This article is part of our Spring Practice Storylines series.
College football fans tend to have an affinity for the MAC, though that is through the prism of "plucky underdog." It's the conference that gives us "MACtion." Also, in a world where conference realignment has been the norm, for a long time the MAC was steady. Even the MAC is not immune, though. While the return of UMass saves that program from the perils of operating as an independent, by next summer Northern Illinois will be a Mountain West program.
Additionally, stability in the team ranks has not equated to a ton of success, as for a few years the MAC has been battling Conference USA for the honor of being second-to-last in overall quality, and last year I'd say it lost that battle. It had a higher floor, but a lower ceiling, and that will likely be the case again. Beyond that, no Group of Five conference gets raided in the transfer portal more than the MAC, and it's the kind of conference that loses successful head coaches to position coaching jobs at bigger schools (or the NFL).
MAC Football Spring Storylines
Let's take a look at the biggest storylines in a MAC conference filled with change for the 2025 season.
Akron Zips Football Spring Storylines
Will Ben Finley be the quarterback for the Zips?
Football futility is par for the course at Akron, but even so this may be Joe Moorhead's last chance to show sufficient progress not to be fired. Moorhead's skill with quarterbacks was his calling card, and with the Zips possibly relying on a transfer from Colgate (Chris Gee) or a transfer from Tennessee State (Jordan Gant), the offense may come down to the play under center. Finley arrived at Akron after unsuccessful stints at North Carolina State and Cal, but was the starter all of last year. It didn't go great. Finley completed 54.8 percent of his passes with 16 touchdowns against nine picks, and four of those touchdowns were against Colgate. He also has limited mobility. Tahj Bullock only attempted 29 passes, but he completed 72.4 percent of them, and he rushed for eight touchdowns as a red-zone rushing threat. Maybe that will be Bullock's role again, but seeing what Bullock and Finley are doing this spring will be interesting.
Ball State Cardinals Football Spring Storylines
Walter Taylor and the MAC program experience in a microcosm
Kadin Semonza popped for the Cardinals last season. The redshirt freshman took over as the starting quarterback and threw for 2,904 yards, 25 touchdowns, and 10 interceptions. He showed real promise…and that promise is why he is with Tulane in 2025. When a player emerges for a MAC program, the coaching staff has to be prepared to lose him. Expectations are that Walter Taylor is atop the quarterback battle. His story is also common when it comes to the MAC. In 2023 he barely played at Vanderbilt, in 2024 he was on the bench at Colorado, and now he's hoping he can get a starting gig at a Group of Five program.
Bowling Green Falcons Football Spring Storylines
What will the Falcons do now that Scot Loeffler has left them high and dry?
Bowling Green gave Loeffler his first head coaching job. After a slow start, he had the Falcons bowling each of the last three seasons. On the last day of February, Loeffler announces he was leaving the program…to be the quarterbacks coach for the Philadelphia Eagles. This move reopened the transfer portal for 30 days for Bowling Green players, and as of this writing the program hasn't even named an interim coach. The Falcons suddenly find themselves in the toughest spot of any MAC team. We literally have no idea how this team will look in spring now. Now, we need to learn essentially everything.
Buffalo Bulls Football Spring Storylines
The Bulls kept their offensive weapons, but can the new quarterback make use of them?
Bowling Green fans may take heart in the plight of Buffalo just last season. Head coach Maurice Linguist left in January 2024 to become co-defensive coordinator at Alabama, but the program hired former Ball State head man Pete Lembo and Lembo led the team to a 9-4 record, including a bowl win down in the Bahamas. Lembo retained wide receivers Victor Snow, who had over 500 yards receiving, and Nik McMillan should be back in the fold after suffering a season-ending injury early last year. Crucially, 1,000-yard back Al-Jay Henderson has stuck around for another season as well. Even quarterback C.J. Ogbonna was only lost because he decided to declare for the NFL Draft. Of course, that still means Ogbonna has to be replaced. The likely new starter is experienced, or at least has a lot of experience being around college football programs. Ta'Quan Roberson first saw the field for Penn State in 2019. He started for UConn in 2023 and played a bit for Kansas State last season. His pedigree is strong for a MAC quarterback, though, and with the weapons Buffalo retained, this is a chance for Roberson to end his college career on a high note, and a chance for Buffalo to go bowling again.
