2025 Hustle Belt MAC Football Power Rankings: Week 1

The first week of college football has come and gone, and now we have at least one data point for all 13 of the MAC members to fall back on as we try to pinpoint where every team stands next to their peers.

Of course, the story of the season isn’t written in early September, but alas, we need to note anything we see and try to determine what it means— both in the short and long terms.

Without further ado: the rankings!

13. Kent State Golden Flashes (Last week: 13)

High vote: 10 (once)
Low vote: 13 (three)
Average vote: 12.16

The Golden Flashes finally notched their first win in two calendar years last weekend,

utilizing a dramatic turnaround to ring the victory bell in front of the home crowd. It’s a fantastic achievement, and does raise hope for a program which has looked dead in the water in recent years. But the road is long, and they’re nearly 50-point underdogs to Texas Tech. The next win is looking pretty far away.

12. UMass Minutemen (LW: 12)

High vote: 11 (twice)
Low vote: 13 (twice)
Average vote: 12

The start of their first game as a full MAC member couldn’t have gone much better for UMass. Unfortunately, there was still an entire game to go, and Temple would end up running circles around the Minutemen in Amherst. Obviously, the result is discouraging, and there are already questions raised about the current regime given the nature of the blowout. That said, FCS foe Bryant is up next, and that could prove to be a reprieve.

11. Ball State Cardinals (LW: 11)

High vote: 9 (twice)
Low vote: 12 (twice)
Average vote: 10.33

There were some across the country who had Ball State as a potential underdog upset against Purdue given how rough the 2024 campaign had gone for the Boilermakers. However, Ball State went through just as much turmoil— if not more— during the offseason, and Purdue is still a Big Ten team. The Cardinals were shut out despite their best efforts and lost by five scores. The result isn’t a referendum on BSU; rather, it is a reminder of what the reality of their situation is.

10. Akron Zips (LW: 10)

High vote: 9 (once)
Low vote: 10 (four)
Average vote: 9.8

In what was perhaps one of the more “sicko” watches of the college football weekend, the Akron Zips and Wyoming Cowboys did everything in their power to not win the game for much of the clock. The nature of the game, however, dictates someone has to take the wheel, and the Akron offense couldn’t get it done when the heat turned up. It was a pity too, as the Zips defense put up one of their best performances in recent memory.

9. Eastern Michigan Eagles (LW: 8)

High vote: 7 (once)
Low vote: 10 (twice)
Average vote: 8.83

EMU has been one of those impossible-to-predict programs in recent years, being just as capable of winning a game they shouldn’t as losing a game they shouldn’t. This game was certainly get-able, as despite some early mistakes, the Eagles held strong with a one-score gap at halftime. However, the team imploded in the third quarter, allowing three-straight scores and four scores overall in the second half to lose by a large margin. As ever, it is hard to get a read on this EMU squad early on.

8. Western Michigan Broncos (LW: t-6)

High vote: 7 (once)
Low vote: 9 (once)
Average vote: 8

It looked like Michigan State was going to run away with the contest early on, exploding for 21 points in the first half, but to Western’s credit, they managed to pitch a shutout in the second half and even score a defensive touchdown on a Tate Hallock interception return. Unfortunately, the offense did not oblige for the Broncos, as they looked lethargic and predictable against MSU in what was ultimately a three-score loss with 0 points scored in the effort.

7. Northern Illinois Huskies (LW: 5)

High vote: 5 (once)
Low vote: 9 (once)
Average vote: 6.83

Woof. There’s no spin you can put on this game for NIU, it was ugly for it to be that competitive for that long and to come away with a score that close to a Holy Cross team that was around .500 last year. The new-look offense, which was ballyhooed as a look that would revolutionize the Huskies, looks arguably worse than last year’s unit, a sign that isn’t encouraging as they face two Power teams the next two weeks. The defense was a highlight, forcing several takeaways and key stops, but a team can’t live on stops alone. They could have, and probably should have, lost that game.

