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Nick's 2008 MAC Football Picks - Week #4 Preview & Picks

MAC NOTES:

• Three former MAC head coaches who guided their respective teams to MAC Championships will be on the opposing sideline this week. Gary Pinkel ( Toledo 1995) and No. 5 Missouri hosts Buffalo; Bill Lynch ( Ball State 1996) and Indiana host Ball State; and Brian Kelly (Central Michigan 2006) and Cincinnati hosts Miami.
• Ball State ’s 3-0 start is the school’s best since the 1995 squad also won its first two games. The most recent
• 3-0 start at BSU came in 1988 when that Cardinals team began the season with five consecutive wins. Ball State freshman Sean Baker was named Walter Camp National Defensive Player of the Week for his three interceptions and a fumble return for a touchdown in Ball State’s 41-24 win at Akron. Baker is a native of Canfield, Ohio, which is just an hour from the Akron campus. Baker’s three interceptions tied the school record.
• Ohio QB Boo Jackson, in his first career FBS start, set a school record with 413 yards of total offense in a 31-28 loss to Central Michigan. Jackson passed for 365 yards and rushed for 48 yards.
• Two MAC games are slated for national television. From the Glass Bowl in Toledo the Rockets will host No. 25 Fresno State on ESPNU and Akron plays at Army on ESPN Classic. Buffalo takes to the road to challenge No. 5 ranked Missouri. Another two games will be on ESPN360 when Eastern Michigan is at Maryland and Miami is at Cincinnati. Northern Illinois holds its home-opener, hosting Indiana State. Kent State takes to the road to face Louisiana-Lafayette and Western Michigan hosts Tennessee Tech.
• BSU junior QB Nate Davis set the school’s career mark for passing yards Saturday. His 300 yards boosted his career number to 6,558 ... Central Michigan’s 31-28 win at Ohio was the Bobcats 11th consecutive against an East Division opponent ... Kent State’s 24-3 win over Delaware State snapped the Golden Flashes nine-game losing streak ... Toledo broke a six-game road losing streak in its 41-17 win at Eastern Michigan ... Temple has lost its last two games on the final play of each contest. Saturday, Buffalo’s Drew Willy connected on a 35-yard Hail Mary with Naaman Roosevelt as time expired for a 30-28 win over the Owls. The previous week, the Owls lost in overtime to Connecticut, 12-9, on a seven-yard run.
• Central Michigan’s Dan LeFevour, just three games into his junior season ranks among the all time passing leaders in MAC history per the following: touchdown passes: ninth (58); completions: ninth (674); pass attempts: 11th (1,047); passing yards: 11th (7,511).
• Northern Illinois Larry English has 24.5 career sacks, tied for 14th on the MAC all-time list with
• Miami ’s JoJuan Armour (1995-98).
• Buffalo’s Drew Willy is one of seven fourth-year starting QBs in the nation at the I-A level- the complete list - Rudy Carpenter, Arizona State; Curtis Painter, Purdue; Mike Teel, Rutgers; Willie Tuitama, Arizona; Drew Weatherford, Florida State; Pat White, West Virginia; Drew Willy, Buffalo.

MAC all-time non-conference wins versus ranked teams

2008 = Aug. 30 - BGSU 27 at #25/nr Pittsburgh 17

2003 = Aug. 28 - at NIU 20, #15/#14 Maryland 13 - OT

2003 = Sept. 6 - BGSU 27, at #16/#20 Purdue 26

2003 = Sept. 20 - Marshall 27 at #6/#6 Kansas State 20

2003 = Sept. 20 - at Toledo 35, #9/#11 Pittsburgh 31

2003 = Sept. 20 - Northern Illinois 19 at #21/nr Alabama 16

1999 = Dec. 27 - #11/#11 Marshall 21 vs. nr/#25 BYU 3 - at Motor City Bowl (Pontiac, Mich.)

