PoopyRhinoPickle

Looney is the real deal!

Thank you for the nomination. Frame this post and put it in the Louvre.

Bowling Green - 10 Western Michigan - 9 Akron - 9 Central Michigan - 8 Eastern Michigan - 8 Miami (OH) - 7 Ball State - 5 Buffalo - 5 Northern Illinois - 4 Toledo - 4 Ohio - 3 Kent State - 3

2022 MAC All-Conference Teams MAC Offensive Player of the Year: Theo Scribner - Western Michigan - QB MAC Defensive Player of the Year: Paul Reed - Western Michigan - DT Offense First-Team QB: Theo Scribner - Western Michigan RB: Devontae Harrison - Akron RB: Mark Davis - Central Michigan WR: Durham Simmons - Western Michigan WR: Andy Anderson - Western Michigan TE: Delino Bertolet - Northern Illinois OT: Trevon Ingram - Buffalo OG: Ian Kerrigan - Buffalo C: David Sanchez - Miami (OH) OG: Gonzalez Roberts - Kent State OT: Elijah Greene - Bowling Green Second-Team QB: Dexter Reed - Bowling Green RB: Garett Cordier - Ball State RB: Jeff Needham - Miami (OH) WR: Keenan Briscoe - Eastern Michigan WR: Jordan Suter - Bowling Green TE: Joe Clemens - Akron OT: Zach Carr - Western Michigan OG: Cody Trent Jr. - Akron C: John Hurst - Kent State OG: Ryan Duffy - Miami (OH) OT: Andrew Charles - Buffalo Third-Team QB: Tyler Clarkson - Eastern Michigan RB: Kevin Peterson - Eastern Michigan RB: Frank Robinson - Bowling Green WR: Nick Fields - Bowling Green WR: Lorenzo Whalen - Western Michigan TE: Vincent Curry - Central Michigan OT: Tony Varvaro - Northern Illinois OG: Jose Mazzoni - Central Michigan C: Skai Esch - Akron OG: Davontae Kaser - Ball State OT: Jamar Robinson III - Eastern Michigan Defense First-Team DE: Will Lee - Western Michigan DT: Paul Reed - Western Michigan DT: Miguel Peterson - Central Michigan DE: Malik Giavotella - Eastern Michigan OLB: Xavier Gipson - Ohio ILB: Chase Britton - Kent State ILB: JT Jungmann - Toledo OLB: Zach Collins - Ball State CB: Donald Dingus - Bowling Green CB: David Spain - Central Michigan FS: Dallas Maulet - Western Michigan SS: Hector Kinley - Ohio Second-Team DE: Rico Jones - Central Michigan DT: Scott Hall - Ball State DT: Phillip Bell - Bowling Green DE: Casey Jeffress - Central Michigan OLB: Zak Martin - Northern Illinois ILB: Jesse Wieland - Akron ILB: Avery Gonzalez - Akron OLB: Seantrel Garate - Western Michigan CB: Kenrick Hull - Akron CB: Kenneth Edwards - Bowling Green FS: Mike Christian - Eastern Michigan SS: Robert Ervin - Ball State Third-Team DE: James McKinnon - Miami (OH) DT: Jimmy Amukamara - Eastern MIchigan DT: Cayson Rodgers - Northern Illinois DE: Damontae Lim - Bowling Green OLB: Justin Mondreaux - Toledo ILB: De'Aron Gomez - Eastern Michigan ILB: Justin White - Buffalo OLB: Tim Butler - Akron CB: Edmundo Perez - Ohio CB: Frank Flande - Miami (OH) FS: Jason Johnson - Miami (OH) SS: Dwyane Black - Toledo Special Teams First-Team K: Eric McCullers-Sanders - Central Michigan P: Walker Leon - Bowling Green Second-Team K: Baker Gallegos - Miami (OH) P: AJ Stewart - Akron Third-Team K: Ryan Tunsil - Toledo P: Robert Favors - Buffalo

Bowling Green

Results Ball State def. Northern Illinois 13-10 Kent State def. LSU 34-28 Miami (OH) def. Ohio 41-17 #15 Central Michigan def. #22 Notre Dame 24-20 #9 Bowling Green def. Toledo 19-16 Akron - BYE Buffalo - BYE Eastern Michigan - BYE #2 Western Michigan - BYE Best performance of the week: Kent State def. LSU 34-28 Kent State has ended the season on a bit of a hot streak, even if it came way too late. Sitting at 1-8 and easily the worst team in the conference, the Golden Flashes have rattled off consecutive home wins against Nebraska in Week 11 and now LSU. Keep in mind LSU beat highly touted Alabama by 20 and can still make it to the SEC Championship! The thing about Kent State is that they're tricky to stop on the ground. Scrambling QB Keion Ernsberger didn't have much of an impact on this game, running for just 37 yards, but he keeps defenses honest and that likely allowed RB Jalen Armah to have the game that earned him MAC OPOTW, 211 yards and 2 TDs on the ground. The biggest thing, and it's something Ernsberger has struggled with this season, is that they didn't turn the ball over. Smart football plus 402 rushing yards means a very impressive win for Kent State. Other Best performance of the week: #15 Central Michigan def. #22 Notre Dame 24-20 It's time to give Central Michigan some credit. They don't find themselves earning many honors this season, mostly due to a sluggish offense that never wows but is steady, and relying on their magnificent D that has earned them many wins but not many scorelines that make you say "wow." But this was an opportunity for them to take on a talented roster from out of conference and prove that they can perform and aren't just potential. It nearly wasn't meant to be, but behind a 17-point 4th quarter, they were able to come from behind and secure the game winning TD with just 1:25 left in the game. QB Brandon Alexander threw the ball more than normal, having to play catchup to Notre Dame, limiting All-MAC candidate RB Mark Davis to just 16 carries, but he managed to have 98 yards rushing while also hauling in a 22 yard receiving TD. The game will likely prove a good warmup for the upcoming week. Offensive Player of the Week: Kent State RB Jalen Armah; 20 carries, 211 yards, 2 TDs, 3 recs, 18 rec yards vs LSU Defensive Player of the Week: Northern Illinois DT Cayson Rodgers; 11 tackles, 7 TFLs (MAC record), 2 sacks vs Ball State Special Teams Player of the Week: Ball State K Alex Parker; 2-2 FGs, 1-1 XPs vs Northern Illinois MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallRemaining GameWestern Michigan 6-1 10-1 at Central Michigan Central Michigan 5-2 9-2 Western Michigan Eastern Michigan 5-3 6-5 Boise State Ball State 4-4 6-6 N/A Northern Illinois 2-6 4-8 N/A Toledo 2-6 3-9 N/A Well this is what it has all come down to in the West Division. Western and Central at the top of the standings with 1 game to play for a chance to make it to Detroit and face Bowling Green to win a conference championship. Western has to like their chances to make it into the College Football Playoff even if they lose, but you know they want to not just have a chance at a conference championship but also avenge 2021's 33-34 loss to their biggest rival that kept them out of last year's championship game. There's a lot on the line and you know a lot of eyes will be on Kelly/Shorts Stadium this weekend. Eastern Michigan has a chance at home to exceed everyone's expectations for the year and reach 7 wins. Good on Ball State to get the wins they needed to reach bowl eligibility. That has to feel like a relief to the coaching staff after coming so close last year against a stacked out of conference schedule. East Division TeamConferenceOverallRemaining gameBowling Green 8-0 10-2 N/A Akron 4-3 6-5 at Kent State Buffalo 4-4 5-7 N/A Ohio 3-5 5-7 N/A Miami (OH) 2-6 4-8 N/A Kent State 1-6 3-8 Akron Bowling Green has locked up the East Division for a couple weeks now but they still have to be happy about reaching 10 wins this year. Will it be enough to reach the Playoffs even with a loss? That remains to be seen, and will likely be dependent on how remaining games play out. Keep in mind they have played and beaten both Central and Western Michigan already this season. Can Kent State keep up the momentum at home this week? It won't mean much but you know Akron has to think 7-5 looks a lot better than 6-6. Mediocrity and plain bad football has plagued the bottom half of this division all season and the result of that is only 2 teams reaching bowl eligibility.

