WEEK 10 SCHEDULE
Tuesday, November 2
*Ball State at Akron 7:00 pm (CBBSN)
*Miami at Ohio 7:30 pm (ESPNU)
*Eastern Michigan at Toledo 7:30 pm (ESPN2)
Wednesday, November 3
*Northern Illinois at Kent State 7:00 pm (ESPN2)
*Central Michigan at Western Michigan 7:00 pm (ESPNU)
All times listed ET
Tuesday, November 2
Ball State (4-4, 2-2 MAC) at Akron (2-6, 1-3 MAC)
7:00 PM ET | CBS Sports Network
Ball State and Akron are set to square off for the 25th time in series history Tuesday night inside InfoCision Stadium. The Zips have won the last two duels, once in Muncie in 2016 and once in Akron in 2017.
Eight weeks into the 2021 season, Ball State’s Justin Hall is averaging 137.0 all-purpose yards per game, good for 18th-most in the country and first in the Mid-American Conference. Hall is third in the country in average all-purpose yards among players who have logged at least one yard through rushing, receiving, punt return and kickoff return only to Trestan Ebner (Baylor) and Jayden Reed (Michigan State).
Ball State has three of the top 10 tacklers in the Mid-American Conference in S Bryce Cosby, ILB Clayton Coll and ILB Jaylin Thomas. Cosby and Coll are tied for seventh in the league with 66 tackles apiece, while Thomas is ninth with 64.
Akron WR Konata Mumpfield is ranked 18th in the NCAA in receiving touchdowns (6), while DB Charles Amankwaa is rated seventh in he NCAA in interceptions (3) and 22nd in interceptions per game (0.4). Mumpfield was recognized for his outstanding campaign as The Athletic tabbed him to its freshmen midseason All-America squad on Oct. 19.
Miami (4-4, 3-1 MAC) at Ohio (1-7, 1-3 MAC)
7:30 PM ET | ESPNU
Miami enters the matchup with the Bobcats with a 4-4 record and a 3-1 mark in MAC play, while currently leading the MAC East. Miami averages 22.9 points a game, while allowing 22.2 points a game. The RedHawks average 138.0 rushing yards per game, while also averaging 242.0 yards in the air.
Quarterback AJ Mayer has played in seven games, going 67-of124 with 943 yards and six touchdowns, while Brett Gabbert has played in five games, going 66-of-113 for 929 yards and eight touchdowns. On the ground, Keyon Mozee has 342 yards on 80 carries with three touchdowns, while on the receiving end, Jack Sorenson adds 42 catches for 703 yards on five touchdowns.
Ohio is 1-7 overall and 1-3 in the MAC after falling to Kent State last Saturday. Overall, the Bobcats are averaging 21.1 points per game to go along with 360.1 total yards per game. De’Montre Tuggle leads the ground game with 553 yards, while averaging 69.1 yards per game with four touchdowns. O’Shaan Allison adds 303 yards on the ground.
Quarterback Kurtis Rourke is 103-of-150 with 946 yards, four touchdowns and four interceptions. Meanwhile, quarterback Armani Rogers is 29-of-46 with 350 yards. Tyler Walton leads the receivers with 25 catches for 277 yards and two touchdowns.
Eastern Michigan (5-3, 2-2 MAC) at Toledo (4-4, 2-2 MAC)
7:30 PM ET | ESPN2
The Rockets are fresh off a 34-15 victory over Western Michigan in the Glass Bowl on Saturday. Redshirt freshman Dequan Finn threw for two long touchdown passes and the Toledo defense shut out a potent Bronco offense in the second half to lead the Rockets.
Toledo ranks first in the MAC in scoring defense (18.3) and defensive passing efficiency (112.3), second in total defense (326.9), and fourth in rushing defense (146.1). EMU is off to a 5-3 start for the first time since 2016. EMU has won five of its first eight games two times under eighth-year Head Coach Chris Creighton.
A win over Toledo would give Eastern Michigan bowl eligibility for the fourth time in the previous five full seasons, and just the sixth time in program history. A win would also give EMU bowl eligibility in three consecutive seasons for the first time in program history (excluding COVID-shortened 2020 season).
Wednesday, November 3
Northern Illinois (6-2, 4-0 MAC) at Kent State (4-4, 3-1 MAC)
7:00 PM ET | ESPN2
The Flashes come into the game at 4-4 overall and 3-1 in the Mid-American Conference’s East Division and currently tied with Miami for the top spot in the East. They are coming off a 34-27 victory over the Ohio Bobcats down in Athens on October 23rd. Dustin Crum through for 257 and a score and ran for 93 more and another score in the victory. Crum earned MAC East Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts. In MAC play, the Golden Flashes own the top scoring offense at 35 points per game. They have achieved that through incredible balance, rushing for 203 yards/ MAC game and throwing for an average of 259.
Northern Illinois comes into the game as the lone unbeaten team in the MAC at 4-0 and 6-2 overall and own the outright lead in the MAC Western Division. The Huskies are averaging 30.5 points per game in MAC play. Their formula has been a strong running game (249 yards per game, tops in MAC play) and stopping the run (131 yards allowed, third in the MAC).
The rushing attack is led by Jay Ducker and Antario Brown, who combine for over 200 yards a game as a rushing tandem. Former Michigan State quarterback Rocky Lombardi handles the passing duties. Lombardi threw for 348 yards and a trio of scores in the 39-38 triumph over Central Michigan last time out. Defensively, Northern Illinois likes to bring pressure and are led by CJ Brown and Dillon Thomas, who each average about seven stops a game.
Central Michigan (4-4, 2-2 MAC) at Western Michigan (5-3, 2-2 MAC)
7:00 PM ET | ESPNU
Central Michigan (4-4, 2-2 MAC) heads to Kalamazoo on Wednesday for the Battle of the Cannon at Western Michigan (5-3, 2-2 MAC). The contest is scheduled for a 7 p.m. kickoff and will be broadcast on ESPNU.
A win over Western Michigan will give Coach McElwain 60 career victories. Central Michigan’s last victory against the Broncos came
at Waldo Stadium in 2017, 35-28. CMU trailed 28-14 in that game entering the fourth quarter but scored 21-unanswered points in the final frame to earn the victory.
Central Michigan back Lew Nichols III has followed up an outstanding season last year when he became the sixth CMU player to be named the Mid-American Conference Freshman of the Year with another great year. Nichols leads the MAC with 919 rushing yards, ranking fourth in the nation. His per game average of 114.88 also leads the league and ranks eighth nationally.
Western Michigan ranks first in total defense in the MAC, giving up just 320.8 total yards per game. The Broncos rank 11th in the
FBS and currently second in the MAC with 3.38 sacks per game (27 total). Western Michigan has had a sack in every game this
season including four last week at Toledo.
Western Michigan sophomore wide receiver Skyy Moore averages 8.1 receptions per game, good for fifth in the FBS and the most in the MAC.
