MAC in bowl games

[MarkL]

1-5 in 2018 bowls. And there are some interesting trends if you look at 2017 and 2018 bowls.

• MAC went 1-4 in 2017 bowls.
• Ohio is the only bowl winner, in a impressive shutout over SDSU.
• Ohio was the only MAC team to win in 2017, with an impressive blowout over UAB.
• Ohio was the conference's best team in 2017. 2018, they were inconsistent but I would argue they had the highest ups out of anyone.
• The MAC was historically awful in 2017. The supposed champion got shut out and blown out by App State.
• The MAC east was arguably the worst division in FBS history in 2017. The supposed champ, Akron, gets the silver medal for 2017 blowouts, losing badly to FAU. But hey, they scored.
• The MAC was better in 2018. But the champ still lost badly.
• MAC east champ also lost. But it was a closer game.
• WMU perhaps had the worst loss this year, allowing the BYU QB to go a perfect 18 for 18.
• NIU's last bowl win was in 2011. And they've only missed on bowl since.
• 2011 was consequently the last time a MAC champion has won a bowl game.
• The last time a division champ won a bowl game was us in 2014.

So is it luck of the draw in terms of matchups for division and conference champs? Or is it that the MAC at the top is just not competitive against top teams in other mid major conferences? Is Carey's staff at NIU doing something wrong and Solich's staff doing something right? Or is that also luck of the draw? I'd sure like to know because Loeffler will have us back bowling soon and I'd rather not get shut out by App State or allow a BYU QB to have a perfect day.

[zete]

it is hard to follow mac football anymore....just setting yourself up for disappointment.

[BGSU33]

The MAC has won just 2 bowls in the last 3 years, and both wins were by Ohio. Think about that for a second, Ohio has a pair of bowl wins and the rest of the MAC - COMBINED - has none in the last three years! Pathetic...

[zete]

FRANK SOLICH

[apollo]

MAC football is borderline unwatchable. I don’t even waste my time anymore. Even when BG has been good the past decade, 90% of the MAC wins came against opponents who should have been playing at the FCS level.
Now our program is one of those teams too.

[Schadenfreude]

MAC football is borderline unwatchable. I don’t even waste my time anymore.

And yet here you are, on a forum devoted to MAC football.

[Falconfreak90]

MAC football is borderline unwatchable. I don’t even waste my time anymore.

And yet here you are, on a forum devoted to MAC football.

[hammb]

MAC football is borderline unwatchable. I don’t even waste my time anymore.

And yet here you are, on a forum devoted to MAC football.

Is it not possible to want the best for your Alma mater and their football program and also recognize that MAC football is hot garbage? I have one rule in any bowl pool I ever enter: highest confidence points go to picking against every MAC team. I personally still enjoy coming in here to discuss our discuss program/conference but I don't really watch it anymore. Of course due to that, I'll readily admit I'm not as informed on the current state of things as I used to be. But the reality is, I can't really stomach watching any MAC football outside of BG anymore, and BG has been so awful the past 3 years I haven't watched a lot of us either.

Part of it is that our tie ins leave us in a disadvantage in most matchups. But the bigger issue is MAC football is just not good. Going back to Loefflers talk about recruiting the region. That sounds great and certainly can be good enough to win the MAC but with 8(?) D1A programs Ohio simply doesn't put out enough talent to make them all competitive. And the rest of the MAC footprint is also relying on Ohio talent. We'll always take a backseat to the big boys in our region but we're also at a disadvantage compared to similarly sized/funded programs from regions like Florida/Texas that simply produce more talent.

Another thing worth discussing is the fact that the numbers show HS football is in serious decline Nationwide. Naturally that sort of trend will start affecting the bottom tier of D1 before it will affect the upper tier.

[Siborg]

I think recruiting locally is more of a program building effort. In theory, getting local players encourages more interest locally, more fans, more students, more donors etc.........By locally I mean Ohio, Michigan, Indiana, Illinois & Pennsylvania. We still need players from other areas as well and I hope we continue to look into Georgia, Florida etc.....

Last I checked, Ohio is still 5th on a D1A schollie standpoint. Georgia recently passed us and joined Texas, Florida & California ahead of Ohio. Other southern states are also gaining if they have not already passed us.