Bowling Green OOC Schedule: Completed Week 1A: UC Irvine (@subsequent) Week 1B: at Nebraska (@alexfall862) Week 2A: Cincinnati (AI) Week 2B: St John's (@SyndaKyt) Week 3A: Butler (@jared2001usa) Week 3B: at Ohio State (AI) Week 5B: at Air Force (AI) Week 11A: at Florida State (AI)

Ok fine I’m in with bowling green

" Doing prep for season 3 including the next croot class. " ? ?

Results Eastern Michigan def. Toledo 44-9 #7 Bowling Green def. Buffalo 22-16 Kent State def. Nebraska 14-13 Ohio def. Rice 13-0 #22 Central Michigan def. Ball State 6-3 Miami (OH) - BYE Akron - BYE #3 Western Michigan - BYE Northern Illinois - BYE Best performance of the week: Kent State def. Nebraska 14-13 Kent State has been pretty bad this season, with their only win going into this game coming against Ohio. Nebraska hasn't been amazing by any standards, but they're greatly improved over last season, having flirted with rankings early in the year and still being in contention for the Big Ten West. Kent State QB Kent Ernsberger was near unstoppable on the ground, rushing for 111 yards and a TD on only 7 carries and the Golden Flashes combined for 308 total yards on the ground. It was enough as ILB Chase Britton was all over the place, tying the MAC record with 17 total tackles, including 4.5 TFLs. Britton has been one of the few bright spots for Kent State all season, but it could just be he's the best player on a bad defense. Regardless, Kent State secured their 2nd win of the season, this one coming against a Big Ten opponent I don't think many thought they could beat. Worst performance of the week: #7 Bowling Green def. Buffalo 22-16 Bowling Green had a bit of a scare coming off the back of their win over Western Michigan. It's tough to point at any one player who underperformed, but Bowling Green left a lot of points out on the field. 4 points left due to the kicker sure. Poor decisions to go for 4th downs yes. I think what was most alarming were the interceptions from QB Dexter Reed late in the game that nearly gave the game away. For Bowling Green to make it through the year and have a chance at the College Football Playoffs Reed will need to be much smarter with the ball. 2 remaining games on the road will determine just how high Bowling Green can go this season. Offensive Player of the Week: Eastern Michigan QB Tyler Clarkson; 31-54 437 pass yards, 3 TDs, 3 Ints vs Toledo Defensive Player of the Week: Kent State ILB Chase Britton; 17 tackles (t-MAC record), 4.5 TFLs vs Nebraska Special Teams Player of the Week: Eastern Michigan K Daniel Richardson; 3-3 FGs, 5-5 XPs vs Toledo MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameRemaining gamesWestern Michigan5-19-1Northern Illinoisat Central MichiganEastern Michigan5-26-4at Ball StateBoise StateCentral Michigan4-27-2at AkronNotre Dame, Western MichiganBall State2-44-6Eastern MichiganNorthern IllinoisNorthern Illinois2-44-6at Western Michiganat Ball StateToledo2-43-9at BuffaloBowling Green Little has changed at the top of the standings with the directional schools still holding spots 1-3. Western's loss to Bowling Green gives them no room for mistake the rest of year, specifically hitting the road against Central to decide the division. Eastern Michigan technically still has a chance to win the division, but the results that need to happen for them to win aren't going to happen. Eastern has been the pleasant surprise of the MAC this season, exceeding my expectations and reaching bowl eligibility behind a really fun offense. Ball State will have to pull off a bit of an upset this week against Eastern to reach bowl eligibility. They're capable of it if QB Scott Romero can perform at home, something he has been known to do. The Huskies of Northern Illinois can also reach bowl eligibility but very few would back them on the road against Western. East Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameRemaining gamesBowling Green6-08-2at Ohioat ToledoAkron4-26-4Central Michiganat Kent StateBuffalo3-44-7ToledoN/AOhio2-44-6Bowling Greenat Miami (OH)Miami (OH)1-53-7Kent StateOhioKent State1-52-7at Miami (OH)LSU, Akron Bowling Green's win last week against Buffalo locked up the East Division and a trip to Detroit in the MAC Championship Game. The Falcons were one of the leading candidates to win the East in the preseason but to do it with wins over Western and Central Michigan will have surprised most viewers. Akron has a chance to pull an upset in what could be a really good game against Central Michigan this weekend. Akron can move the ball on the ground and through the air so it will be a really interesting matchup against one of the best defenses in the country.

piggybacking on Jieret's question, what are the chances we see 2 MAC teams in the playoffs?