6. Bowling Green Falcons (LW: t-6)

High vote: 5 (two)
Low vote: 7 (once)
Average vote: 5.83

BGSU sure knows how to get a season started in exciting fashion. Their special teams efficiency, combined with a fun, run-centric offense, took care of their FCS foe Lafayette in quick style in front of a packed home crowd and their Morale Booster Pudge the Cat. The team looks like it hasn’t lost a step despite a new coaching regime and a number of new faces on both sides of the ball, an encouraging sign as the Falcons look to make themselves an outside candidate for the MAC title race come conference play.

5. Central Michigan Chippewas (LW: 9)

High vote: 4 (twice)
Low vote: 7 (twice)
Average vote: 5.5

In what was one of the most surprising— and impressive— victories claimed by the MAC in Week 1, the Chippewas completely dictated the pace of play to a San Jose State team which is an outside candidate to win a stacked Mountain West Conference. SJSU coach Ken Niumatalolo, in fact, called the game one of the worst losses he’s ever had in his illustrious career. The team forced three first-half turnovers and was one yard away from having two 100+ yard rushers on the day, a defining victory for new head coach Matt Drinkall in front of a national TV audience. Optimism is high despite two tough opponents upcoming.

4. Miami RedHawks (LW: 4)

High vote: 4 (four)
Low vote: 5 (twice)
Average vote: 4.33

Miami got shuttered against their Big Ten opponent for a third-straight season opener, which is obviously a disappointment for a team with high expectations in conference play. That said, some of these issues were expected with one lone returning starter and integrating a new quarterback in Dequan Finn. The defense carried the load for the RedHawks as ever, allowing only three points to Wisconsin until deep into the third quarter and even nabbing an interception in the endzone courtesy of Silas Walter. That’s a positive takeaway from the game in what should be a competitive season for the RedHawks.

3. Buffalo Bulls (LW: 1)

High vote: 1 (twice)
Low vote: 3 (four)
Average vote: 3.4

In a strength-on-strength effort where the winner would be able to dictate the terms of engagement, it was Minnesota’s rushing defense which prevailed over the Bulls rushing attack, with Buffalo scoring once on a passing touchdown in what would ultimately be a 23-10 Gopher win. This was unfortunate, as Buffalo was a popular pick to pull off the upset precisely because of their ability to run the ball and play stout defense. Sometimes, you just meet someone who is plum better than you at what you do best, and this was absolutely an instance of that.

2. Toledo Rockets (LW: 2)

High vote: 2 (five)
Low vote: 3 (once)
Average vote: 2.16

This was one of those games where it felt like both sides lost despite the box score declaring a Wildcat win. Kentucky played a lot closer to Toledo than they would have liked for the vast majority of the game, while Toledo’s offense malfunctioned so hard and so unexpectedly, we’re left to wonder if we overestimated their ability to rebound from their offseason talent loss. Their season outlook is still favorable, and this loss won’t affect their national perception too much, but if such lackluster performance continues vs. Western Kentucky, they really could be in trouble.

1. Ohio Bobcats (LW: 3)

High vote: 1 (four)
Low vote: 3 (once)
Average vote: 1.5

Ohio played what was the most competitive of the “pay games” scheduled in Week 1, taking Rutgers down to the wire on the road before falling short late in the contest. Parker Navarro and company shined on offense, collecting over 200 yards rushing, while Chase Hendricks had nine catches for 115 yards and tight end Jake Bruno had two redzone touchdowns. Defensively, the Bobcats were gave up 24 points in the first 20 minutes, but put on the clamps late in the game, with just one field goal allowed in the fourth quarter. It’s hard not to look at Ohio and see the most complete and balanced team in the league at present after that performance.

For transparency, here is our anonymous chart for this week. Did we get it right? Did we miss the mark? Let us know on Twitter @HustleBelt or in the comments section below!