1198 = Sept. 5 Miami 13, at #12 N. Carolina 10

1997 = Oct. 4 Miami 24, at #12 Virginia Tech 17

1995 = Sept. 16 Miami 30, at #25 Northwestern 28

1991 = Sept. 14 C. Michigan 20, at #18 Mich. State 3

1986 = Sept. 20 Miami 21, #8 LSU 12

1981 = Dec. 19 Toledo 27, #20 (UPI) San Jose State 25 at California Bowl ( Fresno, Calif.)

1972 = Sept. 16 BGSU 17 at #18 Purdue 14

1962 = Oct. 13 Miami 10 at #9 Purdue 7

By Conference

5 - Big Ten

3 - Big East

2- ACC

2 - SEC

1 - Big 12

1 - MWC

1 – WAC

Ohio (0-3, 0-1 MAC) at Northwestern (3-0, 0-0 Big Ten) - 12:00 (ET)

SITE: Ryan Field (49,256/Grass) - Evanston, Ill.

TELEVISION: Big Ten Network

SERIES RECORD: Northwestern leads 2-1 ... the most recent meeting was a 28-14 NU win in

2005 ... Ohio’s victory came in 1973, 14-12.

COACHES: Ohio-Frank Solich (19-21, fourth year at school; 77-40, 10th season overall); NU Pat Fitzgerald (13-14, third season).

GAME NOTES:
Ohio dropped its third consecutive game last week, a 31-28 contest to Central Michigan in the league opener ... Northwestern won its third straight in a 33-7 triumph over Southern Illinois ... Ohio QB Boo Jackson set a school record with his 413 yards of total offense (365 passing, 48 rushing) in his first FBS (I-A) start ... Ohio has not started the season 0-4 since 2002 ... the Bobcats three losses have been by a total of 16 points (1, 12, 3) ... the Bobcats are minus six in the turnover category ... for NU, this is its third home game in the first four outings of 2008, and is also the Wildcats final non-conference contest ... Tyrell Sutton is averaging 5.8 ypc and has scored five touchdowns ... C.J. Bacher has passed for 625 yards and three TDs.

Nick’s Pick: Northwestern 23 – Ohio 21

Comment: OU has lost three games they could have very easily won. Is there a better 0-3 team in the country than Ohio? Probably not. Expect another bitter pill to swallow at Northwestern this weekend to add to the Bobcat misery.

Central Michigan (2-1, 1-0 MAC) @ Purdue (1-1, 0-0 Big Ten - 12:00

SITE: Ross-Ade Stadium (62,500/Prescription Athletic Turf) - West Lafayette, Ind.

TELEVISION: Big Ten Network

SERIES RECORD: Purdue leads 4-0 ... the Boilermakers won twice last year vs. the Chippewas

- 45-22 in the regular season and 51-48 in the Motor City Bowl.

COACHES: CMU-Butch Jones (10-7, second season); Purdue-Joe Tiller (84-55, 12th season at school; 123-85-1, 18th season overall).

GAME NOTES:

The Chippewas opened conference play with a 31-28 win at Ohio last week ...Nick Bellore caused a fumble at the one-yard line last in the fourth quarter to preserve the victory ... Purdue dropped a 32-26 overtime decision to Oregon after leading 20-3 ... the Boilermakers have won six of their last eight home games ... this game matches two of the nations top rated QBs ... CMU’s Dan LeFevour (828 yards, 5 TDs) and PU’s Curtis Painter (493 yards, 2 TDs) ... this is the third consecutive home game for Purdue and the third consecutive road game for CMU...the Chippewas Antonio Brown ranks third nationally in punt returns (34.8) and returned a punt 75 yards for a score last week ... Brown also has 19 receptions for 193 yards ... the Chippewas return home for three straight home games starting Sept. 27.

Nick’s Pick: Purdue 44 – Central 31

Comment: Purdue blew a 17-point lead at home and lost to Oregon in a heartbreaker. If they dwell on that game – Central will pull a minor upset. Central and Purdue played a thriller last year in the Motor City Bowl. Don’t expect as much excitement this time around, but the ‘Chips still could surprise.

