[2] The school fields sixteen men's and women's intercollegiate teams that compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I level.

The university was placed on the NCAA's list of schools with "hostile or abusive" nicknames in August 2005, but appealed the decision, with the support of the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Nation.

When negative reaction to racial stereotypes grew in the 1970s and 1980s, it was recommended by the Michigan Civil Rights Commission that the Chippewas name be dropped.

Instead, in 1989 the university instituted several measures to enhance the name, including introducing special educational programs developed in conjunction with the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Council, headquartered on the local Isabella Indian Reservation; orientation programs were set up to familiarize CMU students and staff with traditional Native American culture; the school's Native American logos were eliminated along with tom-tom drumbeats by the pep bands and other activities that would reflect racial stereotypes.

[5] A member of the West Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC), Central Michigan sponsors teams in six men's and eleven women's NCAA sanctioned sports.

[6] Central's baseball team was NCAA Division II runner-up in 1971, having lost to Florida Southern College 4–0 in the championship game.

Fellow guard Kyle Randall led the MAC in scoring in 2013, averaging 18.7 points per game against conference opponents, en route to earning Second Team All-MAC and NABC All-District recognition.

In 2007, the team defended their MAC Championship title in the game against Miami University, but lost to Purdue in the Motor City Bowl.

[9] In 1958 the men's swimming and diving team was runner-up to North Central College at the second annual NAIA national meet, which was held in Muncie, Ind.

Central Michigan Chippewa wrestling team is led by head coach Tom Borrelli are among the best in the nation each year competing in the NCAA Division I.

The facility is located just steps from the competition floor at McGuirk Arena, providing an ideal warm-up area for the Chippewas during home dual meets.

Early 2000, were then moved to DIV 2 and played instate schools such as Grand Valley, Ferris State, and Western Michigan as a Club sport again for the university.