2021 PoopyRhinoPickle's Postseason MAC Power Rankings

[PoopyRhinoPickle]

Hello everyone, with the season wrapping up I wanted to do a postseason Power Ranking since I did one before the season started. Congrats to conference champions Ohio on an incredible season, including making it to the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff.

 

:toledo: 12. Toledo (2-10); Preseason: 12

Looking at the rosters, it was pretty evident to me that Toledo was lagging behind the rest of the conference when it came to talent. That proved to be the case as the season played out. They managed 2 really good wins though against UCLA (12-3) and Akron (31-24) to the surprise of everyone. They struggled to find an offense as they were last in the MAC in both pass offense and total offense by a significant amount. They had some bright spots on the defensive side of the ball in DT PJ Hale, who was tied for 1st in the conference in TFLs (24), freshman ILB JT Jungmann, who led the team in tackles, and CBs Lou Hechavarria and Pete Ciuffo, who each had 5 interceptions on the season.

Best Win: Akron 31-24; Worst Loss: Charlotte 13-17

MVP: DT PJ Hale; 49 tackles, 24 TFLs, 3 sacks, 1 FR

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11. Buffalo (4-8); Preseason: 6

I thought Buffalo's defense would put them in a better place to win more games than they did, but it was probably too soon for the Bulls' young defense. Considering Buffalo had above average performances from QB Adam Boyle (2806 passing yards) and RB Devonte' Turner (1289 rushing yards), I think they'll be kicking themselves that they didn't win more games.

Best Win: Ball State 30-6; Worst Loss: Miami (OH) 3-27

MVP: RB Devonte' Turner; 1289 yards, 8 TDs, 472 rec yards, 3 rec TDs

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:miamiu: 10. Miami (OH) (5-7); Preseason: 8

As QB Joely Dykstra went, so went the RedHawks. Sure he had some good performances, like 182 yards on the ground against Eastern Michigan, and rushing for another 168 against Buffalo (both games their only conference wins). He also completed only 48% of his passes and threw 3 TDs to 15 interceptions. He finished as the team's leading rusher and I'm going to pick him as the team MVP because they have no better choice, but one has to wonder if the team would have been better off with someone else under center.

Best Win: Ole Miss 20-7; Worst Loss: Bowling Green 13-47

MVP: QB Joely Dykstra; 1422 pass yards, 3 TDs, 15 INTs, 766 rush yards, 7 rush TDs

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:northerillinois: 9. Northern Illinois (5-7); Preseason: 11

The story of Northern Illinois' season is that of a mismanaged offense. 2nd to last in total offense, they averaged only 2.77 yards per carry while attempting the 2nd most rushes per game. Meanwhile, QB Darius Paredes was completing 74% of his passes and he only threw 2 picks on the season. I wouldn't be surprised if we see a new offensive coordinator in DeKalb next year. Don't forget this is the team who gave Big Ten champs and College Football Playoff semifinalists Wisconsin their only regular season loss this year!

Best Win: Wisconsin 10-7; Worst Loss: Eastern Michigan 3-14

MVP: DE Michael Dyson; 52 tackles, 18 TFLs, 2 sacks, 1 FF

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:easternmichigan: 8. Eastern Michigan (5-7); Preseason: 10

There's something to be said for Eastern Michigan's commitment to the run this year. They pounded the rock 361 times for 846 yards. That's 2.34 yards per carry. Their workhorse back, Mike Merrifield, had 775 yards on 319 carries and he fumbled 8(!) times. They had a serviceable QB in Ryan Swanson, who threw for 2135 yards, 8 TDs and 12 INTs, but you put all that together and you get a pretty forgettable 5-7 season.

Best Win: Central Michigan 13-3; Worst Loss: Miami (OH) 20-30

MVP: DT John Fusco; 58 tackles, 18 TFLs, 4 sacks, 3 FFs

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:kentstate: 7. Kent State (5-7); Preseason: 3

Speaking of forgettable seasons: little is remembered of Kent State's play this year. They had an above average back in RB Jalen Johnson, who ran for 1105 yards, but did so at only 3.52 yards a carry. QB play from Tony Hembree was average at best and no one really stood out on the defensive side of the ball other than maybe CB Cam Reynolds, who had 4 picks and returned one for a TD.

Best Win: Bowling Green 24-15; Worst Loss: Southern Miss 7-9

MVP: RB Jalen Johnson; 1105 yards, 8 rush TDs, 527 rec yards, 2 rec TDs

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6. Bowling Green (7-6); Preseason: 4

Bowling Green's season changed when they made a big switch at the QB position. Jurickson Elflein opened the season as the starting signal caller, but after a 1-3 start with disappointing offensive performances, Dexter Reed was brought in at QB and Elflein moved to RB. The Falcons finished the remainder of the season 6-3 and Elflein led the conference in rush yards and TDs. The defense did more than hold their own, leading the conference in total yards allowed, and leading the country in sacks (OLB Sandy Rankin had 9 and DT Chris LaDouceur had 7.5).

