Mid-American Conference

MAC PART OF NEW COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF ERA
Last year college football entered a new four-team playoff era with the new College Football Playoff.  The two College Football Playoff Semifinals will be played in bowl games this year (Capital One Orange Bowl; Goodyear Cotton Bowl) and the College Football Playoff National Championship will be played in Arizona on Jan. 11.

The two Semifinals and four other premier bowl games (Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl; Vizio Fiesta Bowl; All-State Sugar Bowl; Rose Bowl) will be played on New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.  The Semifinal games will rotate among these six different bowls.  All MAC programs will join every FBS team in college football with equal access to the playoff based upon its performance.  No team will qualify automatically.

The College Football Playoff Selection Committee will choose four teams for the playoffs based on body of work, strength of schedule, head-to-head results, comparison of results against common opponents, championships won and other factors.

The highest ranked program by the Selection Committee from either the MAC, American Athletic, Conference USA, Mountain West or Sun Belt Conferences will play annually in one of the premier bowl games.

MAC WITH 65 NAMED TO PRESEASON 2015 WATCH LISTS
The MAC was represented with 65 honorees for the various Watch Lists this preseason.

2015 College Football Watch Lists:
Chuck Bednarik Award (defensive player of the year):  LB Jovan Santos-Knox (Umass)
Biletnikoff Award (best wide receiver):  Ryan Burbrink (Bowling Green); Roger Lewis (Bowling Green); Ron Willoughby (Buffalo); Corey Jones (Toledo); Alonzo Russell (Toledo); Tajae Sharpe (UMass); Daniel Braverman (Western Michigan); Corey Davis (Western Michigan)
Walter Camp Award (player of the year):  RB Jarvion Franklin (Western Michigan)
Maxwell Award (outstanding college football player):  RB Jarvion Franklin (Western Michigan); RB Kareem Hunt (Toledo)
Paul Hornung Award (most versatile player):  WR Corey Jones (Toledo); WR Ronnie Moore (Bowling Green); WR Daz’Mond Patterson (Ohio)
Bronko Nagurski Award (defensive player of the year): DL Pat O’Connor (Eastern Michigan); LB Jovan Santos-Knox (UMass); DB Ronald Zamort (Western Michigan)
Manning Award (best quarterback): QB Blake Frohnapfel (UMass); QB Joe Licata (Buffalo); QB Zach Terrell (Western Michigan)
Davey O’Brien Award (nation’s top quarterback): Blake Frohnapfel (UMass); Zach Terrell (Western Michigan)
Outland Award (top interior lineman):  OG Jimmy Kristof (Western Michigan); C Andrew Ness (Northern Illinois); DT Joe Ostman (Central Michigan); C Matt Sparks (UMass)
Rimington Award (most outstanding center):  Jacob Richard (Ball State); Tim McAullife (Bowling Green); Nick Beamish (Central Michigan); Jake Hurcombe (Eastern Michigan); Matt Sparks (UMass); Andrew Ness (Northern Illinois); Lucas Powell (Ohio)
Rotary Lombardi Award (lineman of the year): LB Jatavis Brown (Akron); C Alex Huettel (Bowling Green); DE Joe Ostman (Central Michigan); OL Ramadan Ahmeti (Central Michigan); DL Blake Serpa (Central Michigan); DL Pat O’Connor (Eastern Michigan); LB Great Ibe (Eastern Michigan); LB Jovan Santos-Knox (UMass); C Andrew Ness (Northern Illinois); LB Boomer Mays (Northern Illinois); DE Trent Voss (Toledo); OL James Kristof (Western Michigan); OL Willie Beavers (Western Michigan)
Lou Groza Award (top kicker): Andrew Haldeman (Western Michigan); Robert Stein (Akron); Tyler Tate (Bowling Green)
Ray Guy Award (top punter): Tyler Grassman (Buffalo); Anthony Melchiori (Kent State); J. Schroeder (Western Michigan)
Jim Thorpe Award (best defensive back):  Tony Annese (Central Michigan); Nate Holley (Kent State); Randall Jette (UMass); Paris Logan (Northern Illinois)
Doak Walker Award (best running back):  Jarvion Franklin (Western Michigan); Kareem Hunt (Toledo); Anthone Taylor (Buffalo); Travis Greene (Bowling Green); Darius Jackson (Eastern Michigan)
Wuerffel Trophy (best community service): OL Christian Piazza (Bowling Green); DB Jordan Italiano (Kent State); QB Blake Frohnapfel (UMass); QB Zach Terrell (Western Michigan)

