2022 Mid-American Conference football season

The 2022 Mid-American Conference football season was the 77th season for the Mid-American Conference (MAC), as part of the 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The season began on September 1 and concluded with its conference championship game on Saturday, December 3 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan.^[1] Ohio won the East Division with a conference record of 7–1 and Toledo won the West Division with a 5–3 conference record. Toledo won the championship over Ohio by a final score of 17–7.^[2]

2022 Mid-American Conference football season
League	NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision
Sport	Football
Duration	September 1 - December 3
Number of teams	12
2023 NFL draft
Top draft pick	OG Sidy Sow, Eastern Michigan
Picked by	New England Patriots, 117th overall
Regular season
Season MVP	Kurtis Rourke
East Division champions	Ohio
West Division champions	Toledo
MAC Championship Game
Champions	Toledo
Runners-up	Ohio
Finals MVP	Dequan Finn (offense) and Dyontae Johnson (defense)

2022 Mid-American Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
Ohio xy		7	–	1					10	–	4
Buffalo		5	–	3					7	–	6
Bowling Green		5	–	3					6	–	7
Miami (OH)		4	–	4					6	–	7
Kent State		4	–	4					5	–	7
Akron		1	–	7					2	–	10
West Division
Toledo xy$		5	–	3					9	–	5
Eastern Michigan x		5	–	3					9	–	4
Western Michigan		4	–	4					5	–	7
Ball State		3	–	5					5	–	7
Central Michigan		3	–	5					4	–	8
Northern Illinois		2	–	6					3	–	9
Championship: Toledo 17, Ohio 7
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Preseason

Preseason polls

Media Poll

On July 26 the MAC announced the preseason media poll. Defending MAC champion Northern Illinois was named the preseason favorite.^[3]

East
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Miami	139 (20)
2	Kent State	116 (3)
3	Buffalo	78
4	Ohio	72
5	Bowling Green	71 (1)
6	Akron	28

West
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Northern Illinois	122 (11)
2	Toledo	120 (9)
3	Central Michigan	112 (4)
4	Western Michigan	56
5	Eastern Michigan	52
6	Ball State	42

Media poll (MAC Championship)
Rank	Team	Votes
1	Northern Illinois	9
2	Toledo	6
3	Miami	5
3	Central Michigan	4

Coaches Poll

On August 29 the MAC released the coaches poll. Defending champion Northern Illinois was favored to win the west while Kent State was selected as a slight favorite to win the East. Northern Illinois received 4 of the 12 MAC championship votes.^[4]

East
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Kent State	61 (5)
2	Miami	60 (6)
3	Buffalo	43
4	Bowling Green	36 (1)
5	Ohio	35
6	Akron	16

West
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Northern Illinois	61 (6)
2	Toledo	51
3	Central Michigan	50 (2)
4	Western Michigan	45 (3)
5	Eastern Michigan	24
6	Ball State	21 (1)

Coaches poll (MAC Championship)
Rank	Team	Votes
1	Northern Illinois	4
2	Kent State	3
3	Miami	2
3	Western Michigan	2
5	Ball State	1

Individual Award Preseason Watchlists

Award Head Coach/Player School Position Ref Lott Trophy none [5] Dodd Trophy none [6] Maxwell Award Dequan Finn Toledo QB [7] Brett Gabbert Miami QB Hassan Beydoun Eastern Michigan WR Marquez Cooper Kent State WR Lew Nichols III Central Michigan RB Sean Tyler Western Michigan RB Davey O'Brien Award Brett Gabbert Miami QB [8] Doak Walker Award Lew Nichols III Central Michigan RB [9] Sean Tyler Western Michigan RB Samson Evans Eastern Michigan RB Antario Brown Northern Illinois RB Harrison Waylee Northern Illinois RB Biletnikoff Award Hassan Beydoun Eastern Michigan WR [10] Dante Cephas Kent State WR Jayshon Jackson Ball State WR Quain Williams Buffalo WR Trayvon Rudolph Northern Illinois WR John Mackey Award Kris Leach Kent State TE [11] Christian Sims Bowling Green TE Rimington Trophy Jacob Gideon Western Michigan C [12] Butkus Award Darren Anders Bowling Green LB [13] James Patterson Buffalo LB Jim Thorpe Award CJ Brown Northern Illinois S [14] Jordan Anderson Bowling Green S Dorian Jackson Western Michigan CB

