Eastern Michigan Athletics
A Road Trip Down Memory Lane: We Got Us A Convoy
10/29/2015 1:00:00 PM | Football
This story appears in the EMU-WMU football game program released on Oct. 29, 2015
By Jim Streeter,
EMU Emeritus Sports Information Director
What better time to look back at history then tonight's nationally televised Thursday game against Western Michigan.
EMU's first-ever nationally televised football game was also held on a Thursday night, Nov. 5, 1987, in Toledo, Ohio and was also part of the first of three "Convoy" games during the 1987 and 1989 seasons that saw EMU fans fill up multiple buses to cheer on their football team at road games.
The first of those three "Convoys" came during that 1987 season when Head Coach Jim Harkema's squad found itself in the chase for a league title and a berth in the California Raisin Bowl late in the season. That '87 team would go on to not only win its first MAC football crown, but would also beat San Jose State by a 30-27 count in that Raisin Bowl contest.
The second two "Convoys" were planned and executed to perfection in 1989 as once again the then-Hurons were squarely in the hunt for league crowns as the seasons wound down.
"Our intramural staff and I were part of all three convoy trips and we had a great time," said Bob England, the director of EMU's intramural department at the time who is now retired from that position. "EMU's students were really fired up to support the football team. There were also many long-time fans on the trip. I think one of the convoys had more than 20 buses while another had 18 and one had 15. There was no doubt that the football team appreciated our support.
"At the Western game our entire convoy was located in one of the end zones and we made so much noise that the home team had to call a couple of time outs to hear the quarterback's signals," England added. "That's how much impact we had on the game."
That excitement on the trips was a special time for the EMU football family and we hope you enjoy these trips down memory lane as we explore our special "Convoys."
Convoy I: Torpedo Toledo
Game 10
Eastern Michigan 38, Toledo 9 (Nov. 5, 1987)
The first of three convoy trips away from Rynearson Stadium was inaugurated in the '87 season, a year that would end up being one of the most magical in the school's football history.
The then-Hurons faced a major hurdle entering the '87 season with five of its eight Mid-American Conference contests slated to be played on the road. That demanding schedule led Harkema to dub his '87 squad the "Road Warriors", symbolizing their uphill battle to capture their first-ever MAC championship while playing five of eight MAC contests away from Rynearson Stadium.
And that '87 EMU team would rise to the occasion, rolling out to a 5-1 MAC record and a 9-2 mark heading into a crucial Nov. 5 league battle at Toledo that was scheduled for a Thursday night under the lights in the Glass Bowl. In addition, the game was scheduled for a live nationally televised audience on ESPN.
The athletic department, joining with several campus organizations, including the Office of Student Affairs, came up with a great scheme to make sure that the Hurons had a crowd of supporters on hand for the key battle.
That first convoy would be called "Torpedo Toledo" and more than 20 buses filled to the max with EMU fans would make that short ride down US-23 to Toledo for the game. The convoy included a game ticket, box lunch, bus ride and a green t-shirt.
With that large contingent of EMU fans packing the Glass Bowl's visitor's stands, the football squad would turn up the volume with a decisive 38-9 victory over Toledo.
Sports writer Don Vanderveen would describe the setting in his exhilarating game story printed in the Friday, Nov. 6, edition of The Ypsilanti Press.
EMU Tops Toledo in Nationally Televised Game
By Don Vanderveen
Ypsilanti Press Sports Writer
TOLEDO — A big, bright moon loomed ominously over Toledo's Glass Bowl on a cold evening but it was Eastern Michigan's night to shine as the Hurons claimed their first Mid-American Conference football championship in a big way.
Playing in front of a national television audience and 17,041 more fans at the Glass Bowl, EMU's "Road Warriors" clinched no less than a share of the MAC title with a convincing 38-9 win over the Rockets Thursday.
A better scenario couldn't have been written for Eastern Michigan.
The Hurons, who were 2-24-1 in their previous 27 games on artificial turf, ignored Toledo Coach Dan Simrell's 25-4 record in the Glass Bowl to score the most points ever for EMU Coach Jim Harkema and clinch the title on the road.