MAC 2015 SEASON & BOWL NOTES
• Five MAC programs were invited to bowl games last season as Northern Illinois (Boca Raton Bowl), Toledo (GoDaddy Bowl), Western Michigan (Famous Idaho Potato Bowl), Bowling Green (Raycom Media Camellia Bowl) and Central Michigan (Popeyes Bahamas Bowl) represented the Conference during the 2014 bowl season.

• The five MAC bowl invitations marks the seventh time in MAC history to have five or more programs receive a bowl invitation (2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013 & 2014) in a single-season.  The MAC record is seven bowl invitations, established in the 2012 bowl season.

• Northern Illinois won the 2014 Marathon MAC Football Championship with a 51-17 win over Bowling Green on Dec. 5 at Ford Field. This marked the third MAC Championship for the Huskies program in the last five seasons.

• The Northern Illinois invitation to the Boca Raton Bowl against Marshall was one of only three bowl games this entire season matching Conference Champions. MAC Champion Northern Illinois played Conference-USA Champion Marshall on Dec. 23 in the Boca Raton Bowl. The only two other bowl games featuring Conference Champions were the two College Football Playoff Semifinal Games with the top four ranked programs in college football -- No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Ohio State in the Allstate Sugar Bowl and No. 2. Oregon vs. No. 3. Florida State in the Rose Bowl.

• In the previous four bowl seasons, the MAC has a record of 8-14 in 22 bowl games – 2014 (2-3); 2013 (0-5); 2012 (2-5); 2011 (4-1) – as ten different MAC programs have appeared in a bowl game during that span.

• Bowling Green (8-6, 5-3 MAC) won the MAC East for the second consecutive season as the Falcons were the first MAC East Champions in back-to-back years since Miami (2003-04).

• The MAC had six programs bowl eligible in 2014 -- Northern Illinois (11-3), Bowling Green (8-6, 5-3), Toledo (9-4, 7-1), Western Michigan (8-5, 6-2), Central Michigan (7-6, 5-3) and Ohio (6-6).  The only MAC program that was bowl eligible to not receive a bowl invitation was Ohio University. The Bobcats were one of five programs in FBS to reach bowl eligibility and not receive an invitation as FBS had 81 teams bowl eligible for 76 bowl spots.

• Northern Illinois has won four consecutive MAC West Division titles and appeared in the Marathon MAC Football Championship Game since 2010.  From the East Division, there have been four different programs during this period – Miami (2010); Ohio (2011); Kent State (2012) and Bowling Green (2013).

MAC 2014-15 BOWL RESULTS
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Dec. 20, Boise, Ida.) Air Force 38, Western Michigan 24
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Dec. 20, Montgomery, Ala.) Bowling Green 33, South Alabama 28
Boca Raton Bowl (Dec. 23, Boca Raton, Fla.) Marshall 52, Northern Illinois 23
Popeyes Bahamas Bowl (Dec. 24, Nassau, Bahamas) Western Kentucky 49, Central Michigan 48
GoDaddy Bowl (Jan. 4, Mobile, Ala.)  Toledo 63, Arkansas State 44

MAC PROGRAMS IN BOWL GAMES
In the last four bowl seasons, ten different MAC programs have received a bowl invitation, as Northern Illinois leads the Conference with four invitations during this span.  Bowling Green (2012, 2013, 2014), Ohio (2011, 2012, 2013) and Toledo (2011, 2012, 2014) rank second with three invitations in the last four years.  Ball State (2012, 2013), Central Michigan (2012, 2014), and Western Michigan (2011, 2014) each received two invitations in the last four years.  Buffalo (2013), Kent State (2012) and former MAC-member Temple (2011) received one bowl invite during the last four bowl seasons.

