Mid-American Conference
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The Mid-American Conference is a College Athletic Conference whose members are located mainly in the Midwestern United States; nine of the schools are in Ohio and Michigan alone. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I-A. MAC Headquarters is located in downtown Cleveland, Ohio.
Member Schools
As of June 2006, there are 12 schools with full membership:
| Institution | Location | Founded | Affiliation | Enrollment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| University of Akron | Akron, Ohio | 1870 | Public | 23,292 |
| Ball State University | Muncie, Indiana | 1918 | Public | 20,113 |
| Bowling Green State University | Bowling Green, Ohio | 1910 | Public | 20,200 |
| University at Buffalo | Buffalo, New York | 1846 | Public | 27,000 |
| Central Michigan University | Mount Pleasant, Michigan | 1892 | Public | 27,836 |
| Eastern Michigan University | Ypsilanti, Michigan | 1849 | Public | 25,000 |
| Kent State University | Kent, Ohio | 1910 | Public | 35,458 |
| Miami University | Oxford, Ohio | 1809 | Public | 15,300 |
| Northern Illinois University | DeKalb, Illinois | 1895 | Public | 25,000 |
| Ohio University | Athens, Ohio | 1804 | Public | 28,804 |
| University of Toledo | Toledo, Ohio | 1872 | Public | 19,480 |
| Western Michigan University | Kalamazoo, Michigan | 1903 | Public | 26,239 |
MAC
Membership History
The Mid American Conference charter members were Ohio University, Butler University, University of Cincinnati, Wayne State University and Western Reserve. Wayne State University never participated and quickly bowed out. Butler left after the 1st year. Miami University and Western Michigan University took the place of those charter members for the 1948 season. By the time the University of Cincinnati left after the 1952/53 season, the MAC had already added University of Toledo (1950), Kent State University (1951), and Bowling Green State University (1952).The membership stayed steady for the next couple decades except for addition of Marshall University in 1954. Marshall was kicked out of the conference in 1969. The first major expansion since the 50's took place in the mid seventies with the addition of Northern Illinois University, Ball State University, Eastern Michigan University and Central Michigan University. NIU left after the 1986 season. University of Akron joined the conference in 1992. The conference became the largest Division 1A with the re-admittance of Marshall and NIU and addition of University at Buffalo's Buffalo Bulls in 1997 and 1998 respectively. The University of Central Florida joined in the 2001 to become the MAC first Football Only school to join the conference.
Two schools left the conference after the 2004-05 academic year—Marshall University, an all-sports member, and the University of Central Florida (UCF), a football-only member. Both schools, which played in the MAC East Division, joined Conference USA in all sports.
In May 2005, Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania signed an initial six-year contract with the MAC as a football-only school which will eventually play in the East Division. Over the next three seasons, Temple's schedule of league games will gradually increase: 4 in 2005, 6 in 2006, 8 (a full schedule) in 2007. Due to Temple's partial league schedule in 2005 and 2006, the football program will have only associate membership in the league. According to the league's press release on the matter, Temple will be eligible for one of the league's two bowl tie-ins, and participate in the league's television arrangement, beginning immediately. Eligibility to compete in the MAC Championship Game, however, does not come until 2007. Presumably, this means they are also ineligible to win a Division Championship, although it is conceivable that, with a win percentage equal to or better than that of the best team in the division playing a full league schedule, they could be declared Divisional (co-)champions but ineligible to represent their Division in the Championship Game; the league has not made this distinction clear yet.
IPFW is an affiliate member in tennis and men's soccer. Another affiliate member is Missouri State University in field hockey.
Member schools participate in baseball, men's and women's basketball, men's and women's cross-country, field hockey, American football, men's and women's golf, women's gymnastics, men's and women's soccer, softball, men's and women's swimming, men's and women's tennis, men's and women's track, women's volleyball and wrestling.
The MAC is contracted to provide a team for three college football bowl games—the GMAC Bowl, Motor City Bowl, and the International Bowl. In the event that a Big East team cannot be provided for the newly created Birmingham Bowl, a fourth MAC team is selected.
Conference facilities
| School | Football stadium | Stadium capacity | Basketball arena | Arena capacity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akron | Rubber Bowl | 31,000 | James A. Rhodes Arena | 5,500 |
| Ball State | Scheumann Stadium | 23,500 | John E. Worthen Arena | 11,500 |
| Bowling Green | Doyt Perry Stadium | 23,724 | Anderson Arena | 5,000 |
| Buffalo | University at Buffalo Stadium | 31,000 | Alumni Arena | 6,100 |
| Central Michigan | Kelly/Shorts Stadium | 30,199 | Daniel P. Rose Center | 5,200 |
| Eastern Michigan | Rynearson Stadium | 30,200 | Convocation Center | 8,800 |
| Kent State | Dix Stadium | 30,520 | Memorial Athletic and Convocation Center | 6,327 |
| Miami University | Yager Stadium | 23,000 | Millett Hall | 9,200 |
| Northern Illinois | Huskie Stadium | 31,000 | Convocation Center | 10,000 |
| Ohio | Peden Stadium | 24,000 | Convocation Center | 13,080 |
| Temple | Lincoln Financial Field | 68,532 | Liacouras Center | 10,224 |
| Toledo | Glass Bowl | 26,284 | Savage Hall | 9,000 |
| Western Michigan | Waldo Stadium | 30,100 | University Arena | 5,800 |
Championships
External links
- [Official Athletic Site of the Mid-American Conference]
- [Ohio Sports Time blog - covers all 6 Ohio MAC schools]
- [An all-sport Mid-American Conference Fan forum. Hosting an annual fan poll, ranking the MAC 1-12.]
- [MAC sports fan site]
- [MAC football fans]
- [MAC basketball fans]
- [MAC message board at NCAAbbs.com]
- [MAC sports message boards for each team]
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