who made the choice and the decision to make something out of nothing, I'm really proud of them."
The Chippewas lost their final two games. They fell in the Mid-American Conference Championship Game two weeks ago to Miami (Ohio), 26-21, at Ford Field in Detroit.
That game went down to the wire with the Chippewas' still swinging with a Hail Mary pass as time expired. CMU was on its heels from the get-go on Saturday against the Aztecs (10-3), who took command early in the second quarter and then moved the ball almost at will all day long.
"Disappointed with the last two ball games," McElwain said. "We came a long ways, but now the next step as we build this program is to learn what we need to do to take the next step and become a consistent winner."
CMU didn't do itself any favors as quarterback Quinten Dormady threw three first-half interceptions and San Diego State built a 20-3 halftime lead. CMU committed five turnovers on the day.
The Aztecs intercepted Dormady on the third play of the game and, four plays later, were in the end zone.
The Aztecs, who finished with 510 total yards, scored two TDs in the first six minutes of the third quarter to up their lead to 34-3 and make the second half largely academic.
McElwain said the bowl-game loss is a signal of where the Chippewas need to put their focus going forward.
"(The season) was a great success," he said. "It didn't end the way we wanted it to. You learn from your failures, that's what you do and that's how you become successful.
"These are the kind of games we have to get used to playing; these are the type of teams we've got to get used to playing against. And these are the type of teams that we should want to play against, and that's what this offseason is going to be all about.
"It's only the beginning, it's the beginning of something really great at Central Michigan University, and I'm really proud to be a Chippewa. I can't wait to get started after this break."'
Kobe Lewis ran 66 yards for a touchdown with 5:13 to play in the third quarter, cutting the Chippewas' deficit to 34-11.
On the run, Lewis surpassed the 1,000-yard rushing mark for the season and he teamed with Jonathan Ward to make CMU history. It marks the first time that the Chippewas have had two 1,000-yard rushers in the same season. Ward, a senior, finished the year with 1,108 yards, while Lewis, a sophomore, had 1,074.
"That was a goal we set out for each other as the season began," Lewis said. "That was something he wanted to see me do, and obviously it was something I wanted to see him do. Me being a young guy, the vision wasn't as clear to me as it was to him. He believed in me and that was a big thing. I appreciate him. He let me know that I could it as he did when he was a sophomore."