Why would they want to take a step backwards?

worth noting that dingus is up to 4 picks!

Results Middle Tennessee State def. Ball State 30-13 Bowling Green def. Akron 23-20 2OT Kent State def. Ohio 24-3 Central Michigan def. Northern Illinois 27-0 Western Michigan def. Eastern Michigan 62-0 Buffalo def. Miami (OH) 27-21 Toledo - BYE Best performance of the week: Western Michigan def. Eastern Michigan 62-0 This is the greatest overall team performance by a MAC team in the sim to this date. Theo Scribner threw for a MAC-record 689 pass yards, besting Yusei Asencio's previous record of 680 yards against Miami (OH) in 2021. 62 points is the most ever scored by a MAC team in a single game, which combined with the shutout is obviously the largest margin of victory by a MAC team. It's also worth mentioning that Western held Eastern to only 195 yards of offense in this game, well below their average of 493 going into the game. Total dominance against a decent opponent in Eastern Michigan who only lost to Maryland by 10 and Michigan State by 14 and beat a 5-3 Middle Tennessee State squad. If there was any doubt about it before, this game solidifies Western Michigan as the top team in the country. Worst performance of the week: Kent State def. Ohio 24-3 On the other end of the spectrum we have these two teams. Going into the game Kent State was 0-6 with the 11th ranked offense in the MAC and Ohio was 2-5 with the 12th ranked offense in the MAC. Ohio showed some signs of life in Week 8 with a 15-0 win over Buffalo, but it was short lived as they managed only 170 yards of offense against the previously winless Golden Flashes. This has to be rock bottom for the Bobcats as surely it can only get better from here? I feel like I've said that before for this team yet here we are with another uninspired and sad loss. Offensive Player of the Week: WMU QB Theo Scribner; 49-64 689 yards (MAC record), 5 TDs, 0 Ints vs Eastern Michigan Defensive Player of the Week: WMU DT Paul Reed; 7 tackles, 6 TFLs (T-MAC record), 2 sacks, 1 FF vs Eastern Michigan Special Teams Player of the Week: Bowling Green K Rudy Howell; 3-3 FGs, 2-2 XP vs Akron MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameRemaining gamesWestern Michigan5-09-0at Bowling GreenNorthern Illinois, at Central MichiganEastern Michigan3-24-4at Kent StateToledo, at Ball State, Boise StateCentral Michigan3-26-2BYEBall State, at Akron, Notre Dame, Western MichiganBall State2-24-4at Ohioat Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Northern IllinoisToledo2-23-5at Northern Illinoisat Eastern Michigan, at Buffalo, Bowling GreenNorthern Illinois1-43-6Toledoat Western Michigan, at Ball State Western Michigan gave themselves a lot of breathing room with their win against Eastern Michigan. They're going to follow it up this week with probably the biggest MAC matchup to date in the 2022 season, traveling to Bowling Green. It's likely a preview of the MAC Championship game as they can afford to drop a couple games (unlikely) and should be favored against Central Michigan in the final week of the season. Looking for anyone to compete with Western in the West? Your only chance would be Central Michigan who will be hoping Bowling Green can pull off the upset and then beat Western at home. East Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameRemaining gamesBowling Green4-06-2Western MichiganBuffalo, at Ohio, at ToledoAkron4-25-4Appalachian StateCentral Michigan, at Kent StateBuffalo3-34-5at Ole Missat Bowling Green, ToledoKent State1-41-6Eastern MichiganNebraska, at Miami (OH), LSU, AkronOhio1-42-6Ball StateRice, Bowling Green, at Miami (OH)Miami (OH)1-53-6at Coastal CarolinaKent State, Ohio Bowling Green finds themselves in a similar position as Western Michigan in the East Division as their win against Akron provided them the inside track to a division title. The Falcons will likely be favored in the final 3 games of their season even with 2 of them on the road. The game against Western Michigan provides Bowling Green with a chance to have a sniff at the College Football Playoffs. We'll see multiple members of the East take a break from MAC opponents as, notably, Akron has a chance to reach bowl eligibility this week against App State at home.

Results Ball State def. Miami (OH) 41-40 Ohio def. Buffalo 15-0 Central Michigan def. UNLV 17-3 Akron def. Northern Illinois 27-20 Western Michigan def. Northwestern 28-10 Toledo def. Kent State 24-3 Eastern Michigan - Bye Bowling Green - Bye Best performance of the week: Western Michigan def. Northwestern 28-10 Western Michigan did what they needed to do here, they beat a solid out-of-conference foe and looked comfortable doing it. Scribner had a below-average day, only throwing for 414 yards (he average 462 ypg this season) and 3 TDs, but didn't turn the ball over. The gameball should probably go to the WMU defense for stepping up when needed. The Bronco D recorded 3 sacks and 3 turnovers against a good Northwestern offense. Western Michigan's defense has gone a little under the radar this season, playing in the shadow of QB Theo Scribner, but they've performed well all season, leading the MAC in yards-allowed and points-allowed per game. Worst performance of the week: Ohio def. Buffalo 15-0 Buffalo will be very disappointed with their performance against Ohio this week. Ohio has easily the worst offense in the conference, combined with the 10th best defense. Buffalo has a very one-dimensional offense, but it isn't a bad offense, they lead the MAC in rush yards per game. Still they were shut out by a bad Ohio defense. On top of that, 15 points is the 2nd most Ohio has scored this season in a game, behind 16 against Syracuse. Given that Buffalo is the 3rd team behind Bowling Green and Akron in the East Division, they had to have the expectation to win this game and all they did was lay an egg. Offensive Player of the Week: Ball State RB Garett Cordier; 30 carries, 105 rush yards, 16 recs (MAC record), 154 rec yards, 3 rec TDs vs Miami (OH) Defensive Player of the Week: Western Michigan DE Will Lee; 11 tackles, 6 TFLs (MAC record), 1 sack vs Northwestern Special Teams Player of the Week: Ball State K Alex Parker; 2-2 FGs, 5-5 XPs vs Miami (OH) MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameWestern Michigan4-08-0Eastern MichiganEastern Michigan3-14-3at Western MichiganCentral Michigan2-25-2at Northern IllinoisBall State2-24-3at Middle TennesseeToledo2-23-5BYENorthern Illinois1-33-5at Central Michigan The only real movement in the division this week is at the bottom of the standing. Ball State's win helps them move up and things are looking brighter for them in terms of bowl eligibility. Toledo continues to outperform last season getting just their 3rd MAC win of all-time. Western vs Eastern has more importance than I think most people would have guessed coming into the season with Western having the opportunity to put some distance between themselves and 2nd place. East Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameBowling Green3-05-2at AkronAkron4-15-3Bowling GreenBuffalo2-33-5Miami (OH)Ohio1-32-5at Kent StateMiami (OH)1-43-5at BuffaloKent State0-40-6Ohio The most important matchup in the East comes this week as Bowling Green heads to Akron. The winner of this game will have a vital head-to-head tiebreaker when it comes to deciding who will make it to the MAC Championship. The bottom 4 of the division are probably the worst-4 teams in the conference so I don't expect them to be in play for the division and frankly any of them will be lucky to reach bowl eligibility.

