Jump to content

Mid-American Conference

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Cleve83 (talk | contribs) at 23:13, 29 May 2012 (→Current members). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Mid-American Conference
File:Mid-American Conference Logo.svg
AssociationNCAA
CommissionerJon Steinbrecher (since 2009)
Sports fielded
  • 23
    • men's: 11
    • women's: 12
DivisionDivision I
SubdivisionFBS
RegionGreat Lakes
Official websitemac-sports.com
Locations
Location of teams in {{{title}}}

The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I college athletic conference with a membership base in the Great Lakes region that stretches from Western New York to Illinois. Nine of the twelve full member schools are in Ohio and Michigan, with single members located in Illinois, Indiana and New York. For football, the MAC participates in the NCAA's Football Bowl Subdivision.

The MAC is headquartered in the Public Square district in downtown Cleveland, Ohio, and has two members in the nearby Akron area. The MAC has been referred to as the "Conference of Quarterbacks" because of the accomplishments of numerous former players in the National Football League.[1][2] The conference also ranks highest among all eleven NCAA Division I FBS conferences for graduation rates.[3]

Membership

Current members

There are twelve schools with full membership:

Institution Nickname Location Colors Founded Type Enrollment U.S. News Ranking Joined
East Division
University of Akron Zips Akron, Ohio Blue & Gold
    		1870 Public 29,251[4] 203–268 (National) 1992[5]
Bowling Green State University Falcons Bowling Green, Ohio Orange & Brown
    		1910 Public 18,756[6] 177 (National) 1952[5]
University at Buffalo Bulls Buffalo, New York Blue & White
    		1846 Public 28,601 111 (National) 1998[5]
Kent State University Golden Flashes Kent, Ohio Navy Blue & Gold
    		1910 Public 24,449[7] 194 (National) 1951[5]
Miami University RedHawks Oxford, Ohio Red & White
    		1809 Public 20,126 90 (National) 1947[5]
Ohio University Bobcats Athens, Ohio Ohio Green & White
    		1804 Public 20,437 124 (National) 1946[5]
West Division
Ball State University Cardinals Muncie, Indiana Cardinal & White
    		1918 Public 20,113 181 (National) 1973[5]
Central Michigan University Chippewas Mount Pleasant, Michigan Maroon & Gold
    		1892 Public 26,788 203–268 (National) 1971[5]
Eastern Michigan University Eagles Ypsilanti, Michigan Green & White
    		1849 Public 22,974 81 (Regional: Midwest) 1971[5]
Northern Illinois University Huskies DeKalb, Illinois Cardinal & Black
    		1895 Public 25,313 194 (National) 1975, 1997[5]
University of Toledo Rockets Toledo, Ohio Midnight Blue & Gold
    		1872 Public 21,594[6] 203–268 (National) 1950[5]
Western Michigan University Broncos Kalamazoo, Michigan Brown & Gold
    		1903 Public 25,045 181 (National) 1947[5]

Affiliate members

Eight schools have MAC affiliate membership status. On July 1, 2012, Temple will join the Big East Conference for all sports, and Massachusetts will replace Temple as a football only member in the MAC East Division.

Institution Nickname Location Colors Founded Type Enrollment Primary conference MAC sport(s)
Chicago State University Cougars Chicago, Illinois Evergreen & White
    		1867 Public 7,131 Great West Conference Men's tennis
University of Evansville Purple Aces Evansville, Indiana Purple, White, & Orange
      		1854 Private 3,050 Missouri Valley Conference Men's swimming
Florida Atlantic University Owls Boca Raton, Florida Blue, Red, & Silver
      		1961 Public 26,245 Sun Belt Conference Men's soccer
Hartwick College Hawks Oneonta, New York Wellesley Blue & White
    		1797 Private 1,520 Empire 8 Men's soccer
University of Massachusetts Amherst Minutemen Amherst, Massachusetts Maroon & White
    		1863 Public 27,062 Atlantic 10 Conference Football (East Division)
Missouri State University Bears Springfield, Missouri Maroon & White
    		1905 Public 21,425 Missouri Valley Conference Field hockey
Men's swimming
Southern Illinois University Carbondale Salukis Carbondale, Illinois Maroon & White
    		1869 Public 21,000 Missouri Valley Conference Men's swimming
Temple University Owls Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Cherry, Black, & White
      		1884 Public 35,490 Atlantic 10 Conference Football
West Virginia University Mountaineers Morgantown, West Virginia Old Gold & Blue
    		1867 Public 29,616 Big XII Conference Men's soccer