Best Win: New Mexico 13-10; Worst Loss: Hawaii 34-42

MVP: RB Jurickson Elflein; 1935 yards, 18 TDs, 183 rec yards, 2 rec TDs

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:westernmichigan: 5. Western Michigan (8-5); Preseason: 2

Despite having a pretty good year, Western Michigan may be asking themselves what could have been. Their conference losses, Buffalo, Northern Illinois, and, to a lesser extent, rival Central Michigan are head scratchers. Junior QB Theo Scribner had a really good season, despite their offensive line play (Scribner was sacked a conference high 36 times). RB Stephen Addae was an efficient runner, getting 5 yards a carry, and WR Marcus Ekstrom will be in discussion for 1st team all-conference honors. With Scribner able to return next season, the Broncos may be the odds on favorites to win the conference in 2022.

Best Win: Akron 18-10; Worst Loss: Buffalo 22-24

MVP: QB Theo Scribner; 4563 yards, 26 TDs, 13 INTs

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4. Central Michigan (8-5); Preseason: 1

Central Michigan is in a similar situation as their rival Western Michigan. Their roster is stacked with talent, yet they lost to Eastern Michigan and if they could have beaten Ball State they would have represented the West in the MAC championship game. Throw in losses to 5-7 ECU and 4-8 Oklahoma and you have to wonder if they made best with what they had. Everything the Chippewas did on offense went through RB Tanner Lake. The senior was 3rd in the MAC in rush yards and led the team in all receiving categories. The defense was quite disruptive, leading the conference in Tackles For Loss and was tied for 1st in rush yards allowed. A win against Western Michigan and winning their bowl game against Arkansas State helped make this season look better in hindsight.

Best Win: Western Michigan 34-33; Worst Loss: Eastern Michigan 3-13

MVP: RB Tanner Lake; 1841 yards, 12 TDs, 736 rec yards, 7 rec TDs

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3. Ball State (5-8); Preseason: 5

Much has been made of Ball State's schedule this year, particularly when they won the tiebreaker to represent their division in the MAC Championship Game. Their out-of-conference schedule consisted of Cal, Kansas, Purdue, and Old Dominion, probably the most difficult in the country. After starting 0-5, they were able to find what worked best for them and, *spoiler alert*, it was getting the ball to RB Anthony Fisher. The back was 2nd in the MAC in rush yards and led his team in all receiving categories. Sound familiar? Basically a slightly better Tanner Lake. On the other side of the ball they had Butkus Award winner Leon Chavez, who had 80 tackles and 24 TFLs. On top of that, freshman phenom Nate Walker IV led the conference with 6 interceptions.

Best Win: Central Michigan 23-19; Worst Loss: Buffalo 6-30

MVP: RB Anthony Fisher; 1914 yards, 15 TDs, 732 rec yards, 10 rec TDs

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2. Akron (9-4); Preseason: 9

Akron did everything they needed to, beat all the teams that they should have beat, until week 12 when they lost a shocker to 2-win Toledo. Had they won that game they would have represented the East instead of Ohio and the sky was the limit. Alas, 'twas not meant to be. QB Josh Pennel is probably the most underrated player in the conference, being overshadowed by Davey O'Brien Award winner Yusei Asencio. Pennel did a great job of evenly distributing the ball, having 4 players with over 850 receiving yards, and dual threat RB Christian Adams had over 850 yards rushing and receiving, but only 4 total TDs on the year. Ultimately the loss to Toledo likely put a huge damper on Akron's season as they weren't able to pull off an upset win against Old Dominion in the Bahamas bowl, falling short 42-48. All that being said, they greatly overachieved this year and should be proud of the season.

Best Win: Ohio 39-28; Worst Loss: Toledo 24-31

MVP: QB Josh Pennel; 4874 yards, 34 TDs, 12 INTs

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:ohio: 1. Ohio (12-3); Preseason: 7

Yusei Asencio. That's all that really needs to be said. Asencio put up some numbers this year that, with Ohio playing 15 games, may never be beat. 7044 passing yards, 55 passing TDs. A lot of quarterbacks don't do that in their career. Asencio had plenty of weapons to get the ball to as well, having 3 wide receivers (Jerald Paulsen, Humberto Mauger, and Myles Pressly) over 1,000 receiving yards and 10 TDs. Paulsen is just a junior so it remains to be seen if he'll leave for the NFL after this season. Nationally, one of the more underrated teams on the season, their only losses were to Akron, San Diego State, and Tulsa. You knew that Ohio was looking to outscore their opponents, but that's not to say they didn't have impactful players on defense. ILB Tyler Ramsey led the team with 60 tackles and 18 TFLs and DE Shawn Dominguez was a menace in opponents' backfields, racking up 21 TFLs on the season.

Best Win: Texas State 34-14; Worst Loss: Akron 28-39

MVP: QB Yusei Asencio; 7044 yards, 55 TDs, 7 INTs

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I will also be doing my own all-conference teams and award winners, likely later this week.