Central Michigan Chippewas Football Spring Storylines
Who will replace Lukes in the backfield?
Jim McElwain has retired, and Central Michigan has hired Matt Drinkall to replace him. In 2018, Drinkall did lead Kansas Wesleyan to a 13-1 record and a loss in the NAIA semis. While success at lower levels of college football have presaged success at higher levels for the likes of Kalen DeBoer and Lance Leipold, there is a big jump from NAIA to the MAC. More recently, though, Drinkall has been coaching the offensive line at Army, and in 2023 was even the co-offensive coordinator there. Now, that doesn't guarantee Central Michigan is going to run the ball with the enthusiasm of a service academy, but this team has bad options at quarterback. The question is: who replaces star back Marion Lukes, who leaves following graduation. Trey Cornist transfers in from Tulane, where he racked up 22 carries for 149 yards and a touchdown a year ago, and Nahree Biggins could see expanded work as well, assuming he's healthy after suffering a season-ending injury last year. That position group is one worth monitoring in spring ball.
Eastern Michigan Eagles Football Spring Storylines
Who will step up at receiver?
The Eagles have more stability than most in the MAC. Once a lackluster program, Chris Creighton has led them to relative success and is entering his 12th season as head coach. His offensive coordinator Mike Piatkowski is entering his third season. Last year, Eastern Michigan had three receivers finish with over 600 yards. Terry Lockett is returning, but Markus Allen and Oran Singleton are not. So who might step up? Porter Rooks missed all of 2024 with an undisclosed issue after transferring in from North Carolina State. JB Mitchell, who had 35 catches for 398 yards in 2023, only saw the field for 68 snaps last season due to injury. Lastly, Petey Tucker transfers in from Georgia Southern. At least one of them could be primed for a 500-yard season.
Kent State Golden Flashes Football Spring Storylines
Nowhere to go but up!
Kent State was the only FBS team to go 0-12 last season. It finished last in SP+. Kenni Burns has a single win in two seasons as head coach of the Golden Flashes. What kind of silver lining might the Golden Flashes find this spring? Well, both Devin Kargman and JD Sherrod went down with season-ending injuries against Penn State last season. If both are healthy, they can battle Tommy Ulatowski and Fordham transfer CJ Montes for the starting quarterback job. Running back Gavin Garcia missed all of last season with a knee injury as well. It's a lot to ask Kent State to have a viable offense, but at least it won't be as strapped for warm bodies in 2025…I hope.
Massachusetts Minutemen Football Spring Storylines
How will UMass adjust to conference life, and also to a new coaching staff?
Playing a MAC schedule should be easier on UMass than playing as an independent was. The team has a new head coach in Joe Harasymiak, who was defensive coordinator at Rutgers. He scored a coup, by MAC standards, in getting Mike Bajakian in as offensive coordinator. Bajakian has coordinated offenses at Northwestern, Tennessee, and Cincinnati in the past. Last year he started the season as an analyst at Utah but ended it coaching quarterbacks and coordinating the offense. Bajakian brings with him from Utah quarterback Brandon Rose. The sophomore only played in a couple of games due to a foot injury, but he should be the starting for UMass, and he will know the offense. It's just a matter of how healthy he looks this spring.
Miami (OH) RedHawks Football Spring Storylines
Can Miami reload at receiver and running back?
