Inside MAC Football: Week 11

Last week in the Mid-American Conference, the Akron Zips finally ended their six game losing streak by ending the three-game skein of their arch rival Kent State Golden Flashes and retaining possession of ‘The Wagon Wheel’.

The East Division leading Temple Owls extended their winning streak to seven but just barely over Miami. Bowling Green stayed in the Eastern Division hunt with a come-from behind win at Buffalo while in the West, Northern Illinois routed Eastern Michigan to stay just a game and a half behind division leading Central Michigan

Here is a look at the thirteen MAC teams as we begin week eleven

EASTERN DIVISION

AKRON (2-7, 1-4): The Zips ended their six-game losing streak their longest since 2002 when they defeated Kent State last Saturday at InfoCision Stadium 28-20 to retain possession of ‘The Wagon Wheel’ trophy for a third consecutive year. It was Akron’s first MAC win in their new stadium, but little time to rejoice as East Division leading Temple comes to the Rubber City for a nationally televised game (ESPNU) on Friday night…DB MIGUEL GRAHAM was named MAC East Defensive Player of the Week as he had six tackles (five solos) and set a school record with six pass breakups in the win over Kent State on Saturday…WR JEREMY LAFRANCE has a career best eight catches for 126 yards and two touchdowns against the Golden Flashes…LB BRIAN WAGNER is tied for ninth in the FBS in tackles with 96

BOWLING GREEN (4-5, 3-2): The Falcons kept their outside chances for a postseason bowl bid alive as they defeated Buffalo 30-29 on Tuesday night at UB Stadium. The Falcons again will be under the lights this time on Thursday night when they travel to Oxford to face the Miami RedHawks…QB TYLER SHEEHAN was named MAC East Offensive Player of the Week as he completed 22-of-40 passes for 313 yards and a touchdown in the win over the Bulls…SHEEHAN is second in the FBS in passing yards with 2,990…WR FREDDIE BARNES leads the FBS in receiving yards with 1,176

BUFFALO (3-6, 1-4): The Bulls lost a heartbreaker on Tuesday night at home to Bowling Green 30-29 and will take a two-game losing streak into their battle with Ohio again under the lights at UB Stadium on Tuesday night before a national television audience (ESPN2)…RB JEFFVON GILL had a career best 172 yards rushing and a touchdown last week against the Falcons…DB DOMONIC COOK had eight tackles against BGSU…QB ZACH MAYNARD has thrown at least one touchdown pass in all nine of UB’s games so far this season

KENT STATE (5-5, 3-2): The Golden Flashes had their three-game winning streak along with their chances for a winning record and a bowl bid take a severe hit last Saturday losing at Akron 28-20.The Flashes have the week off before heading to South Philadelphia on Saturday November 21 st…QB SPENCER KEITH set career highs for passing attempts (59), completions (30), and yards (377) in the loss to the Zips. He became the first Kent State quarterback since 2004 to have consecutive 300-yard passing games…DB BRIAN LAINHART leads the MAC in interceptions with five…KR ANTHONY BOWMAN is fifth in the MAC in kick returns averaging 23.4 yards per return

MIAMI (1-9, 1-5): The RedHawks gave it their all in Philadelphia on Thursday but fell to Temple 34-32 in could have been the biggest upset in the MAC this season. Miami returns home for a Thursday night meeting with Bowling Green at Yager Stadium. QB ZAC DYSERT completed 31-of-51 passes for a career best 426 yards against the Owls the fourth best performance in school history…WR ARMED ROBINSON had 10 receptions for 118 yards and two touchdowns…DB ANTHONY KOKAL had nine tackles to lead the team

OHIO (6-3, 4-1): The Bobcats moved into second place in the Eastern Division by a half-game thanks to Kent State’s loss last Saturday at Akron. This week the Cats make the trip to Western New York to face the Buffalo Bulls…THE CATS DEFENSE is third in the MAC in total defense (332.7 yds per game) and in scoring defense (20.6)…DB GERALD MOORE is tied for second in the MAC with four interceptions…KR CHRIS GARRETT leads the MAC with a 28.4 yards per return average