Former members

Institution Nickname Location Colors Founded Type Enrollment MAC membership Current conference
Butler University Bulldogs Indianapolis, Indiana Blue & White
    		1855 Private 4,667 1946–1949 Horizon League
University of Central Florida Knights Orlando, Florida Black & Gold
    		1963 Public 58,698 2001–2005 (football only) C-USA
University of Cincinnati Bearcats Cincinnati, Ohio Red & Black
    		1819 Public 41,357 1946–1953 Big East
Marshall University Thundering Herd Huntington, West Virginia Kelly Green & White
    		1837 Public 13,971 1954–1969, 1997–2005 C-USA
Wayne University Tartars Detroit, Michigan Green & Gold
    		1868 Public 30,909 1946–1947 GLIAC (Division II)
Western Reserve University Spartans Cleveland, Ohio Blue, White, & Gray
      		1826 Private 9,685 1946–1955 UAA (Division III)

Membership timeline

UMass Minutemen footballTemple Owls footballUCF Knights footballUniversity at BuffaloMarshall UniversityUniversity of AkronNorthern Illinois UniversityNorthern Illinois UniversityBall State UniversityEastern Michigan UniversityCentral Michigan UniversityMarshall UniversityBowling Green State UniversityKent State UniversityUniversity of ToledoWestern Michigan UniversityMiami UniversityOhio UniversityCase Western Reserve UniversityUniversity of CincinnatiButler UniversityWayne State University

Full members Associate members (football only)

History

Former conference logo
Locations of the football-playing members of the Mid-American conference

The Mid-American Conference charter members were Ohio University, Butler University, the University of Cincinnati, Wayne University (now Wayne State University) and Western Reserve University, one of the predecessors to today's Case Western Reserve University. Butler left after the first year. Miami University and Western Michigan University took the place of those charter members for the 1948 season. The MAC added the University of Toledo (1950), Kent State University (1951) and Bowling Green State University (1952). The University of Cincinnati resigned its membership February 18, 1953, with an effective date of June 1, 1953. Cincinnati's decision was based on a new requirement that at least 5 conference football games would have to be scheduled each season, University President Raymond Walters saying they "...regretfully resign...as the university could not continue under the present setup..." [8]

The membership stayed steady for the next two decades except for the addition of Marshall University in 1954 and the departure of Western Reserve, which chose to de-emphasize intercollegiate athletics.[citation needed] Marshall was expelled from the conference in 1969 due to NCAA violations.[9] The first major expansion since the 1950s took place in the mid-1970s with the addition of Central Michigan University and Eastern Michigan University in 1972 and Ball State University and Northern Illinois University in 1973. Northern Illinois left after the 1986 season. The University of Akron joined the conference in 1992. The conference became the largest in Division I-A with the re-admittance of Marshall and Northern Illinois and addition of the University at Buffalo's Bulls in 1997 and 1998, respectively. The University of Central Florida joined for football only in 2001, becoming the first football-only member in conference history. Marshall (a second time) and Central Florida would leave after the 2004–2005 academic year, both joining Conference USA in all sports.

In May 2005, Temple University in Philadelphia signed a six year contract with the MAC as a football-only school and began play in the East Division in 2007.

The University of Louisville was a MAC affiliate for field hockey for a number of years when Louisville was a member of the Metro Conference and Conference USA, winning two MAC tourney titles in 2003 and 2004.

In addition to football affiliate Temple University, Missouri State University is an affiliate for field hockey, Hartwick College is an affiliate for men's soccer and Chicago State University is an affiliate for men's tennis.

