Wednesday, MAC football was officially back with a full slate of games. Here are how all of the games throughout the conference played out.
Western Michigan 58, Akron 13
In the first game of the night, the Broncos rolled the Zips 58-13. The Zips are coming off of a winless season in 2019 and were not expected to compete with the Broncos, which finished second in the MAC West last year. The Broncos took a 30-13 lead into halftime before shutting out Akron in the second half and outscoring them 28-0. Kaleb Eleby completed 12 of 16 passes for 262 yards and three scores, two of those going to D’Wayne Eskridge who had three catches for 114 yards and those two touchdowns. The Broncos host Toledo next Wednesday while the Zips will travel to Ohio on Tuesday.
Eastern Michigan 23, Kent State 27
Kent State racked up over 200 rushing yards last night to survive a second-half comeback from the Eagles. On top of the rushing, Dustin Crum threw 219 yards for two scores and one interception for the Golden Flashes. Isaiah McKoy dominated on the outside with eight catches for 104 yards and a touchdown. Eastern Michigan threw the ball 35 times as they trailed for the entire game, with Hassan Beydoun catching nine balls for 122 yards and Preston Hutchinson completing 21 of 35 passes for 241 yards. He threw two touchdowns but had two crucial interceptions. Kent State plays at Bowling Green on Tuesday while Eastern Michigan goes to Ball State.
Ball State 31, Miami 38
In a battle of two of the best offenses in the MAC, Miami prevailed. With Brett Gabbert injured early, AJ Mayer played brilliantly in his absence (16 of 24, 212 yards, three touchdowns) and was supported by a brilliant seven-catch, 139-yard performance receiving for Jack Sorenson. Zach Kahn scored twice on the ground for the RedHawks as well. Ball State got a phenomenal performance (21 carries, 130 yards, two touchdowns) and also got a combined 234 receiving yards out of Justin Hall and Antwan Davis. Drew Plitt was 19 of 32 passing for 309 yards and a touchdown, but threw a crucial late-game interception to seal it for Miami. Miami travels to Buffalo for a huge tilt with the Bulls Tuesday, while Ball State hosts Eastern Michigan.
Ohio 27, Central Michigan 30
In a tight back-and-forth affair in Mount Pleasant, the Chippewas were victorious. Kobe Lewis carried the ball 28 times for 112 yards and two touchdowns while Daniel Richardson threw for 243 yards and two total touchdowns as David Moore’s replacement due to a suspension. Kurtis Rourke had a solid first career start as a true freshman with 231 yards passing and two touchdowns. Ohio hosts MAC bottom dweller Akron next week and Central Michigan hosts Northern Illinois.
Buffalo 49, Northern Illinois 30
Northern Illinois hung with the MAC favorite Buffalo for the first half last night, but a big third quarter pulled the Bulls away. Jaret Patterson showed why he is the MAC’s best player, running for 138 yards and two touchdowns. The Bulls pulled away with two huge defensive plays, which were both scoop and score fumble returns in the third quarter by Tim Terry Jr. and Isaiah King. Ross Bowers threw for 217 yards and a score for the Huskies while Erin Collins, Rodney Thompson and Andrew Haidet all added rushing scores. NIU travels to Central Michigan next week while Buffalo has a giant home matchup with Miami.
Bowling Green 3, Toledo 38
In the classic rivalry matchup, Toledo brought the house. Toledo jumped all over the Falcons with a three-touchdown lead in the first quarter from three Eli Peters passing touchdowns, who played a phenomenal game. Toledo rolled up 524 yards of offense with 310 of those being rushing yards led by Shakif Seymour and Bryant Koback. Matt McDonald struggled mightily in his first start going 8 of 30 for 128 yards and two interceptions. The Falcons had trouble on the ground as well with Andrew Clair also exiting via injury in the third quarter. Toledo goes to Kalamazoo next week to face Western Michigan while the Falcons host Kent State.