Temple (1-2, 0-1 MAC) @ Penn State (3-0, 0-0) Big Ten - 12:00

SITE: Beaver Stadium (107,282/Natural Grass) - University Park, Pa.

TELEVISION: Big Ten Network

SERIES RECORD: Penn State leads 33-3-1 ... the Nittany Lions won last year 31-0 at Lincoln

Financial Field before a MAC home game record crowd of 69,029 ... Temple last won in the series in 1941, 14-0 ... the teams tied in 1950, 7-7.

COACHES: TU-Al Golden (6-21, third season); PSU-Joe Paterno (375-125-3, 43rd season.).

GAME NOTES:

Temple dropped its second consecutive outing on the last play of the game, losing 30-28 at Buffalo ... the Owls two losses this year have come by a combined five points ... Penn State beat Syracuse 55-13 for its fourth consecutive win dating back to last year ... the Nittany Lions feature Evan Royster, who has six rushing TDs and is averaging 8.1 ypc (306 yards, 38 att.) and QB Daryll Clark (5 TDs, no interceptions) ... Temple leads the MAC in scoring defense, allowing 16.3 ppg ... Owls head coach Al Golden played at Penn State, graduating in 1991...Owls C Alex Derenthal is making his 38th consecutive start.

Nick’s Pick: Penn State 37 – Temple 16

Comment: Temple has a good enough team to line up and play well against a very solid PSU team. Penn State’s offensive numbers are quite gaudy given their pathetically weak non-conference schedule to date.

Akron (1-2, 0-1 MAC) Army (0-2, Independent) - 1:00

SITE: Michie Stadium (40,000/AstroPlay) - West Point, N.Y.

TELEVISION: ESPN Classic

SERIES RECORD: Army leads 3-1 ... Akron won last year 22-14 in a game played at Cleveland

Browns Stadium ... the Cadets most recent win came in 2005, 20-0.

COACHES: UA-J.D. Brookhart (23-28, fifth season); Army-Stan Brock (3-11, second season).

GAME NOTES:

Army was open last week after a Sept. 6, 28-10, loss to New Hampshire...Akron fell in its home opener, 41-24 to Ball State ... this is Army’s third consecutive home game... for the Zips, this is their third road game in four contests in 2008 ... Army lost to MAC member Temple (35-7) and will also play Eastern Michigan and Buffalo later this year ... Akron suffered five turnovers last week after committing just two in its first two games ... Zips return man Bryan Williams leads the nation in kickoff returns at 32.6 ypr ... despite four interceptions last week, Chris Jacquemain still has more TD passes (6) than interceptions (5) this season ... WR Deryn Bowser grabbed a career-high eight receptions for 117 yards last week.

Nick’s Pick: Akron 22 – Army 17

Comment: The Zips need a game like this before playing a very good Cincy team next week in the Rubber Bowl. The MAC has a good chance to beat up on the Black Knights in 2008 as the league plays Army four times this season. Temple has already beaten them 35-10.

Buffalo (2-1, 1-0 MAC) @ #5 Missouri (3-0, 0-0 Big 12) - 1:00 (CT)

SITE: Faurot Field/Memorial Stadium (68,349/FieldTurf) - Columbia, Mo.

TELEVISION: None

SERIES RECORD: First meeting.

COACHES: UB-Turner Gill (9-18, third season); Gary Pinkel (52-37, eighth season at school;

125-74-3, 18th season overall.).

> Buy UB Bulls apparel & hats online through VanDelay Sports!