There may be some truth to the "local kids can deal with the climate" idea but otherwise I think overall program building is the intent.

[hammb]

I think you're right and I'm not against the idea at all. We will never have enough of a presence to rely solely on out of state kids to build a program. My point, though, was that Ohio may be there #5 state in producing d1 players but there are also 8 universities in the state. Florida only has 7, Georgia has 4, etc...

[Siborg]

I agree with that. BG especially is in a difficult spot......midway between some of the biggest recruiting powers in the country (OSU, ND, Mich) plus the rest of the B10, MAC and others, Ky, Louisville, UC, Pitt etc..... All heavily recruiting Ohio.

[Falcon Commander]

MAC football is borderline unwatchable. I don’t even waste my time anymore.

And yet here you are, on a forum devoted to MAC football.

[Falconwriter]

1-5 in 2018 bowls. And there are some interesting trends if you look at 2017 and 2018 bowls.

• MAC went 1-4 in 2017 bowls.
• Ohio is the only bowl winner, in a impressive shutout over SDSU.
• Ohio was the only MAC team to win in 2017, with an impressive blowout over UAB.
• Ohio was the conference's best team in 2017. 2018, they were inconsistent but I would argue they had the highest ups out of anyone.
• The MAC was historically awful in 2017. The supposed champion got shut out and blown out by App State.
• The MAC east was arguably the worst division in FBS history in 2017. The supposed champ, Akron, gets the silver medal for 2017 blowouts, losing badly to FAU. But hey, they scored.
• The MAC was better in 2018. But the champ still lost badly.
• MAC east champ also lost. But it was a closer game.
• WMU perhaps had the worst loss this year, allowing the BYU QB to go a perfect 18 for 18.
• NIU's last bowl win was in 2011. And they've only missed on bowl since.
• 2011 was consequently the last time a MAC champion has won a bowl game.
• The last time a division champ won a bowl game was us in 2014.

So is it luck of the draw in terms of matchups for division and conference champs? Or is it that the MAC at the top is just not competitive against top teams in other mid major conferences? Is Carey's staff at NIU doing something wrong and Solich's staff doing something right? Or is that also luck of the draw? I'd sure like to know because Loeffler will have us back bowling soon and I'd rather not get shut out by App State or allow a BYU QB to have a perfect day.

I think a big part of it is that the bowl matchups rarely favor the MAC teams (bad contracts). And the MAC is getting worse in football, not better. I'd honestly like to see a Mid Major division between P-5 and FCS, with a playoff formula like FCS, instead of bowls. It would get rid of all these bad bowl games and make it a lot more exciting and competitive. But it won't happen. D-1 carries too much weight with people and possible recruits.

[MarkL]

I've said it before. You do not want to make another division. It would be the end of BG and MAC football as we know it.

Quick, without looking it up. Who are the four teams in the FBS playoff? What are they seeded? When is the first round?

Now without looking it up. Who is in the FCS tournament? How many rounds are there total? How many have already been played? How many games are left? When is the national championship game and who is still in the hunt?

I bet you did way better on the first round of questions. If they create another division, BG football, and all of MAC football, will be forgotten and there is no getting it back.

And ask yourself. Why have there been so many teams jumping up from FCS to FBS? And why has only one team dropped down?

[pdt1081]

Quick, without looking it up. Who are the four teams in the FBS playoff? What are they seeded? When is the first round?

Now without looking it up. Who is in the FCS tournament? How many rounds are there total? How many have already been played? How many games are left? When is the national championship game and who is still in the hunt?

I bet you did way better on the first round of questions. If they create another division, BG football, and all of MAC football, will be forgotten and there is no getting it back.

I honestly can't answer either with 100% confidence. I'll tell you Alabama and Notre Dame, but that's it. BG is not involved in either, so I really don't give a crap about either.

And I hate to break it to you, but BG football, and the MAC in general, has been forgotten by everyone that doesn't have some sort of connection to the universities involved. Go outside Northwest Ohio, and there's two sports {one a lot moreso than the other) people associate with the words "Bowling Green," and neither are MAC sponsored.