1 more out of conference game left. Looks impressive so far. Temple, Northern Illinois and Toledo get all the attention but they are sneaking up. Still undefeated and have one more out of conference game left going into a weaker East division. They aren't getting the best out of the west teams. Look at it this way Miami doesn't look great it maybe Temple and them fighting it out with Ohio still undefeated.
I dont think they get the attention because their OOC schedule isn't very strong. Penn State is definitely down, but they're much better than Marshall.
(09-17-2011 11:56 PM)JHG722 Wrote: [ -> ]I dont think they get the attention because their OOC schedule isn't very strong. Penn State is definitely down, but they're much better than Marshall.
Agreed. If Ohio goes undefeated in the MAC then they will have some attention just like Ball State. It will also help if Marshal doe snot suck in CUSA (they already have one win there). I wouldn't count on Rutgers showing up in the BE though if you happen to beat them.
I think this might be an over reaction. Ohio hasn't played anyone yet. Marshall is not a good team (and hasn't been for a long time), neither is New Mexico State, and beating a 1-AA team was a given.
I think NIU, Temple, Toledo, and WMU would also be undefeated if they played those three teams.
However, you have to give them kudos for taking care of business.
I think OHIO is the team to beat in the East because although Temple looks impressive their QB play is a big concern, giving the bobcats the edge at ths point.
compared to the West I think NIU's defense is a liability. Toledo looks good against tough competition. It would be hard to put OHIO ahead of them but I think the 2 would make for a good battle in Detroit.
Rutgers is very beatable. A lot can happen over the next 5 weeks but its not impossible to think that Temple could come to Athens to face an 8-0 Bobcat team.
One game at a time. Rutgers is next and is certainly not an automatic "W". MAC teams more often than not find ways to lose these (on paper) evenly matched contests. This year alone, we're a pitiful 1-7 (0-5 on the road) in such games.
It will be awesome if Ohio can get out of New Jersey unscathed.
(09-18-2011 12:20 AM)perimeterpost Wrote: [ -> ]I think OHIO is the team to beat in the East because although Temple looks impressive their QB play is a big concern
The same QB who threw for 311 and 2 TDs against your Bobcats last year? Yeah, I'm not remotely worried about it. MAC defenses are not nearly as strong as Penn State's.
(09-18-2011 03:21 PM)JHG722 Wrote: [ -> ] (09-18-2011 12:20 AM)perimeterpost Wrote: [ -> ]I think OHIO is the team to beat in the East because although Temple looks impressive their QB play is a big concern
The same QB who threw for 311 and 2 TDs against your Bobcats last year? Yeah, I'm not remotely worried about it. MAC defenses are not nearly as strong as Penn State's.
remind me, what was the score of that game last year? and you're not worried? good luck to you on that one! LOL
(09-18-2011 03:40 PM)perimeterpost Wrote: [ -> ] (09-18-2011 03:21 PM)JHG722 Wrote: [ -> ] (09-18-2011 12:20 AM)perimeterpost Wrote: [ -> ]I think OHIO is the team to beat in the East because although Temple looks impressive their QB play is a big concern
The same QB who threw for 311 and 2 TDs against your Bobcats last year? Yeah, I'm not remotely worried about it. MAC defenses are not nearly as strong as Penn State's.
you mean the one that threw 2 TDs against OHIO's practice squad when it was 31-10 with 2:16 left in the game? yes, THAT one.
(09-18-2011 03:22 PM)bobcat_backer Wrote: [ -> ] (09-18-2011 03:21 PM)JHG722 Wrote: [ -> ] (09-18-2011 12:20 AM)perimeterpost Wrote: [ -> ]I think OHIO is the team to beat in the East because although Temple looks impressive their QB play is a big concern
The same QB who threw for 311 and 2 TDs against your Bobcats last year? Yeah, I'm not remotely worried about it. MAC defenses are not nearly as strong as Penn State's.
remind me, what was the score of that game last year? and you're not worried? good luck to you on that one! LOL
What does the score have to do with it? He threw 2 INTs, but 311 and 2 TDs is a pretty damn good game.
sure, what the heck!