Since we just finished Week 7 that means we are officially at the midseason point of the 2022 Season! I'm going to do things a little different this week and look at where the MAC Conference is as a whole at the midseason point. Conference Standings Power Rankings :kentstate: 12. Kent State Record: 0-5, 0-3 Preseason rank: 8 Offensive MVP: QB Keion Ernsberger; 670 pass yards, 2 pass TDs, 6 Ints, 424 rush yards, 3 rush TDs Defensive MVP: DT Curtis Garcia; 31 tackles, 4 TFLs, 2 sacks, 1 FF Yards per game: 338 (9th) Yards allowed per game: 432 (11th) :ohio: 11. Ohio Record: 1-5, 0-3 Preseason: 5 Offensive MVP: Rufus the Bobcat mascot Defensive MVP: SS Hector Kinley; 40 tackles, 4.5 TFLs, 2 Ints Yards per game: 231 (12th) Yards allowed per game: 390 (7th) :toledo: 10. Toledo Record: 2-5, 1-2 Preseason: 9 Offensive MVP: RB Taylor Abreu; 663 rush yards, 3 rush TDs, 215 rec yards, 3 rec TDs Defensive MVP: CB Pete Ciuffo; 28 tackles, 1 TFL, 5 Ints Yards per game: 348 (8th) Yards allowed per game: 415 (9th) :miamiu: 9. Miami (OH) Record: 3-4, 1-3 Preseason: 12 Offensive MVP: RB Jeff Needham; 700 rush yards, 7 rush TDs, 178 rec yards, 1 rec TD Defensive MVP: DT Mitch Watanabe; 22 tackles, 7 TFLs, 4 sacks Yards per game: 370 (7th) Yards allowed per game: 438 (12th) #9-12 Analysis: These are what I consider the Bad Teams. Kent State still has to play each of these teams so they will have the opportunity to move out of the basement and prove they aren't the worst team in the conference, but right now they're looking like it. How Ohio managed to beat Syracuse is beyond me because I don't know if I've seen a sadder offense in my life. At only 231 (!) yards of offense per game they're over 100 yards behind 11th place Buffalo at 333 yards per game. Yusei Asencio can't be liking what he's seeing on his TV set every week. Toledo has the ability to upset the odd team here or there with a defense that performs better than it looks on paper and Miami proved they can win some games with a win over Northern Illinois in Week 7. :northerillinois: 8. Northern Illinois Record: 3-4, 1-2 Preseason: 7 Offensive MVP: RB Patrick Onwuasor; 924 rush yards, 4 rush TDs, 163 rec yards Defensive MVP: DT Cayson Rodgers; 34 tackles, 8 TFLs, 3 sacks Yards per game: 333 (10th) Yards allowed per game: 327 (4th) 7. Ball State Record: 3-3, 1-2 Preseason: 3 Offensive MVP: RB Garett Cordier; 608 rush yards, 4 rush TDs, 378 rec yards, 2 rec TDs Defensive MVP: OLB Zach Collins; 19 tackles, 5 TFLs, 4 sacks, 1 FF Yards per game: 382 (6th) Yards allowed per game: 355 (6th) 6. Buffalo Record: 3-4, 2-2 Preseason: 11 Offensive MVP: QB Jeff Whitehead; 700 pass yards, 5 pass TDs, 7 Ints, 454 rush yards, 5 rush TDs Defensive MVP: ILB Justin White; 56 tackles, 12.5 TFLs Yards per game: 333 (11th) Yards allowed per game: 326 (3rd) 5. Akron Record: 4-3, 3-1 Preseason: 6 Offensive MVP: RB Devontae Harrison; 993 rush yards, 3 rush TDs, 406 rec yards, 3 rec TDs Defensive MVP: ILB Jesse Wieland; 54 tackles, 11 TFLs, .5 sacks, 1 FF, 1 Int Yards per game: 414 (4th) Yards allowed per game: 398 (8th) :easternmichigan: 4. Eastern Michigan Record: 4-3, 3-1 Preseason: 10 Offensive MVP: QB Tyler Clarkson; 2392 pass yards, 12 TDs, 8 Ints Defensive MVP: DE Malik Giavotella; 40 tackles, 5.5 TFLs, 4.5 sacks Yards per game: 493 (2nd) Yards allowed per game: 420 (10th) #4-8 Analysis: We've entered Sneaky Good TeamTM territory with some teams that can upset just about anybody left on their schedules, as evident by Eastern Michigan's win over Central Michigan in Week 7. Northern Illinois has a talented roster (8 A's) and a stout defense that helps them compete with most teams in the MAC. Ball State has the makings of a good team but suffers from a case of Freshman Starting Quarterback where QB Scott Romero tends to send the team on a rollercoaster ride each week. When he's on they're tough to beat, but when he isn't they really struggle. Akron has the most balance offense in the conference as RB Devontae Harrison has the ability to run through you and QB Quandre Quintanilla can sling it around if needed. Eastern Michigan would be a blast to watch. Electric offense and bad defense is how things play out in Ypsilanti this season. QB Tyler Clarkson is 3rd in the conference in yards, all while the Eagles manage over 150 yards a game on the ground. They have some winnable games left on the schedule that should help them reach a bowl game comfortably. 3. Central Michigan Record: 4-2, 2-2 Preseason: 2 Offensive MVP: RB Mark Davis; 849 rush yards, 8 rush TDs, 119 rec yards Defensive MVP: DT Miguel Peterson; 35 tackles, 13.5 TFLs Yards per game: 404 (5th) Yards allowed per game: 322 (2nd) 2. Bowling Green Record: 5-2, 3-0 Preseason: 4 Offensive MVP: QB Dexter Reed; 2636 pass yards, 21 TDs, 11 Ints Defensive MVP: DT Phillip Bell; 39 tackles, 14.5 TFLs, 3 sacks, 1 FR Yards per game: 481 (3rd) Yards allowed per game: 349 (5th) @admin WMU's logo comes up blank 1. Western Michigan Record: 7-0, 4-0 Preseason: 1 Offensive MVP: QB Theo Scribner; 3282 pass yards, 26 TDs, 4 Ints Defensive MVP: FS Dallas Maulet; 41 tackles, 2 TFLs, 1 FF, 4 Ints Yards per game: 500 (1st) Yards allowed per game: 300 (1st) #1-3 Analysis: No one who follows the conference should be surprised that Western Michigan is in the #1 spot (see Preseason Rankings https://www.simfba.com/index.php?threads/poopyrhinopickles-preseason-mac-power-rankings.3444/) at this point in the season. I don't think I would have thought they'd be #1 in the country though. Scribner appears to be a frontrunner for the Heisman Trophy as he leads the country in pass yards and pass TDs. Combine that with the fact that he's #2 in the country in pass attempts and still only has 4 interceptions and you have yourself a Heisman worthy season. What might be more of a surprise, and a reason they're ranked #1 in the country, is the fact that they have an excellent defense, allowing fewer than 10 points a game (68 points in 7 games). I expected Bowling Green to reach a bowl game this season but their win over Central Michigan really upped what they can achieve this year. After a bye week their next game is against Akron, which is looking to be a defacto East Division championship game at this point. If they win that they'll be looking to play in the MAC Championship game. Central Michigan seems to be the team that always disappoints. Yet they're still ranked #3 in my power rankings given that they have that much of a talent advantage over the rest of the conference. Their loss against Eastern Michigan is what will surprise most people, but they've been largely underperforming all season. Look for a lot of close wins the rest of the year for the Chippewas. Their rivalry matchup with Western Michigan in Week 14 has all the making of another powerhouse battle. Season Stat Leaders Pass Yards Player Team Pass stats Theo Scribner Western Michigan 3282 yards, 26 TDs, 4 Ints Dexter Reed Bowling Green 2636 yards, 21 TDs, 11 Ints Tyler Clarkson Eastern Michigan 2392 yards, 12 TDs, 8 Ints Quandre Quintanilla Akron 1709 yards, 12 TDs, 8 Ints Eric Diekman Toledo 1587 yards, 7 TDs, 9 Ints Rush Yards Player Team Rush stats Devontae Harrison Akron 993 yards, 3 TDs Patrick Onwuasor Northern Illinois 924 yards, 4 TDs Mark Davis Central Michigan 849 yards, 8 TDs Kevin Peterson Eastern Michigan 787 yards, 6 TDs Jeff Needham Miami (OH) 700 yards, 7 TDs Receiving Yards Player Team Receiving stats Andy Anderson Western Michigan 1151 yards, 9 TDs Durham Simmons Western Michigan 1061 yards, 8 TDs Keenan Briscoe Eastern Michigan 875 yards, 5 TDs Jordan Suter Bowling Green 810 yards, 5 TDs Meibrys Apke Eastern Michigan 616 yards, 1 TD Total Tackles Player Team Defensive stats Justin White (ILB) Buffalo 56 tackles, 12.5 TFLs Jesse Wieland (ILB) Akron 54 tackles, 10 TFLs, .5 sacks, 1 FF, 1 Int DeAndre Dunn (ILB) Ohio 48 tackles, 5 TFLs Niko James (ILB) Western Michigan 48 tackles, 8.5 TFLs, 1 FR Evan Mangen (ILB) Bowling Green 47 tackles, 10 TFLs Sacks Player Team Defensive stats Zak Martin (OLB) Northern Illinois 5 sacks, 23 tackles, 5.5 TFLs Malik Giavotella (DE) Eastern Michigan 4.5 sacks, 40 tackles, 5.5 TFLs Will Lee (DE) Western Michigan 4 sacks, 31 tackles, 9.5 TFLs Mitch Watanabe (DT) Miami (OH) 4 sacks, 22 tackles, 7 TFLs Zach Collins (OLB) Ball State 4 sacks, 19 tackles, 5 TFLs, 1 FF Rico Jones (DE) Central Michigan 4 sacks, 17 tackles, 5 TFLs, 1 FR Interceptions Player Team Defensive stats Frank Flande (CB) Miami (OH) 5 Ints, 30 tackles, 1 TFL, 1 FR Pete Ciuffo (CB) Toledo 5 Ints, 28 tackles, 1 TFLs Dallas Maulet (FS) Western Michigan 4 Ints, 41 tackles, 2 TFLs, 1 FF 9 players have 3 Ints Games To Look For Here are some of the top games to watch for the rest of the season: Week 8: Western Michigan at Northwestern Week 9: Bowling Green at Akron Week 9: Eastern Michigan at Western Michigan Week 10: Western Michigan at Bowling Green Week 12: Central Michigan at Akron Week 13: Notre Dame at Central Michigan Week 14: Western Michigan at Central Michigan

