MAC Sports Blog by VanDelay Sports

In the quest to advance to the MAC Championship Game the Ohio Bobcats and Kent State Golden Flashes are keeping the pressure on Temple in what is turning out to be a great race. Ohio overcame a sluggish offense to score a 4th quarter TD and pull away with a win @ Ball State and improve to 6-3 and 4-1 in MAC play. Meanwhile, Kent State showed that they are indeed for real with a impressive win at home over Western Michigan. With Temple playing out of conference for the second time in three weeks, the Owls proved they have taken the next steps as a program in picking up win #6. Here is a look at the MAC East teams still in contention:

• Temple (6-2, 4-0 MAC) - The Owls have Miami and Kent State at home and road games @ Akron and a season finale @ Ohio which could be the deciding game in the MAC East race.
• Kent State (5-4, 4-1 MAC) - With wins over Ohio and WMU in consecutive weeks, the Golden Flashes have proven they are for real and could very well win the MAC East this season. Remaining games for Kent State include @ Akron and @ Temple before a home matchup with Buffalo to finish the regular season.
• Ohio (6-3, 4-1 MAC) - Ohio looked bad on offense in their 20-17 win at Ball State, but they got the much-needed win. Looking for just their second bowl berth since 1968, the Bobcats are off until Tuesday, November 10th when they play @ Buffalo. Ohio closes the regular season with home games against Northern Illinois and Temple.
• Bowling Green (3-5, 2-2 MAC) - BG is still in the race but does not face Temple this season and faces a potential elimination game tomorrow night @ Buffalo. While BG could very well run the table in their final three games (@ Miami, vs Akron, vs Toledo), having 3 losses including to Ohio and Buffalo would put the Falcons in a tough spot.
• Buffalo (3-5, 1-3 MAC) - Last week I didn’t even include the Bulls, but a closer look at UB’s remaining schedule is the reason they are still in the picture. Buffalo needs a 4-0 finish to end 5-3 in conference play and have a lot of help for a share of the MAC East title and that starts on Tuesday night vs Bowling Green. Remaining for UB include vs BG, vs Ohio, @ Miami and @ Kent State.

In the MAC West, Northern Illinois is the lone contender for CMU’s crown and the Huskies will likely have to keep winning to create a showdown on November 27 @ Central Michigan. CMU has a home game with Toledo and @ Ball State while NIU has EMU and Ball State before @ Ohio and the big game with CMU to end the regular season.

It seemed clear-cut. The Ohio Bobcats and Temple Owls seemed destined to meet in the final week of the season with the MAC East title and a berth in the MAC Championship Game on the line. While that still may very well happen, Kent State’s win @ Ohio on Saturday introduced the Golden Flashes into the MAC East race. With Temple 4-0 after defeating Toledo, Ohio and Kent State are now tied at 3-1 in MAC play with Bowling Green at 2-2 hanging on to slim hopes for the MAC East title.

Here is a look at what each team has remaining on their schedule with the understanding that the winner will meet the Central Michigan Chippewas in the MAC Championship. Be sure to check back at VanDelay Sports for the weekly MAC football scores to see the week’s MAC football results.
- Temple (4-0) - The Owls have 5 games remaining, 4 against MAC opponents as they host Miami and Kent State and travel to Akron and Ohio.
- Kent State (3-1) - The Flashes face Western Michigan and Buffalo at home and travel to Akron and Temple.
- Ohio (3-1) - Ohio is @ Ball State and @ Buffalo in the next two weeks then finishes the 2009 regular season with home games against Northern Illinois and Temple.
- Bowling Green (2-2) - The Falcons have games @ Buffalo and @ Miami in the next two weeks and end the regular season with home games against Akron and Toledo. At 3-5 overall right now, BG will likely have to win out to get a bowl game, and 4 straight to finish the season may get them a MAC East title if others falter.

Answering the drive by Buffalo that put the Bulls up 14-10, Ball State drove down the field with a 7-play, 65 yard drive to take the lead back 17-14. MiQuale Lewis’ 1-yard run was his 2nd TD of the game as Ball State took just 3:17 to respond to UB’s score.

On the ensuing possession, James Starks dropped the high handoff from Drew Willy and Ball State recovers at the Buffalo 38 yard line, leading 17-14.

Ball State looks to remain undefeated and become the first MAC team to go undefeated since Marshall in 1999. Fans can pickup Ball State hats & gear online through VanDelay Sports.

Dan LeFevour is a beast. The CMU QB had 2 rushing TDs today as Central Michigan defeated Miami 35-10 in the MAC Championship Game. With 185 yards passing and 170 rushing, LeFevour accounted for over 350 yards and 3 TD on the day. The win means that CMU (8-5) will likely receive a bid to play in the Motor City Bowl and Miami (6-7) will likely not receive a bowl bid. Expect to see CMU in the Motor City Bowl, Bowling Green in the GMAC Bowl and Ball State in the International Bowl when the invites are announced later today and this coming week.

The Central Michigan Chippewas appear to be on their way to winning their second consecutive MAC Championship Game as CMU, led by the legs of Dan LeFevour and Ontario Sneed, now lead Miami 21-3. CMU got a rushing TD from Sneed to cap a 13-play, 80-yard drive that took nearly 5 minutes off the clock.

Keep checking the VanDelay Sports blog for more game updates throughout the Marathon MAC Championship Game.

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Miami kicker Nathan Parseghian, last week’s MAC Special Teams Player of the Week, missed a 33-yard FG after a nice drive by the RedHawk offense as Central Michigan’s defense holds Miami again and continues to lead 14-3 with under 3 minutes remaining in the 3rd Quarter.

Keep checking the VanDelay Sports blog for more game updates throughout the Marathon MAC Championship Game.

The 2007 Marathon MAC Football Championship Game has seen it’s second TD of the game as the Central Michigan Chippewas get a rushing TD from QB Dan LeFevour and now leads Miami 14-3. CMU goes 58 yards on the drive as the CMU QB now has 153 yards passing and a TD along with 83 yards rushing and a TD.

Keep checking the VanDelay Sports blog for more game updates throughout the MAC Championship Game.

Thanks to Miami’s solid defense, the RedHawks got the ball inside the CMU 40 yard line resulting in a Nathan Parseghian 38-yard FG to cut CMU’s lead to 7-3 with 6:23 remaining in the 3rd Quarter. While Miami’s offense has struggled throughout the game, their defense’s ability to provide the offense with great field position in the first half is the reason that Miami is now on the board. 

Keep checking the VanDelay Sports blog for more game updates throughout the MAC Football Championship Game.

The second half of the MAC Championship has kicked off and Miami’s offense looks a lot like they did in the first half. A 3rd down pass was dropped resulting in a Miami punt to CMU, but the Miami defense picked up a big sack and stopped CMU on a 3 and out as CMU punted the ball back to Miami. The RedHawks now start with the ball at the CMU 45 yard line looking to put their first points on the board.

Keep checking the VanDelay Sports blog for more game updates throughout the MAC Football Championship Game.

The 2007 MAC Championship Game has featured the MAC’s top passing offense and top passing defense, so we all knew something had to give. A solid first half is now in the books with defenses dominating the game thus far. The lone score of the first half was a Dan LeFevour TD pass as Central Michigan leads Miami 7-0. 

Keep checking the VanDelay Sports blog for more game updates throughout the Marathon MAC Football Championship Game.