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Nick's 2007 MAC Football Picks - Week #9 Picks

> Nick's MAC Football Recap of Week #8 is now live!

October 27 - Saturday

• Ball State at Illinois, 11 a.m. (CT) - Big Ten Network
• Akron at Buffalo, 1 p.m.
• Central Michigan at Kent State, 1 p.m.
• Miami at Vanderbilt, 1 p.m. (CT)
• Western Michigan at Eastern Michigan, 3:30 p.m. - Comcast Local
• Ohio at Bowling Green, 6 p.m. - WSFJ/Ohio Package/ESPN Game Plan
• Northern Illinois at Toledo, 7 p.m.
• idle - Temple (Friday, Nov. 2 at Ohio)

Making MAC History
Central Michigan’s win over Army on Oct. 13 means that nine different MAC teams have a non-conference regular season win over a I-A opponent this season. That number of nine schools with such a (I-A) non-conference regular season win is the most in MAC history. Nine MAC teams had non-conference wins over I-A opponents in 2000, however only eight of those schools had a regular-season I-A non-conference triumph.

Out of Nowhere
Two players came from statistical obscurity to hero-of the-game status in keying their respective team’s win Saturday afternoon. Temple sophomore QB Vaughn Charlton relieved an injured Adam DiMichele late in the first half as the Owls clung to a 14-7 lead over Miami. Charlton was just 2-of-4 passing for 17 yards this season prior to that point, yet went on to complete 9-of-13 attempts for 109 yards and a touchdown en route to a 24-17 win. As a true frosh last year, Charlton played in eight games and started three. Even more impressive was true freshman RB Willie Geter of Bowling Green who went into Saturday’s game at Kent State with season/career totals of 16 rushing attempts for 87 yards. Geter powered the Falcons’ 31-20 win with 203 yards on 22 carries and added a touchdown from four yards for a 7-0 lead. Geter added four receptions for 51 yards as BG maintained its lead throughout the game.

THIS WEEK (Oct. 27)
Five conference games are on tap with divisional battles featuring Akron @ Buffalo and Ohio @ Bowling Green in the East, and Western Michigan 2 Eastern Michigan and Northern Illinois @ Toledo in the West. A cross-divisional game features Central Michigan @ Kent State. Two teams step out of conference play with Ball State @ Illinois and Miami @ Vanderbilt. Temple is idle.

NEXT WEEK (Nov. 3)
Four conference games, all divisional contests, will help shape the race for the MAC Championship game on Dec. 1. Friday, Nov. 2 will have Temple @ Ohio and Akron @ Bowling Green in East Division meetings. On Saturday, Nov. 3, Buffalo is at Miami in the East and Eastern Michigan @ Toledo in the West. A non-conference game features Ball State @ Indiana.

QB QUANDARY:
Two MAC teams lost their starting QB last week and go into their next game with new starters. Temple signal caller Adam DiMichele, rated #3 in the league in pass efficiency at 130.8 (138-of-223, 1,595 yards, 12 TDs, 10 int.) suffered a fracture of his left tibia in the second quarter of the Saturday’s (Oct. 20) 24-17 win over Miami. DiMichele is expected to make a full recovery but will miss the Owls remaining four games. Kent State’s Julian Edelman (1,318 passing yards, 7 passing TDs; 412 rushing yards, 2 rush TDs) suffered a season-ending broken arm late in the fourth quarter against Bowling Green. Temple will go with sophomore Vaughn Charlton, who played in eight games a year ago and started three (Western Michigan, Vanderbilt and Clemson). Kent State calls on true freshman Giorgio Morgan out of East Point, Ga., who will make his collegiate debut Oct. 27 vs. defending MAC Champion Central Michigan.

TEMPLE ON A TEAR:
The Temple Owls have won three games in a row in the same season for the first time since 1990 after Saturday’s win over Miami and previous triumphs against Northern Illinois and Akron. The Owls beat Pittsburgh, Rutgers and Boston College in the final three games of the 1990 campaign. The Owls are idle this week and will go for four Nov.2 (Friday) at Ohio. Temple last won four games in a row in a season in 1985.