Results Eastern Michigan def. Buffalo 30-13 Akron def. Miami (OH) 12-10 Northern Illinois def. Ohio 31-0 Bowling Green def. #9 Central Michigan 20-12 #1 Western Michigan def. Toledo 45-14 Kent State - Bye Ball State - Bye Best performance of the week: Bowling Green def. #9 Central Michigan It's not overselling it to say that this was the biggest win in Bowling Green program history. The Falcons had to know that it wasn't going to be pretty but it was enough to get the job done. Going into the game Bowling Green's offense averaged over 500 yards of offense a game. In the win against Central Michigan they only managed 279. Again, not pretty, but good enough. The main reason why it was good enough was the Falcon defense, giving up only 328 yards and picking off CMU QB Brandon Alexander 3 times, while holding him to only 50% completion percentage. On top of that, Bowling Green's defense held CMU RB Mark Davis to a season-low 112 yards on 26 carries. It wasn't long ago that Northwestern put up 50 points against this unit so they need to be proud of the turnaround they've had. Worst performance of the week: Northern Illinois def. Ohio 31-0 Things just keep getting worse for Ohio. Northern Illinois isn't a bad team so it isn't a surprise that Ohio lost to them, but it's the fashion in which the team is performing that is so underwhelming. In their loss, Ohio managed just 161 yards of total offense. It's not just this game either, on the season Ohio's offense is managing a MAC-worst 237 yards of offense per game. Senior QB Devonte' Wesley was just 10-25 for 114 yards, 0 TDs and 2 Ints, and as a team, Ohio managed only 47 rush yards on 25 carries. At this rate the Bobcat coaching staff may want to throw in the towel on the season and start looking to next year. Offensive Player of the Week: WMU QB Theo Scribner; 49-63 550 yards, 5 TDs, 1 Int vs Toledo Defensive Player of the Week: EMU ILB De'Aaron Gomez; 12 tackles, 5 TFLs vs Buffalo Special Teams Player of the Week: EMU K Daniel Richardson; 3-3 FGs, 3-3 XPs vs Buffalo MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameWestern Michigan3-06-0OhioCentral Michigan2-14-1at Eastern MichiganEastern Michigan2-13-3Central MichiganNorthern Illinois1-13-3at Miami (OH)Toledo1-22-4at Georgia SouthernBall State0-22-3at Kent State Congratulations to Western Michigan as they're the first MAC team to hit bowl eligibility (never really a doubt it would happen). Central Michigan's loss doesn't really change much in the conference as Central and Western still need to play each other and the tiebreak goes to the head-to-head winner, but it does show that CMU, despite their loaded roster, are not invincible. It remains to be seen if either team will trip up prior to their week 14 meeting, which will most likely determine the division champion and just might have CFP implications. The rest of the West just keeps chugging along towards bowl eligibility as they continue to prove their superiority to the East Division. East Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameAkron3-04-2at BuffaloBowling Green3-04-2CincinnatiBuffalo1-22-4AkronOhio0-21-4at Western MichiganKent State0-20-4Ball StateMiami (OH)0-32-4Northern Illinois It's pretty obvious at this point that the East Division comes down to either Akron or Bowling Green. Given Bowling Green's performance against Central Michigan, I think most would give the Falcons the advantage, but we won't see that matchup until week 9. Akron will be disappointed with their performance against a bad Miami team, so look for them to come out with a bit of a chip on their shoulder against Buffalo. It's a good thing Ohio, Kent State and Miami all play each other or else some of them might not get a win the rest of the season. Any of those 3 winning their game against a West foe this week would be considered an upset.

