What everyone's been saying

[UK Peregrine]

Here's today's article in the Blade on the MAC. The article pretty much says what everyone has been saying here. One, that it's a shame BG and NIU had play so early in the season. And two, that BG obviously needs some help along the way to secure a berth in the MACC. But there is hope, as stated below when Marshall made the the first Motor City Bowl because of two MUO losses after MUO beat Marshall head-to head.

BG, Northern lament early matchups

By JOHN WAGNER
BLADE SPORTS WRITER


When Northern Illinois coach Joe Novak and Bowling Green's Gregg Brandon met at midfield before Friday's game in Dekalb, Novak said something many other Mid-American Conference coaches were thinking.

"The first thing I said to him was that it was a shame we have to play this game so early in the year," Novak said yesterday.

BG and NIU are considered, along with Toledo, to be the key challengers for the league's West Division crown and its attendant berth in the MAC Championship game. Marshall and Miami face a similar situation tomorrow when they play a game that may decide the East Division title.

"I'd rather play a game like this in November, like a true championship game," Marshall coach Bob Pruett said. "The loser certainly has an uphill battle."

One good thing about such early tests, Pruett said, is they give his team a second chance after a slow start.

"When you're 0-3, it's a struggle to get kids to come to practice," he said. "This [type of game] gives you an uplift. The players get excited about a game like this."

Brandon added that these midweek games, which are starting to get national television coverage, are an opportunity for the MAC to stand out in an otherwise crowded college football picture.

"I understand that this is the way it is in our league, that we need the exposure," he said. "To get a third bowl game, people need to see these programs; they need to see them on TV, and they need to see that we have a fan based developing."

The downside of such key, early season games is that the loser must beat difficult odds to earn a MAC title.

"It's great if you're on the winning side, but it's certainly not if you don't [win]," Novak said. "If you lose you need to have someone else beat them - maybe two teams even - and the odds of that happening aren't great. Your destiny is out of your hands."

Brandon agreed, adding: "The bowl implications [of Friday's game] are that we don't get any [consideration for a bowl]. If we win out but don't win the West, we're probably on the outside looking in, just like Northern was last year and we were two years ago."

Coming back to win from such a devastating early loss is possible, though. The best example came in 1997, when Marshall lost to Miami on Oct. 18 but still managed to win the East as the RedHawks stumbled twice.

The Thundering Herd went on to beat Toledo in the MAC Championship Game to earn a bid opposite Ole Miss in the inaugural Motor City Bowl.

Miami coach Terry Hoeppner noted that the MAC isn't the only league that plays important conference games early in the season: The ACC scheduled a meeting between Miami (Fla.) and Florida State as the season opener for both schools.

"[The MAC office] doesn't call us and say, 'When do you want to play?'Åú" Hoeppner said. "And we've got to play them sometime. Is this a must-win? Absolutely. That's because all MAC games are must-win."

UPSIDE DOWN: MAC fans who never thought they'd see Marshall at the bottom of the league's offensive statistics should get a copy of the current stats.

The Thundering Herd ranks last in the 14-team league with just 209.0 yards of total offense and only 13.0 points.

To be fair, one reason for the low offensive total is Marshall's schedule. After opening at home with Troy State, the Herd played on the road against nationally ranked Ohio State and Georgia.

"I hope we get a first down," Pruett said when asked about his offensive expectations for tomorrow's game. "Everyone we've been playing has been awesome, and I don't see much relief in Miami. We just haven't been very productive offensively."

QUARTERBACK WATCH: Akron quarterback Charlie Frye injured his right pinky finger in his team's win over Kent State on Thursday, but the senior is expected to start the Zips game Saturday at Northern Illinois.

"He can't hurt it worse, which is good because I was afraid it was career-threatening or career-ending," Akron coach J.D. Brookhart said of Frye's injury.

On the other side of the field, there still is a question of who will start at quarterback for the Huskies. Senior Josh Haldi, who has missed the last three games with a stress fracture of his right foot, may return to the lineup Saturday.

Novak said that Haldi, if healthy, will displace Phil Horvath as the starter. Haldi participated in pre-game warm-ups before Friday's win over Bowling Green, but did not play in the contest.

"He could have, but [doctors told us] he would be better off if he had one more week off," Novak said of Haldi.

GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS: Toledo's victory over Temple at the Glass Bowl on Saturday was the MAC's first over a non-conference Division I-A opponent this season.

That makes the MAC 1-29 against non-league Division I-A foes, with just four such games left. Three of those games take place this weekend when Bowling Green plays at Temple, Ohio is at Kentucky, and Idaho plays at Eastern Michigan.

The final game will be played Nov. 20, when Buffalo travels to Connecticut.

The bad news was that Eastern Michigan lost to Division I-AA Eastern Illinois on Saturday, the MAC's first loss against a team from a lower division after seven victories.

[Dayons_Den]

John Wagner does a nice job.

[NWLB]

Sucks having a game like that on the Friday before a long vacation. The rest of my week since have gone about as well as the game.

The odds of NIU dropping two games are not in our favor. However their game against us left me with a very whelming feeling. Not overwhelming. [sic] It could happen, but they have a favorable schedule ahead of them, and are simply a good enough team to win those games. BG needs to win out, which it can, and I would hope, should. We have Marshall to beat at home, and that is itself a goal. Beating Toledo is itself a good way to end a season, no matter what happens. What is more, a winning program doesn't sulk because it stumbles early. It kicks everybody elses rear end, and tells them they were lucky this year. As young as so much of this years team is, I'm high on our chances this and the next two years, and beyond. We are working into a nice cycle of talent that doesn't leave too many gapping holes over the long-term.

If nothing else, our team can relax and just play the games. As a fan, I can just relax and enjoy beating whomever is in front of us. Folks forget it is fun not having the fate of a season hung over us each week.

Besides, can you image how Friday is going to setup next years home game against NIU? Lets start lobbying Gameday right now!