EMU's iron man offensive guard Brian Clouse, who has started in 42 straight games, was credited with his first touchdown when he recovered a Jimmie Johnson fumble in the end zone.
Huron quarterback Ron Adams, perhaps the most brave of the "Road Warriors" and a symbol of the winning drive this team has shown, had his finest game of the season by completing 11 of 19 passes for 207 yards and a touchdown and running seven times for 55 yards and two more touchdowns.
Running back Gary Patton, perhaps the finest player ever at EMU, rushed for 70 yards to surpass the 1,000-yard marker for the second consecutive season and also become EMU's all-time leading rusher. Patton has 1,032 on the season.
And the Huron defense, allowing an average of more than 20 points a game, came of age by giving up the fewest points of the season as EMU ran up a whopping 521-352 advantage in total yardage.
EMU, which tied its all-time high victory total, raised its record to 8-2 overall and 6-1 in the MAC.
The Hurons can clinch the outright championship and a trip to the Dec. 12 California Bowl in Fresno, Calif. with a victory over Bowling Green at Rynearson Stadium, Nov. 14.
Convoy II: Convoy to K'zoo
Game 5
Eastern Michigan 21, Western Michigan 20 (Nov. 5, 1989)
The second convoy was scheduled for the 1989 season when the Hurons were slated to play a Sept. 30 game at Western Michigan University's Waldo Stadium.
Eastern entered the game with a perfect 2-0 MAC record and a 4-0-1 overall record with hopes of finishing the season with its second league title in the past three years.
Dubbed Convoy II: Convoy to K'Zoo, Eastern fans would jam 16 buses to cheer on their football heroes on the road in Kalamazoo. With the bulk of their seats located in the west end zone, the EMU supporters would create so much noise late in the game that the home squad would have to call a time out so the Bronco offense could hear the quarterback's signals.
In addition to the raucous support, the game also had its own drama as sportswriter Mick McCabe painted the picture in this excerpt from his outstanding game story in the Sunday edition of the Detroit Free Press.
Eastern's Gamble Pays Off, 21-20
By Mick McCabe
Detroit Free Press Sports Writer
KALAMAZOO — Eastern Michigan coach Jim Harkema took out the dice late Saturday afternoon and came up a winner.
Barely.
It wasn't until Jay Baressi's 50-yard field goal attempt with four seconds left faded left of the goal post that Eastern had wrapped up its bizarre 21-20 Mid-American Conference victory over Western Michigan before 21,144 in Waldo Stadium.
The defenses dominated throughout, and Western (3-2, 1-1) had only five yards total offense with 11 minutes left to play and still nearly won the game.
Eastern (4-0-1, 3-0) had 366 yards total offense, but needed a career-best four field goals from Tim Henneghan and a gift safety to go along with Perry Foster's two-yard touchdown run to total 21 points.
Yet, it was Harkema who decided to take a safety with 54 seconds left that allowed Western to get to within a point.
"That was completely my decision on the play at the end," Harkema said. "I wanted to go for the win, not a tie. If we would have punted (from the 9), it almost would have guaranteed a tie. They would have had good field position. Sometimes you roll the dice out there."
Western got good field position when Alan Boykin returned the ensuing kickoff 40 yards to Eastern's 43. Dan Boggan carried the ball three straight times, just missing a first down, and bringing Barresi on the field for the potential game-winning field goal.
"I couldn't look," said Eastern defensive back Jerry Smith, who had two interceptions. "I had my head down and then I saw Donshell (English) jumping up and down."
Bob Navarro, who also had two interceptions (six for the season), had no choice but to watch the kick.
"I was the deep back on the play," he said. "I could tell it was curving left all the way."
That Western was within a point that late was remarkable. It took WMU almost 23 minutes to get its initial first down and complete its first pass. The Broncos didn't get more than one first down on a possession until 9:28 remained in the fourth quarter.
Eastern's offense also sputtered most of the afternoon. But senior quarterback Tom Sullivan, playing with a bruised back that prevented him from practicing most of the week, did complete 13 of 31 passes for 258 yards.
More than anything, I got kind of tired in the fourth quarter," said Sullivan, who prepped at Jackson Lumen Christi.