CB Christian Minaya is a Bowling Green player, not sure how he blocked a Bowling Green FG attempt.

Results Bowling Green def. Miami (OH) 55-17 Buffalo def. Kent State 38-16 Akron def. Eastern Michigan 37-17 Illinois def. Northern Illinois 17-3 #1 Western Michigan def. Ball State 34-14 #4 Central Michigan def. Toledo 31-21 Ohio - Bye Best performance of the week: Bowling Green def. Miami (OH) 55-17 Bowling Green has reacted in a very positive way after their defeat to Northwestern, scoring a total of 103 points in wins over Kent State and Miami. The Falcons put up 776 yards of total offense against Miami, a school record. QB Dexter Reed was impressive, going 34-45 538 yards, 5 TDs and no picks. Bowling Green also had a season high 238 rushing yards with a 3 TD performance from RB Frank Robinson. A breakout star may have emerged as well in WR Chris Allen, who had 11 catches for 258 yards (3rd most all-time in MAC). The strong offensive performance also moved Bowling Green into the #1 offense in the conference in terms of offensive yards per game. The Falcons' run defense, which has been pretty disappointing, made an improvement as well allowing only 3.3 yards per carry against 47 carries. Worst performance of the week: Bowling Green def. Miami (OH) 55-17 This is a first for me where the worst performance pairs up with the best performance. Most likely Miami is just be glad to be done with Western Michigan and Bowling Green in back-to-back games. Miami has lost the last 2 games 110-23 combined, giving up 1,301 total yards of offense. The Red Hawks won't face QBs of the same caliber as Scribner or Reed again this season. Having said that, they do face Akron this week, who recently had RB Devontae Harrison rush for 399 yards in a win over Kent State. Allowing Bowling Green to rush for a season high doesn't bode well for Miami's game against a strong balanced offense like Akron. Offensive Player of the Week: Akron RB Devontae Harrison; 38 carries, 399 rush yards (all-time MAC record), 2 rush TDs, 6 catches, 72 rec yards, 1 rec TD vs Eastern Michigan Defensive Player of the Week: Kent State DT Curtis Garcia; 9 tackles, 2.5 TFLs, 1.5 sacks, 1 FF vs Buffalo Special Teams Player of the Week: Western Michigan K Duke Lotulelei; 2-2 FGs, 4-4 XPs vs Ball State MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameWestern Michigan2-05-0ToledoCentral Michigan2-04-0Bowling GreenEastern Michigan1-12-3BuffaloToledo1-12-3at Western MichiganNorthern Illinois0-12-3OhioBall State0-22-3Bye The usual suspects stay at the top of the West standings. It will be interest to see how Western Michigan's offense performs against a Toledo defense that tends to overperform. Central Michigan faces their toughest test up to this point in the season as the #1 MAC defense goes up against the #1 MAC offense in terms of defensive/offensive yards per game. Behind those teams we have a cluster of Sneaky Good TeamsTM that will fight it out for bowl eligibility. Ball State has the week off, and a chance regroup before a stretch of games they should be looking to win (Kent State and Miami). East Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameAkron2-03-2Miami (OH)Bowling Green2-03-2at Central MichiganBuffalo1-12-3at Eastern MichiganOhio0-11-3at Northern IllinoisMiami (OH)0-22-3at AkronKent State0-20-4Bye We're seeing leaders emerge in the East, as Akron and Bowling Green remain undefeated in conference play. Akron will be heavily favored hosting a Miami team that is struggling just to get up off the mat after taking two beatings from Western Michigan and Bowling Green. Speaking of the Falcons, it may the biggest game of coach PoopyRhinoPickle's career as they travel to #4 Central Michigan and hope to make a point that they can hang with the best in the MAC. Put Buffalo into that Sneaky Good TeamsTM conversation for now as their defense, #2 in the conference, keeps them in most games despite a pretty average offense.