GAME NOTES:

Buffalo scored on a Hail Mary as time expired for a 30-28 win over Temple, courtesy of QB Drew Willy to WR Naaman Roosevelt from 35 yards ... the UB program is 2-1 to start the season for the first time since going to the FBS (I-A) level in 1999 ... Willy is among those on the Johnny Unitas Watch List as the best senior QB in the nation ... Willy has completed 65.2 percent (60-of-92) of his attempts for 792 yards, eight TDs and two interceptions ... the Tigers mauled Nevada last week 69-17 ... the Heisman Watch List has Tigers QB Chase Daniels among the top candidates ... last week he became the school’s all-time passing leader with his total of 9,153 career yards ... Daniels has 10 TD passes and 973 yards in three games in 2008 ... this is Missouri’s third consecutive home game ... despite being held to 20 yards last week, UB’s James Starks is averaging 98.7 ypg rushing.

Nick’s Pick: Missouri 55 – Buffalo 24

Comment: Buffalo may end up being the best team in the MAC this season (wow, who would have imagined that two years ago?) but they are facing a possible national championship team in the MU Tigers. UB will score, but Missouri will score much more.

Eastern Michigan (1-2, 0-1 MAC) @ Maryland (2-1, 0-0 ACC) - 1:00

SITE: Chevy Chase Bank Field at Byrd Stadium (51,500) - College Park, Md.

TELEVISION: ESPN360

SERIES RECORD: Maryland leads 3-0 ... the Terrapins have captured games in 2001, 2002 and

2003 by a combined score of 132-19.

COACHES: EMU-Jeff Genyk (14-35, sixth season); UM-Ralph Friedgen (58-32, eighth season).

GAME NOTES:

The Eagles have dropped two in a row after last week’s 41-17 defeat at the hands of Toledo ... Maryland rebounded from a stunning 24-14 loss at Middle Tennessee on Sept. 6 to knock off No. 23 California last week 35-27 ... Da’Rel Scott led the way with two TD runs in the first quarter and is averaging 7.3 ypc on the season ... EMU, playing in a driving rain storm, suffered three lost fumbles and two interceptions last week ... sophomore TB Dewayne Priest rushed for a career-best 80 yards and Terrence Blevins chipped in with two short TD runs (1 and 2 yards) vs. the Rockets ... Ryan Downard, a sophomore, nabbed his seventh career interception.

Nick’s Pick: Maryland 30 – EMU 10

Comment: Maryland did lose to Middle Tennessee State on the road but has rebounded with nice win over Cal. EMU has done little since their dismantling of Indiana State to open the season. It may be another long afternoon for Coach Genyk & Company.

Indiana State (0-2, 0-0 MVC) @ Northern Illinois (0-2, 0-1 MAC) - 2:00 (CT)

SITE: Brigham Field at Huskie Stadium (24,000/FieldTurf) - DeKalb, Ill.

TELEVISION: None

SERIES RECORD: Tied 4-4 ... the last meeting was a 48-14 Huskie triumph in 2006.

COACHES: ISU-Trent Miles (0-2, first season); NIU-Jerry Kill (0-2, first season at school; 104-

59, 15th season overall).

GAME NOTES: ISU lost a 38-3 contest last week to Eastern Illinois and has also dropped a 52-0 game to Eastern Michigan ... the Huskies were idle and will be playing their home opener ... frosh QB Chandler Harnish will not play as he recovers from an injury for NIU ... Harnish is second in the league in passing efficiency with a 175.3 rating ... the Huskies two losses are by a combined seven points, both on the road; 31-27 at Minnesota and 29-26 at Western Michigan ... DE Larry English, with 24.5 career sacks, needs 1.5 sacks to move onto the top 10 all-time list in MAC history ... WR Nathan Palmer, a freshman, is second in the conference with his 124.0 yards per game receiving and leads everyone with his 35.4 yards per reception ... NIU is one of two MAC teams (CMU) without an interception thus far in 2008.

Nick’s Pick: NIU 45 – Indiana State 0

Comment: ISU is the worst I-AA scholarship team in the country – period. In fact, they would struggle to beat the I-AA non-scholarship teams.