The University of Massachusetts Amherst Minutemen will join the MAC for football only in July 2012.[10]

Temple University has ended its affiliation with the MAC in football and will join the Big East for football in 2012 (it will switch all of its other sports to the Big East in 2013, ending its membership in the Atlantic 10).[11][12]

The West Virginia University Mountaineers will join the MAC as an affiliate for men's soccer starting with the 2012 season.[13]

Commissioners

Sports

The MAC sponsors the following 23 sports (11 men's, 12 women's):[14] Template:Multicol Men's

Template:Multicol-break Women's

Template:Multicol-end

Football

For the most recently completed season, see 2011 Mid-American Conference football season
Team First season All-time record All-time win % Bowl appearances Bowl record MAC titles Other conference titles Stadium Head coach
East Division
Akron 1891 487–496–37 .496 1 0–1 1 0 InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field Terry Bowden
Bowling Green 1919 498–345–52 .585 9 4–5 10 5 Doyt Perry Stadium Dave Clawson
Buffalo 1894 363–487–28 .429 1 0–1 1 0 University at Buffalo Stadium Jeff Quinn
Kent State 1920 316–505–28 .389 1 0–1 1 0 Dix Stadium Darrell Hazell
Massachusetts 1879 556–530–51 .511 0 0–0 0 22 Gillette Stadium Charley Molnar
Miami 1888 665–407–44 .616 9 7–2 15 7 Yager Stadium Don Treadwell
Ohio 1894 513–534–47 .490 6 1–5 5 6 Peden Stadium Frank Solich
Temple 1894 426–548–53 .441 4 2–2 0 1 Lincoln Financial Field Steve Addazio
West Division
Ball State 1924 412–379–32 .520 5 0–5 5 5 Scheumann Stadium Pete Lembo
Central Michigan 1896 577–377–37 .601 6 2–4 7 9 Kelly/Shorts Stadium Dan Enos
Eastern Michigan 1891 436–535–47 .451 1 1–0 1 9 Rynearson Stadium Ron English
Northern Illinois 1899 522–462–51 .529 7 4–3 2 8 Huskie Stadium Dave Doeren
Toledo 1917 482–401–24 .545 12 8–4 10 3 Glass Bowl Matt Campbell
Western Michigan 1905 524–412–24 .558 5 0–5 2 1 Waldo Stadium Bill Cubit

[15]

MAC champions

Main article: MAC Championship Game

Bowl games

The MAC is contracted to provide a team for three college football bowl games including the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, GoDaddy.com Bowl, and Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. For the 2012 season, the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl will have the first pick of MAC teams, and the GoDaddy.com Bowl will get the second pick. For the 2013 season, the GoDaddy.com Bowl will receive the first pick of MAC teams, and the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl will receive the second pick.

Pick Name Location Opposing conference Opposing pick
1 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl Detroit, Michigan Big Ten 8
2 GoDaddy.com Bowl Mobile, Alabama Sun Belt 1
3 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Boise, Idaho WAC 1

For the 2012 and 2013 seasons, the MAC has secondary bowl tie-ins with New Mexico Bowl, BBVA Compass Bowl, and Beef 'O' Brady's Bowl to select a fourth MAC bowl team if a primary contracted conference cannot fill its bowl spot in one of the aforementioned bowl games. For the 2012 season, the MAC has a secondary tie-in with the TicketCity Bowl to select a potential fifth MAC bowl team if one of the primary contracted spots is not filled.[16]

Bowl Championship Series

The MAC champion will receive an automatic berth in one of the five BCS bowl games if they are the highest ranked non-automatic qualifying conference champion and either of the following:

  • Ranked in the top 12 of the BCS Rankings.
  • Ranked in the top 16 of the BCS Rankings and its ranking is higher than that of an automatic qualifying conference champion.

Rivalries

Football rivalries involving MAC teams include:

