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Nick's 2006 MAC Football Championship Game Pick

This Week’s Schedule

November 30 - Thursday

Marathon MAC Championship Game
Central Michigan versus Ohio - 7:30 (ET) - Ford Field - Detroit, Mich. - ESPN

MAC BOWL SCHEDULE

December 19 – Tuesday
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl at Qualcomm Stadium, 8:00 (ET) – ESPN2

Northern Illinois vs. TCU

December 26 - Tuesday
Motor City Bowl at Ford Field, Detroit, Mich., 7:30 – ESPN

Central Michigan vs. TBD

January 6 – Saturday

International Bowl at Rogers Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Noon – ESPN2

Western Michigan vs. Big East opponent TBD

January 7 – Sunday

GMAC Bowl at Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Mobile, Ala., 7:00 – ESPN

Ohio vs. Conference USA opponent TBD

Marathon MAC Championship Game Detail:
Ford Field in Detroit will host the 10th annual MAC Championship football game with two first time invitees - East Division Champion Ohio University and West Division Champion Central Michigan University. Both teams went through the league with just one loss in their eight games - Ohio dropping a 21-9 contest at home to Bowling Green on Sept. 30 and CMU losing at Northern Illinois 31-10 on Nov. 17. Both teams will be playing their first indoor game of the season.

A Long Time:
Ohio last won a MAC title in 1968 when Bill Hess guided the Bobcats to a 10-1 record that included a 49-42 loss to Richmond in the Tangerine Bowl. Central Michigan’s most recent MAC trophy came in 1994 when Dick Flynn’s troops went 9-3 overall and dropped a 52-24 decision to UNLV in the Las Vegas Bowl.

East Division Recap:
The Ohio Bobcats won the East title by winning six consecutive league games (and a non-conference game also) following a 21-9 loss to Bowling Green at the end of September. The Bobcats were 3-0 on the road (Kent State, Eastern Michigan and Miami) and 3-0 at home (Western Michigan, Buffalo and Akron) during that stretch and also found time for a 20-17 win at Illinois.

West Division:
Central Michigan gained momentum with two early season MAC wins - a 24-21 triumph over defending MAC Champion Akron on Sept. 16 and a 24-17 overtime tussle at Eastern Michigan on Sept. 23 - to its first-ever divisional title. Outside of a late-season loss at Northern Illinois, no other MAC team came closer than 11 points of the Chippewas. In its last four conference wins, the Chippewas scored 31, 42, 31 and 55 points.

Central Michigan (8-4, 7-1 MAC) vs. Ohio (9-3, 7-1 MAC) - 7:30

Site: Ford Field (65,000/Field Turf)

Television: ESPN

Series: CMU leads 18-4-2 ... the last meeting was in 2005, a 37-10 Chippewas’ win ... Ohio had won the previous game, a 2001 meeting, by a 34-3 score.

Coaches: CMU-Brian Kelly (18-16, third season at school; 136-51-2, 16th season overall); OU-Frank Solich (13-10, second season at school, 71-29, eighth season overall).

Notes:
Ohio is the designated home team ... this is the first championship game appearance for each team ... the MAC will have a new champion for the sixth consecutive year ... this is the third MAC Championship game at Ford Field ... an Ohio team has won the last three league titles (Akron 2005, Toledo 2004, Miami 2003) ... CMU was the last team from the state of Michigan to win a MAC title (1994) ... CMU’s Dan LeFevour is the second consecutive freshman to start at quarterback in the MAC Championship game ... last year NIU’s Dan Nicholson was in place as a frosh signal caller for the Huskies.

