Past and Future Opoonent Land
Ohio State (7-1) Defeated Northwestern
North Dakota (7-2) Beat Weber State. Undefeated in conference, #12 FCS team entering game.
Middle TN (6-2) Beat FIU 28-21
Memphis (5-3) The unstoppable Memphis Tigers lost at home to Tulsa by 29.
EMU (5-4) Lost to Miami
OU (6-3) Beat Toledo
Toledo (6-2) Lost to OU
Miami (3-6) Beat EMU
NIU (2-6) Off
Akron (5-4) Lost 41-20 to Buffalo
Kent (3-6) Surprising win over CMU
Buffalo (2-6) Surprising easy win over Akron
And listen here people...the MAC East beat the MAC West 3 times this week!!!!!!!
MAC Vs.
FBS: 13-21
P5: 4-10
FCS: 9-4
West: 6
East: 4
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3 comments :
The balance of suck seems to have shifted divisions this year. Not something most folks would have predicted. Naturally of course UT manages to shoot themselves in the foot ahead of the game they really had to win. NIU's decline I think is greater than expected too and maybe bears consideration when considering BGSU's, if only to illustrate the speed dominate teams can slip. Not a qualitative comparison as there are many differing reasons for the slip NIU has had vs. BGSU's, but still interesting.
Worthy to note too is that WMU is another program, historically good overall, built on a traditional foundation and not offenses run by a marketing department. It is doubtful they'll retain their coach if the team continues on its current track. But one would have to think the program can be far more easily sustained than with a high-risk approach such as Babers brought. Same with NIU actually.
NWLB, can't agree with you more. The east seems to have developed slowly over a few years. Many of them had outstanding first stringers but where they fell short is when injuries hit those players and a definite degree of comparison could bee seen when this second and third stringers came in. Sound familiar? As for niu, let's face it and to be honest, I can't say what is going on there as I've not paid any attention to them, but last year by the time we played them they were down to a third or fourth qb that was a walk ok unscholarshipped. I only mention this as the point that it seems to coincide with coaches coming and going. Quick turnaround of head coaches yields uncertainty in players. Tom amstutz at Toledo was there forever and able to keep things rolling, from there coaches I think we're hired within. Tom's look alike, don't remember his name but he reminded me of amstutz at niu, the same. We seem to get good ones that don't live out their contracts and those that cause the program to decline, Brandon, stay with the golden goose. The east has maintained the current crop of coaches for several years to build the programs on a solid foundation.
Amstutz was a born and bred UT man, which however much I revile the place is something I can respect. (Plus he was an endless supply of body-type insensitive jokes which made things enjoyable.) His assistants came and went quickly but he himself was content to be and remain there. He was the rarest of beasts in the MAC, an alum not seeking to step up a notch. I doubt we see the likes of him again, though Solich at OU often leaves me feeling he may stick around. He flew pretty close to the sun and got scorched. OU maybe a suitable retreat that lets him enjoy his work.
The MAC struggles beyond the first string as a rule. Some teams can keep a flow of talent moving through their programs that allows for a kind of depth of developing players. But it never equates to the P5 programs. It is why we struggle to beat even an Indiana or Purdue at times. We might well beat them but for a MAC champion to need to labor to do it illustrates the drop-off between the conferences.
BGSU has the second smallest budget, we're getting much more dollar for dollar than most all programs in the country. That makes BGSU vulnerable to shifts in income, which in-turn can be hurt by not making a bowl game for example. (Though it is a myth that bowl games amount to great financial boons.)
The programs to emulate are the NIUs and WMUs. Not UT for example. UT’s results on the field aren’t so much what I speak too. Rather I point out occasionally that it has the smallest budget in the MAC. They sit in the middle of the only “major” city in NW Ohio. They are in the middle of their single biggest alumni base. They have in theory every “advantage” to be doing far better than they do. I argue that as a school they fail miserably in drawing fans, raising funds, etc. They ought to be doing far better. However it is UT, I have no regard for the school from the top of the administration down to the janitorial staff, as well as the prevailing culture of underachievement in these areas. So to my mind it is a natural thing for them to suck on those levels and therefore why I say it is NIU/WMU we should emulate, not UT.
If anything I believe BGSU should look at Lucas county and seek to exploit UT’s home turf more. BGSU is a better school with a stronger national reputation and more which corporate sponsors should want to take pride in affiliating with. We have strong alumni groups in companies all through NW Ohio and SE Michigan, we should be organizing them more. That requires people, time and money however and like Athletics, BGSU isn’t fully staffing these departments to what other schools would given the expectations. But that is another story.
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