If OU is the final remaining MAC unbeaten then I suppose that makes them the team to beat.
It's the MAC. There will be 4 or 5 different teams to beat between now and December, and then the underdog will likely knock off the almost ranked/ranked favorite in the title game.
Forget about how easy one team's schedule is compared to another. The fact of the matter is that Miami and NIU won their respective divisions last year, and until they are beaten in conference play and behind in the standings they are the teams to beat in the MAC.
(09-18-2011 06:24 PM)BrianNowicki Wrote: [ -> ]Forget about how easy one team's schedule is compared to another. The fact of the matter is that Miami and NIU won their respective divisions last year, and until they are beaten in conference play and behind in the standings they are the teams to beat in the MAC.
Miami didn't win the East, OHIO lost it.
(09-18-2011 06:24 PM)BrianNowicki Wrote: [ -> ]Forget about how easy one team's schedule is compared to another. The fact of the matter is that Miami and NIU won their respective divisions last year, and until they are beaten in conference play and behind in the standings they are the teams to beat in the MAC.
Baloney. If this was the NFL where turnover from year to year is slim, then maybe. But in a league which very rarely sees a repeat champ, what you look at is how everybody is doing SO FAR or rather NOW. Last year doesn't really matter. We need a few weeks until everybody has played a few conference games to really be able to sort things out.
(09-18-2011 07:13 PM)perimeterpost Wrote: [ -> ] (09-18-2011 06:24 PM)BrianNowicki Wrote: [ -> ]Forget about how easy one team's schedule is compared to another. The fact of the matter is that Miami and NIU won their respective divisions last year, and until they are beaten in conference play and behind in the standings they are the teams to beat in the MAC.
Miami didn't win the East, OHIO lost it.
Doesn't matter if Ohio blew it or not. Miami won the MAC Championship last year. Don't care that Ohio should have won the East and NIU should have beat them in the championship game. If everything was done on paper and with "should have's" then they wouldn't play the game. Like it or not, and I don't particularly like it myself, Miami is the defending MAC Champion.
(09-18-2011 08:29 PM)MileHighBronco Wrote: [ -> ] (09-18-2011 06:24 PM)BrianNowicki Wrote: [ -> ]Forget about how easy one team's schedule is compared to another. The fact of the matter is that Miami and NIU won their respective divisions last year, and until they are beaten in conference play and behind in the standings they are the teams to beat in the MAC.
Baloney. If this was the NFL where turnover from year to year is slim, then maybe. But in a league which very rarely sees a repeat champ, what you look at is how everybody is doing SO FAR or rather NOW. Last year doesn't really matter. We need a few weeks until everybody has played a few conference games to really be able to sort things out.
Why would you use turnover in this conversation? Miami returned more starters from last year's team than anyone else in the MAC. NIU returned nearly everyone on an offense that no one in the MAC could stop enough to beat.......except Miami.
Needing a few weeks of conference games to sort things out makes sense, and actually supports what I said. Until someone beats Miami and NIU and they are behind in the standings they are the teams to beat. If someone else is beating everyone up in the conference and has a lead on Miami or NIU than they become the team to beat. Until then, you have to go with the defending division champions. It's not like we are talking about a team that lost their star QB and a bunch of starters from the year before.
Does it really matter until we are in the thick of the conference slate?
(09-18-2011 08:45 PM)Sultan of Euphonistan Wrote: [ -> ]Does it really matter until we are in the thick of the conference slate?
Actually, it doesn't really matter until someone clinches the East and someone clinches the West. But if we just sat on our thumbs until then, this site would get pretty boring.
(09-18-2011 08:46 PM)BrianNowicki Wrote: [ -> ] (09-18-2011 08:45 PM)Sultan of Euphonistan Wrote: [ -> ]Does it really matter until we are in the thick of the conference slate?
Actually, it doesn't really matter until someone clinches the East and someone clinches the West. But if we just sat on our thumbs until then, this site would get pretty boring.
Ah but the conference season is so much fun since you need X team to win after you beat Y and this winless team from out of conference just keeps winning making themselves the really odd team to beat.