With the Mid-American Conference’s members opening their seasons this week, we look around the conference with the second MAC Notebook of 2014.
Week one is in the books. After a weekend of football, things are starting to finally feel normal again.
Ball State cruised to a 30-10 victory over Colgate on Saturday. Star running back Horactio Banks rushed for 134 yards on 13 carries as the Cardinals racked up 514 total yards, including 311 yards rushing.
“I was very pleased with how smooth the whole operation was — no procedural penalties.” Cardinals coach Pete Lembo said.
Ball State played a solid game defensively, holding Colgate to 227 total yards on offense. The win was a great start, but a road victory this week against Iowa would be something to boast about.
Miami hosted Marshall this week. With a complete overhaul of new personnel, wins in Oxford have become tough to come by.
The Redhawks have failed to manage a win in their last 17 games, including a 42-27 loss on Saturday.
“The first half was not very good, we had lots of anxiety amongst the troops,” Miami coach Chuck Martin said. “The second half we played a different game. Offensively, we somewhat settled in, but our late run wasn’t enough.”
Quarterback Andrew Hendrix completed 24 of 49 passes and threw for 318 yards and three touchdowns.
“This is our Super Bowl every week,” Martin said. “I’m sure our players are tired of losing, and so are our coaches, so we have to stay prepared for anything each and every week.”
Kent State hosted Ohio this week in a week one Mid-American Conference showdown. The Golden Flashes failed to execute on offense as the Bobcats edged a 17-14 victory with a game-winning field goal as time expired.
Overall it was a tough, hard-nosed football game on both sides. Kent State was down 14-7 heading into halftime and managed to force four turnovers — all fumbles — in the second half.
“A loss is a loss, we’ve already moved on and face a huge challenge this week,” Kent State coach Paul Haynes said. “It’s hard to even think about looking ahead toward further games. We just want to stay focused week by week.”
Interestingly enough, the 22,754 fans in attendance helped mark Kent State’s largest crowd in a regular-season home opener.
Buffalo opened its season on a positive note beating Duquesne 38-28 Saturday afternoon. The Bulls wanted to take the crowd right out of the game early. With a quick start, Buffalo sustained a rapid tempo throughout the game, something particularly difficult to accomplish on the road.
“I liked the way we started and finished,” Buffalo coach Jeff Quinn said. “We had great success early, the lead slipped, but the final two drives were a mark of our commitment and passion.”
The Bulls will be tested this week as they face Army on the road. Army consists of a new coaching staff with excitement surrounding the personnel. Kickoff for the matchup gets underway at 12 p.m. at West Point, N.Y.
“This whole week should be good for our kids and staff,” Quinn said to end the weekly teleconference. “We’re preparing for one heck of a football game. Should be fun.”
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