Ball State @ Illinois

Ball State (5-3, 2-1 MAC West, 3-2 MAC Overall) at Illinois (5-3, 3-2 Big Ten) - 11 a.m. (CT)

SITE: Memorial Stadium (69,249/AstroPlay) - Champaign, Ill.

TELEVISION: Big Ten Network

SERIES RECORD: First meeting.

COACHES: BSU-Brady Hoke (20-34, fifth season); UI-Ron Zook (9-22, third year at school; 32-

36, sixth season overall).

Ball State @ Illinois - GAME NOTES:
Ball State scored on a 1-yard touchdown run by Frank Edmonds (6 rush TDs in last 4 games) to edge Western Michigan 27-23 last week for the Cardinals second consecutive win and third win in the last four games ... the Fighting Illini dropped a 27-17 contest at home to Michigan ... UI head coach Ron Zook is a graduate of MAC member Miami University and was an all-MAC player in 1975 as a defensive back ... BSU is 2-1 in non-conference games this season with its only defeat a 41-40 loss at Nebraska ... QB Nate Davis leads the MAC in pass efficiency (142.7), TD passes (20), passing yards (2,286) and has just three interceptions in eight games ... the Cardinals are 3-1 in road games ... the Cardinals defense has produced three interceptions in each of the last two games and have a MAC-leading +1.25 turnover margin ... Chris Miller leads the nation in punting (47.1) and dropped five kicks inside the 20 last week ... Illinois has lost two in a row and is playing its final non-conference game ... the Illini is led by Rashard Mendenall with his 924 rushing yards and 10 TDs ... QB Juice Williams has 336 rushing yards and 786 passing yards.

Nick’s Pick: Ball State 41 – Illinois 38 (Upset Special)

Line: Illinois by 14

Comment: Ball State is totally different team on the road under Brady Hoke versus at home. Ball State is probably the MAC’s best overall team this year even though they probably won’t be playing the MAC Championship in December. This publication sees a very high scoring affair with the Cardinals and QB Nate Davis pulling off some last second heroics for an impressive OOC victory.

> Browse our online selection of MAC football team hats & merchandise!

Akron @ Buffalo

Akron (3-4, 1-1 MAC East, 2-1 MAC Overall), 2-1 MAC Overall) at Buffalo (3-5, 2-0 MAC East, 3-1 MAC overall) - 1 p.m.

SITE: UB Stadium (29,013/Sportexe Momentum) - Buffalo, N.Y.

TELEVISION: None

SERIES RECORD: Akron leads 8-0 ... the series began in 1999 when UB joined the MAC ... the

Zips won last year’s game 31-16.

COACHES: UA-J.D. Brookhart (21-22, fourth season); UB-Turner Gill (5-15, second season).

Akron @ Buffalo - GAME NOTES:
UB’s 20-12 loss last week at Syracuse snapped a two-game winning streak ... the Zips were idle last week and played most recently in a 24-20 home loss to Temple Oct. 13 ... Zips QB Chris Jacquemain has complete 60.0 percent (54-of-90) of his pass attempts for 679 yards and seven TDs the last three games ... UB signal caller Drew Willy, in his third year as a starter, has completed a league-high 66.5 percent (161-of-242) of his pass attempts for 1,686 yards and seven TDs ... last week vs. the Orange, Willy completed a school I-A record 32 pass attempts ... UB’s offense has a MAC-high 88.0 percent (22-of-25) red zone offense success rate ... Bulls’ RB James Starks is second in the MAC in rushing touchdowns with 10 and fifth in rushing yards per game (84.1) ... Willy will be challenged by a Zips defense that boasts of Reggie Corner, the MAC leader in interceptions with five ... the Zips special teams have Andre Jones leading the league in punt returns (20.4) and Bryan Williams in kickoff returns (33.3) ... Zips’ WR Jabari Arthur also find himself at the top of the list with his 103.7 ypg receiving.

