Without looking at exact schedules for every team, this is my attempt at predicting the MAC.

9-3 Toledo
8-4 EMU
7-5 WMU
7-5 CMU
5-7 NIU
3-9 BSU

10-2 Ohio
9-3 Miami
7-5 BG
3-9 UB
3-9 Akron
3-9 Kent State

(07-09-2017 03:35 PM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  Without looking at exact schedules for every team, this is my attempt at predicting the MAC.

9-3 Toledo
8-4 EMU
7-5 WMU
7-5 CMU
5-7 NIU
3-9 BSU

10-2 Ohio
9-3 Miami
7-5 BG
3-9 UB
3-9 Akron
3-9 Kent State

i can dig this!

EMU fans might not survive the excitement of an 8-4 year.

(07-09-2017 04:58 PM)bobcat_backer Wrote:  

(07-09-2017 03:35 PM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  Without looking at exact schedules for every team, this is my attempt at predicting the MAC.

9-3 Toledo
8-4 EMU
7-5 WMU
7-5 CMU
5-7 NIU
3-9 BSU

10-2 Ohio
9-3 Miami
7-5 BG
3-9 UB
3-9 Akron
3-9 Kent State

i can dig this!

Kansas, Purdue, UMass, and Hampton.... 3-1 would be expected with a very good shot at 4-0. Miami, BG, Toledo, CMU, and EMU being tough in conference games? 6-2 or 7-1 is plausible. OU was a good team in 2016, so I like their chances at the East. A re-surging East might I add. Probably the most even year since 2011.

the thing with ohio is they compete with fundamentals, coaching, experience, not talent for the most part. as a result they play a lot of close games. they won some close ones vs decent teams last yr but also lost a tight one at home to texas st. i would expect ohio to win at least 8 games but lose a couple they are favored to win or slip away in the closing minutes.

emu is improving but has a pretty tough schedule. road games against rutgers (who is starting to rebuild) and kentucky (who is already competitive in the SEC). i think they also get ohio and miami in cross over games plus both their michigan rivals, toledo and NIU so if everything goes well 8-4 is possible, but a few injuries or bad breaks will put them back on the bowl bubble.

toledo only has 1 easy non-conf game and crosses over with ohio and bg, along with the usual tough mac west schedule so there's plenty of stumbles to avoid.

Holy ****, a Rocket just predicted EMU to finish with the 2nd most wins in the conference.

Hustle Belt has:

East
1. Miami
2. Akron
3. Ohio
4. Bowling Green
5. Buffalo
6. Kent

West
1. Toledo
2. Eastern Michigan
3. Western Michigan
4. Northern Illinois
5. Central Michigan
6. Ball State

Was there a day we'd see EMU above WMU, NIU and CMU? That'd be quite a season in Yipsi.

I think Toledo will be the clear winner in the West with WMU 2nd. I don't see CMU, EMU, BSU, or NIU being any good. Probably a couple 6-6 teams in the mix but none will challenge for the West.


Miami and Ohio should be the East favorites. Miami was on fire last season.

(07-09-2017 06:54 PM)H2Oville Rocket Wrote:  EMU fans might not survive the excitement of an 8-4 year.

My wife would definitely tire of hearing about it.

westerns run game will be tough to stop.

if any team is being overlooked it's probably buffalo. they got a very promising young qb, solid line and are one the league's bigger teams. their schedule is fairly manageable too

My gut predictions (based off little to no research of this years teams):

West
1. Toledo (9-3) (7-1) - Rockets start strong with blowout wins against Elon and Nevada, but drop the next two including a close overtime lost to Tulsa and a loss to Miami (FL). They go on to win the 7 straight in MAC play, but drop the final game to 2016 MAC Champ Western Michigan. Toledo wins their first MAC west title since 2004.

2. Western Michigan (7-5) (5-3) - The Fleck-less Broncos drop their first two OOC games against USC and Michigan State, but come back strong against Idaho and Wagner. Finishes 1-1 in Michigan MAC play, with a win against Central but a loss to Eastern.

3. Eastern Michigan (7-5) (4-4) - Eagles start the season strong with a W against Charlotte and a B1G win against Rutgers. EMU tacks up a solid 3-1 OOC record with a sole loss against Kentucky. Eastern struggles a bit in conference play now that MAC defenses are more familiar with the Roback offensive machine. Michigan MAC Champs beating both Western and Central.

4. Northern Illinois (7-5) (4-4) - Huskies turn it around from last season becoming bowl eligible. OOC record of 3-1 with a sole loss to Nebraska. Finishes the MAC slate of games at .500, with the potential to swap spots with #3 Eastern.