On the bus ride here we came down through Jackson and I said there was no way in hell I wasn't going to play in this game."
Convoy III: Battle at the Mount
Game 9
Central Michigan 24, Eastern Michigan 9 (Oct. 28, 1989)
After posting wins in the first two convoy games the magic fell short on the third and final one as Convoy III: Battle at the Mount turned into a 24-9 Central Michigan University victory, Oct. 28, 1989, the first league loss of the season for EMU.
Hoping to spur EMU to another road win, the convoy traveled with a large crowd of 1,000 to Mt. Pleasant.
Harkema's Eastern squad would go on to drop a season-ending 23-17 decision at Ball State, leaving the Hurons one game short of a conference title with a second-place finish.
Ypsilanti Press sportswriter Steve Repko described that devastating loss in Mount Pleasant in the following excerpt from his game story.
Mt. Pleasant Still Dismal for EMU
By Steve Repko
Ypsilanti Press Sports Editor
MT. PLEASANT — Eastern Michigan armed its self-destruct button here Saturday, and Central Michigan was more than happy to push it.
As a result, EMU no longer controls the Mid-American Conference's California Raisin Bowl quest.
The Chippewas 24-9 victory over the Hurons, before 20,155 sun-splashed fans in Kelly/Shorts Stadium came from equal doses of EMU's offensive inability to score touchdowns on three golden opportunities early in the game and the EMU defense's game-long inability to tackle CMU tailback Donnie Riley.
It all added up to EMU's first MAC loss in six outings. And, if the Hurons (6-2-1 overall) are to return to Fresno for the second time in three seasons, they need help.
EMU still leads at 5-1, but CMU, 4-1, must lose or tie one of its last three games for the Hurons to get the bowl bid — and that's only if EMU tops Miami of Ohio and Ball State in its final two games.
"It always seems they (CMU) play its best game of the year against us," Huron quarterback Tom Sullivan said in a very quiet locker room after CMU kept its whammy going with the win.
Central is no monkey on Eastern's back. It's a gorilla. King Kong-sized.
Though the Hurons have the MAC's best football record since the start of 1986, they're only 1-3 against the Chippewas in that interim.
EMU Emeritus Sports Information Director
What better time to look back at history then tonight's nationally televised Thursday game against Western Michigan.
EMU's first-ever nationally televised football game was also held on a Thursday night, Nov. 5, 1987, in Toledo, Ohio and was also part of the first of three "Convoy" games during the 1987 and 1989 seasons that saw EMU fans fill up multiple buses to cheer on their football team at road games.
The first of those three "Convoys" came during that 1987 season when Head Coach Jim Harkema's squad found itself in the chase for a league title and a berth in the California Raisin Bowl late in the season. That '87 team would go on to not only win its first MAC football crown, but would also beat San Jose State by a 30-27 count in that Raisin Bowl contest.
The second two "Convoys" were planned and executed to perfection in 1989 as once again the then-Hurons were squarely in the hunt for league crowns as the seasons wound down.
"Our intramural staff and I were part of all three convoy trips and we had a great time," said Bob England, the director of EMU's intramural department at the time who is now retired from that position. "EMU's students were really fired up to support the football team. There were also many long-time fans on the trip. I think one of the convoys had more than 20 buses while another had 18 and one had 15. There was no doubt that the football team appreciated our support.
"At the Western game our entire convoy was located in one of the end zones and we made so much noise that the home team had to call a couple of time outs to hear the quarterback's signals," England added. "That's how much impact we had on the game."
That excitement on the trips was a special time for the EMU football family and we hope you enjoy these trips down memory lane as we explore our special "Convoys."
Convoy I: Torpedo Toledo
Game 10
Eastern Michigan 38, Toledo 9 (Nov. 5, 1987)
The first of three convoy trips away from Rynearson Stadium was inaugurated in the '87 season, a year that would end up being one of the most magical in the school's football history.
The then-Hurons faced a major hurdle entering the '87 season with five of its eight Mid-American Conference contests slated to be played on the road. That demanding schedule led Harkema to dub his '87 squad the "Road Warriors", symbolizing their uphill battle to capture their first-ever MAC championship while playing five of eight MAC contests away from Rynearson Stadium.
