Kalil Pimpleton leads Central Michigan to first win over Western in four years

Trailing 14-0 in the second quarter, the Central Michigan football team needed an offensive spark with little to no momentum.

Little did they know, that spark would come from the special teams and more specifically, Muskegon high school alum Kalil Pimpleton.

With 5:03 left in the opening half, Pimpleton would field a punt at his own 30-yard line and turn up field, slipping a tackle, juking inside Western Michigan territory and down the sideline to get the Chippewas on the board.

Zach Harig / FOX 17

Four minutes later, Pimpleton would catch an 11-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Daniel Richardson to knot the game 14-14 with 1:03 left in the second quarter.

As if Pimpleton’s five minute spirt in the second quarter couldn’t get more legendary, he would field a punt retreating inside his five-yard line with under ten seconds left in the half and would take it back 97 yards.

Pimpleton 21, Broncos 14 at the half.

Zach Harig / FOX 17

Out of the locker room, after a Western Michigan field goal, the Chippewas would continue their offensive momentum with runningback Lew Nichols III who added an eight-yard touchdown run in the third quarter to make it 28-17 Central.

Western Michigan would score to cut the deficit to four just minutes later as Kaleb Eleby found Corey Crooms for a 31-yard score but it was all Chips down the stretch.

Nichols would score a five-yard touchdown run, his second of the half to extend the lead back to eleven with just 12:57 left.

Zach Harig / FOX 17

The teams would each score one more time in the final minutes as the game drew to a 42-30 close.

The win gives Central Michigan the program’s first win over Western since November 1, 2017.

Pimpleton would finish the game with 115 yards receiving on five catches with the eleven-yard touchdown catch along with the two punt return touchdowns.

Nichols would add 163 yards rushing on 26 carries and two touchdowns as the team improves to 5-4 overall and 3-2 in the MAC with a sliver of hope of a MAC West title still remaining in the final weeks of the season.