(01-08-2015 09:57 AM)HuskieJohn Wrote: Crossover for 10 seasons...
2006 vs Ohio at Miami vs Buffalo
2007 at Temple vs Kent St
2008 vs Miami vs BGSU at Kent St
2009 at Miami vs Akron at Ohio
2010 vs Temple vs Buffalo at Akron
2011 at Buffalo at BGSU vs Kent St
2012 vs UMASS at Akron vs Buffalo
2013 at UMASS at Kent St vs Akron
2014 vs Kent St vs Miami at Ohio
2015 vs Ohio at Miami at Buffalo
What would make sense in the future...
2016 vs Buffalo vs BGSU at Akron
2017 at BGSU at Kent St vs Akron
Is UMASS out of the MAC this year or next?
Your first question can not be answered at this point. It would make sense if (for example) in 2015, Buffalo has a great season, BGSU is average, and Akron is horrible.
Cross-over schedules try to give each team in a division relatively similar strength of schedules. So look for the 2016 and 2017 Huskie schedules to feature a strong, average, and weak MAC East opponent, by the previous year's standards.
According to 2015 standings, you could classify the MAC East (minus UMass?) as follows.
BGSU 5-3 (strong)
Ohio 4-4 (strong)
Buffalo 3-4 (average)
Akron 3-5 (average)
Miami 2-6 (weak)
Kent 1-6 (weak)
Look at the 2015 Huskie schedule, for example. They play Ohio (strong), Buffalo (average), and Miami (weak). Of course, there is no guarantee that the 2015 Bobcats will be strong, and that Miamio will suck again. Huskies have been lucking out with easy cross-over SOS lately, but then again, had they ended up in a three-way tie for the West division in the last three years, their easy SOS could have kept them from going to Detroit.
Why do the Huskies get Miami and not Kent? Why Ohio instead of BG? I do not know. But I get the strong, average, weak schedule idea.