2022 Midseason MAC Conference Round-Up

[PoopyRhinoPickle]

 

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