Nick’s Pick: Buffalo 23 – Akron 21

Line: Buffalo by 1

Comment: This may be the most difficult MAC game to pick this week. Akron has never lost to Buffalo and had a week off to prepare for the Bulls. Meanwhile, UB is playing their best football by far since joining the league in the late 1990s. Since UB still controls their destiny for the MAC, give the nod to the Bulls to find a way to hold off the Zips in a tightly-contested match up.

> View the VanDelay Sports selection of UB Bulls apparel & gear.

Central Michigan @ Kent State

Central Michigan (4-4, 3-0 MAC West, 3-0 MAC Overall) at Kent State (3-5, 1-3 MAC East, 1-3 MAC Overall) - 1 p.m.

SITE: Dix Stadium (29,287/Field Turf) - Kent, Ohio

TELEVISION: None

SERIES RECORD: CMU leads 21-9 ... the teams have split the last four meetings ... the Chippewas

won the last meting 24-21 in 2004 in Mt. Pleasant ... KSU’s last win came in the previous

game, also a 21-14 score (in overtime) in 2000 ... the last three meetings have been in Mt. Pleasant.

COACHES: CMU-Butch Jones (4-4 first season); KSU-Doug Martin (15-27, fourth season).

CMU @ Kent Sate - GAME NOTES:
The defending MAC Champion Chippewas are coming off a 70-14 loss at Clemson that ended CMU’s three-game losing streak ... the Chippewas have won six consecutive games against MAC East Division opponents dating back to the 2004 season ... KSU dropped a 31-20 contest at home to Bowling Green last week for its third loss in a row ... the Golden Flashes feature the league’s top rusher in Eugene Jarvis (137.9 ypg) and top rushing team (224.8 ypg) ... KSU lost starting QB Julian Edelman after he suffered a broken arm late in the fourth quarter last week ... Edelman, a second-team all-MAC selection last year, had passed for 1,318 yards and rushed for 412 yards this season ... true freshman Giorgio Morgan will be slotted in Edelman’s place and see his first-ever collegiate action vs. CMU ... Chippewas’ QB Dan LeFevour continues his assault on the school record book as his 5,976 yards of total offense ranks third and his 199 completions ranks third in a single season ... CMU is the lone MAC team without a conference loss and the Chippewas have won 10 of their last 11 conference games ... CMU is second in the MAC in scoring offense (31.1 ppg) and total offense (411.4 ypg) ... KSU tops the charts in total defense (347.2 ypg).

Nick’s Pick: Central Michigan 28 – Kent State 16

Line: Central by 3

Comment: Thank goodness for the ‘Chips that they are back in MAC play. For whatever reason, Central Michigan has played terribly against their non-conference competition (less Army) while playing very solid football within the league. Kent State is starting a true freshman at QB and continues to make mistakes in the red zone which is killing them since they have the MAC’s best rushing attack and top-rated defense. Look for CMU to win another MAC contest again this weekend.

> View the VanDelay Sports selection of Central Michigan apparel & gear.

Miami @ Vanderbilt

Miami (4-4, 2-1 MAC East, 3-1 MAC Overall) at Vanderbilt (4-3, 2-3 SEC) - 1 p.m. (CT)

SITE: Vanderbilt Stadium (39,790/Natural Grass) - Nashville, Tenn.

TELEVISION: None

SERIES RECORD: Tied 1-1 ... Miami won 33-30 in 2000 ... VU was victorious 12-0 in 1899.

COACHES: Miami-Shane Montgomery (13-18, third season); VU-Bobby Johnson (19-46,

sixth season at school; 79-82, 10th season overall).

