The MAC has officially announced that its league members will play a nine-game conference football schedule beginning in 2028.
“College football continues to change, and our responsibility is to make thoughtful decisions that position the Mid-American Conference and our institutions for long-term success,” said MAC Commissioner Dr. Jon Steinbrecher. “Moving to a nine-game Conference schedule provides greater Conference exposure for our programs while maintaining flexibility for meaningful non-conference competition.”
Beginning in 2028, each MAC school will play nine conference games and three non-conference opponents.
“Just as importantly, this decision allows us to continue building a schedule that serves our student-athletes, our institutions, and our fans,” Steinbrecher continued. “The MAC has always valued competition, rivalry and opportunity, and this next step reflects those priorities.”
The Conference will continue working with its membership to develop the nine-game scheduling model, including future opponent rotations and considerations related to competitive balance, geographic rivalries, travel, and home-game opportunities. The move will also provide additional Conference football inventory as the MAC continues to strengthen its national television and media relationships.
“Throughout our history, the MAC has demonstrated the ability to adapt thoughtfully while preserving the traditions and rivalries that define our Conference,” Steinbrecher added. “This move is consistent with that approach and represents another step in strengthening the student-athlete and institutional experience across the league.”
Looking at future MAC schedules, the following schools will need to cancel at least one non-conference game: Akron (one each in 2028 through 2030), Buffalo (one each in 2028 and 2029), Eastern Michigan (one each in 2028 and 2030), and UMass (one in 2028).
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So at least one team will have to play 8 every year if they stay with 13 schools. I wonder if Sac State will always play 8 due to the travel. Also wonder if other G6 conferences will follow suit.
Call me wrong for this, but the MAC and the American are the only conferences I see moving forward with a 9 game conference schedule.
C-USA and Sun Belt have always filled in P4's Non-Conference schedules,
MW and Pac-12 have too few members to play 9 conference games (I don't think Hawaii wants to round robin especially)
American still at 8
@John Furgele, I meant that the American will definitely consider moving to 9 conference games, since they are the premier G6 conference, and would want to compete with the P5 giants
The SBC could adopt a 9-game conference schedule if it added Eastern Kentucky to the East Division and McNeese to the West Division which would mean 7 division games and 2 cross-division games.
My thoughts about the MW and Pac-12 are in a reply to another comment.
What makes you think EKU and/or McNeese want to move up Z-man? Is all this coming out of the same pipeline where your adding 14 more teams to the BSC?
What's the difference if Hawaii has one more conference game or travels to the mainland of an OOC game? It's probably less travel for them if they play another conference game, wouldn't you think?
JM, it's all about money.
Z-man, you don't even know what you said. If everyone here concedes your point it all about money, where does all the money come from to finance your proposals? You can't see that you don't have the first clue what it takes to do all of these things, they should just magically fall into place because you want it that way.
A 9-game schedule would be more effective for the MAC if it added Illinois State and Youngstown State as full members and UConn as a football-only member.
The 16 teams would be organized into pods as follows:
Akron, Illinois State, Kent State, Youngstown State
Ball State, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Western Michigan
Bowling Green, Miami (OH), Ohio, Toledo
Buffalo, Sacramento State, UConn, UMass
The following games would be played on Thanksgiving weekend:
Akron-Kent State
Ball State-Western Michigan
Bowling Green-Toledo
Buffalo-Sacramento State
Central Michigan-Eastern Michigan
Illinois State-Youngstown State
Miami (OH)-Ohio
UConn-UMass
Each team's conference schedule would consist of the teams in their pod, and one pair from each of the other pods according to the Thanksgiving weekend schedule.
Cleveland State and Robert Morris would be brought in as non-football members to offset Sac State and UConn being football only.
This is an excellent format for the MAC if wants to expand to 16 schools! It keeps UConn in the Big East for all non-football sports and allows Sacramento State to do the same in the Big West. Nice going! :)
Under my proposal, Sac State and UConn would remain in MAC football until better conference realignment opportunities arise.
Sac State has its eyes on the MW or Pac-12.
