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The MAC gives us some Friday Football tonight (don’t get excited), then three games tomorrow as they spread everybody else out on weeknights this month. 6:00 PM Friday, ESPNU- Ball State at Buffalo: Between the two teams are five wins and 14 losses, such that neither team has any hope of a bowl game. Forgive me if [...] After 10 of them last week, the MAC has no games against BCS opponents today, instead mostly playing league games and a couple against non-BCS teams. 12:00 PM, CBS College- Temple at Army: Both teams are sitting in at 3-1 and playing very well, with Army coming off a win over Duke last week. Temple should have Army outmanned, but the Black Knights have been playing above their talent level all year. Line: Temple by 6. Temple should win, but I’m not comfortable spotting Army that many. Let’s go with 24-21 for the Owls. 12:00 PM- Ohio at Eastern Michigan: Ohio has been a huge disappointment so far this season, having yet to notch a FBS win. Eastern Michigan is far from a good team, and this is Ohio’s chance to break through and get on the right track. Line: Ohio by 10. Once again, far more points than I’m willing to spot a 1-3 team. Ohio should win this one maybe 28-21. 1:00 PM- Kent State at Miami: Kent State, who pushed Ohio & Temple to the end last year, has also failed to win a FBS game in two tries so far, although both were against quality BCS opponents. Miami is 2-2 and 1-0 in the league, hoping to notch another big win today. Line: Kent State by 3. I think Kent State has shown a lot on defense and may be able to stifle the Redhawks today, and win this one 30-10. 2:00 PM, WAC Sports Network- Idaho at Western Michigan: This is an interesting game, with Idaho coming in off a disappointing loss to Colorado State, and Western having been beaten soundly by Toledo last week. Read Post Weekend previews are going to be short and sweet this week, because I’m way behind and there are a ton of games this weekend. All games Saturday, times Eastern, rankings are Coaches Poll, and lines courtesy of Vegas.com. 12:00 PM, CBS College- North Texas at Army: Both teams fell just short in home games last week to fairly similar competition, although Army had to make a furious comeback just to be in the game. This should be a fairly even matchup, but Army looks to have the upper hand. Line: Army by 5.5. For me, that goes in the ”too many” pile given the close games both teams have been in so far. I do think Army should win this one, but on the order of 20-17. 4:00 PM- Troy at UAB: Big rivalry game, and a crucial one if UAB is going to break out of its winless start. But I don’t think they will, Troy has looked much better so far this year. Line: Troy by 3.5. I’m comfortable predicting that the Trojans win this one by a touchdown, 24-17, even on the road. 5:00 PM, Big 10 Network- Indiana at Western Kentucky: A nice Big 10 home game for Western Kentucky, but even though Indiana is far from a powerhouse, they should still be superior to WKU. This won’t be the week for the Hilltoppers first big win. Line: Indiana by 13. Indiana was off last week, but beat their FCS opener by a bundle. I think they probably win this one quietly but effectively, 30-7. 7:00 PM- Middle Tennessee State at Memphis: Read Post We didn’t quite get to this last week, but the Game of the Week feature will highlight watchable/important (hopefully both) non-BCS games at each of the 3 main timeslots- Noon, 3/4ish, and the evening games. Sometimes an Insomniac Special too, from the west coast. We try to stick with nationally televised games, although that can get [...] The Weekly Wrapups will look back at the games of the weekend, such as it is, and present my conference power rankings. They get shorter when conference play starts. The MAC went 6-7 against 13 out of conference teams this weekend, a much better start than they had in 2008. Broken down, the league was 6-0 against FCS teams, 0-1 v. Pac-10, SEC, Sun Belt, Big 10, Big 12, Big East, and independent Army. So it wasn’t great, since nobody in the MAC beat a FBS team. That will change Thursday, no matter what. Let’s look at the games. Weekend previews will appear in this space on Thursdays and Fridays, to look at the games happening on Saturday and some Sundays. Of course, weeknight games will get special attention, with posts of their own. Last year, the Mid American Conference had an abysmal opening week. This one should be better, with a ton of FCS games and even some upset potential in the bigger games. We hit the Ball State, Buffalo, Central Michigan, Kent State and Northern Illinois games from tonight in our earlier posts, and we’ll give Toledo & Temple a once-over tomorrow. For now, let’s see what the weekend holds for the rest of the MAC. All games are Saturday, all times Eastern, all rankings USA Today, and lines are from Vegas.com and subject to change before kickoff. *When Army & Navy play a non-BCS team, we’ll just lump them in with their opponents. When they play against the BCS, I’ll probably include them with the Sun Belt, since they have only 9 teams and are generally in the East. 12:00 PM, ESPN- Miami at #3 Florida: Obviously, this is not a game that many people have the RedHawks penciled in to win. Keeping it close to halftime will be an accomplishment, but after that it’s tough to compete against the depth of an elite program, especially in the 2 PM Florida heat. Line: Gators by 36.5. That’s a lot of points for a team that’s going to probably lead early and get some young players on the field. I’d take Miami plus more than five touchdowns. Football on the Fringe Season Previews were ranked, then delivered in random order. The US Military Academy Black Knights had a respectable 2009 campaign for a team with a new coach and a new scheme. They lost some games in the early going that they no doubt wished they could have back, but still wound up 5-7 and just missed out on a bowl bid. 2010 looks promising for the Black Knights, as they enter their second year of the Rich Ellerson triple option era. They return seven offensive starters, including sophomore QB Trent Steelman (perhaps the perfect name for a football player, especially at Army) and senior runner Patrick Mealy. The defense comes back strong as well, with 8 players back on the #16 total defense from 2009. |
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