With several conference games under the belt, the staff takes a stab at some burning questions.
Hear ye, hear ye: it is time to gather the Roundtable!
We check in with several of our writers at the halfway point of the season to talk through some of the burning questions— as well as grant the opportunity to revise some aged answers— the MAC has provided us to this point.
Without further ado: the questions!
Every MAC team now has at least two conference games under their belts. As we sit now, which team has been the most surprising? Which team has been the most disappointing?
James H. Jimenez: Ohio is the team which has really grabbed my eye through the first two games. There were a lot of questions about how the team would look given the sheer talent loss in the offseason which in turn required a lot of acquisition. Through six games, they haven’t lost a step, with the MAC’s second-best rush attack and a staunch defense. The most disappointing team has been Miami, by a long shot. I know they’re 1-1 in MAC play currently, but this was a team with Top 25 aspirations that returned the vast majority of the roster which won the conference title last year. Prior to last week, their only win was against a bad UMass team. It’ll be interesting to watch them play each other this week.
Sam Kasuga: Most surprising is Buffalo. Pete Lembo is a heck of a coach. They’re 2-0 in the MAC, and also have a brutal loss to UConn. Despite that, they’ve found a way to get it done in conference play so far. My disappointment is Bowling Green. The team we’ve seen in recent weeks is nothing like we saw against Penn State and Texas A&M.
Keith Gregorski: Agree with Sam, Buffalo is the most surprising. Beating a ranked NIU then handling Toledo like they did last week was impressive. Bowling Green is most disappointing because they look ready to win. Around homecoming last year, Falcons HC Scot Loeffler talked about his team taking the next step by finding consistency. Great games in non-conference suggest BGSU might be on track but down performances like the one against a 1-3 Old Dominion team may suggest otherwise.
Who is one player that has emerged through the first eight weeks of the season that has caught your eye and why?
JJ: This is a bit of cheating here, but I’m going to list two; I’ll explain why in a second. My first player is Ball State HB Braedon Sloan. Through six games, the Monticello, Kentucky native has 423 rushing yards, 222 receiving yards and 22 passing yards, with six total touchdowns (four rushing, one each receiving and passing.) He’s been the dynamo that makes the Cardinal offense go. That isn’t always guaranteed for FCS transfers, so it’s nice to see it’s working out for Sloan. My second is a familiar name in Kent State QB Tommy Ulatowski. After re-claiming the starting role two weeks ago, he has already eclipsed their other two QBs in cumulative statistics (737 yards, seven TDs) while unlocking Chrishon McCray’s big pay ability.
SK: Homer pick, but it’s obviously Harold Fannin Jr. He’s just been fantastic, and it’s refreshing to see everyone see what Bowling Green fans have seen since 2022.
KG: There have been a lot of great transfers in on the teams that are 2-0 in conference like Ohio’s RB Anthony Tyus III and WR Coleman Owen and WMU’s RB Jaden Nixon but my money is on Buffalo’s Shaun Dolac. After missing most of 2023 injured, the 2022 first team All-MAC selection is possibly the best defensive player in the MAC in 2024 with 87 tackles, three sacks, and 2 INTs in six games. Color Analyst on the Connecticut game marveled at how the Huskies’ offense schemed around avoiding Dolac.
Which of the upcoming games on the conference schedule do you have circled and why?
JJ: Ohio vs. Buffalo on Oct. 26 is going to be a slobberknocker. These are two teams built on knocking people backwards on defense and bullying the line of scrimmage on offense, and to me, those are the games which are the most fun to watch. Ohio vs. Toledo also gets an honorable mention for a classic “differing identities” match-up.
SK: I’m looking at Western Michigan at Buffalo. Two teams undefeated in MAC play so far, that not many thought would be undefeated. Pete Lembo and Lance Taylor have done a great job so far, and I’m excited to see those teams go at it.
KG: Can’t wait to see what unfolds in Battle of the Bricks rivalry game between Ohio and Miami this week. The RedHawks are the preseason MAC favorite and returning champs and handed Ohio a tough loss last year in Athens. Miami will find itself in a big hole to repeat as champions if they lose to Ohio, dropping to 1-2 in the MAC with the contending Bobcats holding the tiebreaker.
There’s been a lot of ballyhoo about conference realignment with the news that NIU and Toledo were being scouted by the Mountain West Conference. What’s your take on it and what do you think will happen?
JJ: The more I’ve thought on it the last three weeks, the more I think we’re going to see something happen. There is uncertainty about what the new MAC media deal will look like (negotiations are likely underway right now as it expires in 2026) and movement has started elsewhere for similar reasons, which obligates NIU and Toledo to at least consider the invitation. I think ultimately, the scenario is NIU leaves and Toledo stays. As for who would replace any potential losses? That’s a separate issue for another day.
SK: Conference realignment is kind of like the transfer portal. The grass is not always greener on the other side, as we’ve seen with many former MAC players this season. I’m don’t think the move would make sense for either team, and they’ll stay put in the good old MAC.
KG: I think it is something to take seriously but ultimately i think both teams will stay. Geographically, the MAC makes sense for these teams. The MWC just added Hawaii starting 2026 and I can’t see a team like Toledo wanting to make that trip every other year nor Hawaii wanting to make it to Toledo.
At the start of the season, we tried to predict which coach was most under the hot seat. If you were part of the first YORT, has your opinion changed? If not, who do you think is on the hot seat at this point?
JJ: My preseason hot seat was Jim McElwain, and to a certain degree, I still think that’s true. CMU is en route to a potential third-straight losing season, something which hasn’t been seen in Mt. Pleasant since 2002-04. (This was the end of a longer streak extending out to 1999.) That said, his case to stay is there too, with a litany of season-long and other multi-week injuries clearly affecting the program. It’s hard to know where administrators feel given his recent extension, but I know fans are pretty frustrated at this point.
SK: My preseason hot seat was Mike Neu. My opinion still has not changed, but Ball State could squeeze out a few more wins before he potentially gets the axe.
KG: The only one I could see possibly is BSU’s Mike Neu. The Cards have eked out some hard-fought close wins to get to 2-4 but the schedule down the stretch is just brutal facing Vanderbilt, then a gauntlet of MAC contenders in NIU, Miami, Buffalo, BGSU, and Ohio. BSU will likely be underdogs in all of its last six games.
Finally, who do you predict will be playing for a conference title in Detroit now that we have more data for the 2024 season?
JJ: I feel really silly calling Miami and Toledo in the preseason given how this year has played out. Both teams have looked extremely mortal despite their preseason expectations, while several risers we didn’t really expect have cropped up as the season rolls along. When in doubt, I take the old-fashioned “defense wins championships” approach. To me, that’s NIU and Ohio— though the Huskies will have to overcome a loss to Buffalo in some form or fashion to get there.
SK: It’s still hard to predict. Buffalo, Ohio, and Western Michigan are hot, but there are some 1-1 teams that can still figure it out. After seeing a lot more data and such, I think we’ll have a rematch of 2016 with Ohio and Western Michigan.
KG: As mad swings in the middle and top of the 2024 Power Rankings shows, everything is still up for grabs. Buffalo has earned respect with victories over NIU and Toledo. Miami systematically destroyed a 4-1 EMU squad on the road so that might be the start of something big for the RedHawks. Ohio hasn’t played its best game yet but just keeps winning at 4-2 despite a glut of injuries.