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Nick's 2005 MAC Football Picks - Week #7 Recap

published 10.16.05

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Ohio @ Central Michigan

Ohio Team Page -CMU Team Page

Kent Smith threw for 228 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score
Central Michigan won it’s first homecoming gage in seven years
All six of Central's scoring drives were quick strikes, with the longest lasting 1:15
After Ohio tied the score at 7, CMU scored 23 unanswered points
The Bobcats punted eight times and had 3 turnovers while CMU did not have a turnover
OU lead in time of possession 35 minutes to 25 for Central
CMU lead in total offense 432 to 297
Kalvin McRae was led the Bobcats with 117 rushing yards on 29 carries - Austen Everson completed 9 of 20 passes for 78 yards and was replaced later in the game by freshman Brandon Jones, who was 3-of-16 for 23 yards

Nick’s Pick: CMU 24 - Ohio 17

Actual Score: CMU 37 - Ohio 10

Nick’s Prophetic Comment: “The ‘Chips seem to be playing with more confidence and their two home losses have been heartbreakers. At 3-3, Central seems to be the team that will continue to improve on their record while Ohio looks to be the team that still needs more time to gel.”

Related VanDelaySports.com Links:

Updated 2005 MAC football standings

Nick's picks for MAC football Week #7

Former MAC Players in the NFL

The Mid-American Conference: "The Cradle of Coaches"

MAC football season awards, 1965-2004

Bowling Green @ Buffalo

BGSU Team Page -Buffalo Team Page

B.J. Lane ran for a career-high 141 yards and three touchdowns
Buffalo intercepted Omar Jacobs twice and held him to 187 yards passing, completing 18 of 34 attempts and just 1 TD
Buffalo freshman Phillip Warren ran for 92 yards on 17 carries and scored one TD
Buffalo freshman QB Drew Willy completed 10 of 22 attempts for 113 yards with two interceptions
BG’s Steve Sanders had 6 catches for 81 yards and one TD reception
Bowling Green rolled up 387 yards of offense while Buffalo had 311

Nick’s Pick: BGSU 42 - UB 13

Actual Score: BGSU 27 - UB 7

Nick’s Prophetic Comment : “The Bulls defense is quite good this season but all too often they are on the field since the offense cannot score or sustain drives. Expect a close first half with the Falcons pulling away in the 4th quarter.”

Kent State @ Navy

Kent State Team Page

Lamar Owens threw for 169 yards and rushed for another 110 as Navy won its third straight game
The Midshipmen won their two previous games with scores on their final drive
Each of Navy's games this season has been decided by seven points or less
This was the fourth straight loss for Kent State.
Navy had a season-high 532 yards of total offense, including a season-best 336 yards rushing
The Midshipmen had four turnovers and did not punt in the game
Michael Machen went 25-of-41 for 292 yards for the Golden Flashes
Navy led KSU in total yards 532-389 and time of possession 35 minutes to 25

Nick’s Pick: Navy 34 - Kent 16

Actual Score: Navy 34 - Kent 31

Nick’s Prophetic Comment: “The Navy running offense ranks 10th in the nation in rushing yardage at 250 a game and should provide a very stiff test for the KSU defense.”

Akron @ Miami

Akron Team Page -Miami Team Page

Josh Betts passed for three touchdowns and Miami finished with 580 yards of offense
Brandon Murphy had 26 carries for 184 yards and a pair of 1-yard touchdowns while Jimmy Murray added TD runs of 2 and 15 yards for Miami
Brett Biggs rushed for 153 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries for Akron
Akron turned over the ball six times -- four fumbles and two interceptions -- and the Zips were penalized 10 times for 108 yards.
Betts finished 23-of-38 for 332 yards, and Murphy had his fourth straight 100-yard rushing game
Early in the 2nd quarter Akron led 17-7 before Miami went on a 44-6 run
In a span of just one minute in the 4th quarter, Miami turned a 30-23 lead into a 51-23 game by scoring TDs off of Akron turnovers at the 6:46; 6:07 & 5:46 marks
Miami's 51 points were the most by the RedHawks since a 56-31 win at Central Florida in 2003
Attendance in Oxford was 14,312

Nick’s Pick: Miami 38 - Akron 20

Actual Score: Miami 51 - Akron 23

Nick’s Prophetic Comment: “Miami has more talent and much more to lose so look for the RedHawks to win by a considerable margin.”

Toledo @ Ball State

Toledo Team Page -Ball State Team Page

Bruce Gradkowski threw for 207 yards and three TDs
Trinity Dawson ran for 146 yards and one TD
The Rockets held the Cardinals to 190 total yards
Ball State's Louis Johnson blocked a Toledo punt and Larry Bostic recovered the ball in the end zone for their first TD of the game and a 7-6 lead before Toledo scored 21 unanswered points
UT’s Jordan Anthony intercepted a Lynch pass with 14:16 left in the fourth and returned it 21 yards for a touchdown
Toledo ran 75 plays while BSU ran 59 for the game
UT recorded 4 QB sacks
Toledo now owns a 16-14-1 edge in the series
Attendance in Muncie was 16,533

Nick’s Pick: Ball State 34 – Toledo 30 (upset special)

Actual Score: Toledo 34 – Ball State 14

Nick’s Prophetic Comment : “For whatever reason, UT plays lousy football at BSU Stadium and with the Cardinals getting their first win of the season last week and nearly beating BG at home last month, this is a game that has “upset” written all over it.” - Oops.

Eastern Michigan @ Northern Illinois

EMU Team Page -Northen Illinois Team Page

Garrett Wolfe rushed for 161 yards and one touchdown on 22 carries
A.J. Harris added 13 rushes for 89 yards and one touchdown for the Huskies
NIU never QB Phil Horvath threw for 113 yards and completed 15-of-23 passes, with a touchdown and two INTs
The Huskies defense limited the Eagles to 81 yards in the first half, and survived an early second-half scare when a fumble by Wolfe led to an Eastern Michigan field goal
Wolfe left the game with a left knee injury with 4:09 remaining in the third quarter. Harris left in the fourth quarter after injuring his shoulder
EMU had just 10 first downs for the game and 160 total yards while NIU recorded 17 first downs and 430 total yards
NIU was penalized 9 times for 103 yards while EMU was penalized four times for 32 yards
NIU had three turnovers while EMU had just one
Attendance in DeKalb was 27,641

Nick’s Pick: NIU 45 – EMU 23

Actual Score: NIU 24 – EMU 8

Nick’s Prophetic Comment:
“NIU has a quality rushing attack and EMU gave up 295 yards on the ground last week to Toledo. Look for the Northern “ground-chuck” attack to produce some big numbers at home against the Eagles.”