Teams Rivalry name Trophy Meetings Record Series leader Current streak
Akron Kent State – Wagon Wheel 54 30–22–2 Akron Kent State won 2
Akron Youngstown State – Steel Tire 35 14–19–2 Youngstown State Youngstown State won 3
Bowling Green Kent State Battle for the Anniversary Award Anniversary Award 79 55–18–6 Bowling Green Kent State won 2
Bowling Green Toledo The Black Swamp Showdown
Battle of I-75 		Peace Pipe 76 39–33–4 Bowling Green Toledo won 2
Massachusetts Boston College Boston College—UMass football rivalry – 24 5–19 Boston College Boston College won 7
Massachusetts New Hampshire Colonial Clash Bill Knight Trophy (MVP) 74 43–28–3 Massachusetts New Hampshire won 2
Massachusetts Connecticut UConn–UMass football rivalry – 71 36–33–2 Massachusetts Massachusetts won 1
Miami Cincinnati Battle for the Bell Victory Bell 116 59–50–7 Miami Cincinnati won 6
Ohio Marshall Battle for the Bell The Bell 55 30–19–6 Ohio Ohio won 1
Ball State Northern Illinois – Bronze Stalk Trophy 39 20–17–2 Ball State Northern Illinois won 3
Central Michigan Western Michigan CMU–WMU Rivalry Victory Cannon 83 37–44–2 Western Michigan Western Michigan won 1

In addition, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, and Western Michigan compete for the Michigan MAC Trophy, which is awarded to the team with the best head-to-head record each year. Since the inception of the trophy in 2005, Central Michigan and Eastern Michigan have each won the trophy three times, and Western Michigan has won the trophy once.

Basketball

Main article: Mid-American Conference Men's Basketball Tournament
Main article: Mid-American Conference Women's Basketball Tournament
See also: Mid-American Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year

In August 2010, Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher and the Cleveland Cavaliers announced that the Mid-American Conference Men's and Women's Basketball Tournaments would remain in Cleveland at Quicken Loans Arena through 2017.[17] Both tournaments have flourished since moving to Cleveland in 2000, with the men's semi-finals and championship regularly drawing large crowds at Quicken Loans Arena.[18] In 2007, the MAC also announced a format change for both tournaments, bringing all twelve men's and women's teams to Cleveland. The MAC also co-hosted the 2007 Women's Final Four at Quicken Loans Arena after successfully hosting the 2006 NCAA Women's Basketball Regional at the same facility.

Championships

Main article: List of Mid-American Conference champions

Current MAC champions

Facilities

School Football stadium Capacity Basketball arena Capacity Baseball park Capacity
East Division
Akron InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field 27,000 James A. Rhodes Arena 5,500 Lee R. Jackson Baseball Field 1,500
Bowling Green Doyt Perry Stadium 23,724 Stroh Center 4,700 Warren E. Steller Field 2,500
Buffalo University at Buffalo Stadium 31,000 Alumni Arena 6,100 Amherst Audubon Field 500
Kent State Dix Stadium 20,500 Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center 6,327 Olga Mural Field at Schoonover Stadium 1,148
Massachusetts Gillette Stadium 68,756 Participates in Atlantic 10 Conference Participates in Atlantic 10 Conference
Miami Yager Stadium 24,286 Millett Hall 6,400 Stanley G. McKie Field at Joseph P. Hayden Jr. Park 1,000
Ohio Peden Stadium 24,000 Convocation Center 13,080 Bob Wren Stadium 4,000
Temple Lincoln Financial Field 68,532 Participates in Atlantic 10 Conference Participates in Atlantic 10 Conference
West Division
Toledo Glass Bowl 26,248 Savage Arena 7,300 Scott Park Baseball Complex 1,000
Western Michigan Waldo Stadium 30,200 University Arena 5,421 Robert J. Bobb Stadium at Judson Hyames Field 1,500
Ball State Scheumann Stadium 25,400 John E. Worthen Arena 11,500 Ball Diamond 1,700
Central Michigan Kelly/Shorts Stadium 30,255 McGuirk Arena 5,300 Bill Theunissen Stadium 2,046
Eastern Michigan Rynearson Stadium 30,200 Convocation Center 8,800 Oestrike Stadium 1,313
Northern Illinois Brigham Field at Huskie Stadium 30,076 Convocation Center 10,000 Ralph McKinzie Field 1,500

Hall of Fame

The Mid-American Conference Hall of Fame was the first Division I conference Hall of Fame.[19] It was established in 1987 and classes have been inducted in 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994 and 2012.[20]

In order to be eligible, a person must have participated during the time the university was in the MAC and five years must have passed from the time the individual participated in athletics or worked in the athletic department.[19]

The following list are the members of the MAC Hall of Fame, along with the school they were affiliated with, the sport(s) they were inducted for and the year they were inducted.

