The MAC wideeek schedule is aweful. Cold weather, poor attendance etc. The MAC has had stability through reconstruction though. All of our teams have been FBS for a long time. Most have a history of being good at least once.. EMU was good for a year or two in the 80's (let them have it). I still like being a MAC fan. We have also been in the Access conversation for 2 years in a row now and did have an Orange Bowl contender in 2012. The belt has it better because location... So weather and access of recruits. Name brand still lives in the MAC.

(11-02-2016 11:40 AM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  The MAC wideeek schedule is aweful. Cold weather, poor attendance etc. The MAC has had stability through reconstruction though. All of our teams have been FBS for a long time. Most have a history of being good at least once.. EMU was good for a year or two in the 80's (let them have it). I still like being a MAC fan. We have also been in the Access conversation for 2 years in a row now and did have an Orange Bowl contender in 2012. The belt has it better because location... So weather and access of recruits. Name brand still lives in the MAC.

Cant blame the weather this year. Its in the 70s up there still.

I also think Typically SBC teams scheduling SEC teams every year is more difficult than MAC scheduling B10 schools.

(11-02-2016 11:17 AM)Michael in Raleigh Wrote:  

(11-02-2016 10:43 AM)_x_ Wrote:  The MAC pretty much stops playing on Saturdays at this point.
This week they play 2 Tuesday games, 1 Wednesday game, 1 Thursday game, 1 Friday game, and 0 Saturday games.
Next week they play 2 Tuesday games, 2 Wednesday games, and 1 Saturday game.
Week 12 they play 2 Tuesday games, 2 Wednesday games, and 1 Saturday game.
Week 13 they play 3 Tuesday games and 3 Friday games.

Of the 21 MAC games this week through the rest of the season only 2 are on a Saturday. It's crazy.

That is NOT what I want for my college football team. That is how you vaporize a fanbase.

Agreed, this has got to be tough as a fan of these teams. Even as a student this has to be tough to be able to attend games. I wonder how they do as far as TV deals go and viewership. Would that be enough to offset the terrible attendance numbers.

(11-02-2016 10:43 AM)_x_ Wrote:  The MAC pretty much stops playing on Saturdays at this point.
This week they play 2 Tuesday games, 1 Wednesday game, 1 Thursday game, 1 Friday game, and 0 Saturday games.
Next week they play 2 Tuesday games, 2 Wednesday games, and 1 Saturday game.
Week 12 they play 2 Tuesday games, 2 Wednesday games, and 1 Saturday game.
Week 13 they play 3 Tuesday games and 3 Friday games.

Of the 21 MAC games this week through the rest of the season only 2 are on a Saturday. It's crazy.

But why? Why on earth would they agree to do that knowing that attendance is already an issue for Saturday games?

(11-02-2016 11:46 AM)Chrono124 Wrote:  

(11-02-2016 11:17 AM)Michael in Raleigh Wrote:  

(11-02-2016 10:43 AM)_x_ Wrote:  The MAC pretty much stops playing on Saturdays at this point.
This week they play 2 Tuesday games, 1 Wednesday game, 1 Thursday game, 1 Friday game, and 0 Saturday games.
Next week they play 2 Tuesday games, 2 Wednesday games, and 1 Saturday game.
Week 12 they play 2 Tuesday games, 2 Wednesday games, and 1 Saturday game.
Week 13 they play 3 Tuesday games and 3 Friday games.

Of the 21 MAC games this week through the rest of the season only 2 are on a Saturday. It's crazy.

That is NOT what I want for my college football team. That is how you vaporize a fanbase.

Agreed, this has got to be tough as a fan of these teams. Even as a student this has to be tough to be able to attend games. I wonder how they do as far as TV deals go and viewership. Would that be enough to offset the terrible attendance numbers.

Especially in November when professor's are now assigning those projects that should've been semester projects but only give you three weeks to complete them. That is insane.

(11-02-2016 11:40 AM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  The MAC wideeek schedule is aweful. Cold weather, poor attendance etc. The MAC has had stability through reconstruction though. All of our teams have been FBS for a long time. Most have a history of being good at least once.. EMU was good for a year or two in the 80's (let them have it). I still like being a MAC fan. We have also been in the Access conversation for 2 years in a row now and did have an Orange Bowl contender in 2012. The belt has it better because location... So weather and access of recruits. Name brand still lives in the MAC.

Debatable. C-USA, MWC, and AAC carry the G5 banner, regardless of whether it is earned or not. Perception is everything when it comes to attention given, regardless of if that perception is accurate or not. An example would be the overall poor play of the SEC in OOC games relative to other P5 schools. Yet, here we are in November and two SEC schools are in the Top 4.

(11-02-2016 11:57 AM)ericsaid Wrote:  

(11-02-2016 10:43 AM)_x_ Wrote:  The MAC pretty much stops playing on Saturdays at this point.
This week they play 2 Tuesday games, 1 Wednesday game, 1 Thursday game, 1 Friday game, and 0 Saturday games.
Next week they play 2 Tuesday games, 2 Wednesday games, and 1 Saturday game.
Week 12 they play 2 Tuesday games, 2 Wednesday games, and 1 Saturday game.
Week 13 they play 3 Tuesday games and 3 Friday games.

Of the 21 MAC games this week through the rest of the season only 2 are on a Saturday. It's crazy.

But why? Why on earth would they agree to do that knowing that attendance is already an issue for Saturday games?

They probably feel like if nobody is going to show up they might as well make a good bit of money from ESPN.

(11-02-2016 10:55 AM)Yosef Himself Wrote:  Man, looking at the MAC schedule and the CUSA bowl tie-ins makes me thankful for the Belt.

Agreed.

Them agreeing to those schedules is why they make so much more media money than the Sunbelt though. So you have it one way or you have it the other when you don't really have content that networks value.

