2026 College Football Preview: MAC

Photo by Nic Antaya from Getty Images

The MAC, once a staple of football fandom with their weeknight games (and commitment to a geographically smart conference), has become a place where you unfortunately find yourself at a stand still.

There’s not a clear path for teams to make the playoff, and there’s not a clear path for the good coaches to get higher head coaching opportunities.

Not to mention, any sniff of a good player within the conference gets poached as soon as the season ends.

But, we love it all the same.

Here is how the MAC will play out in 2026.

Better Luck Next Year

Akron Zips

This one hurt me, because I think Joe Moorhead is a good coach.

And, last year, they went 5-7, which was a marked improvement over the past, hell, almost 10 years at Akron.

And they return a hefty majority of their defense, so that’s good!

But they replace their quarterback this year, only some of their offensive line, and they still haven’t made a bowl since 2017.

So I like Moorhead. I like the way this team is set up.

But it’s like the Jets and the NFL playoffs.

I can not predict them to make a bowl until I see them do it.

Kent State Golden Flashes

Yet another example of a team that I don’t think will go bowling that hurts.

Mark Carney took over as the interim coach at Kent State on an interim basis last year after Kenni Burns was fired for off the field issues, and it felt like this program was dead in the water.

They won one game in two years, had an administration in turmoil, and a first time head coach.

And yet, despite that, Carney got the Golden Flashes to 5-7. A remarkable turnaround for the program.

But they relied on plenty of one score wins, and, because of the era of college football we’re in, they had to get players in the portal on a shoestring budget.

So I just feel like a natural regress is coming.

But that’s ok!

They kept Da’Realyst Clark on the team.

And frankly, that’s what matters most.

Sacramento State Hornets

Sac State was adamant to get into FBS, and here they are!

In fact, they were so adamant, that they agreed to join the conference and not get a single dollar from the conference distribution, as well as covering the air travel costs for the teams coming to play them.

We’ve also seen with Big 10 schools and the constant travel that teams have a tough time going cross country.

Sacramento State is going to have to do that a lot (as will their opponents, to be fair).

So, the deal isn’t good, and the travel is brutal.

So the team better be good.

And maybe it will be.

But it more likely will not be.

Alonzo Carter takes over as head coach for his first season in charge, and the team is LOADED with transfers, such as Amari Wallace from Miami or Garrison Blank from UCLA.

I just don’t like anything about this move up into FBS for Sac State.

Maybe in the future it will look like a smart move, but right now, it looks like a mess.

UMass Minutemen

This team is not talented, they’re not very well coached, and they didn’t win a single game all year last year.

That’s pretty much all that needs to be said about this group.

Bowl Game Bound

Ohio Bobcats

In terms of talent, Ohio should be fighting for the conference title.

The defense, now led by new head coach John Hauser, the architect of some excellent defenses at Miami (OH), brings back tons of talent.

The offense? Not so much.

Not to mention, this is now the third different coach in three years for Ohio after Tim Albin left for Charlotte, and Brian Smith was fired for off the field issues.

So despite the talent, and the good coach, I don’t see this team fighting for the conference title yet.

Talk to me next year, though.

They’ll be back.

Eastern Michigan Eagles

I say it year, after year, after year.

I love continuity in this sport.

And in the MAC, where so much is changing, Chris Creighton being at Eastern Michigan for 13 years is excellent continuity.

Not to mention, the offense brings back Noah Kim and Nick Devereaux, and the defense brings back basically everybody.

And at any other school, I think that could win them a conference title.

But the fact is, Eastern Michigan just isn’t that talented, and they likely never will be in this era.

So they’ll go bowling, but that’s sadly the ceiling for this group.

Bowling Green Falcons

Eddie George was an ambitious hire, and I still think it’s a decent one, but the jury is out.

But this year will be a great year to make a judgement on George, as he brings in a bunch of transfers from FCS schools, and has a chance to make his mark as a talent evaluator, and also improve his chops on the sidelines, just one year after the Falcons lost three one score games.