And that '87 EMU team would rise to the occasion, rolling out to a 5-1 MAC record and a 9-2 mark heading into a crucial Nov. 5 league battle at Toledo that was scheduled for a Thursday night under the lights in the Glass Bowl. In addition, the game was scheduled for a live nationally televised audience on ESPN.
The athletic department, joining with several campus organizations, including the Office of Student Affairs, came up with a great scheme to make sure that the Hurons had a crowd of supporters on hand for the key battle.
That first convoy would be called "Torpedo Toledo" and more than 20 buses filled to the max with EMU fans would make that short ride down US-23 to Toledo for the game. The convoy included a game ticket, box lunch, bus ride and a green t-shirt.
With that large contingent of EMU fans packing the Glass Bowl's visitor's stands, the football squad would turn up the volume with a decisive 38-9 victory over Toledo.
Sports writer Don Vanderveen would describe the setting in his exhilarating game story printed in the Friday, Nov. 6, edition of The Ypsilanti Press.
EMU Tops Toledo in Nationally Televised Game
By Don Vanderveen
Ypsilanti Press Sports Writer
TOLEDO — A big, bright moon loomed ominously over Toledo's Glass Bowl on a cold evening but it was Eastern Michigan's night to shine as the Hurons claimed their first Mid-American Conference football championship in a big way.
Playing in front of a national television audience and 17,041 more fans at the Glass Bowl, EMU's "Road Warriors" clinched no less than a share of the MAC title with a convincing 38-9 win over the Rockets Thursday.
A better scenario couldn't have been written for Eastern Michigan.
The Hurons, who were 2-24-1 in their previous 27 games on artificial turf, ignored Toledo Coach Dan Simrell's 25-4 record in the Glass Bowl to score the most points ever for EMU Coach Jim Harkema and clinch the title on the road.
EMU's iron man offensive guard Brian Clouse, who has started in 42 straight games, was credited with his first touchdown when he recovered a Jimmie Johnson fumble in the end zone.
Huron quarterback Ron Adams, perhaps the most brave of the "Road Warriors" and a symbol of the winning drive this team has shown, had his finest game of the season by completing 11 of 19 passes for 207 yards and a touchdown and running seven times for 55 yards and two more touchdowns.
Running back Gary Patton, perhaps the finest player ever at EMU, rushed for 70 yards to surpass the 1,000-yard marker for the second consecutive season and also become EMU's all-time leading rusher. Patton has 1,032 on the season.
And the Huron defense, allowing an average of more than 20 points a game, came of age by giving up the fewest points of the season as EMU ran up a whopping 521-352 advantage in total yardage.
EMU, which tied its all-time high victory total, raised its record to 8-2 overall and 6-1 in the MAC.
The Hurons can clinch the outright championship and a trip to the Dec. 12 California Bowl in Fresno, Calif. with a victory over Bowling Green at Rynearson Stadium, Nov. 14.
Convoy II: Convoy to K'zoo
Game 5
Eastern Michigan 21, Western Michigan 20 (Nov. 5, 1989)
The second convoy was scheduled for the 1989 season when the Hurons were slated to play a Sept. 30 game at Western Michigan University's Waldo Stadium.
Eastern entered the game with a perfect 2-0 MAC record and a 4-0-1 overall record with hopes of finishing the season with its second league title in the past three years.
Dubbed Convoy II: Convoy to K'Zoo, Eastern fans would jam 16 buses to cheer on their football heroes on the road in Kalamazoo. With the bulk of their seats located in the west end zone, the EMU supporters would create so much noise late in the game that the home squad would have to call a time out so the Bronco offense could hear the quarterback's signals.
In addition to the raucous support, the game also had its own drama as sportswriter Mick McCabe painted the picture in this excerpt from his outstanding game story in the Sunday edition of the Detroit Free Press.
Eastern's Gamble Pays Off, 21-20
By Mick McCabe
Detroit Free Press Sports Writer
KALAMAZOO — Eastern Michigan coach Jim Harkema took out the dice late Saturday afternoon and came up a winner.