TEMPLE (7-2, 4-0): The surprising Owls ran their winning streak to six games their longest since 1973 but barely as Brandon McManus’ field goal with 18 seconds remaining defeated Miami 34-32. The Owls head for Akron Friday night for a meeting with the Zips at their new home InfoCision Stadium…PK BRANDON MCMANUS was named MAC East Special Teams Player of the Week for his game-winning kick…RB BERNARD PIERCE has a career high 40 carries for 178 yards and three touchdowns…DE MUHAMMAD WILKINSON had five tackles, two sacks and two for losses in the win over the RedHawks

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WESTERN DIVISION

BALL STATE (1-8. 1-4): The Cardinals had the week off as they prepared for a Thursday night tilt at Northern Illinois before a national television audience (ESPNU)…THE CARDINALS ranked fourth in the MAC in rushing offense averaging 164.8 yards per game…RB MIQUALE LEWIS is firth in the MAC with 724 rushing yards…KR ERIC WILLIAMS is third in returns averaging 25.4 yards per touch

CENTRAL MICHIGAN (7-2, 5-0): The Western Division leading Chippewas return to action on Wednesday night when Toledo comes to Kelly Shorts Stadium before a national television audience (ESPN2)…QB DAN LEFEVOUR leads the MAC in passing efficiency with a 145.5 rating…WR ANTONIO BROWN is eighth in the FBS in all-purpose yards with 1,592…THE CHIPS are 16 th in the FBS in red-zone offense 92 percent and tied for 10 th in red zone defense at 71%

EASTERN MICHIGAN (0-9, 0-5): The Eagles are the only MAC team without an overall victory along with being without a conference triumph in 2009. Last Thursday they were trounced by the Northern Illinois Huskies 50-6. The Eagles close out the home portion of their schedule this Saturday when Western Michigan makes the trip east on I-94 to Rynearson Stadium…RB DWAYNE PRIEST is eighth in MAC rushing with 561 yards…DB CHRIS MAY is tied for second in interceptions with four…P ZACH JOHNSON leads the MAC with a 41.7 yard per kick average

NORTHERN ILLINOIS (6-3, 4-1): The Huskies have won four of their last five games following their 50-6 rout of Eastern Michigan. This week the Huskies complete the home portion of their schedule with a Thursday night tilt with Ball State…RB CHAD SPANN was named MAC West Offensive Player of the Week as he rushed for 174 yards and two touchdowns against EMU. It was the third time this season Spann had rushed for over 100 yards in a game...LB CORY HANSON was named MAC West Defensive Player of the Week as he had nine tackles (five solo) two of them for losses and a pass defended against the Eagles…THE HUSKIES are second in the FBS in red zone defense at 64%

TOLEDO (4-5, 2-3): The Rockets had the week off as they will travel to Mount Pleasant to face the Western Division leading Chippewas Wednesday night in a national television game…WR ERIC PAGE is seventh in the FBS in receiving yards with 909…LB ARCHIE DONALD is tied for ninth in the FBS with 96 total tackles…WR STEPHEN WILLIAMS is ninth in the FBS in receiving yards with 884

WESTERN MICHIGAN (4-6, 3-3): The Broncos completed the non-conference portion of their schedule as they lost at Michigan State 49-14…WMU has lost three of their last four and look to return to the winning column this Saturday as they travel to Eastern Michigan…KR BRANDON WEST was named MAC West Special Teams Player of the Week as he had 142 kick return yards against the Spartans breaking the FBS record for kick return yards in a career with 3,045 career yards…WEST is second in the MAC with 922 rushing yards…QB TIM HILLER is third in passing averaging 262 yards per game

By Evan Meyer