Some of that is random and will come back to the middle, but sometimes, it does fall on coaching.

So there are a lot of question marks going into this year, but I have faith in the Eddie George and the Falcons to get to 6 wins.

Ball State Cardinals

While Bowling Green hit the portal on an FCS level, Ball State head coach Mike Uremovich hit the portal at the Power 4 level, looking to get some top end talent to turn things around.

Defensively, Ball State brings in Kendrick Gilbert from Louisville, Maverick Gracio from Pitt, and Cincear Lewis from Cincy, among others.

But offensively, which is Uremovich’s calling card, he brought in smaller school guys, like QB Keldric Luster from Texas State, and Maxwell Wentz from Dartmouth on the offensive line.

That shows a coach that knows exactly what he wants on his side of the ball, and that brings me some excitement for Ball State this year.

Central Michigan Chippewas

Keep it simple, stupid.

Central Michigan hired Matt Drinkall from Army to take over as the head coach at Central, and he brought the Army style of running the ball, easy completions for QB Joe Labas, and controlling the ball.

And it got him 7 wins in year one.

And while Labas is now gone, the offensive line remains almost exactly the same, and brought back top receiver Langston Lewis which makes it easier for new QB Angel Flores.

So Central will likely continue to keep control, move the ball, and shorten the game.

It got them wins last year, it’s going to again.

Buffalo Bulls

I’m worried about Pete Lembo at Buffalo.

Lembo’s previous FBS head coaching job was Ball State from 2011-2015, so he has experience with the MAC.

And he did well with the Cardinals, finishing 2nd twice in the conference, and even pulled out a 10 win season.

But after that 10 win season, the win total fell to 5, and then 3 the following year, and he was gone.

Two years ago, Lembo returned to the MAC and became the head coach of Buffalo, and immediately hit the ground running with 9 wins.

But last year, the wins dropped to 5 again.

And now, with two new coordinators and basically an entire new roster around him, he’s going to try and buck that trend and get to a bowl game.

I’m betting on yes.

And for Lembo’s sake, I hope I’m right.

Dark Horses

Western Michigan Broncos

The reigning MAC Champions took a huge step forward at the end of the year, going 6-0 to end the season and win the MAC.

Now, they will try to repeat, and they will do it with a completely new defense, including the defensive coordinator.

That’s going to be tough to pull off, but it can be helped if the offense improves, as it was 107th in Bill Connelly’s SP+, but returns a lot of starters, like QB Broc Lowry.

If it does, they should be fine.

If it doesn’t, they’ll still probably get to 6 wins, but a repeat will be off the table.

Toledo Rockets

Jason Candle, after years of consistently winning 8-11 games, finally got another head coaching opportunity!

Of course, that opportunity was at UConn and not a power 4 program, but you know. It’s something.

The good news is that Candle didn’t leave the cupboard bare.

John Alan Richter returns at QB, as do most of the offensive lineman, which gives new head coach Mike Jacobs an easier transition to the FBS level as he comes from Mercer.

Jacobs boasts a 94-23 record as a head coach, so he knows what it takes to win.

If his style transitions easily with the talent Toledo has, there shouldn’t be much of a drop off.

But the competition is still stiff.

The Favorites

Miami (OH) Redhawks

It’s hard to pick a favorite in a conference like this, and I don’t love the Redhawks losing their defensive coordinator John Hauser to Ohio, but at the end of the day, Chuck Martin has sent the Redhawks to 5 straight bowl games, and 3 straight conference championship games.

Now, they’re 1-2 in those 3 games, but they’re still in Detroit every December as of late.

And, in a continuous time of change, they return 50% of their production from last season, which is 3rd in the conference.

So there is stability, and there’s a great coach at the helm.

I would bet on Miami being in the MAC title game once again in December, and this time, I think they’ll win it.