MAC WITH TWO NEW HEAD COACHES FOR 2015
Two new head football coaches have joined the MAC for the 2015 season.  Buffalo named Lance Leipold head coach on Dec. 1 while Central Michigan named John Bonamego head coach on Feb. 9.

Buffalo: Lance Leipold
Leipold was introduced as the 25th head coach in the history of the State University of New York, Buffalo football program on Dec. 1, 2014.  Leipold comes to Buffalo from Wisconsin-Whitewater where he compiled a 109-6 record and won six Division III National Championships over his eight seasons. He led the Warhawks to their sixth national crown last year with a 15-0 record as the top-ranked team in Division III in the nation.  A six-time National Coach of the Year, Leipold reached 100 career victories faster than any other coach in NCAA history – at any level.  Leipold has gathered multiple honors from as many as five football related organizations. He earned his fifth American Football Coaches Association Division III Coach of the Year award in 2013, joining Penn State’s Joe Paterno as the only coaches at any level of college football to earn five AFCA Coach of the Year honors.

Central Michigan: John Bonamego
Bonamego was named the 28th head coach in Central Michigan football history on Feb. 9.  He joins the Chippewas after serving as the Detroit Lions special teams coordinator and he also played at Central Michigan. He is the first Central Michigan alum to lead the football program since Bill Kelly in 1951-66. A Paw Paw native, Bonamego was a wide receiver/quarterback as a Chippewa. He was a walk-on who earned varsity letters in 1985-86 and twice earned the Iron Man Award as the defensive scout team player of the year.  Bonamego spent the past two seasons as the special teams coordinator of the Detroit Lions.  Bonamego has 27 years of college and professional experience, highlighted by 16 years in the NFL as an assistant, primarily as a special teams coordinator.

SEVEN NAMED TO ALLSTATE AFCA GOOD WORKS TEAM
The MAC had seven students named by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) to the 2015 Allstate AFCA Good Works Team:  FB Christian Allen (Akron); C Jacob Richard (Ball State); C Nick Beamish (Central Michigan); DB Jordan Italiano (Kent State); DE Cameron Clinton-Earl (Northern Illinois); QB Blake Frohnapfel (UMass); TE Alex Zmolik (Toledo).

MIAMI’S ROLLINS PICKED BY GREEN BAY IN 2ND ROUND OF 2015 NFL DRAFT
MAC WITH 111 FORMER PLAYERS IN NFL CAMPS FOR 2015 SEASON
Last season’s MAC Defensive Player of the Year, Miami senior defensive back Quinten Rollins was a second round draft choice, 62nd overall, by the Green Bay Packers.  Rollins will pursue his professional career in the NFL and joins the lengthy list of former MAC players now in the NFL.  Rollins is one of 111 former MAC players currently on NFL rosters.  During the 2015 NFL Draft, the MAC had four players selected, joining Rollins were Central Michigan DL Leterrius Walton (6th round, 199 overall, Pittsburgh), Buffalo DT Kristjan Sokoli (6th round, 214th overall, Seattle) and NIU WR Da’Ron Brown (7th round, 233 overall, Kansas City).

MAC LED ‘GROUP OF FIVE’ IN WINS VS. ‘POWER FIVE’
Last season during the regular season, the MAC led the ‘Group of Five’ Conferences with four wins over ‘Power Five’ opponents. The MAC had wins over Northwestern, Purdue and Indiana from the Big Ten Conference and Pittsburgh from the ACC. Among the ‘Group of Five’ Conferences, the MAC and Mountain West Conference tied with four wins over opponents from the ‘Power Five’ Conferences.