Kent State (1-2, 0-0 MAC) @ Louisiana-Lafayette (0-2, 0-0 Sun Belt) - 6:00

SITE: Cajun Field (31,000/Grass) - Lafayette, La.

TELEVISION: None

SERIES RECORD: First meeting.

COACHES: KSU-Doug Martin (16-33, fifth season); Ricky Bustle (26-46, sixth season).

GAME NOTES:

The Golden Flashes won their first game of the season last week and the 24-3 triumph over Delaware State snapped a nine-game losing streak dating back to last season ... the Ragin’ Cajuns are 0-2 after a close 20-17 loss at Illinois ... ULL will be playing its home opener and then embarks on three consecutive road games ... Michael Desormeaux leads the team in passing (34-of-55, 298 yards, 1 TD) and rushing (188 yards, 6.3 ypc, 1 TD) ... KSU has two of the MAC’s top 10 rushers in Eugene Jarvis (7th at 69.0 ypg) and Julian Edelman (8th at 56.0 ypg) ... as a team, KSU is averaging 194.7 ypg rushing, second highest in the MAC ... LB Derek Burrell has a league-leading 11.7 tackles per game ... the Golden Flashes have not won back-to-back game since a five-game winning streak in weeks three through seven in 2006.

Nick’s Pick: ULL 24 – Kent State 16

Comment: Kent State should be able to go on the road and win this game but to date they have not held on to the football very well. Against Iowa State, KSU put up tons of yards but turnovers killed them in that 20-point loss. ULL lost at Illinois last week 20-17. KSU can win this game but has yet to prove they can play four-complete quarters of football. They will need to play a good game to beat a much improved ULL team on the road.

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Tennessee Tech (2-1, 0-0 OVC) @ Western Michigan (2-1, 1-0 MAC) - 7:00

SITE: Waldo Stadium (30,200/FieldTurf) - Kalamazoo, Mich.

TELEVISION: None

SERIES RECORD: First meeting.

COACHES: TT-Watson Brown (6-8, second season at school; 100-159-1, 25th season overall);

WMU-Bill Cubit (22-17, fourth season at school; 56-35-1, ninth season overall).

GAME NOTES:

The Broncos have won two in a row and four of their last five games dating back to last year ... WMU is fresh off a 51-28 triumph at Idaho ... the Golden Eagles defeated Southeast Missouri State last week 29-27 ... for Tech this is its third consecutive road game and second of the season vs. an FBS opponent (lost at Louisville Sept. 6) ... Tim Hiller tossed for four TD passes last week, the second time he has accomplished that in his career ... Hiller has nine TD passes and just one interception this season ... on the WMU defense, Louis Delmas recorded his third interception in as many games, and returned it 47 yards for a touchdown at Idaho ... both Jamarko Simmons and Branden Ledbetter caught two TD passes last week ... WMU leads the MAC in sacks with nine.

Nick’s Pick: Western 42 – TTU 10

Comment: TTU has beaten two lower ranked I-AA teams and lost 51-10 to Louisville. Western should be able to name the score in this contest.

Ball State (3-0, 1-0 MAC) @ Indiana (2-0, 0-0 Big Ten) - 7:00

SITE: Memorial Stadium (49,225/FieldTurf) - Bloomington, Ind.

TELEVISION: Big Ten Network

SERIES RECORD: IU leads 4-0 ... the last meeting was in 2007, a 38-30 Hoosiers victory.

COACHES: BSU-Brady Hoke (25-37, sixth season); IU-Bill Lynch (9-6, second year at school;

90-73-3, 16th season overall).

> Buy Ball State apparel & hats online through VanDelay Sports!

