MAC Notes: Ball State in AP Top 25
October 8th, 2008 by Nick Gerogosian
Nick Gerogosian relishes in all the sports in the Midwest’s favorite small conference. Nick is the MAC-Daddy, the Daddy of the MAC. Check out the rest of his work at VandelaySports.com
MAC Notes:
- Ball State jumped into the top 25 of the Associated Press poll this week. The Cardinals, 6-0, are in the #25 slot, earning the school’s first-ever ranking. BSU is the first MAC team since Bowling Green on Nov. 14, 2004, to be ranked in the A.P. top 25.
- Four of the five visitors in Saturday’s conference games came away with wins. Road Warriors with conquests were Eastern Michigan at Bowling Green 24-21; Temple at Miami 28-10; Akron at Kent State 30-27 in double overtime; and Ball State at Toledo 31-0.
- The MAC is 11-10 in non-conference overtime games, which includes a 2-0 bowl record in extended contests.
- Toledo PK Alex Steigerwald had his MAC record streak of consecutive field goals stopped at 23 when he missed a 27-yard attempt in the third quarter of the Rockets 31-0 loss to Ball State.
- Miami’s Jacob Richardson leads the nation in punting with his 48.08 average. The MAC single season record is 47.9 by UCF’s Matt Prater in 2003.
- Seven of the 14 conference games played thus far in 2008 have been decided by four points or less.
MAC Matchups – Games for Saturday, October 11
Toledo (1-4, 1-1 MAC) at Michigan (2-3, 1-1 Big Ten) – Noon
SITE: Michigan Stadium (106,201/FieldTurf) – Ann Arbor, Mich.
TELEVISION: Big Ten Network (Thom Brennaman, Charles Davis, and Charissa Thompson)
SERIES RECORD: First meeting.
COACHES: UT-Tom Amstutz (56-36, ninth season); UM-Rich Rodriguez (2-3, first season at school; 107-65-2, 16th season overall.).
GAME NOTES:
The Rockets have dropped three in a row, all at home, after last week’s 31-0 loss to Ball State … the Wolverines are coming off a 45-20 home loss to Illinois … UT averaged 33 points per game its first three games of the season but has scored just 16 points total in its last two games … Rockets PK Alex Steigerwald’s streak of 23 consecutive field goals made came to an end last week when his 23-yard attempt hit the right upright … his streak was the third longest in NCAA history … the Rockets rank last in the MAC in scoring defense, allowing 35.8 ppg … freshman Steven Threet directs the UM offense and has passed for 653 yards and two touchdowns and has proven his rushing skills with 89 yards in a comeback win over then No. 9 Wisconsin … UT RB DuJuane Collins is expected to be back after missing the FIU game and playing very little vs. Ball State … Collins had a combined 306 yards and four TDs rushing in back-to-back games vs. Eastern Michigan and Fresno State prior to an injury … QB Aaron Opelt has seven TD passes and just three interceptions this year.
Nick’s Pick: Michigan 55 – Toledo 21
Comment: The Rockets are playing with no heart and no emotion. Even though this is a very bad team by Michigan standards and previous Rocket teams (1999-2005) would have had a real chance to beat this year’s UM squad, the 2008 Rockets are far too unglued to be much of a factor.
Eastern Michigan (2-4, 1-2 MAC) at Army (1-4, Independent) – 1:00
SITE: Michie Stadium (40,000/AstroPlay) – West Point, N.Y.
TELEVISION: ESPN Classic (Eric Collins, Shaun King).
SERIES RECORD: Army leads 1-0 … the Cadets won 57-17 in 1992 at Michie Stadium.
COACHES: EMU-Jeff Genyk (15-37, fifth season); Army-Stan Brock (4-13, second season).
GAME NOTES:
The Cadets have played two MAC teams thus far in 2008 – Temple (L 35-7) and Akron L 22-3), and will play at Buffalo Oct. 18 … last week Army won its first game of the season, 44-13 at Tulane … the Cadets had scored just 37 points in their first four games prior to last week … Army is averaging 222 rushing yards per game, the 16th highest total in the country … EMU has a more balanced offense with its averages of 209 passing yards and 185 rushing yards per game … last week’s 24-21 win at Bowling Green snapped a four-game losing streak …Andy Schmitt has stepped into the starting role at QB and passed for a season-high 253 yards last week, including the game-winner with 36 seconds left to rally the Eagles … EMU’s 12 rushing TDs are second in the MAC, behind only the 18 from Ball State … backs Terrance Blevins (363 yards, 6 TDs) and Dwayne Priest (259, 3) have combined to average 5.0 ypc.
