Mid-American Bandwagon Episode 72

Hustle Belt: for Mid-American Conference fans

It’s hard to believe that the end of football season is upon us. Obviously, we still have a lot to look forward to, with conference championship weekend and bowl season still ahead of us. Nonetheless, the last week of the regular season is always a bittersweet time. Luckily, we’ve got hoops season underway to distract us.

To open up this weeks show, Zach and Steve take a look back at week 12 in the MAC. Steve gave his performance of the week to Toledo RB Bryant Koback, who torched the Ohio defense for over 200 yards and four touchdowns. Zach similarly went with a running back, giving his performance of the week to Eastern Michigan RB Jawon Hamilton. Hamilton compiled 179 rushing yards on only 19 carries in the Eagles come from behind victory over rival Western Michigan.

For his disappointment of the week, Steve went with Ball State. The Cardinals entered their game against Central Michigan at 5-5 and ended up losing 37-17 on their home field. The Ball State defense had no answer for Chippewas running back Lew Nichols III, who finished the game with 219 yards and three scores. Zach was most disappointed by Western Michigan, who once again failed to find a way to close out a very winnable game. Two fourth quarter turnovers doomed the Broncos in their loss to Eastern Michigan, and a once promising season sunk further into disappointment.

To close out the football segment, the boys break down the final week of the regular season. The highlight of the week is surely the de-facto MAC East championship game, as Miami travels to Kent State with the winner earing a berth to Ford Field. Elsewhere, Ball State looks to earn bowl eligibility against Buffalo in a rematch of the 2020 MAC championship contest.

To close out the show, Vannzee stops by to break down the week that was in MAC hoops. It was a rough week on the men’s side of things, with several MAC squads dropping very winnable games (including Western Michigan’s inexplicable loss to Division II Saginaw Valley State). On the women’s side of the fence, things were much better, with Ball State and Ohio picking up impressive non-conference victories.

As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Next week, we’ll be back on our regular schedule and will have a full preview of the MAC Championship game. Have a great Thanksgiving, and we’ll talk to you then!

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