MAC to the Future 2012?
Is there any doubt we will add a mac team to the 2012 schedule? Michigan’s open dates are 9/15 then ND on the road, and 9/29 then Purdue on the road in the BIG opener. Alabama in Dallas and Air Force at home are the other non-conference games already on the schedule.
Most MAC teams seem set with 4 non-conference games or are otherwise out of realistic contention. With Umass joining there is some potential for changes.
-Buffalo (UGA, Morgan St, Uconn, Pitt--ugh)
-BG (FL, ID, VT, RI--doh!)
-Miami (Ohio St, Boise, Mizzou, Cincy--ouch!)
-NIU (IOWA, UT-Martin, Army, Kansas)
-Ohio (Penn St, NM st, Marshall, Norfolk St)
-Ball St (Clemson, Indiana, USF, Army)
-WMU (Illinois, EIU, MInny, Uconn)
-Kent (Army, UK, Rutgers, Towson)
-EMU (Purdue, Mich St, Army, open date on the 29th)
-CMU (Mich St, Iowa, Navy , open dates on the 15th and 29th)
Leaving as realistic choices.
-Temple (Penn St, Maryland, Villanova, open dates on the 15th and 29th)
-Toledo* (Arizona, Wyoming, Coastal Carolina, open dates on the 15th and 29th)
-Akron* (UCF)
-Umass* (Uconn)
UPSHOT: Clearly, Brandon based on odds, goes for UMass then Akron or Toledo on the 29th preferably but the 15th is okay if you can get Umass. Temple could be a wild card from the MAC or could Brandon go Coastal or Appy St on us?
Amirite? Are there rumors I've missed?
Source: http://www.fbschedules.com/ncaa-12/mid-amer/2012
When you say "mac" I think computers.
Will UMASS be in the MAC by then? if so OK I'm down (Thank God DB has my blessing).
They will be and we also play Alabama in 2012. If DB would like to schedule a local highschool team I am all for it because '12 schedule is brutal. Don't forget OSU and Nebraska are also on the road in conference.
Is weak that year, I am torn.
Interesting study.
I'm not too familiar with how M builds schedules. EMU seems available the 29th (though it'd be Big Ten game No. 3) so let's just do EMU again. Nice reunion with the old guys who aren't as pissed at us anymore, they're basically FCS anyway, and if there was ever a weak team Michigan can justify scheduling again and again it's our neighbors.
Not that it would happen....maybe Michigan could come to Rynearson? :)
ok sparty
Um...the football team come to Rynearson? Where do you put the spectators after we've seated the band?
No, but that would be a great place to have some sort of annual Our Blog Versus Your Blog flag football game the Friday night before, wouldn't it? Do they have bloggers? Maybe their student newspaper can come too. And the yearbook staff. Okay maybe if we empty the emo kids out of the Elbow Room...
Yes Eastern has bloggers.
And yes, the stadium is small but if Michigan were to come, it would probably be the first time it ever sold out. But I can appreciate why that would never happen. Sparty maybe. Michigan no.
Sparty will be going there sometime in the next decade. I think they have three home and one away scheduled with WMU, CMU, and EMU.
But that may not sell it out...:)
Beat Toledo, save kittens, solidify the Ohio border and i-75 recruiting pipeline.
I assume M plays the diectional schools so much as its makes more fiscal sense for them to do so?
I would like to think bringing an out of state team would cost more money to entice them to get beat down (hopefully) where as if your 1-2 hours away and playing Michigan the check you write to that school is probably smaller as they dont have to cover things like jet charter, bringing semi's full of equipment etc. so the cost of doing business with them would be slightly lower.
Kind of a win win situation, those schools get a big pay day to fund their program and since they are not traveling very far, their profit margin is huge and they make bank while M gets to play a local school and everyone witnessess a victory and goes home happy.
I've heard/read that we play the in-state schools more often than other MAC-ky cake schools because that keeps the money in-state. The payouts are usually about the same whether it's UMass, Akron or EMU, but when we pay EMU to visit that money goes to an in-state school. That's why you often see that school down south play other Ohio schools in their non-conference (Akron, OU, Toledo, etc) more often than playing CMU/EMU/WMU or other non-Ohio schools
Ya, I know that we need some cupcakes in our schedule. Especially early in the year. But I'm sick of playing MAC Teams.
Statler and Waldorf are not fans of that pun.
That year is already crazy - lets not try to fit in another stiff opponent. Playing full speed evert Sat is hard - playing it against top competition is something you can only do for so long before breaking down. We need our guys fresher - we have enough SoS rest of the year - get a MAC team and be done with it.