Among the ‘Group of Five’ Conferences, the Mountain West had four ‘Power Five’ wins over two Pac-12 (Colorado, Washington State) and two ACC (Wake Forest, Boston College) opponents. The American Athletic Conference had three ‘Power Five’ wins over two ACC opponents (Virginia Tech, North Carolina) and one SEC (Vanderbilt) program. The Sun Belt had one ‘Power Five’ victory (Wake Forest-ACC) and Conference USA had zero wins vs. ‘Power Five’ opponents.

OHIO’S SOLICH MOVING UP MAC CAREER WINS LIST
Ohio head coach Frank Solich has been the recent model for consistency in coaching in the MAC. Solich arrived in Athens, Ohio in 2005 and during his 10 seasons running the Bobcats program has garnered a bowl appearance in six of his 10 seasons.  During his coaching career at Ohio, Solich has a record of 72-54 and his 72 wins ranks sixth most in MAC history.  Solich trails Toledo’s Gary Pinkel (73) by one win and Bowling Green’s Doyt Perry (77) by five wins.

Most MAC Head Coaching Wins, Career
1. 110, Herb Deromedi, Central Michigan, 1978-93
2. 108, Bill Hess, Ohio, 1958-77
3. 79, Bob Pruett, Marshall, 1997-03
4. 77, Doyt Perry, Bowling Green, 1955-64
5. 73, Gary Pinkel, Toledo, 1991-00
6. 72, Frank Solich, Ohio, 2005-present
7. 66, Trevor Rees, Kent State, 1951-63
8. 64, Bill Mallory, Miami, 1969-73; Northern Illinois, 1980-83

HUSKIES EXTEND MAC CONSECUTIVE BOWL RECORD
Northern Illinois extended its MAC record for consecutive bowl appearances by a member of the Conference. The Huskies current seven consecutive bowl appearances is the best-ever in the 70-year history of the MAC. Beyond appearing in seven consecutive bowl games, the Huskies will have done so with four different head coaches-- Jerry Kill (2008, 2009), interim Tom Matukewicz (2010), Dave Doeren (2011) and current Head Coach Rod Carey (2012, 2013, 2014).

Seven (7) Northern Illinois Consecutive Bowl Appearances:
2008: Independence Bowl: 17-10 loss to Louisiana Tech
2009: International Bowl: 27-3 loss to South Florida
2010: Humanitarian Bowl: 40-17 win over Fresno State
2011: GoDaddy.com Bowl: 38-20 win over Arkansas State
2012: Discover Orange Bowl: 31-10 loss to Florida State
2013: San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl:  21-14 loss to Utah State
2014: Boca Raton Bowl:  52-23 loss to Marshall

WESTERN MICHIGAN’S FRANKLIN SETS MAC FRESHMAN RUSHING RECORD
Western Michigan freshman running back Jarvion Franklin finished the 2014 season by setting the MAC single-season freshman rushing record with 1,551 yards rushing, breaking the previous mark set by Bernard Pierce of Temple in 2009 (1,361). In 13 games last season, Franklin rushed for 1,551 yards on 306 carries (5.1 avg.) and 24 rushing touchdowns, which ranked fourth in the nation.

2015 NFF HAMPSHIRE HONOR SOCIETY RECOGNIZED 25 MAC STUDENTS
This past spring the National Football Foundation & College Hall of Fame (NFF) named 25 MAC students as members of the 2015 NFF Hampshire Honor Society, which is comprised of college football players from all divisions of play who each maintained a cumulative 3.2 GPA or better throughout their college career.

MAC Student-Athletes Named To NFF Hampshire Honor Society (25)
Akron, WR Zach D'Orazio; QB Nick Hirshman; OL Joe McNamara; LB Nick Rossi; OL Travis Switzer
Ball State, DE Nick Miles
Bowling Green, LB Gabe Martin
Buffalo, OL Jake Silas; LB Lee Skinner
Central Michigan, DB Jarret Chapman; TE Mike Kinville
Eastern Michigan, P Owen Dubiel; OL Lincoln Hansen; DB Kevin Johnson; DL Travis Linser
Kent State, WR Chris Humphrey; RB Anthony Meray; TE Casey Pierce; DE Nate Vance
Northern Illinois, TE Luke Eakes; DE Jason Meehan; FB Robert Sterling
Ohio, S Josh Kristoff
Toledo, OL Greg Mancz
Western Michigan, SS Justin Currie

