It’s officially time for full-time Mid-American Conference play to begin. This week, twelve MAC teams are playing six in-conference games.
First up at noon, Ball State travels to Kent State, while Buffalo hosts Toledo.
Ball State vs. Kent State
Ball State is coming off a 3-point loss to Western Michigan last week. Despite starting strong, with 14 points in the first quarter and an impressive 97-yard kickoff return by Malcolm Gillie, the Cardinals just couldn’t find a way to finish out the game strong enough.
Quarterback Kadin Semonza and wide receiver Cam Pickett had a connection throughout the game, but they were outscored by the Broncos in the final quarter. The Cardinals will need to find a way to keep their momentum rolling the entire game moving forward.
Kent State is still waiting for their first win of the season. The Golden Flashes are coming off a bye-week, but before that were defeated by Eastern Michigan 52-33.
The Kent State offense far outshined their defense in that game against the Eagles. Quarterback Tommy Ulatowski threw a 65-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Chrishon McCray, tying the game at 21-all. Overall, Ulatowski threw for three touchdowns and ran for four.
Kent State’s defense never found its footing. They allowed Eastern Michigan’s running back, Delbert Mimms III, to run for two touchdowns and a career-high 145 yards. They also allowed EMU’s quarterback, Cole Snyder, to end up with 25-of-32 passing for 211 yards and a touchdown and no interceptions.
The defensive unit at Kent State will need to be able to put something together to stop Ball State’s offense on Saturday.
Toledo at Buffalo
The other game that will happen at noon on Saturday will be in Buffalo when the Bulls host the Rockets of Toledo.
Toledo most recently beat Miami, OH. Toledo’s offense was off to a hot start in their game against Miami, scoring two touchdowns and two field goals within the first half. Dylan Cunanan pulled through for the Rockets with a 21- and 48-yard field goal in the second quarter.
The Rockets’s defense was also very effective on Saturday, holding the RedHawks to only two touchdowns. Defensive tackle Darius Alexander recorded two sacks for his team and five solo tackles. Toledo looks to be in good shape bothoffensively and defensively.
Buffalo is coming off a bye-week. Before that, they fell to UConn 47-3. Despite this loss, the Bulls have a current record of 2-2. They were able to beat previously ranked Northern Illinois University earlier in the season.
In their game against NIU, Upton Bellenfant was a key player for the Bulls. Bellenfant kicked a 42-yard field goal in the second quarter as well as in the last quarter, then pulled through when the game went to overtime, kicking a game-winning 37-yard field goal for his team. Bellenfant has proven to be a very reliable player for the Bulls in all their games so far this season.
Miami at Eastern Michigan
Miami, OH, will travel to Ypsilanti to take on the Eastern Michigan Eagles on Saturday.
The RedHawks from Oxford are coming off a loss to Toledo last Saturday.
After not being able to score a touchdown in the first half, Miami ended the game with only two touchdowns. They relied on kicker Dom Dzioban throughout the game to kick field goals for the team to put up a score in the first half. Dzioban hit a 26-yard field goal in the first quarter and a 35-yard field goal in the second.
To put up a fight against Eastern Michigan, the RedHawks offense will need to connect.
Eastern Michigan is coming off a bye-week. Their most recent game resulted in a 52-33 win against Kent State.
Running back Elijah Jackson-Anderson had an impressive game for the Eagles, running in four yards for a touchdown twice, once in the first quarter and once in the second. EMU’s offense has proven they can put up the numbers and will need to do so again against Miami.
Akron at Western Michigan
Western Michigan won their most recent MAC faceoff against Ball State last week. The Broncos put up 21 points in the first quarter alone. Running back Jaden Nixon was a key player for the Broncos, putting up two scoring runs of 21 and 57 yards. Unfortunately for Western, their momentum came and went throughout the game.
They went scoreless in the second quarter, then steadily scored throughout the second half. The Broncos will need to be consistent against the Zips to produce another MAC win this weekend.
Akron is coming off a loss against Bowling Green. The Zips went scoreless in the middle two quarters, opening strong and closing strong with ten points scored in the first and last quarters. Kicker Garrison Smith continued to prove he is a reliable player for Akron, kicking a 47-yard field goal in the first quarter and a 38-yarder in the fourth quarter.
The Zips seemed to be able to start and finish strong, but to win against Western Michigan, the momentum will need to roll throughout the entirety of the gameplay.
Northern Illinois at Bowling Green
Northern Illinois will travel to Bowling Green to take on the Falcon Football team Saturday at 3:30 p.m.
Ohio at Central Michigan
The final MAC showdown of the week will come when the Bobcats from Ohio University travel to Mount Pleasant to take on Central Michigan at 4 p.m.
Ohio had a bye this last week, and before that, they took down Akron 30-10.
After getting off to a slow start with no points scored in the first quarter, the Bobcats picked up momentum throughout the final three quarters.
Wide receiver Coleman Owen and quarterback Parker Navarro connected for two touchdowns, one from an 18-yard pass and one for an impressive 75-yard pass. Navarro was also able to end the game with a three-yard run for a touchdown in the final minute of the game.
Central Michigan is also coming off a bye-week. Before that, they beat San Diego State by one point. The Chips were also able to defeat in-conference opponent Ball State earlier this season.
Quarterback Bert Emanuel Jr. showed his ability in their game against Ball State when he ran 20 yards for a touchdown in the second quarter and 16 yards for a touchdown in the final quarter.
In their game against San Diego State, placekicker Tristan Mattson was the one proving his ability. Mattson kicked 25 34- and 46-yard field goals as well as an extra point kick for ten of the Chippewa’s 22 points in the game.
Both of these players will help their team in valuable ways.
All these in-conference games kick off the first week of complete in-conference MAC play. With closer matchups and rivalries, there are plenty of great games on their way.
