MAC Sports Blog by VanDelay Sports

After falling behind 34-13 at the half, it didn’t look good for the MAC Champion Central Michigan Chippewas. But a 28-point 3rd Quarter saw CMU tie the score at 41-41 before a late drive by Central Michigan tied it again at 48-48 with just over a minute remaining. The time proved to be too much for CMU’s defense as Curtis Painter led Purdue’s offense to a game-winning FG and a 51-48 final in the 2007 Motor City Bowl. In the end, Painter finished with 546 yards passing and 3 TDs to top MAC Offensive Player of the Year Dan LeFevour’s 293 yards and 4 TD performance for CMU.

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It’s halftime at the Motor City Bowl in Detroit, and the Central Michigan Chippewas trail the Purdue Boilermakers 34-13. The CMU defense has struggled to stop Purdue QB Curtis Painter and the Boilermakers’ offense allowing Painter to throw for 339 yards in the 1st half alone.

Central Michigan took an early 3-0 lead after an INT, but Purdue bounced back to score two TDs and take a 14-3 lead. Another CMU field goal cut the lead to 14-6, but Purdue answered with another Curtis Painter TD pass for a 21-6 lead before adding two FGs to make it 27-6. Central Michigan answered with a TD to cut it to 27-13 with around 4 minutes remaining in the half, but a time-consuming Purdue drive resulted in a rushing TD and a 34-13 lead at the half.  The College Sports Fans Motor City Bowl preview picked Purdue 45-28 over CMU and that offensive prediction looks to be rather conservative.

Purdue is playing in their 10th bowl game in 11 years; another bowl game victory would surely cause fans to flock to buy Purdue apparel & merchandise online & at their local stores.

The 2007 Motor City Bowl, like the Las Vegas Bowl, features a rematch between a BCS conference school and a non-BCS conference school. In both games, the BCS school won the first round with Purdue topping Central Michigan 45-22, but CMU has improved througout the season while Purdue has cooled off after their hot start. Check out the College Sports Fans complete Motor City Bowl preview.

Central Michigan QB Dan LeFevour, the MAC Offensive Player of the Year, has added yet another amazing stat to his 2007 season. LeFevour joined former Texas QB Vince Young as the only two players in NCAA history to pass for 3,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards in the same season. Young completed the feat during the 2005 season when Young was the Heisman runner-up and led Texas to the BCS National Championship over USC.