MAC AND ESPN 13-YEAR RIGHTS EXTENSION DEAL THROUGH 2026-27 SEASON
The MAC and ESPN announced last August a 13-year rights agreement that is the largest and most extensive agreement in the 70-year history of the Conference. The extension, which adds provisions to the remaining three years of the original national rights agreement and adds an additional 10 years to the deal with ESPN, brings long-term security for the Conference through the 2026-27 academic year.

This agreement provides ESPN with exclusive television and digital distribution rights for all MAC sporting events, and guarantees coverage of every football game, and select men’s and women’s basketball and Olympic sporting events through the 2026-27 academic season. The Marathon MAC Football Championship Game and the MAC football regular season is the foundation for the national deal with ESPN.

MAC AND CBS SPORTS NETWORK REACH MULTI-YEAR DEAL
Earlier this June of 2015, the MAC and CBS Sports Network announced a multi-year deal to televise college football and basketball games from the Mid-American Conference.  The deal, which begins this season and continues through 2018-19, is through a sublicense agreement with ESPN.

CBS Sports Network will air up to 12 football and 12 basketball games per year, with the first year calling for six football games and up to seven basketball games. In 2015, the six football games will include two Thursday and three Saturday games, as well as one game on the Friday after Thanksgiving.  CBS Sports Network, the 24-hour home of CBS Sports, is available across the country through local cable, video and telco providers and via satellite on DirecTV Channel 221 and Dish Network Channel 158.

NIU WINS 2014 MARATHON MAC CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
For the third time in the last four seasons, and the fourth time in school history, the NIU Huskies won the Marathon MAC Football Championship. This time, the Huskies won it in decisive fashion, 51-17, over Bowling Green on Dec. 5 at Ford Field.

NIU led 20-10 at the half before scoring 24 straight points to begin the second half to cruise to the 34-point win, the largest win in MAC Championship Game history. The 51 points scored by the Huskies also set a MAC Championship Game record, bettering the previous high of 49 scored by Marshall in 2002 and Miami in 2003.

Huskie sophomore quarterback Drew Hare set new career highs with 29 completions on 49 attempts, throwing for 218 yards and a pair of touchdowns to claim MVP honors. Senior tailback Cameron Stingily ran for 116 yards on 15 carries and two touchdowns while senior Da’Ron Brown had a career-best nine catches for 70 yards.

MAC ANNOUNCES FOUR-YEAR CONTRACT EXTENSION WITH FORD FIELD
The MAC announced on Dec. 4 in conjunction with the Detroit Lions and Ford Field that the MAC has secured a four-year contract extension to host its Marathon MAC Football Championship Game in Detroit through the 2019 football season.

The 2014 Marathon MAC Football Championship featured NIU’s 51-17 win over Bowling Green was the 11th MAC Conference Championship Football Game hosted at Ford Field, and the 18th overall in the history of the Conference as the first seven years were hosted on campus.

The MAC has had a long association with Detroit and Ford Field as the MAC has held its Marathon MAC Football Championship Game as a neutral site championship event at Ford Field since 2004. Also, the MAC played the first-ever college football game at Ford Field as Toledo faced Boston College in the 2002 Motor City Bowl.

The MAC previously was a primary bowl partner with the Detroit based Motor City Bowl (1997-2008) and the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl (2009-2013) over a 17-year period. During this time the MAC had a 7-10 record in the Detroit bowl games, including wins over Louisville, BYU, Cincinnati and Northwestern. Earlier this October, the MAC announced a six-year (2014-19) backup agreement with the newly-formed Quick Lane Bowl, owned and operated by the Detroit Lions and Ford Field.