Miami @ Vanderbilt - GAME NOTES:
The Commodores are coming off a 17-6 win over #6 ranked South Carolina ... the RedHawks fell at Temple, 24-17, snapping a three-game winning streak ... the 24 points allowed to the Owls are the most Miami has given up in four conference games this season ...at Temple, Dan Raudabaugh threw for a career-high 314 yards, connecting on 33-of-59 pass attempts ... he also led Miami to 10 points over the final 2:40 of the game before coming up short on a last-second pass ... the RedHawks lead the MAC in scoring defense (26.0 ppg allowed) but rank 12th of 13 teams in scoring offense (20.0 ppg) ... the VU defense limited the Gamecocks to 26 rushing yards last week and had three interceptions in keeping SC out of the end zone ... the VU defense leads the SEC in sacks per game (2.86) and interceptions (14), and is fourth in the league in scoring defense, allowing 18.0 ppg, and third in total defense (310.0 ypg allowed) ...this is Miami’s last non-conference game as the RedHawks will close out with three East Division opponents (Buffalo, Akron at Ohio) ...

Nick’s Pick: Vandy 26 – Miami 17

Line: Vandy by 13

Comment: Believe it or not, Miami is 11-11 historically against the SEC, by far the nation’s best college football conference. This has to be a difficult game mentally for the Commodores who are coming off an impressive road win at powerful South Carolina. Miami needs to forget the Temple debacle very quickly and certainly has a history or pulling upsets from the BCS ranks. Miami may just win this game, but this publication sees Vanderbilt holding on for a victory.

Western Michigan @ Eastern Michigan

Western Michigan (3-5, 2-1 MAC West, 2-2 MAC Overall) at Eastern Michigan (2-6, 1-1 MAC West, 1-2 MAC Overall) - 3:30 p.m .

SITE: Rynearson Stadium (30,200/FieldTurf) - Ypsilanti, Mich.

TELEVISION: Comcast Local

SERIES RECORD: WMU leads 25-14-2 ... the Broncos have won the last two and 9 of the last

10 ... WMU took an 18-15 win last year ... EMU last won in 2004 in Kalamazoo, 35-31.

COACHES: WMU-Bill Cubit (18-14, second season at school; 50-32-1, 8th season overall);

EMU-Jeff Genyk (11-31, fourth season).

WMU @ EMU - GAME NOTES:
Both teams have just one loss in the division ... WMU lost 27-23 to Ball State on a touchdown with 67 seconds left in the fourth quarter just one week after a 39-38 loss to Akron on the last play of the game ... the Eagles dropped a 26-14 decision to Northwestern for their fourth consecutive loss ... freshman Kyle McMahon made his first career start in place of the injured Andy Schmitt for the Eagles ... McMahon was 38-of-48 passing for 282 yards but suffered three interceptions ... McMahon also was EMU’s leading rusher with two touchdowns (9 and 14 yards) and 44 yards on 13 carries ... EMU’s Dontayo Gage set a school record with his 784 yards on kickoff returns this season, which ranks ninth all-time in league history and is 105 yards shy of setting a new conference standard ... DL Jason Jones leads the MAC in tackles for a loss with 16 for minus 56 yards ... the Broncos national best streak of 33 consecutive games with a takeaway ended at 33 games last week ... RB Brandon West had a career-best 170 rushing yards vs. Ball State ... West ranks third in the MAC in all-purpose yards (196.5 ypg) and sixth in rushing (72.6 ypg) ... Londen Fryar leads the MAC in passes defended with 14 (13 break ups, 1 int.) ... in conference-only games, Tim Hiller’s 266.8 ypg is the most of any MAC QB ... WR Jamarko Simmons leads the MAC in receptions (69) and receiving yards (806).

Nick’s Pick: Western 20 – Eastern 17

Line: Western by 5.5

Comment: Over the years these two teams have played some real nail-biters, but more often than not, the Broncos have found a way to win these close contests. Don’t be surprised if this game goes to OT and look for WMU to continue their last-minute victories over the Eagles.

Ohio @ Bowling Green

Ohio (3-5, 0-2 MAC East, 1-3 MAC Overall) at Bowling Green (4-3, 2-1 MAC East, 2-1 MAC Overall) - 6 p.m.

