Week 3: Mid-American Conference football roundup

The Ohio Bobcats are the last undefeated football team in the Mid-American Conference following the third week of the season. Their three-game streak began when Ohio knocked off Penn State in its season opener in State College, Penn.

Two programs pushing elite MAC status in the other division are Toledo and Ball State, both 2-1 and have the only two conference wins so far this year.

Here’s a look at the conference a quarter of the way into the season.

Akron: (1-2) New head coach Terry Bowden won his first game with the Zips in style Friday, beating Morgan State 66-6. Akron has now matched its win total from each of the past two seasons. During MAC Media Day, Bowden said win number two will get the monkey off their back.

Ball State: (2-1) The Cardinals made a 42-yard field goal at the end of regulation late Saturday night to beat Indiana. The only loss for Ball State this season came by No. 11 Clemson.

Bowling Green: (1-2) The Falcons had a nice start to the season, hanging on in a close game at No. 18 Florida and beating Idaho. BGSU lost to rival Toledo in the MAC opener this weekend, though, 27-15.

Buffalo: (1-1) The Bulls’ MAC opener is Wednesday night against Kent State. They are .500 with their only loss coming at No. 7 Georgia. Buffalo had a bye week during week three.

Central Michigan: (1-1) The Chippewas are .500 with the toughest part of the schedule right ahead of them. CMU plays Iowa, Northern Illinois and Toledo, all on the road the next three weeks before coming home to face Navy.

Eastern Michigan: (0-3) After EMU coach Ron English found success in his debut season in 2011, the Eagles are winless – including a 17-point loss to Illinois State. The schedule does not get any easier for EMU, who goes to East Lansing Saturday.

Kent State: (1-1) Like Buffalo and CMU, Kent State is coming off a bye week at .500. The Golden Flashes prided themselves on defense last year but, allowing 34 points per game this season, ranks 99th in the country.

Massachusetts: (0-3) The Minutemen are winless in their inaugural MAC season. UMass has only scored 19 points in three games, while allowing 48 per game. Leading rusher for the Minutemen, Michael Cox, has 108 yards on 38 carries through three games.

Miami: (1-2) Miami’s record is a little hard to read with its two losses coming at Ohio State and Boise State this season. Quarterback Zac Dysert has thrown for 705 yards and two touchdowns, though he’s been picked off twice.

Northern Illinois: (2-1) Iowa inched by NIU in week one by a single point, though outside of that, the Huskies are 2-0. Dual-threat quarterback Jordan Lynch threw for 342 yards and rushed for 125 during a NIU 41-40 win over Army Saturday.

Western Michigan: (1-2) Senior Alex Carder has thrown for 812 yards and seven touchdowns in the first three games, though he’s been picked off five times. WMU has the 13th-best passing offense in the country but finds itself 1-2 following two Big-Ten losses.