Last month Jim McElwain announced that this would be retiring from head coaching. McElwain was 33-36 in six season at the helm of the Chippewas. Here is a look at the Central Michigan Chippewas football program since 2008 (the first year that in which I have data for the model). This time period only covers the last two seasons of head football coach Butch Jones (2007-2009), Dan Enos (2010-2014), John Bonamego (2015-2018) and Jim McElwain (2019-2024). After the figure below is a more detailed look at the Central Michigan Chippewas football program during head coach McElwain's tenure based on the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model using data provided by www.cfbstats.com. (The vertical school color bars represent seasons where head coaches changed).
2019 Mid-American Conference Runner-Up
The Chippewas finished the regular season at 8-4, while playing against an “average” strength
of schedule (SOS); meaning that Central Michigan's SOS was plus or minus one standard deviation of the "leagues" average SOS. Central Michigan's played in their conference championship game where they were defeated by #108 ranked Miami (OH) by a score of (21-26). The Chippewas played their post-season bowl game against #23 ranked San Diego State and were defeated by a score of (11-48) to finish the season at 8-6 overall. Central Michigan's best win
was against #51 ranked Ball State by a
score of (45-44) and their worst loss was to #46 ranked Western Michigan by a
score of (15-31). Central Michigan was the #66 ranked team overall, with the #46 ranked
offense and the #84 ranked defense using the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model from the data provided from www.cfbstats.com.
2020
The Chippewas finished the COVID shortened regular season at 3-3, while playing against an “average” strength
of schedule (SOS). Central Michigan's
best win
was against #67 ranked Ohio by a
score of (30-27) and their worst loss was to #45 ranked Western Michigan by a
score of (44-52). Central Michigan was the #69 ranked team overall, with the #90 ranked
offense and the #37 ranked defense using the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model from the data provided from www.cfbstats.com.
Central Michigan finished the regular season at 8-4,while playing against an “easier” strength
of schedule (SOS); meaning that the Chippewas SOS was between one and two standard deviations higher than the "leagues" average SOS. Central Michigan defeated #61 ranked Washington State by a score of (24-21) to finish the season at 9-4 overall. The Chippewas' best win
was against #15 ranked Toledo by a
score of (26-23) and their worst loss was to #90 ranked LSU by a
score of (21-49). Central Michigan was the #34 ranked team overall, with the #26 ranked
offense and the #58 ranked defense using the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model from the data provided from www.cfbstats.com.
2022
The Chippewas finished the regular season at 4-8, while playing against an “easier” strength
of schedule (SOS). Central Michigan's
best win
was against #99 ranked Northern Illinois by a
score of (35-22) and their worst loss was to #114 ranked Bowling Green by a
score of (18-34). Central Michigan was the #101 ranked team overall, with the #107 ranked
offense and the #61 ranked defense using the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model from the data provided from www.cfbstats.com.
2023
The Chippewas finished the regular season at 5-7, while playing against an “average” strength
of schedule (SOS). Central Michigan's
best win
was against #20 ranked South Alabama by a
score of (34-30) and their worst loss was to #129 ranked Michigan State by a
score of (7-31). Central Michigan was the #102 ranked team overall, with the #101 ranked
offense and the #85 ranked defense using the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model from the data provided from www.cfbstats.com.
2024
Head
coach McElwain retired at the end of season where the Chippewas were 4-8 overall. The Chippewas played
against an “average”
strength
of schedule (SOS). Central Michigan's best win
was against #76 ranked Western Michigan and their
worst loss was to #115 ranked Eastern Michigan (34-38). Central Michigan is currently the #103 ranked team overall, with the #115 ranked
offense and the #89 ranked defense using the Complex Invasion College Football Production Model from the data provided from www.cfbstats.com.
2024 FBS Head Coach Changes