SITE: Perry Stadium (24,000/FieldTurf) - Bowling Green, Ohio

TELEVISION: WSFJ/Ohio Package/ESPN Game Plan

SERIES RECORD: BG leads 35-21-2 ... the Falcons have won the last five meetings ... the Falcons

took last year’s game 21-9, handing the East Division champion Bobcats their only conference defeat of 2006.

COACHES: OU-Frank Solich (16-17, third season at OU; 74-36, ninth season overall); BGSU Gregg

Brandon (34-22, fifth season).

Ohio @ Bowling Green - GAME NOTES:
Ohio dropped a 43-40 contest at Toledo and has allowed 85 points, while scoring 88 points, in the last two games ... BG stopped a two-game losing streak with a 31-20 conquest of Kent State, its fourth consecutive win at Dix Stadium ... Falcons freshman Willie Geter rushed for 203 yards to spark the win last week ... the 203 yards are 31 percent of BG’s season total of 653 rushing yards ... Geter went into the game with just 87 yards on 16 carries this season ... with a running attack, the BG offense also features the league’s top passing game with 307.3 ypg ... the Falcons have three players on their roster with TDs by rushing, passing and receiving (Anthony Turner, Tyler Sheehan and Freddie Barnes) ... Ohio’s Kalvin McRae leads the MAC with 13 rushing touchdowns, which is two shy of the school record he set in 2006 ... McRae (107.8 ypg) is one of four MAC players with 100-yard plus rushing averages ... McRae’s 182 rushing yards last week boosted his career total to 3,826 - the 15th highest total in MAC history and 146 yards away from Steve Hookfin’s (1995-98) school record 3,972 yards ... prior to allowing 44.5 ppg in its last two games, Ohio had allowed 27.2 ppg in its first six outings ... Michale Braunstein extended his school record consecutive field goals made streak to 12 with a 40-yarder last week.

Nick’s Pick: BGSU 35 – Ohio 20

Line: BGSU by 7.5

Comment: The Falcons are still in the hunt for a MAC East title and a birth to the MACC while Ohio’s season is all but over with regards to post season play. Both teams are averaging 29 points per contest and 31-32 points allowed on defense. The difference is that BG has played a much tougher schedule, but a bigger difference is in turnover margin. BG ranks 5th in the MAC while Ohio is 12th and that will be the difference in the game.

> Browse our online selection of MAC football gear & apparel!

Northern Illinois @ Toledo

Northern Illinois (1-7, 0-3 MAC West, 0-4 MAC Overall) at Toledo (3-5, 0-2 MAC West, 1-3 MAC Overall) - 7 p.m.

SITE: Glass Bowl (26,248/NeXturf) - Toledo, Ohio

TELEVISION: None.

SERIES RECORD: Toledo leads 27-7 ... the Rockets won last year 35-17 in DeKalb ... NIU’s

most recent victory came in 2005 at the Glass Bowl 35-17 ... UT has won 12 of the last 13.

COACHES: NIU-Joe Novak (62-73, 12th season); UT-Tom Amstutz (53-30, 8th season.).

NIU @ Toledo - GAME NOTES:
The Huskies 44-3 loss at Wisconsin extended NIU’s losing streak to four games ... four of NIU’s defeats this season have come by a combined 10 points ... the Rockets 43-40 win at home over Ohio marked the Rockets first conference win of 2007 ... Toledo has not won back-to back games this season, but they are 41-6 in their last 47 home games ... Rocket RB Jalen Parmele set career highs in rushing attempts (38) and rushing yards (241) ... Parmele has four consecutive games with 100-plus rushing yards ... in the last four games, Parmele has rushed 117 times for 771 yards and seven TDs, an average of 6.1 ypc and 177.8 yards per game ... sophomore QB Andy Opelt returned to the lineup after missing a game due to injury and he finished 19-of-39 for 204 yards including a 23-yard TD pass ... UT ranks second in the MAC in rushing (190.5 ypg) but is last in scoring defense (42.9 ypg allowed) and rushing defense (225.4 ypg allowed) ... NIU’s Larry English has a MAC-leading 8.5 sacks this season and 21.5 career sacks, which ties him for 19 th all-time in MAC history ... the two weeks prior to the Wisconsin game, the NIU defense had its best back-to-back outings of the year by allowing just 33 total points in two games ... the Huskie defense still ranks third overall in the MAC by allowing 27.2 ppg ... Chris Nendick connected on his 54 th career field goal, the ninth best total in league history ... Justin Anderson’s 110.2 ypg average is the third highest in the MAC.

