Week six of the college football season brought many surprises across the entire country, especially in the Mid-American Conference (MAC). The MAC had a display of performances that made a huge rumble in the standings during the weekend.
Here is the week six review for Around The MAC.
Two teams, coincidentally the biggest rivals in the conference, were not on the field during the week six activities: the Bowling Green Falcons (2-3, 0-1) and the Toledo Rockets (3-2, 1-1).
Ohio vs. Ball State
No one heading into Muncie, Indiana, could’ve envisioned this result, as the Ohio Bobcats (3-3, 1-1) entered in as 14.5-point favorites against the Ball State Cardinals (2-3, 1-0).
Despite allowing 262 yards, the Cardinals’ defense managed to hold the top-ranked offense in the MAC to just 14 points the entire afternoon, including sacking senior Parker Navarro quarterback four times.
Ball State’s senior signal-caller, Kiael Kelly, would lead the game-winning drive that would result in a 43-yard pass to senior receiver Qian Magwood for a house call to win the game for the Cardinals, 20-14.
Buffalo vs. Eastern Michigan
The first overtime thriller of the year for the MAC would come from Ypsilanti, Michigan. As the visiting Buffalo Bulls (3-3, 2-0) would earn their second conference win against the Eastern Michigan Eagles in a close win in overtime, 31-30.
While senior quarterback Ta’Quan Roberson would lead the charge for the Blue and White, it was junior receiver Victor Snow who would be the big contributing factor, recording six receptions for 136 yards and two trips to the end zone.
Eastern Michigan in the overtime battle would see senior quarterback Noah Kim try to win the game on a two-point conversion, but he was stopped short of the goal line, securing the win for the Bulls.
Buffalo now retakes the top spot in the standings.
Central Michigan vs. Akron
Another surprising loss in the weekend came from the Central Michigan Chippewas (3-3, 1-1) on the road to the Akron Zips (2-4, 1-1), 28-22.
CMU’s defense, which ranks eighth overall in the conference, gave up 417 yards to a Zips offense that would be the determining factor in the game. Senior quarterback for Akron, Ben Finley, would be a helpful entity in the stat line, going 18 for 29 in passing attempts for 252 yards and three touchdowns on the day.
The Zips’ defense also held Central Michigan’s senior quarterback Joey Labas to only 134 yards passing and a 57.1% completion percentage on the day.
Miami vs. Northern Illinois
The Miami Redhawks (2-3, 1-0) and head coach Chuck Martin were looking for a shot in the arm to begin their journey in conference action. They would be able to deliver against the Northern Illinois Huskies (1-4, 0-1), 25-14.
The Huskies would get out to an early 14-0 start in the first quarter, but the Redhawks’ offense, led by senior quarterback Dequan Finn, would score 25 unanswered points throughout the rest of the day, going up against the third-ranked defense in the MAC led by head coach Thomas Hammock.
Finn would complete 14 of his 26 pass attempts for 170 yards and one passing touchdown to senior wideout Deion Colzie.
Western Michigan vs. Massachusetts
The Western Michigan Broncos (3-3, 2-0) now find themselves on a three-game winning streak, and remain undefeated in MAC play this week after defeating the Massachusetts Minutemen (0-5, 0-1), 21-3.
UMass would be the first to put a mark on the scoreboard with a field goal from sophomore kicker Derek Morris, but it would be their only points of the day as the Minutemen continue to look for their first win of the season.
The Broncos have now made a tremendous jump to second in the standings.