(11-02-2016 09:29 AM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  

(11-02-2016 08:25 AM)Michael in Raleigh Wrote:  

(11-01-2016 11:41 PM)JoeJag Wrote:  Western Michigan 52
@ Ball State 20
Attendance 5,614

Bowling Green 20
@Notrhern Illinois 45
Attendance 4,790

For the Ball State game, it shouldn't be too big of a surprise. They had one really impressive season in 2008 when they went 12-0 in the regular season (Brady Hoke's last season; never wouldve become Michigan's coach without it), then got rolled in the MAC title game and in the bowl game. They've been pretty awful before and since. Plus, Muncie is not the type of town people, even alumni, like to go back to visit. I lived in Indiana for five years and had to go to Muncie a number of times. Muncie is like the anti-Boone. It's not charming. It's not pretty. It's just a really sad example of a Midwestern industrial town whose heyday was 40 or 50+ years ago. At a time when population in every state of the union is growing, Muncie' s is shrinking. It's too bad because Ball State is a really good university, truly the ONLY good thing going on for the town in which it resides. But alumni and fans just don't want to drive to that town from Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, Chicago, and elsewhere in the middle of the week to watch their alma master's football team play bad football.

I think in the Sun Belt, attendance is helped because each team only plays 1 or 2 midweek games and the towns the schools are in aren't depressing to visit.

Ball State won 10 or 11 games in 2013. But yes it should be no surprise. Those are the two schools most honest with attendance with teams who usually have bad attendance. Add a week night game against in one case the worst team in the conference, and in the other against a top 25 team they were going to get blown out against... Still. 5k is embarassing for the MAC. WMU, Toledo, and Ohio will have to carry the attendance banner the rest of the way.

I agree. Don't count on Akron(at least this week). We are directly against Game Seven and a Cavs game, in which all three are at home around the same time, so abismal attendance, and low raitings

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(11-02-2016 01:24 PM)AlwaysSunny Wrote:  Them agreeing to those schedules is why they make so much more media money than the Sunbelt though. So you have it one way or you have it the other when you don't really have content that networks value.

That contract is good, but they also have to pay all the production costs while the Sun Belt does not.

I've never really considered the MAC TV deal that amazing. They went specifically for Tuesday and Wednesday and sacrificed attendance to do so. More power to them.

CUSA doesn't carry crap over NIU, Toledo, BG (past), Miami (past), WMU (now), CMU (past), etc... FIU? FAU? UNT? Are you serious? At least Kent, Akron and Buffalo are basketball schools?

(11-02-2016 02:31 PM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  CUSA doesn't carry crap over NIU, Toledo, BG (past), Miami (past), WMU (now), CMU (past), etc... FIU? FAU? UNT? Are you serious? At least Kent, Akron and Buffalo are basketball schools?

They have Marshall, Southern Miss, and I guess I'll throw in Rice since they're a giant in academics and a former SWC school. MTSU and WKU are good. But too to bottom the MAC carried better brands.

As for the SBC, let's face it: most of the league is new to FBS or to football altogether. Arkansas State and Louisiana-Lafayette are the only ones who were FBS prior to 2000. (Idaho and New Mexico State were, but they're leaving.) But I do think App State has started to make a name for itself a little bit. The Ragin Cajuns and Arkansas State have, too. We have a ways to go, but I'm pleased App is part of this league.

(11-02-2016 11:40 AM)UofToledoFans Wrote:  The MAC wideeek schedule is aweful. Cold weather, poor attendance etc. The MAC has had stability through reconstruction though. All of our teams have been FBS for a long time. Most have a history of being good at least once.. EMU was good for a year or two in the 80's (let them have it). I still like being a MAC fan. We have also been in the Access conversation for 2 years in a row now and did have an Orange Bowl contender in 2012. The belt has it better because location... So weather and access of recruits. Name brand still lives in the MAC.

I'm assuming you meant realignment.

(11-02-2016 01:45 PM)chiefsfan Wrote:  

(11-02-2016 01:24 PM)AlwaysSunny Wrote:  Them agreeing to those schedules is why they make so much more media money than the Sunbelt though. So you have it one way or you have it the other when you don't really have content that networks value.

That contract is good, but they also have to pay all the production costs while the Sun Belt does not.

I've never really considered the MAC TV deal that amazing. They went specifically for Tuesday and Wednesday and sacrificed attendance to do so. More power to them.

There are smart and dumb ways to do it though. I'd be willing to offer up some Tuesday/Wednesday games for SELECTED Belt schools. If ESPN is willing to pay an extra 100,000 (just an example) a game extra for those games, let the home team take half of it. Urban schools like USA, ULM, ULL, Coastal, and Ga State might just take the money. I suspect stAte wants no part of that.

Have the contract stipulate that for 1 game per year, ESPN can pick any team to host a mid week game. But for the 2nd game, it can only be hosted by a certain pool of schools.

MAC game on Wednesday night.
Toledo 48
@Akron 17
Attendance 6,559

(11-03-2016 01:00 AM)JoeJag Wrote:  MAC game on Wednesday night.
Toledo 48
@Akron 17
Attendance 6,559

They're like 30 mins from Cleveland who had a Cavs game (lebron is from Akron) and the Indians trying to win their first world series since the 40's.... How surprised are we?

It's not a lie if you believe it MAC fans.

You make a good point. What is Akron averaging in home attendance this year? The reason for my interest is that it was recently reported that CFB attendance has fallen off the last couple of years as well as the NFL.

(11-03-2016 10:17 AM)JoeJag Wrote:  You make a good point. What is Akron averaging in home attendance this year? The reason for my interest is that it was recently reported that CFB attendance has fallen off the last couple of years as well as the NFL.

They get 13k average?