Week 10 in the Mid-American Conference saw the conference's biggest upset this season.
It's week 10 in the Mid-American Conference and mid-week “MACtion” is in full swing. Teams are playing under the lights during prime time for national TV audiences. The spotlight showcased the MAC’s biggest upset of the year, as well as a few games that came down to the wire.
Northern Illinois stuns Toledo
Northern Illinois (6-3, 4-1 MAC) upset then-No. 24 Toledo (7-1, 4-1), 32-27, knocking the Rockets out of the College Football Playoff rankings.
“Obviously we’re very happy with the win. … Both teams played extremely well, and it was a fun game to be a part of,” Northern Illinois coach Rod Carey said.
After losing starting quarterback Drew Hare for the season due to a leg injury sustained in the fourth quarter, redshirt freshman Ryan Graham came in and led the Huskies to a win over the best team in the MAC.
Graham would finish with a passing touchdown, completing nine of 12 passes.
“(Graham) is a very competitive, very poised, very smart athlete," Carey said. "When you get all three of those things, he’s going to be a good football player."
The Huskies have been a problem for the Rockets as of late. Six of Toledo’s nine conference losses in the previous six seasons have come against Northern Illinois.
“Last week was obviously disappointing in terms of the outcome of the football game,” Toledo coach Matt Campbell said. “You need to regroup, find out (what went wrong) and move on to the next week.”
Toledo has lost its edge in the West Division, as first place Western Michigan (6-3, 5-0) holds a one-conference win advantage. The Broncos and Rockets will play Nov. 27.
Buffalo one-ups Kent
Buffalo (5-4, 3-2) quarterback Joe Licata’s touchdown pass to Matt Weiser in the final seconds of the fourth quarter lifted the Bulls over the Golden Flashes (3-6, 2-3), 18-17.
The difference proved to be time of possession. The Flashes’ defense couldn’t get off of the field on third down, as the Bulls held the ball for nearly eight more minutes than the Golden Flashes.
“It was a nice win for our program,” Bulls coach Lance Leipold said. “To overcome a 12 point, fourth quarter deficit is big. It speaks to our confidence to be able to play a full 60 minutes.”
Zips rally over Minutemen
Despite being down by six at halftime, Akron (4-5, 2-3) rallied behind a strong performance by quarterback Thomas Woodson in the second half to beat Massachusetts (1-8, 0-5), 17-13.
“Our defense played very well,” Akron coach Terry Bowden said. “The defense made plays and that was the deciding factor.”
Akron will travel to Oxford this week to take on a Miami (2-8, 1-5) team that just picked up its first win in eight weeks.
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