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YPSILANTI, Mich. -- After only seven wins in four years, it seemed the outlook couldnt be much worse for the Eastern Michigan football team.Then came April, when a student and faculty report called on the school to consider dropping the sport altogether -- or perhaps stop playing it at the Division I level.Well, the team is still playing -- and playing well. The Eagles have won four of their first five games for the programs best start since 1995, and players know well where things stood just a few short months ago.It just lights a fire under us, defensive lineman Jeremiah Harris said. It doesnt bother us. We just know that the haters are going to hate.Coach Chris Creightons team has won at home, on the road and even against last years Mid-American Conference champions, and the stage is set for the Eagles to play their homecoming game Saturday against Toledo.Theres definitely a buzz, Creighton said. You get more emails, you get more texts and people are excited.EMU hasnt gone to a bowl since 1987. The Eagles came close in 2011 under Ron English, when they snapped a streak of 15 straight losing seasons by going 6-6, but two of their wins were against FCS teams, so they didnt have enough to become bowl eligible.The program declined again immediately after that, and the April report raised concerns about athletic spending at the school, citing a USA Today database that said 80 percent of EMUs athletic budget was subsidized by the rest of the university in 2015. The figure underscores the financial challenges of playing football in Division I without access to the type of revenue generated by schools like Alabama and Michigan -- and its an issue EMU athletic director Heather Lyke does not take lightly.Our goal is definitely to try to continue to increase revenue so we can become less dependent, said Lyke, who took over the athletic department in 2013. Were never not going to be dependent. I dont know if its 90 percent of the schools in the country are dependent on some level of general support, but I think when you look at the television exposure that our team has had -- playing on national television five times this year, compared to none when I first got here -- when were on an ESPN platform, were in 99 million homes, and that is good for the university.EMU responded quickly to the student and faculty report, releasing an open letter saying the school had no plans to drop football or leave the MAC. Lyke played softball at Michigan and worked for over a decade in the athletic department at Ohio State, so shes experienced Division I sports at both ends of the financial spectrum. She says its important for a school like Eastern Michigan to be realistic about who it is measuring itself against -- and that the Eagles can certainly be competitive within the MAC.Still, it can be hard for EMUs football team to find a niche if it isnt winning, especially since the Eagles play about six miles from Michigan Stadium, where over 110,000 fans regularly show up to watch the Wolverines.A couple years ago, when it was time to replace the turf at EMUs home stadium, the school changed the color of the field to gray, trying to create sort of a Midwestern version of what Boise State has done.To connect with this part of the country, southeast Michigan, where its blue collar, Lyke said. The student-athletes love it. Theyll say, `Gray is the new black.This is Creightons third season at the helm, and it began with a 61-14 victory over Mississippi Valley State, the teams highest scoring output since 2004. After a blowout loss at Missouri, the Eagles won at Charlotte and then returned home to play Wyoming in a game televised by CBS Sports Network.In the week leading up to that game, racist graffiti was found on an EMU building, and after the Eagles beat Wyoming, protesters marched on the field . Creighton said his team had met the night before to discuss what was happening on campus and around the country, and he was happy with the dialogue.It was pretty intense, but it was really good, Creighton said. It was a rich discussion, and some people from really kind of opposing viewpoints, but we were still unified. So it was pretty neat.Last weekend, EMU played at Bowling Green, the defending conference champion. The Eagles held on for a 28-25 win, earning their first 4-1 start in 21 years.Now Eastern Michigan will host a high-scoring Toledo team that is favored to beat the Eagles by over two touchdowns, but no matter what happens this weekend, EMU has a start it can build on. Creighton says he wants the program to succeed on the field and off, citing the fact that his team led the MAC in grade-point average the last two seasons.Its not just to win games, Creighton said. I want our program to become a source of pride for this campus and for Ypsilanti and for this region.---Follow Noah Trister at www.Twitter.com/noahtristerAir Force 1 Just Do It White Uk . No. 13-seeded John Isner and No. 21 Philipp Kohlschreiber were among six players who dropped out of the tournament on Tuesday, joining No. 12 seed Tommy Haas and two other players who withdrew on Monday. Nike Air Force 1 Just Do It Uk . "No difference at all," chirped U.S. roommate and linemate James van Riemsdyk. "Its still the same cranky Phil. http://www.airforce1cheapuk.com/ . The native of Mont-Tremblant, Que., captured a World Cup downhill event Saturday, his second this year and fifth career victory on the circuit. Cheap Air Force 1 Wholesale . Jeff Green scored 13 points and Kris Humphries 12 for the Celtics, who nearly blew an 18-point, second-half lead. Sullingers 20-20 was the first by a Celtics player since Kevin Garnetts first game in Boston in 2007. Garnett was dealt -- along with Paul Pierce -- to Brooklyn during the off-season. Air Force 1 Just Do It White For Sale . Booth picked up 65 caps after making her national team debut in 2002 at the age of 17. She most recently played for Sky Blue FC of the National Womens Soccer League. "It just felt like it was my time to move on," she said in a phone interview from her hometown of Burlington, Ont.BEAVER CREEK, Colo. -- The mens World Cup downhill, super-G and giant slalom races at Beaver Creek in two weeks have been canceled because of unseasonably warm weather.The International Ski Federation (FIS) made the decision Thursday on a day when the resort was receiving snow. Its the first time since 2001 that the entire program at Beaver Creek has been scratched, according to the U.S. Ski Team.No makeup dates for the races have been announced.On Wednnesday, FIS said a lack of snow forced the cancellation of the mens World Cup speed races Nov.dddddddddddd 26-27 in Lake Louise, Alberta.It wasnt all bad news for ski racing in North America: FIS confirmed Thursday that the womens World Cup giant slalom and slalom races are a go for Thanksgiving weekend in Killington, Vermont. ' ' '