We only have one week left in the regular season, and the good news for many MAC fanbases — there is a solid chance your favorite team can still win a conference championship. Western Michigan, Miami (OH),
Ohio, Toledo, and Central Michigan are still alive for Detroit heading into a chaotic final week.
But before we proceed to Week 14, let’s review Week 13. Here are thoughts, notes, stats, and takeaways from the penultimate week of regular season MACtion.
Akron 19, Bowling Green 16
- Akron finishing its season on Tuesday, Nov. 18 is pretty bizarre — 11 days prior to the end of the regular season. The Zips finished 5-7 for their best season since 2017, a good and needed sign of progress in the Joe Moorhead era. It was a very weird year, as Akron became the first team since 2014 to be bowl ineligible due to a low Academic Progress Rate. Then the Zips basically played an entire season without a true bye, when most FBS teams received two byes. Akron’s longest stretch between games was 10 days — from Saturday, Oct. 25 to Tuesday, Nov. 4.
- It was cool to see sixth-year senior Ben Finley showcase some mobility in his final collegiate game. He broke off for a 40-yard run early in this game to set a new a career-high.
- That was a lot of field goals. Akron kicker Matthew Schramm finished 4-of-4, while Bowling Green’s Jackson Kleather went 3-of-4. It was 9-6 in the late third quarter, and then the only two touchdowns transpired in a 20-second span. MACtion, I guess.
- What a frustrating senior day loss for Bowling Green. The Falcons got in field goal range, setting up 1st and 10 on the Akron 31-yard line with roughly a minute left. Two plays later, Hunter Najm forced the ball to the sideline, and Akron defensive end Bruno Dall was backed into zone coverage and came up with an easy game-sealing pick. Given Bowling Green’s comparative run success vs. pass success all game, involving more Austyn Dendy might have been the call there.
- Both defenses were spectacular, and both passing games were brutal. The starting quarterbacks produced identical 9-of-26 stat-lines in the passing game. I doubt that has ever happened in an FBS game before.
Western Michigan 35, Northern Illinois 19
- I did not think this game was going to feature 30 total points, considering the caliber of these defenses, combined with some of the offensive struggles both Western Michigan and Northern Illinois faced this year. This 35-19 final seemed very out of the blue.
- What a historic rushing game for Western Michigan, which produced 361 rushing yards — its most against FBS competition since 2019. Also for the first time in school history, the Broncos saw three different 100+ rushers in the same game. It’s a very rare occurrence in general, with 2017 Notre Dame (vs. Temple) as the last team to do it (Josh Adams, Dexter Williams, Brandon Wimbush). Western Michigan saw Jalen Buckley record 133 yards and 2 TD, Devin Miles post 105, and Broc Lowry round things out with 100 and 3 TD.
- Speaking of Broc Lowry in the rushing department, the quarterback has 12 rushing touchdowns on the season — scoring at least one in eight of 11 games. He has six-straight 80+ yard games and is a major reason Western Michigan is on its hot streak, winning seven of its last eight.
- Northern Illinois actually led this game 13-0, and my first thought was 2019. NIU was already bowl ineligible that year, and Western Michigan simply needed to defeat the Huskies in the final week — and they didn’t. That game is a reason the Broncos haven’t returned to the MAC Championship since 2016. But they overcame that 13-point deficit (second 13-0 deficit erased in MAC play this year), and Western Michigan is now one win away.
- That UMass game masked a lot of NIU’s offensive issues for a week, as UMass has done for many opponents this year. The Huskies shuffled between two quarterbacks and finished 6-of-15 for 78 yards in the passing game. They converted 2-of-14 third downs. The run game was solid, and NIU could have won this game with its usual defensive performance — but that usual defensive performance was not on display in the final three quarters.
Ohio 42, UMass 14
- This was one of the most extreme rain games of the 2025 college football season. It was a complete downpour, combined with a few lightning delays. We didn’t even get halftime because of the delays. They just took a TV timeout and proceeded with the third quarter.
- With the rain playing a significant factor, Ohio only passed eight times for 28 yards. Instead, the Bobcats simply amassed 363 yards and six touchdowns on the ground, with Sieh Bangura enjoy a fitting senior night with 196 rushing yards and two touchdowns. Duncan Brune and Parker Navarro also added over 80 apiece.
- Speaking of Sieh Bangura, his boomerang transfer is really paying off. Bangura was a 1,000-yard rusher at Ohio before transferring to Minnesota. After only taking four handoffs all of last year, he went back to Athens and is having a better season than ever. He’s 10th in the FBS in rushing yards at 1,123 and 11th in touchdowns at 13. He ranks first in the MAC in both categories and is a lock for the All-MAC First Team. Both parties needed each other, and the reuniting couldn’t have been more perfect.