Nick’s Pick: Ohio 24 – Central Michigan 20

Line: CMU by 3.5

Comment: On paper this should be one entertaining ballgame. Ohio just gets better week after week and Central Michigan has the offensive potential to blow out the Bobcats if they get going on all cylinders. Ohio though has come up big when they needed to most posting nice wins at NIU, Illinois and even last week at arch-rival Miami, when the Bobcats already had won their division. Central has to be feeling some sort of effects of Coach Brian Kelly’s name bouncing around for the Iowa State and Michigan State jobs over the past week. The main reason why I am going with Ohio, no matter how much the West division has beaten up on the East division over the past few years, the East leads the MACC series 7-2. With that stat, give the nod to Ohio University winning their first MAC title since 1968.

Stat Stars:

• Offense: Ohio-QB Austen Everson (120-of-214, 56.1 pct., 1,167 yards, 6 TDs, 7 int.); Rushing: Kalvin McRae (228 att., 1,139 yards, 14 TDs, 5.0 ypc); Receiving: Kalvin McRae (27 rec., 250 yards, 1 TD), Scott Mayle (22, 340, 0), William Norwood (21, 229, 3).
• Offense: CMU-QB Dan LeFevour (209-332, 63.0 pct., 2,555 yards, 22 TDs, 9 int.); Rushing: Ontario Sneed (115 att., 586 yards, 5 TDs, 5.1 ypc), Dan LeFevour (110, 442, 6, 4.0); Receiving; Bryan Anderson (61., rec., 746 yards, 3 TDs), Ontario Sneed (44, 362, 5), Damien Linson (47, 608, 4).
• Defense: Ohio-Matt Muncy (14 tfl), T.J. Wright (19 passes defended/16 break ups and 3 int.), Mark Parson (17 passes defended/16 pbu and 1 int.); Tyler Russ (82 tackles, 3 int., 4 tackles for a loss); Landon Cohen (11 tackles for a loss, 35 tackles).
• Defense: CMU-Dan Bazuin (54, tackles, 8 sacks, 4 fumbles forced, 3 pass break ups, 2 fumbles recovered); Red Keith (109 tackles); Pacino Horn (4 int., 65 tackles), Doug Kress (94 tackles).
• Special Teams: Ohio-Matt Lasher (65 punts/39.4 ypk/25 inside 20) and (12-17 field goals, long of 38 yards, has made 9 in a row); Chris Garrett (21 punt returns/16.3 ypr, 1 TD) and (25 kickoff returns, 250 yards, 10.0 avg., long of 57).
• Special Teams: CMU-Tony Mikulec (54 punts, 42.1 ypk/17 inside 20); Rick Albreski (10-16 field goals, long of 48); Damien Linson (23 returns, 134 yards, 5.8 ypr); Eric Fraser (24 returns, 565 yards, 23.5 ypr).

Other Notes:

• Defense: Ohio leads the MAC in scoring defense, allowing just 16.2 points per game. The Bobcats have held three opponents to just 7 points (Buffalo, at Kent State, Akron) and one foe to 3 points (UT-Martin).
• Offense: Central Michigan tops the MAC in scoring, posting 29.5 points per game. CMU has a MAC-leading 47 touchdowns and two times has broken the 40-point barrier in MAC games (55 at Buffalo; 42 at Toledo).
• #4 Will Be #1: Both Central Michigan and Ohio were predicted in the MAC News Media Association preseason poll to finish fourth in their respective divisions. And neither was tabbed by any of the 50 voters to win the MAC Championship game. Two prognosticators had the Bobcats winning the division but no one selected the Chippewas as the top team in the West.
• A First: Ohio head coach Frank Solich will become the first coach ever to take a team from different schools to a conference championship game. Solich also guided the 1999 Nebraska squad to the Big 12 title game.
• Coaching A Champion: Both head coaches have conference championship hardware on display. CMU mentor Brian Kelly led Grand Valley State University to five GLIAC Championships (1992, ‘97, ‘98, ‘01 and ‘02) and NCAA Division II championships in 2002 and 2003, compiling an overall record of 28-1 those two seasons. Ohio’s Frank Solich guided Nebraska to the Big 12 title in 1999 and to the 2001 national championship game.