MAC 2024 College Football Primer: Top Players, Games, Transfers, Predictions
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MAC College Football Primer: 24 for 2024, No. 18
24 Expanded CFP Explained
23 Best Teams To Not Make CFP
22 Meet The New Head Coaches
21 Expansion, Predictions, Who’s Where?
20 One Big Thing: No Divisions
19 Independent Season Primer
MAC Football Storylines
– The story around the MAC continues to be that there is no story. As totally lame as that might be to open up a hype piece about the 2024 MAC college football season, stability can actually be fun. No one’s leaving the MAC, it keeps on doing what it’s doing, and on the flip side, it’s actually adding a program with UMass coming aboard in 2025.
So while the rest of the college football world continues to try figuring out who it is and what it’s doing, you still have the good old MACtion to rely on. To take this even further …
– In case the concept of stability overall wasn’t exciting enough for you, how about taking safe and normal up a few notches in another key way – the coaches. They’re almost all still around.
Buffalo’s Maurice Linguist chose to ditch life as a head man to be an assistant under Kalen DeBoer at Alabama, former Ball State coach Pete Lembo is taking over, and that’s the only head coaching change in the conference.
Considering the MAC is the “cradle of coaches,” and there’s a good mix of veterans and young guys still emerging, the conference is in a good spot. However …
– It’s not all vanilla ice cream and CBS primetime lineup-level down-the-middle safe as houses. There’s one big problem – talent. The transfer portal is hitting the MAC hard, because the conference does a great job of weeding out players for the bigger, richer schools.
Oh sure, there are plenty of good parts still around, but stars like former Ohio QB Kurtis Rourke going to Indiana, and Toledo main man QB Dequan Finn now at Baylor are just part of the talent drain.
There’s a lot to like, though, with Miami QB Brett Gabbert back and healthy, Bowling Green bringing back some exciting offensive parts, and Toledo, Western Michigan, and Northern Illinois all about to challenge with decent starting 22s. There’s one other difference for the MAC this year …
Bold Predictions
– No more divisions won’t automatically mean Toledo vs Miami University. With no more MAC East and MAC West the conference race might not be quite as thrilling – it was always more fun with more teams getting to stay alive in a smaller division rather than a big conference – but it’ll be more representative of the how good the conference is.
And it’s the MAC, which means there’s almost always a team that goes from zero to hero on a regular basis more than any other conference. So okay, that team will be …
– To be 100% honest, I don’t see it yet. Bowling Green was fine last season, and Akron and Kent State still have miles to go before calling for a MAC Championship – but they will be better.
So if I’m putting them out there and I have to make a call for the one team that should make a lot more noise after a rough 2023 … Western Michigan. It’s Year Two in the refurbishing job under head coach Lance Taylor, but it’s really more about Miami, Toledo, and Ohio.
It’s hardly a bold prediction if it comes with a caveat, but here it goes …
– Toledo will be DEEP in the hunt for the Group of Five’s throw-them-a-cookie College Football Playoff spot. Miami might be the best team in the MAC, but …
1) The RedHawks are playing the Rockets in Toledo. 2) Toledo only plays one Power Five program, and beating Mississippi State in Starkville isn’t out of the questions. 3) There’s an honest shot Jason Candle’s squad will be favored in at least ten out of the team’s 12 games.
10 Best MAC Players
1. Brett Gabbert, QB Miami Univ. Sr.
2. Maxen Hook, S Toledo Sr.
3. Antonio Brown, RB Northern Illinois Sr.
4. Brian Ugwu, EDGE, Miami Univ. Sr.
5. CJ Nunnally, EDGE Akron Sr.
6. Ty Wise, LB Miami Univ. Sr.
7. Harold Fannin, TE Bowling Green, Jr.
8. Connor Bazalak, QB Bowling Green Sr.
9. Jerjuan Newton, WR Toledo, Sr.
10. Kenneth Womack, WR Western Michigan, Sr.
10 Biggest MAC Games
Keeping this to just MAC vs MAC action …
1. Miami University at Toledo, Oct. 5
2. Central Michigan at Toledo, Nov. 12
3. Toledo at Northern Illinois, Oct. 19
4. Miami University at Bowling Green, Nov. 29
5. Ohio at Toledo, Nov. 20
6. Northern Illinois at Miami University, Nov. 19
7. Ohio at Miami University, Oct. 19
8. Western Michigan at Bowling Green, Nov. 12
9. Eastern Michigan at Ohio, Nov. 13
10. Northern Illinois at Bowling Green, Oct. 12
10 Top MAC Transfers
1. Cole Snyder, QB Eastern Michigan (Buffalo)
2. Delbert Mimms, RB NC State (Eastern Michigan)
3. Ben Finley, QB Akron (Cal)
4. James Djonkam, EDGE Eastern Michigan (Arizona State)
5. Jadarrius Perkins, CB Toledo (Florida)
6. Popeye Williams, EDGE Western Michigan (Louisville)
7. Conner Muldowney, TE Kent State (Tiffin)
8. Marquese Williams, RB Akron (Minnesota)
9. Porter Rooks, WR Eastern Michigan (NC State)
10. Anthony Tyus III, RB Ohio (Northwestern)
New MAC Head Coaches
– Pete Lembo, Buffalo
Again, it’s sort of strange that there wasn’t more turnover. The only new head coach in the MAC – a former Ball State head coach – has a whole bunch of work to do. Meet Pete Lembo.