Template:Multicol

Template:Multicol-break

Template:Multicol-end

Media

Broadcasts

A number of MAC sports, including football, men's and women's basketball, baseball, soccer, wrestling and volleyball, are telecast on SportsTime Ohio replacing FSN Ohio as the MAC TV Partner the deal was signed in July 2010 and is for three years.[21] Along with STO, ESPN Regional TV retains the “local and regional” syndication telecast rights to the MAC for Football.

Ball State produces its own comprehensive television package with Ball State Sports Link. Affiliate stations include WIPB in Muncie, WNDY in Indianapolis, The CW in Fort Wayne, WHME in South Bend, WTVW in Evansville, WYIN in Merrillville and Comcast in Michigan. All Ball State Sports Link games are also broadcast on student radio station WCRD and on the Ball State Radio Network produced by WLBC-FM and Backyard Broadcasting.

NIU has multiple football and basketball games telecast by Comcast SportsNet Chicago. In addition, most Northern Illinois football and basketball games can be heard on WSCR-AM 670 "The Score" - Chicago's powerful 50,000-watt top-rated all-sports station, which reaches 38 states and Canada.

MAC Properties

MAC Properties (a division of ISP Sports) is the sponsorship arm of the Mid-American Conference, and handles all forms of sponsorship and advertising for the MAC which includes managing and growing its stable of official corporate partners. As of 2010, the MAC has five official corporate partners: FirstEnergy, Marathon, PNC Bank, AutoTrader.com and Cleveland Clinic Sports Health. There are approximately 20 other companies engaged as sponsors of the conference at the non-official level. MAC Properties also assists with the management of the conference's television and radio contracts, including those with ESPN Regional, FOX Sports Ohio and ESPN 850 WKNR among others.

References

  1. ^ "International Bowl 2008". 2007. Retrieved January 20, 2012.
  2. ^ Alexander, Elton (February 4, 2009). "Mid-American Conference riding Steelers' wave of MAC stars into high-school recruiting battle". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved January 20, 2012.
  3. ^ "MAC Football Programs Lead I-A Public Institutions In Graduation Success Rates" (Press release). MAC-Sports.com. 2006-09-08. Retrieved 2009-09-25. [dead link‍]
  4. ^ The University of Akron : Quick Facts
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "THIS IS THE MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE". Retrieved 2012-05-05.
  6. ^ a b "The Blade". The Blade. January 2010. Retrieved 15 June 2010.
  7. ^ "Concurrent Enrollment Report - Spring" (PDF). Fifteenth Day Enrollment Statistics. Kent State University. February 2010. p. 4. Retrieved 2 May 2010.
  8. ^ The Lima News, February 19th, 1953
  9. ^ Wilson, Tracy. "The Real Story Behind We Are Marshall". Retrieved 8 November 2011.
  10. ^ Elton Alexander (April 19, 2011). "University of Massachusetts football to join Mid-American Conference, sources say". The Plain Dealer. Retrieved April 19, 2011.
  11. ^ Temple joining Big East for football in 2012, other sports in 2013
  12. ^ Temple Owls will join Big East for football in 2012, all other sports in 2013
  13. ^ "Mountaineers to join MAC in soccer".
  14. ^ MAC-Sports.com at mac-sports.com, URL accessed June 20, 2010. Archived 06-30-10
  15. ^ All time Division I-A football records, College Football Data Warehouse
  16. ^ http://footballbowlassociation.com/mac/11mac_bowls.pdf
  17. ^ "Mid-American Conference and Quicken Loans Arena Announce Extension to Hold FirstEnergy Mac Tournament at The Q Through 2017". Quicken Loans Arena. 2010. Retrieved 14 March 2011.
  18. ^ "MAC Tournament History" (PDF). 2008-09 Men's Basketball Media Guide. Mid-American Conference. 2008. pp. 62–63. Retrieved 26 September 2009.
  19. ^ a b "MAC Hall of Fame". Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved 2009-01-26. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)
  20. ^ "MAC Announces 2012 Hall of Fame Class". Retrieved 2012-05-10.
  21. ^ http://mac-sports.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=9400&ATCLID=204971543 [dead link‍]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Mid-American_Conference&oldid=495035598"