Yep! Sure did

Results Bowling Green def. Kent State 48-27 #5 Central Michigan def. Buffalo 20-13 Akron def. Ohio 13-10 Eastern Michigan def. Northern Illinois 27-17 #3 Western Michigan def. Miami (OH) 55-6 Toledo def. Ball State 10-9 Best performance of the week: Western Michigan def. Miami (OH) 55-6 It's time to give credit where credit's due. Last week I brushed aside WMU's performance to instead highlight Toledo's win. That won't be happening this week. It's tough to find any faults in QB Theo Scribner's performance as he hit nearly 70% of his passes for 473 yards, 4 TDs and no picks. Stringing together performances like this are what have Scribner in the thick of the Heisman conversation. The Broncos even had their best rushing game of the season, eclipsing 50 yards on the ground for the first time this year. WR Andy Anderson was his usual dominant self, reeling in 10 catches for 196 yards and 2 TDs. Western Michigan's defense, led by ILB Niko James, had no mercy either, holding Miami to 211 yards of offense, all while recording 7 TFLs, 4 sacks, and grabbing 2 interceptions. Worst performance of the week: Toledo def. Ball State 10-9 Ball State has to leave this game scratching their heads a bit. The Cardinals are finding out the hard way what it is like to have a freshman at the QB position. The rollercoaster of a year that has been The Scott Romero Experience can leave fans dreaming of conference championships one week just to be left dumbfounded like they were this week. Romero's performance wasn't anything that pops out as all that poor, he went 19-29 for 206 yards and 1 Int. However, it's Ball State's inability to find the endzone (all of Ball State's points came from FGs) that ultimately points at the QB position. Congrats to Toledo, though, for their 2nd ever MAC win. They're on their first ever 2 game win streak. Offensive Player of the Week: EMU RB Kevin Peterson; 19 carries, 192 yards, 1 rush TD, 8 recs, 99 rec yards, 2 rec TDs vs NIU Defensive Player of the Week: Buffalo ILB Justin White; 11 tackles, 2.5 TFLs vs #5 CMU Special Teams Player of the Week: CMU K Eric McCullers-Sanders; 4-4 FGs, 2-2 XPs vs Buffalo MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameWestern Michigan1-04-0at Ball StateCentral Michigan1-03-0BuffaloEastern Michigan1-02-2at AkronToledo1-02-2Central MichiganBall State0-12-2Western MichiganNorthern Illinois0-12-2at Illinois Western Michigan looked entirely convincing in their win over an average Miami team, putting them deservedly at the top of the West. Something that might sneak under the radar is how pedestrian Central Michigan looked against Buffalo. I get the feeling, with their super strong defense and average QB play, we're going to be seeing a lot of 7-10 point wins for CMU this season. Eastern Michigan won their matchup of sneaky good West teams against Northern Illinois, and Toledo has their all-time best position in the MAC standing after matching their win total from last season already. It can only go up from here right Ball State? Right? East Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameAkron1-02-2Eastern MichiganBowling Green1-02-2Miami (OH)Miami (OH)0-12-2at Bowling GreenBuffalo0-11-3Kent StateOhio0-11-3ByeKent State0-10-3at Buffalo Again, it's pretty obvious the East doesn't stack up against a superior West Division. The only win's of the week for the East came against other East teams, with Akron sneaking by Ohio and Bowling Green racking up points against a bad Kent State team. Can any of these teams step it up to match the West? I don't think the talent is there to make it happen but you have to think that Akron and Bowling Green are the most likely candidates to represent the East in the MAC Championship game.

