by Scott Rickenbach
Thursday, Oct 29, 2020MAC Conference East Division Football Preview for 2020:
Heading into the first week of November 2020 only two conferences have yet to get underway in this unusually scheduled 2020 football season that has been impacted by the pandemic. One of those two conferences is the MAC. Below I give a quick hitter report on each of the six teams in the Mid-American Conference East Division:
East:
Akron – Head coach Tom Arth came here with a 49-21 record. He went 0-12 with the Zips in his first season. This football program is still in rebuild mode and in for another long season.
Bowling Green – Head coach Scot Loeffler was a good hire even though he and the Falcons struggled in his first year here. Respectable ground game last season and pass defense was respectable as well. Still issues though and lost about half their starters from last year.
Buffalo – The Bulls look like the class of the MAC this season and return a lot experience from last year’s team. They were one of the best rushing teams in the nation last year. On the other side of the ball, a very strong defense returns a lot of talent. This team should prove to be tops in the MAC.
Kent State – Head coach Sean Lewis now in his 3rd season with the program and the Golden Flashes are starting to turn things around. However, this team lacks depth. That could be particularly problematic in a season impacted by covid-19. So far this College Football season we have seen that be a factor in other conferences that have already begun play and injuries are an issue too for teams with less depth. They finish in the middle of the pack in the MAC East most likely.
Miami (Ohio) – The Redhawks are the only team likely to challenge Buffalo in the East. They won the MAC Championship Game last season over Central Michigan. They return a ton of talent from last season’s team but are a little thin on defense and, keep in mind, their overall production on offense was not overly impressive last season. Also, special teams units took a major hit in terms of players lost from last season. Still a good team but I don’t think they’ll be able to top the Bulls this season.
Ohio University – Another team whose special teams took a hit in the off-season. Also, though this teams returns a fair number of players from last season, they did lose a lot of top players including 7 all-conference selections. That kind of talent being gone is why I feel strongly that the Bobcats will be battling with the Golden Flashes in the “middle of the pack” in the MAC East this season.
Heading into the first week of November 2020 only two conferences have yet to get underway in this unusually scheduled 2020 football season that has been impacted by the pandemic. One of those two conferences is the MAC. Below I give a quick hitter report on each of the six teams in the Mid-American Conference East Division:
East:
Akron – Head coach Tom Arth came here with a 49-21 record. He went 0-12 with the Zips in his first season. This football program is still in rebuild mode and in for another long season.
Bowling Green – Head coach Scot Loeffler was a good hire even though he and the Falcons struggled in his first year here. Respectable ground game last season and pass defense was respectable as well. Still issues though and lost about half their starters from last year.
Buffalo – The Bulls look like the class of the MAC this season and return a lot experience from last year’s team. They were one of the best rushing teams in the nation last year. On the other side of the ball, a very strong defense returns a lot of talent. This team should prove to be tops in the MAC.
Kent State – Head coach Sean Lewis now in his 3rd season with the program and the Golden Flashes are starting to turn things around. However, this team lacks depth. That could be particularly problematic in a season impacted by covid-19. So far this College Football season we have seen that be a factor in other conferences that have already begun play and injuries are an issue too for teams with less depth. They finish in the middle of the pack in the MAC East most likely.
Miami (Ohio) – The Redhawks are the only team likely to challenge Buffalo in the East. They won the MAC Championship Game last season over Central Michigan. They return a ton of talent from last season’s team but are a little thin on defense and, keep in mind, their overall production on offense was not overly impressive last season. Also, special teams units took a major hit in terms of players lost from last season. Still a good team but I don’t think they’ll be able to top the Bulls this season.
Ohio University – Another team whose special teams took a hit in the off-season. Also, though this teams returns a fair number of players from last season, they did lose a lot of top players including 7 all-conference selections. That kind of talent being gone is why I feel strongly that the Bobcats will be battling with the Golden Flashes in the “middle of the pack” in the MAC East this season.