MAC vs. Bowl Subdivision (I-A)

ACC

Ohio at Virginia Tech ................................. L 7-28

Bowling Green at Boston College ........... L 24-55

Central Michigan at Clemson .................. L 14-70

Big East

Buffalo at Rutgers ...................................... L 3-38

Eastern Michigan at Pittsburgh .................. L 3-27

Western Michigan at West Virginia .......... L 24-62

Cincinnati at Miami ................................. L 10-47

Temple at Connecticut ............................. L 17-22

Syracuse at Miami ...................................W 17-14

Akron at Connecticut ............................... L 10-44

Buffalo at Syracuse .................................. L 12-20

Big Ten

Iowa vs. Northern Illinois .......................... L 3-16

Bowling Green at Minnesota ..............W 32-31 ot

Purdue at Toledo ...................................... L 24-52

Akron at Ohio State ................................... L 2-20

Bowling Green at Michigan State ............ L 17-28

Miami at Minnesota ...........................L 35-41 3ot

Indiana at Western Michigan ................... L 27-37

Central Michigan at Purdue ..................... L 22-45

Akron at Indiana ...................................... L 24-41

Buffalo at Penn State................................ L 24-45

Eastern Michigan at Michigan ................. L 22-33

Kent State at Ohio State ............................. L 3-48

Northwestern vs. Eastern Michigan ......... L 14-26

Northern Illinois at Wisconsin ................... L 3-44

Ball State at Illinois .......................................O 27

Ball State at Indiana ........................................N 3

Penn State at Temple .....................................N 10

Western Michigan at Iowa ............................N 17

Big 12

Kent State at Iowa State ..........................W 24-13

Central Michigan at Kansas ....................... L 7-52

Toledo at Kansas ...................................... L 13-45

Western Michigan at Missouri ................. L 24-52

Miami at Colorado ..................................... L 0-42

Baylor at Buffalo ...................................... L 21-34

Iowa State at Toledo ................................W 36-35

Ball State at Nebraska .............................. L 40-41

Mountain West

Wyoming at Ohio ..................................... L 33-34

SEC

Kent State at Kentucky ............................ L 20-56

Eastern Michigan at Vanderbilt .................. L 7-30

Miami at Vanderbilt ......................................O 27

Sun Belt

Ohio at Louisiana-Lafayette ...................W 31-23

WAC

Northern Illinois at Idaho ........................W 42-35

Independent

Navy at Temple ........................................ L 19-30

Army vs. Akron .......................................W 22-14

Ball State at Navy ...............................W 34-31 ot

*Western Kentucky at Bowling Green ....W 41-21

Temple at Army ........................................ L 21-37

Army at Central Michigan ......................W 47-23

*Western Kentucky at Ball State ............W 35-12

Northern Illinois at Navy ..............................N 17

*future Sun Belt member

vs. Football Championship Subdivision (I-AA)

Gateway

Southern Illinois at Northern Illinois ....... L 31-34

Great West

N.D. State at Central Michigan ................ L 14-44

MEAC

Delaware State at Kent State .....................W 28-7

Howard at Eastern Michigan ..................W 38-15

Big South

Gardner-Webb at Ohio ............................W 36-14

Liberty at Toledo .....................................W 35-34

Northeast

Central Conn. State at W. Mich. .............W 51-14

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