UConn has its eyes on the ACC or Big 12.
Once those schools achieve their dreams, new football-only members would be brought into the MAC to replace them.
As far the MW goes, they can add New Mexico State as a full member with football, North Dakota as football-only, and UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara (both of which are currently planning on joining the WCC but would be better fits in the MW), and Point Loma (a D2 school which has made multiple men's D2 hoops tourneys in recent years) as non-football members.
The MW can do a 7-game conference schedule for football with 3 protected opponents and 4 rotating on a 4-year schedule as follows:
Air Force: New Mexico, New Mexico State, Wyoming
Hawaii: Nevada, San Jose State, UNLV
Nevada: Hawaii, San Jose State, UNLV
New Mexico: Air Force, New Mexico State, UTEP
New Mexico State: Air Force, New Mexico, UTEP
North Dakota: North Dakota State, Northern Illinois, Wyoming
North Dakota State: North Dakota, Northern Illinois, Wyoming
Northern Illinois: North Dakota, North Dakota State, UTEP
San Jose State: Hawaii, Nevada, UNLV
UNLV: Hawaii, Nevada, San Jose State
UTEP: New Mexico, New Mexico State, Northern Illinois
Wyoming: Air Force, North Dakota, North Dakota State
These games would be played on Thanksgiving weekend:
Air Force-Wyoming
Hawaii-San Jose State
Nevada-UNLV
New Mexico-New Mexico State
North Dakota-North Dakota State
Northern Illinois-UTEP
The 7-game conference schedule would placate both Hawaii and Air Force. For the former it ends any chance at a 9-game round robin and the latter could now schedule 3-4 non conference games outside of annual games against Army and Navy (it can only schedule 4 in years they play at Hawaii).
The Pac-12 should have an 8-game conference schedule by playing the following games twice each year:
Boise State-Utah State
Colorado State-Texas State
Fresno State-San Diego State
Oregon State-Washington State
The second game of each series would always be played on Thanksgiving weekend.
I would not mind another west coast added to MAC & Cal Poly Mustangs would make an excellent fit.
This is only a suggestion.
@Dan NW-IL-MI Cal Poly will never be FBS, buddy. They arent there yet
It is a good step to play 9 conference games, but what I would like to see, is conferences, especially the larger ones go to a 10 game conference, because the more conference games you play, the better the chances that the top teams will play each other, then we will know exactly who would be in the conference championship games. Sure you still may have a few tie breakers to deal with, but with more head to head competition, the better it would be. I would like to to see the Big 10 show nice it has 18 schools, go to 10 conference games, while in basketball go to at least 22 conference games.
They should all play 10
No more FCS games
Sorry FCS ...If you need those money games, then you're probably better off dropping football
I don't know why you're blaming FCS schools when it's FBS schools that like to schedule 1 FCS game a season so that they can have 7 (in the case of most P4 schools) or 6 (in the case of G6 schools who take a buy game at a P4 school to get paid) home games a season.
Drop football? Then they are dropping all athletics.
Clearly, you don't understand the value of collegiate athletics.
Illinois needs Southeast Missouri
Northwestern needs Illinois State
&
Georgia needs West Georgia
I agree with Jtk1's point about 10 Conference games for the 18 member B$GTrust Conf. Maybe the 17.5 Member ACC would benefit more from 10 Games than 9?
I agree John Furgele.
I respectfully disagree, Richard.
The Top FCS Playoff Title Game Champions & Runners Up: N.Dakota SU, MTSU, S.Dakota SU, UMT, Sam Houston SU, J.MadisonU, IL StateU. don't schedule $$ Games to keep their Franchises prospering.
I will post the link of 2026 Championship Division Unis. scheduling 2 $$ Games.
They don't make the 24 Berth Playoff in a winning year.
https://herosports.com/fcs-2026-teams-playing-multiple-fbs-opponents-bzbz/
Playing schools (and now even more) from the MAC is of no value to Toledo Fans......
PLEASE PLEASE do Toledo a HUGE favor and kick Toledo out of the MAC!!!!!!!!