Chuck Martin's team played Northwestern and Cincinnati tough and then went 7-1 in MAC play. While Miami lost in the MAC title game, it then won a bowl to go 9-5. Keyon Mozee, who ran for over 1,000 yards last year, is gone, potentially to be replaced by Kevin Davis or Kenny Tracy, the latter of whom missed all of 2024. Brett Gabbert won't be starting at quarterback, one assumes, but only because Dequan Finn is making his triumphant return to the MAC. His season at Baylor didn't work out, but Finn was a star for three seasons at Toledo. He gives the RedHawks' offense a boost, but somebody will have to step up at receiver. Reggie Vigil and Javon Tracy both had over 800 yards receiving and combined for 16 touchdowns, and both are gone. So is Cade McDonald, who had 631 yards and three scores. Miami does have Deion Colzie transferring in from Notre Dame and Brady Simmons from Indiana. Will either of them have a rapport with Finn? Say, will McDonald have a rapport with a new QB as well?
Northern Illinois Huskies Football Spring Storylines
Are the Huskies stuck in between stations as they await their conference move?
Unless something changes, the Huskies will be a Mountain West team next season. While Northern Illinois lost its starting quarterback and two top receivers to the transfer portal, the program barely brought anybody in. Maybe that's okay when it comes to the Huskies' three-headed rushing attack featuring three players who all had over 100 carries, over 450 yards rushing, and exactly four touchdowns each. However, the top returning receiver is tight end Grayson Barnes, who had 31 catches for 338 yards. Josh Holst is in line to start at quarterback, and he did end his redshirt freshman season throwing for two touchdowns and a pick while rushing for 65 yards against Fresno State in a bowl game. Is that enough to feel excited this spring, though?
Ohio Bobcats Football Spring Storylines
Will a reunion at running back save Ohio's offense?
Tim Albin crushed it at Ohio. Over his final three seasons there he led the Bobcats to a 10-win season each time, and last year he finally won the MAC title. Of course, Albin that used that as a springboard to the Charlotte job. Brian Smith, assistant head coach and offensive coordinator last year, steps up into his role. I'm more concerned about the offense, though. Running back Anthony Tyus rushed for 1,215 yards and nine touchdowns. Quarterback Parker Navarro ran for 1,054 yards and 18 touchdowns. Both are gone. A familiar face returns, though Sieh Bangura barely saw the field for Minnesota, so he has transferred back to Ohio. Over the 2022 and 2023 seasons he carried the ball 400 times for 1,889 yards and 20 touchdowns. Smith was coaching running backs in 2022 and 2023. This reunion will make or break Ohio's offense this season.
Toledo Rockets Football Spring Storylines
Will the Rockets' one key move on offense take the program to the next level?
Toledo is used to competing for the MAC title under Jason Candle, and this year the conference is ripe for the taking. In fact, if the Rockets can upset Kentucky on the road to open the season, which is plausible, an undefeated campaign looks entirely feasible. Quarterback Tucker Gleason, who threw for 24 touchdowns against eight picks and added seven rushing scores, is back. So is Junior Vandeross who had 85 catches for 957 yards. The only play Toledo's offense fell short in 2024 was at running back. Lead back Connor Walendzak had 128 carries for 458 yards and a touchdown. He's back, but he's no longer atop the depth chart. Toledo brought in Chip Trayanum in the transfer portal. He impressed in limited carries early in his career at Arizona State. He got carries with Ohio State in 2022 and 2023, and think about the competition there. Last year he was injured quite a bit with Kentucky. If Trayanum looks healthy and comfortable this spring, he could help Toledo pull off that upset of Kentucky I mentioned, and this could be a season to remember for the program.
Western Michigan Broncos Football Spring Storylines
Is Jalen Buckley ready to step up?
The Broncos bring back their starting quarterback and top three receivers. In terms of notable players lost from the skill positions on offense, only Jaden Nixon stands out. He led Western Michigan with 143 carries for 919 yards and 12 scores. That's impressive, given that it means he averaged 6.4 yards per carry. Fortunately for the Broncos, Buckley was no slouch. He averaged 5.3 yards per carry en route to 683 yards and nine touchdowns. He may see only slightly more touches this season, but more will be asked of him with each touch. With Zahir Abdus-Salaam also gone, there should be a clear path for Buckley to claim the lead role for the Broncos in 2025.