MAC EAST VS. MAC WEST
After 18 crossover games in the 2014 season, the MAC West had a 15-3 advantage over the MAC East Division, which marks the best cross-over record in the last seven years. Over the previous seven years (2008-2014), the MAC West has had the upper hand in crossover regular season games against the MAC East, winning the head-to-head regular season series in six of the last seven years. Over the last seven seasons (2008-14), the West holds a 90-36 (.714%) regular
season record in cross-over games over the East.

However, the West Division has won four Marathon MAC Football Championship games during this seven-year span. From the West Division, Northern Illinois (2011, 2012, 2014) and Central Michigan (2009) have won the Conference Championship, while the East Division has won three crowns with Bowling Green (2013), Miami (2010) and Buffalo (2008).

Year, Regular Season East vs. West, MAC Champion
2014 West 15-3; NIU (West) def. Bowling Green (East), 51-17.
2013 West 12-6; Bowling Green (East) def. NIU (West), 47-27.
2012 West 12-6; NIU (West) def. Kent State (East) 44-37 in 2 OT.
2011 West 14-4; NIU (West) def. Ohio (East), 23-20.
2010 West 12-6; Miami (East) def. NIU (West),26-21.
2009 East 11-7; Central Michigan (West) def. Ohio (East), 20-10.
2008 West 14-4; Buffalo (East) def. Ball State (West), 42-24.

2015 MAC BOWL PARTNERS (2015-19)
Last year the MAC announced the creation of newly created bowl games in Boca Raton, Fla., Nassau, Bahamas and Miami Beach, Fla. for a six-year period (2014-2019), in addition to the Raycom Media Camellia Bowl in Montgomery, Ala.

These new bowl games now increases the guaranteed bowl invitations for the conference to five each football season. The Boca Raton Bowl, Popeyes Bahamas Bowl and Raycom Media Camellia Bowl join MAC bowl partners Go Daddy Bowl (Mobile, Ala.) and Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise, Ida.) as primary bowl partners.

The MAC is also a partner with the San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl as a primary partner in 2017 and 2019, and a secondary partner in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018 bowl seasons. The MAC will play the Mountain West in both the 2017 and 2019 bowl seasons, played at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego.

2015 Bowl Season:
GoDaddy Bowl (Mobile, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise, Ida.; vs. Mountain West)
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Boca Raton Bowl (Boca Raton, Fla.; vs. American Athletic)
Bahamas Bowl (Nassau, Bahamas; vs. Conference USA)
*Secondary in San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
*Secondary to ESPN owned and operated bowl games
*Secondary to Quick Lane Bowl (Detroit, Mich.)

2016 Bowl Season:
GoDaddy Bowl (Mobile, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise, Ida.; vs. Mountain West)
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Bahamas Bowl (Nassau, Bahamas; vs. American Athletic)
Miami Beach Bowl (Miami, Fla.; vs. American Athletic)
*Secondary in San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
*Secondary to ESPN owned and operated bowl games
*Secondary to Quick Lane Bowl (Detroit, Mich.)

2017 Bowl Season:
GoDaddy Bowl (Mobile, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise, Ida.; vs. Mountain West)
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Bahamas Bowl (Nassau, Bahamas; vs. Sun Belt)
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl (San Diego, Calif.; vs. Mountain West)
*Secondary to ESPN owned and operated bowl games
*Secondary to Quick Lane Bowl (Detroit, Mich.)

2018 Bowl Season:
GoDaddy Bowl (Mobile, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise, Ida.; vs. Mountain West)
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Boca Raton Bowl (Boca Raton, Fla.; vs. Conference USA)
Miami Beach Bowl (Miami, Fla.; vs. American Athletic)
*Secondary in San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
*Secondary to ESPN owned and operated bowl games
*Secondary to Quick Lane Bowl (Detroit, Mich.)

2019 Bowl Season:
GoDaddy Bowl (Mobile, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise, Ida.; vs. Mountain West)
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.; vs. Sun Belt)
Boca Raton Bowl (Boca Raton, Fla.; vs. American Athletic)
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl (San Diego, Calif.; vs. Mountain West)
*Secondary to ESPN owned and operated bowl games
*Secondary to Quick Lane Bowl (Detroit, Mich.)