jasper chunk too busy training to be tweeting

Results UConn def. Ohio 25-0 Cincinnati def. Miami (OH) 31-27 Ball State def. New Mexico State 24-13 Northern Illinois def. #13 Arizona 23-3 #11 Western Michigan def. #14 Washington 42-10 Toledo def. #7 Pitt 30-6 Northwestern def. Bowling Green 50-35 Wisconsin def. Akron 14-13 Middle Tennessee def. Buffalo 13-10 #24 Michigan State def. Eastern Michigan 48-34 #3 Central Michigan - Bye Kent State - Bye Best performance of the week: Toledo def. #7 Pitt 30-6 I was tempted to put WMU here given their impressive dismantling of a highly ranked team, but I think we need to acknowledge what Toledo was able to pull off over the weekend. The Rockets are by far the least talented team in the MAC and not only did they beat the #7 team in the country, it wasn't particularly close. QB Eric Diekman easily had the best game a Toledo QB has ever had, going 25-37 for 282 yards, 2 TDs and 1 Int, and it was only the 2nd time that a Toledo QB has thrown for more than 200 yards. The run game looked good too, going for 186 yards at almost 7 yards a carry. Toledo's defense playing well doesn't really surprise me, they returned a lot of defensive productivity from last year despite the players not looking that good on paper. Give it up for the Rockets for the biggest win in their history (only their 3rd). Worst performance of the week: Northwestern def. Bowling Green 50-35 You could probably make the argument that Ohio belongs here, but I'm going to own up to this disappointing performance. The 15 point loss is the worst in program history and giving up 50 points is the 2nd worst ever in the MAC. The defense had a pathetic performance allowing Northwestern to both throw and run the ball at will, giving up almost 600 yards of offense, a far departure from the typical performance fans are used to from the Falcons D (was #1 in the conference in yards allowed per game in 2021 and through Week 2 of this season). Not the kind of momentum you want to have going into the start of the conference season. Offensive Player of the Week: WMU WR Andy Anderson; 11 recs, 235 rec yards, 5 rec TDs (conference record) vs #14 Washington Defensive Player of the Week: WMU ILB Niko James; 17 total tackles (conference record), 3.5 TFLs vs #14 Washington Special Teams Player of the Week: Toledo K Ryan Tunsil; 3-3 FGs, 3-3 XPs vs #7 Pitt MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameWestern Michigan0-03-0at Miami (OH)Central Michigan0-02-0BuffaloBall State0-02-1at ToledoNorthern Illinois0-02-1at Eastern MichiganEastern Michigan0-01-2Northern IllinoisToledo0-01-2Ball State We're seeing the West Division really stand head and shoulders above the East now. Last week I pointed out that the West teams were about to play 5 teams who hadn't lost yet and whaddya know they went 4-1 in those games. Western Michigan's win was a bit of a wake up call to the rest of the nation that the Broncos and QB Theo Scribner are for real. Don't count out Ball State though as they got back on track with a good win over New Mexico State. Northern Illinois is a little more difficult to figure out, they have (by far) the #1 rusher in the conference and the #1 defense in yards allowed, so that tracks with their talented roster. Eastern Michigan is pretty plucky with the #2 offense in the MAC and they put up a solid fight against a good Michigan State team last week. All of this is without discussing the elephant in the room: Central Michigan. Ranked #3 in the country going into the week and easily the most talented roster in the conference was on a Bye. East Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameMiami (OH)0-02-1Western MichiganAkron0-01-2at OhioBowling Green0-01-2Kent StateBuffalo0-01-2at Central MichiganOhio0-01-2AkronKent State0-00-2at Bowling Green Oof, a rough week for the division, going 0-5. The good news is that they largely get to start beating up on each other now? Miami can hang their hat on keeping it close with a 3-0 Cincy team, but it won't get any easier this week as Western Michigan comes to town. Buffalo has an above average defense but I don't think that will make up for the wide gap in talent against Central Michigan. Bowling Green should be comfortable against Kent State, if things don't go according to plan we might be seeing an offensive change for the Falcons. An interesting case study is Ohio WR Jerald Paulsen. The guy had Yusei Asencio throwing him the rock last year and all he did was have 117 catches for 2,341 (!) receiving yards and 15 TDs in 15 games. This year without Asencio? 11 catches, 146 yards and 1 TD in 3 games. Poor guy.

Results Buffalo def. Rutgers 38-14 Iowa def. Kent State 14-6 Miami (OH) def. Temple 30-10 Eastern Michigan def. Middle Tennessee 21-14 Bowling Green def. Ohio State 15-14 UConn def. Ball State 21-10 Northern Illinois def. Troy 34-3 Ohio def. Syracuse 16-9 Central Michigan def. Boise State 53-16 Northwestern def. Akron 37-31 Louisville def. Toledo 19-6 Western Michigan def. UCLA 24-20 Best performance of the week: Western Michigan def. UCLA 24-20 There were honestly quite a few solid wins to choose from this week, but I decided to go with the win against the best opponent. UCLA was ranked #5 going into the game and really put a beating on Florida State in their Week 0 game. WMU QB Theo Scribner was able to find the endzone more often than his first game against Minnesota and that was what put them over the edge to beat UCLA. WR Durham Simmons stood out with 10 catches for 192 yards and 2 TDs. Despite only 6 yards rushing on 14 attempts WMU's pass attack is clearly enough to carry them this season. The Bronco's defense performed good enough against a good offense as well, getting into the backfield consistently with 9 TFLs. Worst performance of the week: UConn def. Ball State 21-10 Sentiment was pretty high on Ball State after their Week 0 win against Purdue, but I think they saw this week some of the struggles with consistency of a Freshman QB. QB Scott Romero looked like a world beater in their first game but returned back to earth going 14-23 for 125 yards, 0 TDs, 1 Int and being sacked 7 (!) times. A combination of poor protection and holding on to the ball too long is going to spell trouble for any young QB. Add in stud RB only had 21 touches this game (as opposed to 33 in their win against Purdue) and Ball State just struggled to move the ball as needed. Offensive Player of the Week: Northern Illinois RB Patrick Onwuasor; 40 carries, 298 rush yards (2nd all-time in MAC), 1 TD vs Troy Defensive Player of the Week: Toledo ILB JT Jungmann; 11 tackles, 5 TFLs (tied most all-time in MAC) vs Louisville Special Teams Player of the Week: Central Michigan K Eric McCullers-Sanders; 4-4 FGs, 5-6 XPs vs Boise State MAC Snapshot West Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameCentral Michigan0-02-0BYEWestern Michigan0-02-0Washington (2-0)Ball State0-01-1New Mexico State (2-0)Eastern Michigan0-01-1Michigan State (1-0)Northern Illinois0-01-1Arizona (2-0)Toledo0-00-2Pitt (2-0) The 2 strongest teams remain at the top after good wins from both. Western Michigan vs Washington will be another big matchup between undefeated ranked teams. Ball State's loss drops them a bit but not anything that can't be salvaged, even with a sneaky game against NMSU this week. Northern Illinois looked like the team their talent says they should be and really pounded the rock on the ground in their win against Troy. The MAC West has a difficult slate this week, with every team facing an opponent who hasn't lost yet. East Division TeamConferenceOverallNext gameMiami (OH)0-02-0Cincinnati (2-0)Akron0-01-1at Wisconsin (0-1)Bowling Green0-01-1at Northwestern (1-1)Buffalo0-01-1Middle Tennessee (0-2)Ohio0-01-1at UConn (1-1)Kent State0-00-2BYE Miami continues to surprise and impress and were candidates for best performance of the week considering the discrepancies in talent on their roster vs Temple's. Akron's defense is looking to be their achilles heel after a disappointing loss against Northwestern. Bowling Green will look to avenge that loss this week while heading to Chicago. Ohio finally found a little life on the offensive side of the ball, we'll see if they can learn any lessons from Ball State's loss to UConn.

First time ever receiving votes and it’s after a loss. Love to see it.