Award Head Coach/Player School Position Ref Bronko Nagurski Trophy CJ Brown Northern Illinois S [15] Darren Anders Bowling Green LB James Patterson Buffalo LB Jamal Hines Toledo LB Outland Trophy Desjuan Johnson Toledo DT [16] Nolan Potte Northern Illinois T Sidy Sow Eastern Michigan T Daymond Williams Buffalo DT Lou Groza Award John Richardson Northern Illinois K [17] Ray Guy Award Dom Dzioban Miami P [18] Luke Elzinga Central Michigan P Nick Mihalic Western Michigan P Paul Hornung Award Hassan Beydoun Eastern Michigan WR [19] Ron Cook Jr. Buffalo RB Devin Maddox Toledo WR Trayvon Rudolph Northern Illinois WR Sean Tyler Western Michigan RB Jalen Walker Miami WR Wuerffel Trophy Brandon Martin Ball State LB [20] Austin Osborne Bowling Green WR Matt McDonald Bowling Green QB Max Michel Buffalo LB Tariq Speights Eastern Michigan LB Isaac Vance Kent State WR Nick Rattin Northern Illinois LB Mitchell Berg Toledo OL Boone Bonnema Western Michigan LB

Award Head Coach/Player School Position Ref Walter Camp Award Dante Cephas Kent State WR [21] Brett Gabbert Miami QB Lew Nichols III Central Michigan RB Bednarik Award James Patterson Buffalo LB [22] CJ Brown Northern Illinois S Jose Ramirez Eastern Michigan DL Jamal Hines Toledo LB Rotary Lombardi Award Darren Anders Bowling Green LB [23] Jamal Hines Toledo LB Patrick Mannelly Award none [24] Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Polynesian College Football Player Of The Year Award [25] Manning Award Brett Gabbert Miami QB [26] Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Dequan Finn Toledo QB [27] Rocky Lombardi Northern Illinois QB Daniel Richardson Central Michigan QB Kurtis Rourke Ohio QB Ted Hendricks Award

Head Coaches

• On November 4, 2021, Akron fired head coach Tom Arth after posting a 3–24 record during his tenure with the school.^[28] The school hired Oregon offensive coordinator Joe Moorhead as the new head coach for the 2022 season.^[29]

Team	Head coach	Previous Job	Years at school	Overall record	MAC record	MAC titles
Akron	Joe Moorhead	Oregon (Off. Coordinator)	1	52–25 (.675)	0–0 (–)	0
Ball State	Mike Neu	New Orleans Saints (QB Coach)	7	28–41 (.406)	17–29 (.370)	1
Bowling Green	Scot Loeffler	Boston College (Off. Coordinator/QB Coach)	4	7–22 (.241)	4–17 (.190)	0
Buffalo	Maurice Linguist	Michigan (Co def. coordinator)	2	4–8 (.333)	2–6 (.250)	0
Central Michigan	Jim McElwain	Florida	4	64–40 (.615)	15–7 (.682)	0
Eastern Michigan	Chris Creighton	Drake	9	176–103 (.631)	22–40 (.355)	0
Kent State	Sean Lewis	Syracuse (Co Off. Coordinator)	4	19–24 (.442)	15–13 (.536)	0
Miami	Chuck Martin	Notre Dame (Off. Coordinator/QB Coach)	8	113–59 (.657)	33–26 (.559)	1
Northern Illinois	Thomas Hammock	Baltimore Ravens (running backs coach)	4	14–18 (.438)	10–12 (.455)	1
Ohio	Tim Albin	Ohio (Associate Head Coach)	2	28–17 (.622)	3–5 (.375)	0
Toledo	Jason Candle	Toledo (Off. Coordinator)	7	45–27 (.625)	30–16 (.652)	1
Western Michigan	Tim Lester	Purdue (QB Coach)	6	62–48 (.564)	22–16 (.579)	0

Post-season changes

• On November 28, Western Michigan announced that they had fired head coach Tim Lester. Lester posted a record of 37–32 over six years at the school.^[30] On December 8, Western Michigan announced that they had hired Louisville offensive coordinator Lance Taylor to be the new head coach.^[31]
• On December 5, Kent State head coach Sean Lewis was announced as the new offensive coordinator at Colorado in the Pac-12 conference. On December 14, Kent State announced Kenni Burns as the new head coach for the 2023 season.^[32]