5. Central Michigan (4-8) (2-6) - Chips start off the season with two straight wins against Rhode Island and Kansas, however they drop the next 5 straight against 'Cuse, Miami (OH), Boston College, OU, and then Toledo. They stop the bleeding with a close one against Ball State. Goes 0-2 in Michigan MAC play.

6. Ball State (4-8) (2-6) - Cardinals go 2-2 in OOC play, beating UAB and Tennessee Tech. They have a tough time out of the starting gate with MAC play, losing the first 5 conference games before scraping out two straight wins late in the season against NIU and Buffalo.

East
1. Miami (9-3) (7-1) - Annoyingly, the RedHawks build off their phenomenal success they enjoyed in the second half of last season to clinch the MAC East in 2017. They start the season with a blowout win against Marshall, but lose to ND and a nail biter to Cincinnati to finish OOC play 2-2. Their sole MAC loss is to Ohio () in Athens, but with their 7-1 MAC record, end up representing the East in the title game.

2. Ohio (9-3) (6-2) - The Bobcats with their easy OOC schedule dispatch Hampton in the season opener followed by a close loss to Purdue. However, they finish their OOC schedule 3-1 with wins against Kansas and UMass. The Bobcats win a close one against Eastern Michigan to start conference play, but losses to BGSU and Toledo land the Cats just out of contention for the title game.

3. Bowling Green (7-5) (5-3) - The Falcons are one of the biggest question marks on my list, but I have them finishing OOC play at 2-2, with wins against South Dakota and Middle Tennessee. Conference play sees them losing games against Miami, Toledo and Eastern Michigan. Falcons go bowling.

4. Akron (6-6) (4-4) - Zips, like the Falcons, finish OOC play with a respectable 2-2 with a loss against Penn State and a close one with Troy, but they earn a nice win against Matt Campbell's Cyclones. The highlights of conference play include wins against Western Michigan and rival Kent, but ultimately finish in the middle of the pack with a 4-4 MAC record. Bowl eligible but doesn't make the cut.

5. Buffalo (3-9) (1-7) - Bulls start the season with two straight Ls against Minnesota and Army, however they go on to beat Colgate and Florida Atlantic to finish off their OOC schedule 2-2. They tack on their third straight win in a row against MAC opener Kent State, but lose the next 7 conference games in a row.

6. Kent State (3-9) (1-7) - The Flashes hold their own against 2016 Nat'l Champ Clemson in the first half of the season opener, but eventually get overwhelmed. They go on to beat Howard and Marshall before losing to Louisville to close out OOC play. They have a tough time in conference play, picking up a win against NIU, but a loss to Buffalo early in the season leaves Kent State in last.

Again, I could be WAY off on these rankings, so don't beat me up too much!

Looking forward to football season!!

One comment about EMU (above):

EMU has a new offensive coordinator and the offense could (most likely) but somewhat different than 2016.

The 2016 offense was predicated on a strong OL which will not the case in 2017. The offense will need to adapt to a new reality with an inexperienced OL.

(07-10-2017 05:25 PM)emu steve Wrote:  One comment about EMU (above):

EMU has a new offensive coordinator and the offense could (most likely) but somewhat different than 2016.

The 2016 offense was predicated on a strong OL which will not the case in 2017. The offense will need to adapt to a new reality with an inexperienced OL.

Wait, so Roback won't be responsible for ~95% of your offense this season? If my memory serves me right, he either threw the ball or ran it himself for all but three or four plays against the Bobcats last season.

(07-10-2017 10:37 AM)rocketinchitown Wrote:  Was there a day we'd see EMU above WMU, NIU and CMU? That'd be quite a season in Yipsi.

1987 wasn't it? Anyways, here's what I'm seeing:

West:
1. Toledo - To the surprise of nobody, and they finally win the MAC.
2. WMU - Keep up the momentum, obviously don't reach last year's peak.
3. EMU - Prove that last year wasn't a flash in the pan.
4. CMU - Just when I think the Chips are about to fall off a cliff, they pull out another six or seven-win season out of their ass.
5. NIU - I've never been that impressed with Carey, I think he gets the ax.
5. Ball State - Tied for last in the West, but they're competitive most of the time.

East:
1. Ohio - Opposite of Engineer's prediction; OU wins East but loses to Miami, then loses the MACC to keep the championship drought going.
2. Miami - We break the skid against UC and OU, but lose a few games in excruciating fashion.
3. Akron - They bounce back and make a bowl.
4. BG - Don't give up 77 points twice like last year, but are bowl-less again.
5. UB - Leipold is kept on for another season, but the D3 experiment doesn't look so hot.
6. Kent State - Haynes is fired a year later than he should've been.

(07-10-2017 07:29 PM)Love and Honor Wrote:  

(07-10-2017 10:37 AM)rocketinchitown Wrote:  Was there a day we'd see EMU above WMU, NIU and CMU? That'd be quite a season in Yipsi.