- UMass led 7-0 in this game for its first lead since Oct. 18. The Minutemen even cut it to 21-14 in the mid-third quarter before Ohio ended on a 21-0 run. After taking its ninth 18+ point loss of the year to fall to 0-11, UMass’ only chance at a win is senior day vs. Bowling Green. Since 2020, the only other 0-12 team is 2024 Kent State.
Miami (OH) 37, Buffalo 20
- You truly never know in this era with the portal, but it looks like Miami found its quarterback of the future. After two possessions using Henry Hesson, the RedHawks switched to redshirt freshman Thomas Gotkowksi at QB, and it worked very well. Gotkowski didn’t need much time to acclimate to his most substantial action to date, leading two long scoring drives in the first half, and Miami never looked back. He finished with 185 passing yards and a touchdown on a 13-of-25 showing, while demonstrating some mobility with 26 rushing yards and a touchdown. He’ll likely be QB1 for the rest of Miami’s MAC title push.
- Miami’s top receiver Kam Perry actually decreased his receiving average in a 4-reception, 76-yard performance (19.0 average). After Wednesday night, Perry is now averaging 24.3 yards per reception — still the most among players with 20 catches. And he has 33 receptions.
- Miami’s safety room is nuts. Eli Blakey and Silas Walters make such a great tandem, and Eli Coppess really stepped up when Walters was out in the middle of the season. The three combine for eight interceptions on the year, and Blakey and Walters have a collective 15 pass breakups. This position group is a significant reason for Miami’s defensive success.
- Buffalo’s turnover problems are very, very bad. It’s a recurring problem which has plagued the Bulls so many times this year. In their last three losses, they committed five, five, and three turnovers, losing the takeaway battle 3-0 to Miami. Buffalo rides a 6-game streak of turning it over at least once, and 14 of their 21 turnovers transpired in their last four outings. One reason they keep occurring? The pass protection has really faltered late in the season. Buffalo allowed 11 sacks across its latest two losses.
Central Michigan 28, Kent State 16
- Central Michigan is hitting its stride in November. The Chippewas have won four of five, and all four of those were 12+ point victories. In fact, of Central Michigan’s seven wins, only one is by single-digits. Both MAC losses were single-digit defeats. And the other two losses were road defeats at Michigan and Pitt. By all means, this is an incredible debut season by Matt Drinkall.
- This wasn’t Dru DeShields’ best game, but the Kent State quarterback still has an incredible ratio of 16 touchdowns to 2 interceptions with one game left in the season. Considering how often the Golden Flashes go deep, that ratio is insane. Kent State did have a fumble this game, but overall, the team has done a great job taking care of the ball all season.
- That was the best performance to date by Central Michigan two-sport athlete, DeCorion Temple, who caught three passes for 34 yards and a touchdown in the win. Temple is not only a tight end on the football field, but he suits up on the basketball court as well. He hasn’t played this year but averaged 2.4 PPG and 1.4 RPG last year in five games for the Chippewas. If he breaks out to become an NFL prospect next season, he could be the next, ‘Did you know Antonio Gates played college basketball?’
- The linebacker talent in the MAC is just insane. You got Red Murdock, Corban Hondru, Quinn Urwiler, Gideon ESPN Lampron, and you can’t forget Jordan Kwiatkowski. Kwiatkowski posted 14 tackles and 4.5 tackles for loss as an omnipresent force in this game. He’s up to 96 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, and three interceptions this year. So many MAC DPOY candidates…
Toledo 38, Ball State 9
- One of our favorite recurring stats to bring up in this column: Toledo’s home stats. Toledo finishes the year 6-0 at the Glass Bowl with an aggregate score of 265-46, defeating opponents by an average of 44-8.
- Toledo is the only team in the FBS allowing a completion rate below 50%. Ball State only completed 14-of-32 passes on the Rockets, and now that percentage lies at 47.3% heading into the final week of the regular season. It’s no surprise Toledo also fields a top-5 passing defense given all the star power in its secondary.
- Ball State still has not produced a winning season since winning the MAC title and Arizona Bowl in 2020. But considering what the Cardinals lost in the portal this offseason and expectations in year one of the Mike Uremovich era, this was a solid season. Bowl eligibility was still in play after Week 12, Ball State took care of business with a 4-1 home record, and earned a signature win over Ohio. Offense definitely needs to take a step forward in year two; specifically, the passing game.
- Toledo probably has the most loaded senior class in the MAC, and this was a very fitting senior day for many stars. Tucker Gleason threw for 218 yards and matched his career-high with four touchdown strikes. Junior Vandeross recorded 127 receiving yards and two touchdowns, moving into third-place in the FBS in receiving touchdowns this year. Chip Trayanum rushed for 128 and a score. Meanwhile, Emmanuel McNeil-Warren produced eight tackles, two tackles for loss, and thrived in coverage all game.