Nick’s Pick: Eastern Michigan 26 – Army 24
Comment: Army played well against a very bad Tulane team last week to notch their first victory. EMU seemed to get back on to the road to recovery with a nice win at BG. Look for the Eagles to make the MAC 3-0 against Army this season.
Ohio (1-5, 0-2 MAC) at Kent State (1-5, 0-2 MAC) – 2:30
SITE: Dix Stadium (25,000/FieldTurf) – Kent, Ohio
TELEVISION: FSN Ohio (Jeff Phelps, Mike Pagel)
SERIES RECORD: Ohio leads 37-21-2 … the visiting team has won the last two games in this series … KSU won last year in Athens 33-25 … Ohio captured the 2006 game at Dix Stadium 17-7.
COACHES: Ohio-Frank Solich (20-23, fourth year at school; 78-42, 10th season overall); KSU-Doug Martin (16-36, fifth season).
GAME NOTES:
Neither team has a win over an FBS (I-A) opponent this season … the Golden Flashes have lost three in a row and dropped a double overtime 30-27 contest to Akron last week at home … the Bobcats fell by a 41-20 count at Western Michigan for their fourth road loss this season … KSU expects RB Eugene Jarvis back this week for the first time since rushing five times for 11 yards vs. Delaware State on Sept. 13 before suffering an injury … Jarvis had 190 total rushing yards in the first two games of the year vs. Boston College (51) and Iowa State (139) … vs. the Zips, Julian Edelman (113), Andre Flowers (85) and Jacquise Terry (60) all had 60 or more rushing yards … the Flashes lead the MAC in rushing at 207.2 ypg … Brian Lainhart had three interceptions for KSU last week … Ohio last started 0-3 in the MAC in 1994 … the Bobcats most recent road win was last year at Bowling Green 38-27 … Boo Jackson passed for three TDs at WMU last week and ranks fourth in the MAC in passing efficiency … TE Andrew Mooney had a career-high five receptions last week and grabbed his 12th career TD, second all-time at Ohio … the Bobcats have suffered a MAC-high 17 turnovers (8 lost fumbles, 9 interceptions).
Nick’s Pick: Ohio 35 – Kent State 30
Comment: Both teams have been their own worst enemies as Ohio ranks #12 in the MAC in turnover ratio (-0.67) and Kent State is dead last (#13; -1.17). Don’t be surprised if both teams combine for five or more turnovers in this contest. In the end, Ohio seems to have their act together more so than KSU right now. From a fan standpoint, this should be a very entertaining contest.
Miami (1-4, 0-1 MAC) at Northern Illinois (2-3, 1-1 MAC) – 3:00 (CT)
SITE: Brigham Field at Huskie Stadium (24,000/FieldTurf) – DeKalb, Ill.
TELEVISION: CSN Chicago (Tom Dore, Dave Kaplan, Bob Chmiel, Jim Blaney)
SERIES RECORD: Miami leads 7-5 … the Huskies won the most recent meeting, 28-25 in 2006 … NIU has won three in a row … the RedHawks last win came in 1998, 41-10 in DeKalb.
COACHES: MIA-Shane Montgomery (16-25, fourth season); NIU-Jerry Kill (2-3, first season at school; 106-60, 15th season overall).
GAME NOTES:
The RedHawks have dropped two in a row after last week’s 28-10 home loss to Temple … the Huskies were edged at Tennessee, 13-9 … NIU’s three losses have come by a combined 11 points to teams with an aggregate 12-5 record … the RedHawks used two QBs last week, with Daniel Raudabaugh (8-of-18 for 65 yards) in the first half and redshirt freshman Clay Belton (14-of-22 for 147 yards, 1 int.)in the second half … Thomas Merriweather added 133 rushing yards and scored Miami’s only touchdown … Merriweather ranks sixth in the MAC in rushing (78.6 ypg) but overall the RedHawks are last in the league with its 80.4 ypg … NIU presents the MAC’s stingiest defense, allowing 289.4 ypg and 15.2 ppg … the Huskies have allowed just one touchdown in the last 12 quarters … at Tennessee, NIU allowed the Vols to convert just 3-of-13 third down attempts and gave up just nine first downs … DE Larry English picked up 2.5 sacks last week to give him 27 for his career, eighth all-time in league history … NIU also leads the MAC in rushing defense (108.8 ypg allowed), net punting (39.9), turnover margin (+4 overall, 0.80 per game), and fewest opponent third downs allowed (29.9 percent.) … Miami’s Jacob Richardson leads the nation in punting (48.08) … Miami’s Joey Hudson has a conference leading 11 tackles per game and Clayton Mullins leads the MAC in tackles for a loss with 7.0 for minus 40 yards.