2015 MAC Schedule Highlights:
Highlighting the schedule will be 16 midweek nationally televised games during the months of October and November slated for national television on ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPN3 and CBS Sports Network as the conference race unfolds in both the East and West divisions. 

The regular season will conclude with the 19th Marathon MAC Football Championship game on Friday, Dec. 4 at 8:00 pm ET at Ford Field in Detroit on ESPN2.  This will mark the 12th Marathon MAC Football Championship game at Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions, Super Bowl XL, and the 2009 NCAA Men’s Final Four.

For the eighth year in a row, league schools will face a formidable non-conference slate of opponents from the following Football Bowl Subdivision conferences – ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, SEC and Notre Dame. In addition, the conference will also face opponents from the American Athletic Conference, Conference USA, Mountain West Conference, Sun Belt Conference and Independent Army. 

MAC programs will face five non-conference foes that finished in the final AP Top 25 poll: Ohio State (1), Michigan State (5), Wisconsin (13), Marshall (23) and Memphis (25).  MAC programs will twice face National Champion Ohio State as NIU plays in Columbus on Sept. 19 and Western Michigan on Sept. 26.  Also, Western Michigan will host Michigan State in its season opener on Friday, Sept. 4 at Waldo Stadium in Kalamazoo, Mich.

A total of 12 non-conference games will feature a Big Ten opponent (Illinois; Maryland; Michigan State (2); Minnesota (2); Northwestern; Ohio State (2); Penn State; Purdue; Wisconsin).  The MAC will face foes from the ACC (3—Boston College, Pittsburgh, Syracuse), SEC (4—Arkansas, LSU, Tennessee, Texas A&M), Big 12 (3—Iowa State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State); Pac-12 (1—Colorado) and Independent Notre Dame.

The MAC will also face opponents from the American Athletic Conference (3— Cincinnati, Memphis, Temple), Mountain West (3—Nevada, UNLV, Wyoming), Conference USA (6—Florida Atlantic, Florida International, Marshall (2), Old Dominion, Western Kentucky) and Sun Belt Conference (5—Arkansas State, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Idaho, Louisiana-Lafayette), along with Independent Army.

MAC programs continue to increase the number of home or neutral site games against FBS Conference opponents.  This season the MAC will host 16 games against FBS non-conference foes, including Oklahoma State (Big 12); Michigan State (Big Ten); Pittsburgh (ACC); Iowa State (Big 12);

MAC Home Games vs. FBS Non-Conference opponents:
-Oklahoma State (Big 12) at Central Michigan on Sept. 3 at 7:00 pm ET (ESPNU);
-Michigan State (Big Ten) at Western Michigan on Sept. 4 at 7:00 pm ET (ESPNU);
-Old Dominion (Conference USA) at Eastern Michigan on Sept. 5 at 3:00 pm ET (ESPN3);
-UNLV (Mountain West) at NIU on Sept. 5 at 7:30 pm ET (CBS Sports Network);
-Pittsburgh (ACC) at Akron on Sept. 12 at 6:00 pm ET (ESPN3);
-Marshall (Conference USA) at Ohio on Sept. 12 at 7:00 pm ET (ESPN3);
-Iowa State (Big 12) at Toledo on Sept. 19 at 8:00 pm ET (ESPNews);
-Memphis (American Athletic) at Bowling Green on Sept. 19 at 3:00 pm ET (ESPN3);
-Cincinnati (American Athletic) at Miami on Sept. 19 at 3:30 pm ET (ESPN3);
-Temple (American Athletic) at UMass on Sept. 19 at 3:00 pm ET (ESPN3);
-Army (Independent) at Eastern Michigan on Sept. 26;
-Arkansas State (Sun Belt) at Toledo on Sept. 26;
-Nevada (Mountain West) at Buffalo on Sept. 26;
-Marshall (Conference USA) at Kent State on Sept. 26;
-Florida International (Conference USA) at UMass on Oct. 3;
-Georgia State (Sun Belt) at Ball State on Oct. 17.