1987 wasn't it? Anyways, here's what I'm seeing:

West:
1. Toledo - To the surprise of nobody, and they finally win the MAC.
2. WMU - Keep up the momentum, obviously don't reach last year's peak.
3. EMU - Prove that last year wasn't a flash in the pan.
4. CMU - Just when I think the Chips are about to fall off a cliff, they pull out another six or seven-win season out of their ass.
5. NIU - I've never been that impressed with Carey, I think he gets the ax.
5. Ball State - Tied for last in the West, but they're competitive most of the time.

East:
1. Ohio - Opposite of Engineer's prediction; OU wins East but loses to Miami, then loses the MACC to keep the championship drought going.
2. Miami - We break the skid against UC and OU, but lose a few games in excruciating fashion.
3. Akron - They bounce back and make a bowl.
4. BG - Don't give up 77 points twice like last year, but are bowl-less again.
5. UB - Leipold is kept on for another season, but the D3 experiment doesn't look so hot.
6. Kent State - Haynes is fired a year later than he should've been.

You have no idea the elation if we can see Carey fired this season

Sent from my SM-G920P using Tapatalk

(07-10-2017 01:00 AM)pono Wrote:  the thing with ohio is they compete with fundamentals, coaching, experience, not talent for the most part. as a result they play a lot of close games. they won some close ones vs decent teams last yr but also lost a tight one at home to texas st. i would expect ohio to win at least 8 games but lose a couple they are favored to win or slip away in the closing minutes.

emu is improving but has a pretty tough schedule. road games against rutgers (who is starting to rebuild) and kentucky (who is already competitive in the SEC). i think they also get ohio and miami in cross over games plus both their michigan rivals, toledo and NIU so if everything goes well 8-4 is possible, but a few injuries or bad breaks will put them back on the bowl bubble.

toledo only has 1 easy non-conf game and crosses over with ohio and bg, along with the usual tough mac west schedule so there's plenty of stumbles to avoid.

Ohio's margin of victory/defeat last year-

+24, +16, +10, + 6, +6, +5, +5, +4, -2, -5, -6, -7, -7, -9

(07-10-2017 05:43 PM)BobcatEngineer Wrote:  

(07-10-2017 05:25 PM)emu steve Wrote:  One comment about EMU (above):

EMU has a new offensive coordinator and the offense could (most likely) but somewhat different than 2016.

The 2016 offense was predicated on a strong OL which will not the case in 2017. The offense will need to adapt to a new reality with an inexperienced OL.

Wait, so Roback won't be responsible for ~95% of your offense this season? If my memory serves me right, he either threw the ball or ran it himself for all but three or four plays against the Bobcats last season.

We should be focusing a bit more on the running game this year with our best RB finally healthy, and losses of both of our starting tackles. Roback will still sling it quite a bit, but I doubt we see as many deep throws as last season, which I'm totally fine with.

(07-10-2017 07:29 PM)Love and Honor Wrote:  

(07-10-2017 10:37 AM)rocketinchitown Wrote:  Was there a day we'd see EMU above WMU, NIU and CMU? That'd be quite a season in Yipsi.

1987 wasn't it? Anyways, here's what I'm seeing:

West:
1. Toledo - To the surprise of nobody, and they finally win the MAC.
2. WMU - Keep up the momentum, obviously don't reach last year's peak.
3. EMU - Prove that last year wasn't a flash in the pan.
4. CMU - Just when I think the Chips are about to fall off a cliff, they pull out another six or seven-win season out of their ass.
5. NIU - I've never been that impressed with Carey, I think he gets the ax.
5. Ball State - Tied for last in the West, but they're competitive most of the time.
East:
1. Ohio - Opposite of Engineer's prediction; OU wins East but loses to Miami, then loses the MACC to keep the championship drought going.
2. Miami - We break the skid against UC and OU, but lose a few games in excruciating fashion.
3. Akron - They bounce back and make a bowl.
4. BG - Don't give up 77 points twice like last year, but are bowl-less again.
5. UB - Leipold is kept on for another season, but the D3 experiment doesn't look so hot.
6. Kent State - Haynes is fired a year later than he should've been.

This makes me super excited for the upcoming season.

(07-10-2017 04:51 PM)BobcatEngineer Wrote:  1. Toledo (9-3) (7-1) - They go on to win the 7 straight in MAC play, but drop the final game to 2016 MAC Champ Western Michigan. Toledo wins their first MAC west title since 2004.

2. Western Michigan (7-5) (5-3) - Finishes 1-1 in Michigan MAC play, with a win against Central but a loss to Eastern.

Interesting...so you see us beating Toledo and CMU, but losing at EMU. I'm curious where on our schedule you see the other two MAC losses (BSU, at Buffalo, Akron, KSU, at NIU).