Nick’s Pick: NIU 30 – Miami 10
Comment: The Huskies are back folks. While a MAC title is not in the mix this season, a winning record certainly will be. NIU should have little trouble with the struggling RedHawks.
Western Michigan (5-1, 3-0 MAC) at Buffalo (2-3, 1-1 MAC) – 3:30
SITE: UB Stadium (29,013/Sportexe Momentum) – Buffalo, N.Y.
TELEVISION: Time Warner Cable Western New York (Howard Simon, Brian Koziol).
SERIES RECORD: WMU leads 3-0 … the Broncos have won the previous meetings in 1999 (45-
17), 2002 (31-17) and 2005 (31-21) … only the 2002 game was at Buffalo.
COACHES: WMU-Bill Cubit (25-17, fourth season at school; 59-35-1, ninth season overall);
UB-Turner Gill (9-20, third season.).
GAME NOTES: The Broncos are on a five-game winning streak after surviving a 41-20 win at home over Ohio … WMU has won five in a row for the first time since an eight-game winning streak in the 2000 season … the win over Ohio was the 500th in program history … QB Tim Hiller passed for 347 yards and four TDs last week, boosting his TD-to-interception ratio to 19-4 for this season … Brandon West provides balance to the Broncos offensive plans with his 95.7 ypg rushing, third best in the MAC, and he leads the MAC in all-purpose yards (171.2 ypg) … WR Jamarko Simmons has a league-high 43 receptions and second best 80.2 ypg receiving … Branden Ledbetter leads all TE with four TD receptions … the Bulls offensive talent is equal to WMU’s … QB Drew Willy has a 12-to-3 TD-to-interceptions ratio and averages 285.5 passing yards per game … James Starks is second in the MAC in rushing at 97.5 ypg … WR Naaman Roosevelt has a league-leading 103.6 receiving yards per game … both defenses will have to be on high alert.
Nick’s Pick: Buffalo 28 – Western Michigan 27
Comment: This should be ‘the MAC game of the week.’ UB is playing very good football and is probably the best team in the east division right now. Western is a solid team as well and will earn one of the MAC bowl bids at season’s end. Expect a thriller in Amherst (NY) with the Bulls squeaking out the victory.
Temple (2-4, 1-2 MAC) at Central Michigan (3-2, 2-0 MAC) – 4:00
SITE: Kelly/Shorts Stadium (30,253/FieldTurf) – Mount Pleasant, Mich.
TELEVISION: None.
SERIES RECORD: CMU leads … the Chippewas won 46-26 in 2006 in Philadelphia.
COACHES: TU-Al Golden (7-23, third season); CMU-Butch Jones (11-8, second season).
GAME NOTES:
The Owls snapped a four-game losing streak last week with a 28-10 win at Miami … CMU was idle last week and most recently played Sept. 27 in a 27-25 home victory over Buffalo … redshirt freshman Chester Stewart passed for three touchdowns last week at Miami, completing 11-of-23 pass attempts for 178 yards … WR Bruce Francis had two fourth-quarter touchdown receptions as the Owls pulled away from a 14-10 margin to secure their first conference victory … the Chippewas feature Dan LeFevour at QB, and he leads the team in rushing (63.6 ypg) as well as throwing for 254 yards a game … LeFevour needs 85 yards of total offense to reach 10,000 for his career and 39 rushing yards to reach 2,000 career yards … Temple is 2-4 on the road in its second year in MAC competition … CMU is 5-2 at home the past two seasons … in road games this year, Temple is averaging 23.5 ppg, but in home games the Owls are scoring just 6.0 ppg … three of Temple’s losses are by a total of nine points … this is game No. 2 of three consecutive home games for CMU.
Nick’s Pick: Central Michigan 44 – Temple 16
Comment: Central has yet to have a real break-out game this season and with two-weeks to prepare for this home contest, look for the ‘Chips to begin their MAC run by throttling the Owls in Mount Pleasant.