^{[33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41][42][43]}

Rankings

Main article: 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings

		Pre	Wk 1	Wk 2	Wk 3	Wk 4	Wk 5	Wk 6	Wk 7	Wk 8	Wk 9	Wk 10	Wk 11	Wk 12	Wk 13	Wk 14	Final
Akron	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Ball State	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Bowling Green	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Buffalo	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Central Michigan	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Eastern Michigan	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Kent State	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Miami	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Northern Illinois	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released
Ohio	AP														RV
	C																RV
	CFP	Not released
Toledo	AP
	C												RV
	CFP	Not released
Western Michigan	AP
	C
	CFP	Not released

Legend

		Improvement in ranking
		Drop in ranking
		Not ranked previous week
		No change in ranking from previous week
RV		Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll
т		Tied with team above or below also with this symbol

Schedule

The schedule for the 2022 MAC football season was released on February 25, 2022.^[1]

Index to colors and formatting
MAC member won
MAC member lost
MAC teams in bold

All times Eastern time.

Week 1

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
September 1	6:00 p.m.	Saint Francis (PA)	Akron	InfoCision Stadium • Akron, OH	ESPN3	W 30–23 OT	8,752
September 1	7:00 p.m.	Central Michigan	No. 12 Oklahoma State	Boone Pickens Stadium • Stillwater, OK	FS1	L 44–58	53,808
September 1	7:00 p.m.	Ball State	Tennessee	Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN	SECN	L 10–59	92,236
September 1	7:00 p.m.	LIU	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH	ESPN3	W 37–0	21,291
September 1	8:00 p.m.	Eastern Illinois	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, IL	ESPN+	W 34–27	10,864
September 2	7:00 p.m.	Eastern Kentucky	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI	ESPN3	W 42–34	16,531
September 2	7:00 p.m.	Western Michigan	No. 15 Michigan State	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	ESPN	L 13–35	73,928
September 3	12:00 p.m.	Buffalo	Maryland	Maryland Stadium • College Park, MD	BTN	L 10–31	30,223
September 3	2:30 p.m.	Bowling Green	UCLA	Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA	P12N	L 17–45	27,143
September 3	6:00 p.m.	Florida Atlantic	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH	ESPN+	W 41–38	20,003
September 3	7:00 p.m.	Miami (OH)	No. 20 Kentucky	Kroger Field • Lexington, KY	ESPN+/SEC+	L 13–37	61,139
September 3	10:30 p.m.	Kent State	Washington	Husky Stadium • Seattle, WA	FS1	L 20–45	56,112
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 2

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
September 10	12:00 p.m.	Ohio	Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA	ABC	L 10–46	107,306
September 10	1:00 p.m.	South Alabama	Central Michigan	Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI	ESPN+	L 24–38	17,205
September 10	2:00 p.m.	Western Michigan	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN	ESPN+	WMU 37–30	12,972
September 10	4:00 p.m.	Akron	No. 14 Michigan State	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	BTN	L 0–52	70,079
September 10	4:00 p.m.	Eastern Kentucky	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH	ESPN3	L 57–59 7OT	17,376
September 10	6:00 p.m.	No. 15 (FCS) Holy Cross	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Buffalo, NY	ESPN+	L 31–37	16,933
September 10	6:00 p.m.	Robert Morris	Miami (OH)	Yager Stadium • Oxford, OH	ESPN3	W 31–14	9,828
September 10	7:00 p.m.	Kent State	No. 7 Oklahoma	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	ESPN+	L 3–33	83,911
September 10	7:00 p.m.	UMass	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH	ESPN+	W 55–10	20,147
September 10	7:00 p.m.	Northern Illinois	Tulsa	H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK	ESPN+	L 35–38	22,113
September 10	7:00 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	Louisiana	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	NFLN	L 21–49	15,352
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 3

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
September 17	12:00 p.m.	Cincinnati	Miami (OH)	Paycor Stadium • Cincinnati, OH (Victory Bell)	ESPNU	L 17–38	30,109
September 17	12:00 p.m.	LIU	Kent State	Dix Stadium • Kent, OH	ESPN3	W 63–10	15,452
September 17	1:00 p.m.	Buffalo	Coastal Carolina	Brooks Stadium • Conway, SC	ESPN+	L 26–38	13,372
September 17	1:00 p.m.	Bucknell	Central Michigan	Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI	ESPN3	W 41–0	21,554
September 17	2:00 p.m.	Ohio	Iowa State	Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA	ESPN+/B12N	L 10–43	58,138
September 17	2:00 p.m.	Murray State	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN	ESPN+	W 31–0	14,413
September 17	3:30 p.m.	Vanderbilt	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, IL	CBSSN	L 28–38	14,110
September 17	5:00 p.m.	Marshall	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH	NFLN	W 34–31 OT	21,158
September 17	7:00 p.m.	Toledo	No. 3 Ohio State	Ohio Stadium • Columbus, OH	FOX	L 21–77	105,398
September 17	7:00 p.m.	Akron	No. 15 Tennessee	Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN	ESPN+/SECN	L 6–63	101,915
September 17	7:30 p.m.	No. 23 Pittsburgh	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI	ESPNU	L 13–34	22,875
September 17	11:00 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	Arizona State	Sun Devil Stadium • Tempe, AZ	P12N	W 30–21	43,788
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 4

