2023 College Football Review: MAC

Photo by Carlos Osorio from The Associated Press

Of all the conferences in college football, the hardest to predict is usually the MAC.

There are some consistently good teams, but it’s the one conference that has lots of changes and unexpected surprise teams every year.

Regardless, let’s dive into the review.

East

1. Miami Redhawks [Conference Champion] (My Prediction: 2)

Miami’s defense was the star of the show all year long.

I know the MAC isn’t exactly an offensive powerhouse, but the Redhawks defense allowed a little bit over 10 points per game in the conference.

That is insanely good no matter what conference you’re in.

And they rode that defense all the way to a conference championship.

2. Ohio Bobcats (My Prediction: 1 & Conference Champion)

Well, I was right about my base prediction regarding Ohio.

Kurtis Rourke is really good and Ohio should have a good year.

They did, but Miami’s defense was so much better that it ended up not mattering.

Sometimes, that’s just how the season goes.

3. Bowling Green Falcons (My Prediction: 4)

A very slow start in conference ended up turning into a great year due to the Falcons winning 5 of their last 6.

The dominant win over Georgia Tech was pretty cool too.

4. Buffalo Bulls (My Prediction: 3)

I did think Buffalo would take a step back simply due to a lack of returning production.

I did not expect that step back to be “3-9.”

Not great!

5. Akron Zips (My Prediction: 5)

Well, it wasn’t better than last years 2-10 season, as this year the Zips also went 2-10.

Like I said, this is a difficult, difficult rebuild.

6. Kent State Golden Flashes (My Prediction: 6)

Kent State lost way too much at once to succeed in a conference that doesn’t have the same portal abilities as others do.

It was pretty clear that this was going to be a tough year for them.

West

1. Toledo Rockets (My Prediction: 1)

There was no question that Jason Candle’s squad was the best in the conference, and that showed with their 8-0 record in the regular season.

I just thought they’d fall short in the conference championship due to excellent QB play from Ohio, not a dominant defensive performance from Miami.

2. Northern Illinois Huskies (My Prediction: 6)

I owe Northern Illinois an apology.

The Huskies defense last year was the clear weak point, and the only good talent was now gone.

I didn’t think it could possibly be good.

And then they went out and only allowed 159 points in conference play on route to a 5-3 finish in conference.

Head coach Thomas Hammock deserves a ton of credit.

3. Eastern Michigan Eagles (My Prediction: 2)

Another good year from a team with a clear talent deficiency.

It all comes down to coaching.

4. Western Michigan Broncos (My Prediction: 5)

It was an expected rocky year for first year head coach Lance Taylor, but thanks to tiebreakers, WMU gets to end up finishing 4th in the west instead of last.

It’s only a moral victory, but it’s something to hang their hat on.

5. Ball State Cardinals (My Prediction: 4)

Ball State lost 3 one score games to some of the better teams in the conference.

If one or two of those go a little differently, we may be telling a different story.

C’est la vie…

6. Central Michigan Chippewas (My Prediction: 3)

Jim McElwain has done a good job at CMU before last season, so I figured he’d do better than a 4-8 season.

He technically did, as CMU went 5-7, but that’s still not the standard they have previously been at.

It may be too early to discuss the hot seat, but it’s not off the table.