Bowling Green (2-3, 0-1 MAC) at Akron (3-3, 1-1 MAC)
SITE: Rubber Bowl (31,000/AstroPlay) – Akron, Ohio
TELEVISION: None
SERIES RECORD: BG leads 9-7 … the Falcons won last year’s game 44-20 … the Zips most recent triumph came in 2006, 35-28 … BG last won at Akron in 2001 by a 16-11 score.
COACHES: BGSU-Gregg Brandon (40-27, sixth season); UA-J.D. Brookhart (25-29, fifth season).
GAME NOTES:
This is the last Saturday game to be played in the Rubber Bowl as the Zips remaining two contests are midweek games before moving into InfoCision Stadium on the Akron campus in 2009 … both teams are coming off emotional, down to the wire contests … BG lost its Homecoming game, 24-21, to Eastern Michigan when the Eagles scored with 36 seconds remaining … this game is Akron’s Homecoming … the Zips beat rival Kent State, 30-27, in double overtime to capture their third consecutive road game … both teams are averaging exactly 247.8 yards per game passing … the Zips have a slight statistical edge in rushing yards per game 120.3 ypg to 98.0 ypg … the Zips defense has a league-high 16 takeaways (12 fumbles, 4 interceptions) … PK Igor Iveljic was named a Lou Groza Star of the Week by the Palm Beach County Sports Commission for his three field goals last week, including two in overtime … Tyler Sheehan accounted for all three TDs last week for BG as he passed for 297 yards and two scores and rushed for an eight yard TD … Sheehan spread it around as he completed passes to 10 different teammates … the Zips Bryan Williams leads the MAC in kickoff returns with his 33.0 average … BG’s Diyral Briggs has a league-best five sacks … the Zips Miguel Graham has recovered three fumbles this year, the most of any MAC player.
Nick’s Pick: BGSU 27 – Akron 23
Comment: Can someone please figure out this year’s Falcon football team? BG wins on the road at Pitt and then comes home and gets crushed by Minnesota. BG then goes across the county and pummels Wyoming only to lose to EMU at home. Perhaps playing away from Doyt-Perry Stadium is the answer? Akron is playing surprisingly well this season and has a shot at a bowl game this season if they beat the Falcons.
No. 25 Ball State (6-0, 3-0 MAC) at Western Kentucky (2-4, Independent) – 6:00
SITE: Houchens Industries-L.T. Smith Stadium (23,000/Astroplay) – Bowling Green, Ky.
TELEVISION: None
SERIES RECORD: tied 1-1 … BSU won last year 35-12 in Muncie … the Hilltoppers were victorious
13-0 in 1929 in Bowling Green.
COACHES: BSU-Brady Hoke (28-37, sixth season); WKU-David Elson (39-26, sixth season.).
GAME NOTES:
Playing a ranked team is nothing new for the Hilltoppers as they have already faced, on the road, No. 20 Virginia Tech (L 27-13 last week) and No. 11 Alabama (L 41-7 Sept. 13) … playing as a ranked team will be the first for Ball State in their 84 seasons and 774 games of football … WKU is transitioning from FCS (I-AA) to FBS (I-A) and will compete in the Sun Belt Conference beginning with the 2009 season … senior David Wolke has passed for 510 yards and 4 TDs … seven different players have scored a rushing touchdown but no player has more than 183 rushing yards … LB Blake Boyd could cause problems for the MAC’s top offense as he has a team-leading 37 tackles, 6 for a loss, and 4 pass breaks ups … WKU has played just one of its six games at home, that a 50-9 win over Murray State on Sept. 20 … BSU tops the MAC in scoring (39.7 ppg), total offense (472.3), pass efficiency (163.6) and pass efficiency defense (101.3) … MiQuale Lewis is the lone MAC back with a rushing average over 100 yards (133.7) … Nate Davis is the MAC’s passing leader with an efficiency rating of 164.6 (123-of-178, 1,662 yards, 11 TD, 3 int.) … Sean Baker leads the MAC with four interceptions.
Nick’s Pick: Ball State 38 – Western Kentucky 20
Comment: The Hilltoppers have already played two nationally ranked teams this year and will not be intimidated by the Cardinals. Ball State has NEVER played a game as a ranked team and is in totally unchartered waters here. Look for a close contest with BSU to pull away late.
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