GAME NOTES:

Hoosiers’ head coach Bill Lynch was the Cardinals head coach from 1995-2002, compiling a 37-53 record and directing BSU to the 1996 MAC Championship and a berth in the Las Vegas Bowl ... the Cardinals topped Akron last week 41-24 in their first road game of 2008 ... BSU had three road wins last year (Navy, Western Michigan, Northern Illinois) ... several Cardinals had stellar performances last week, including Sean Baker (3 int., fumble returned for a TD), MiQuale Lewis (154 rush yards, 2 TDs), Nate Davis (300 pass yards, 2 TDs), and Dante Love (197 all purpose yards) ... Davis became BSU’s career passing leader (6,558 yards) ... Love leads the nation in receiving yards per game (144.3) ... IU last played Sept. 6 and beat Murray State 45-3 ... Kellen Lewis leads the team in passing (314 yards, 2 TDs) and rushing (183 yards, 2 TDs).

Miami (1-2, 0-0 MAC) @ Cincinnati (1-1, 0-0 Big East) - 7:30

SITE: Nippert Stadium (35,000/FieldTurf Pro) - Cincinnati, Ohio

TELEVISION: ESPN360

SERIES RECORD: Miami leads 59-46-7 ... the series started in 1888 with a 0-0 tie ... this is the fifth most played FBS (I-A) rivalry with 112 meetings ... UC has won the last two ... Miami last won in 2005, 45-16 ... the Bearcats won last year’s contest 47-10.

COACHES: MIA-Shane Montgomery (16-23, fourth season); UC-Brian Kelly (12-4, second season at school; 149-55-2, 18th season overall.).

GAME NOTES:

The RedHawks had a come from behind win last week, outlasting Charleston Southern 38-27 ... UC was idle Saturday and last played Sept. 6 in a 52-26 loss at then No. 4 Oklahoma ... Bearcats QB Dustin Grutza has completed 40-57 pass attempts (70 percent) for 514 yards and four TDs ... Miami LB Clayton Mullins leads the MAC in tackles for a loss with six for minus 27 yards ... the RedHawks also have the nation’s punting leader in Jacob Richardson (51.6 ypk) ... sophomore Thomas Merriweather added to the RedHawks running game with three TDs last week, one in each of the last three quarters ... next week UC plays at MAC member Akron.

Nick’s Pick: Cincy 35 – Miami 13

Comment: After dominating this series for so many years, Miami is currently way behind the Bearcats in terms of talent. UC has crushed the RedHawks has lost three of the last four in this long-time series and those three losses were by an average of 23 points per game. Look for more of the same this week.

Fresno State (1-1, 0-0 WAC) @ Toledo (1-1, 1-0 MAC) - 8:15

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

TELEVISION: ESPNU

SERIES RECORD: FSU leads 1-0 ... the Bulldogs won 44-14 in 2005 at Fresno.

COACHES: FSU-Pat Hill (86-56, 12th season); UT-Tom Amstutz (56-33, ninth season).

GAME NOTES:

The Rockets are coming off a 41-17 win at Eastern Michigan ... the Bulldogs opened the season with a 24-7 win at Rutgers, then dropped a home contest, 13-10, to then No. 10 (now No. 8) ranked Wisconsin ... this is the Rockets home opener ... UT has a four-game winning streak in the Glass Bowl ... UT received an offensive boost last week from DaJuane Collins with a career-high 168 rushing yards and two TDs ... Collins is averaging 7.7 ypc (222 yds., 29 att.) ... Aaron Opelt threw three TD passes at EMU, two of them in the third quarter to Stephen Williams ... Archie Donald had two interceptions ... FSU will counter with a senior QB in Tom Brandstater (441 yards, 1 TD in two games) ... the Bulldogs have averaged 162 yards rushing and 220.5 yards passing thus far, and have allowed just 20 points in two games.

Nick’s Pick: Fresno State 31 – Toledo 20

Comment: The Rockets have a chance here to get a really nice out-of-conference win. Every year a very talented FSU team seems to lose a road game they should easily win. Hopefully for UT and the MAC, this is that game FSU takes a nap. The logical choice is to pick the more talented team – Fresno State.

Nick's MAC Football Picks are brought to you each week throughout the MAC football season here at VanDelay Sports.