Barely.
It wasn't until Jay Baressi's 50-yard field goal attempt with four seconds left faded left of the goal post that Eastern had wrapped up its bizarre 21-20 Mid-American Conference victory over Western Michigan before 21,144 in Waldo Stadium.
The defenses dominated throughout, and Western (3-2, 1-1) had only five yards total offense with 11 minutes left to play and still nearly won the game.
Eastern (4-0-1, 3-0) had 366 yards total offense, but needed a career-best four field goals from Tim Henneghan and a gift safety to go along with Perry Foster's two-yard touchdown run to total 21 points.
Yet, it was Harkema who decided to take a safety with 54 seconds left that allowed Western to get to within a point.
"That was completely my decision on the play at the end," Harkema said. "I wanted to go for the win, not a tie. If we would have punted (from the 9), it almost would have guaranteed a tie. They would have had good field position. Sometimes you roll the dice out there."
Western got good field position when Alan Boykin returned the ensuing kickoff 40 yards to Eastern's 43. Dan Boggan carried the ball three straight times, just missing a first down, and bringing Barresi on the field for the potential game-winning field goal.
"I couldn't look," said Eastern defensive back Jerry Smith, who had two interceptions. "I had my head down and then I saw Donshell (English) jumping up and down."
Bob Navarro, who also had two interceptions (six for the season), had no choice but to watch the kick.
"I was the deep back on the play," he said. "I could tell it was curving left all the way."
That Western was within a point that late was remarkable. It took WMU almost 23 minutes to get its initial first down and complete its first pass. The Broncos didn't get more than one first down on a possession until 9:28 remained in the fourth quarter.
Eastern's offense also sputtered most of the afternoon. But senior quarterback Tom Sullivan, playing with a bruised back that prevented him from practicing most of the week, did complete 13 of 31 passes for 258 yards.
More than anything, I got kind of tired in the fourth quarter," said Sullivan, who prepped at Jackson Lumen Christi.
On the bus ride here we came down through Jackson and I said there was no way in hell I wasn't going to play in this game."
Convoy III: Battle at the Mount
Game 9
Central Michigan 24, Eastern Michigan 9 (Oct. 28, 1989)
After posting wins in the first two convoy games the magic fell short on the third and final one as Convoy III: Battle at the Mount turned into a 24-9 Central Michigan University victory, Oct. 28, 1989, the first league loss of the season for EMU.
Hoping to spur EMU to another road win, the convoy traveled with a large crowd of 1,000 to Mt. Pleasant.
Harkema's Eastern squad would go on to drop a season-ending 23-17 decision at Ball State, leaving the Hurons one game short of a conference title with a second-place finish.
Ypsilanti Press sportswriter Steve Repko described that devastating loss in Mount Pleasant in the following excerpt from his game story.
Mt. Pleasant Still Dismal for EMU
By Steve Repko
Ypsilanti Press Sports Editor
MT. PLEASANT — Eastern Michigan armed its self-destruct button here Saturday, and Central Michigan was more than happy to push it.
As a result, EMU no longer controls the Mid-American Conference's California Raisin Bowl quest.
The Chippewas 24-9 victory over the Hurons, before 20,155 sun-splashed fans in Kelly/Shorts Stadium came from equal doses of EMU's offensive inability to score touchdowns on three golden opportunities early in the game and the EMU defense's game-long inability to tackle CMU tailback Donnie Riley.
It all added up to EMU's first MAC loss in six outings. And, if the Hurons (6-2-1 overall) are to return to Fresno for the second time in three seasons, they need help.
EMU still leads at 5-1, but CMU, 4-1, must lose or tie one of its last three games for the Hurons to get the bowl bid — and that's only if EMU tops Miami of Ohio and Ball State in its final two games.
"It always seems they (CMU) play its best game of the year against us," Huron quarterback Tom Sullivan said in a very quiet locker room after CMU kept its whammy going with the win.
Central is no monkey on Eastern's back. It's a gorilla. King Kong-sized.
Though the Hurons have the MAC's best football record since the start of 1986, they're only 1-3 against the Chippewas in that interim.
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