Week 5 Football Release: https://bit.ly/3XV5KiL
Week 5 MAC Head Coaches Press Conferences: https://bit.ly/3XSwPmF
Week 4 Players of the Week: https://bit.ly/4eC0o1j
Week 4 Top Plays: https://bit.ly/3XWb1GV
Week 4 Sights & Sounds: https://bit.ly/3zITrg3
Week Five Schedule (Saturday, September 28)
Northern Illinois at NC State, 12 pm ET (The CW)
Buffalo at UConn, 12 pm ET (CBSSN)
Ball State at James Madison, 1:30 pm ET (ESPN+)
*Akron at Ohio, 3:30 pm ET (ESPN+)
*Eastern Michigan at Kent State, 3:30 pm ET (ESPN+)
Western Michigan at Marshall, 3:30 pm ET (ESPN+)
San Diego State at Central Michigan, 3:30 pm ET (CBSSN)
UMass at Miami, 3:30 pm ET (ESPN+)
Old Dominion at Bowling Green, 5 pm ET (ESPN+)
Two Minute Drill
• Buffalo went on the road and defeated 23rd-ranked Northern Illinois, 23-20, in overtime on Saturday afternoon to open Mid-American Conference play. It was the Bulls’ second win over a ranked opponent in program history. Led by linebacker Shaun Dolac, the defense kept the Bulls in the game early until the offense got its footing. Dolac had one of the greatest games in program history, finishing with a career-high 19 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and a game-changing interception. In overtime, Marquis Cooper blocked a NIU field goal attempt before Upton Bellenfant connected on a 37-yard field goal to secure the walk-off win for the Bulls. Overall, Buffalo improved to 3-1 for the first time since 2020 and just the third time in their FBS era.
• Joe Labas found Chris Parker for a 20-yard touchdown pass with just 16 seconds remaining to lift Central Michigan to a 37-34 win over Ball State on Saturday. This marked the second-straight season the Chippewas opened MAC play with a victory. Bert Emanuel was responsible for three touchdowns (two rushing and one passing) while B.J. Harris rushed for a career-high 151 yards on eight carries, including a 71-yard run, 41-yard run and 25-yard run to set up the game-winning touchdown pass.
• Eastern Michigan defeated Saint Francis, 36-0, in its non-conference finale on Saturday. The Eagles improved to 3-1 on the season and closed their non-conference slate with their first shutout victory since 2008 as EMU scored one touchdown each on the ground, through the air, on a defensive fumble return and on a blocked punt.
• Heading into Week 5 action, the MAC has defeated seven non-conference FBS opponents this year. The MAC has now defeated at least seven non-conference FBS opponents in the same season 23 times since 2000 and is currently on a 19-year streak with at least seven victories against FBS foes (minus 2020 due to COVID).
• The MAC has established a new football scheduling model that will go into effect starting this season. The new scheduling model will eliminate the MAC East and West Divisions. The top two teams based on conference winning percentage will compete in the MAC Football Championship Game at Ford Field in Detroit, Mich.