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
September 24	12:00 p.m.	Kent State	No. 1 Georgia	Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA	ESPN+/SECN	L 22–39	92,746
September 24	12:00 p.m.	Central Michigan	No. 14 Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA	BTN	L 14–33	106,624
September 24	12:00 p.m.	Bowling Green	Mississippi State	Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, MS	SECN	L 14–45	48,376
September 24	12:00 p.m.	Buffalo	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI	CBSSN	UB 50–31	14,524
September 24	2:00 p.m.	Fordham	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH	ESPN+	W 59–52	19.024
September 24	3:30 p.m.	Toledo	San Diego State	Snapdragon Stadium • San Diego, CA	FS1	L 14–17	27,108
September 24	6:00 p.m.	Akron	Liberty	Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, VA	ESPN+	L 12–21	20,004
September 24	6:00 p.m.	Ball State	Georgia Southern	Paulson Stadium • Statesboro, GA	ESPN+	L 23–34	18,434
September 24	7:00 p.m.	Northern Illinois	No. 8 Kentucky	Kroger Field • Lexington, KY	ESPN2	L 23–31	61,579
September 24	7:30 p.m.	Miami (OH)	Northwestern	Ryan Field • Evanston, IL	BTN	W 17–14	23,773
September 24	10:30 p.m.	Western Michigan	San Jose State	CEFCU Stadium • San Jose, CA	CBSSN	L 6–34	17,058
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 5

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
October 1	2:00 p.m.	Northern Illinois	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN (Bronze Stalk Trophy)	ESPN+	BSU 44–38 2OT	10,012
October 1	2:00 p.m.	UMass	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI	ESPN+	W 20–13	16,478
October 1	3:30 p.m.	Central Michigan	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH	NFLN	TOL 38–17	22,273
October 1	3:30 p.m.	Bowling Green	Akron	InfoCision Stadium • Akron, OH	ESPN+	BGSU 31–28	8,093
October 1	3:30 p.m.	Miami (OH)	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Buffalo, NY	ESPNU	UB 24–20	18,615
October 1	3:30 p.m.	Ohio	Kent State	Dix Stadium • Kent, OH	ESPN+	KSU 31–24 OT	20,392
October 1	6:00 p.m.	New Hampshire	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI	ESPN3	W 44–7	20,119
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 6

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
October 8	12:00 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI (Michigan MAC Trophy)	CBSSN	EMU 45–23	10,876
October 8	12:00 p.m.	Buffalo	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH	ESPN+	UB 38–7	8,724
October 8	2:00 p.m.	Akron	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH	ESPN3	OHIO 55–34	23,108
October 8	3:30 p.m.	Kent State	Miami (OH)	Yager Stadium • Oxford, OH	ESPN+	M-OH 27–24	14,366
October 8	3:30 p.m.	Ball State	Central Michigan	Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI	ESPN+	BSU 17–16	22,305
October 8	3:30 p.m.	Toledo	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, IL	ESPN+	TOL 52–32	12,682
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 7

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
October 15	12:00 p.m.	Central Michigan	Akron	InfoCision Stadium • Akron, OH	ESPN+	CMU 28–21	14,814
October 15	12:00 p.m.	Miami (OH)	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH	ESPN+	BGSU 17–13	7,841
October 15	1:00 p.m.	Buffalo	UMass	Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium • Amherst, MA	ESPN3	W 34–7	13,378
October 15	2:00 p.m.	UConn	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN	ESPN3	W 25–21	10,006
October 15	3:30 p.m.	Northern Illinois	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI	ESPN+	NIU 39–10	15,100
October 15	3:30 p.m.	Kent State	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH	ESPN+	TOL 52–31	19,139
October 15	3:30 p.m.	Ohio	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI	CBSSN	OHIO 33–14	20,320
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 8

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
October 22	12:00 p.m.	Akron	Kent State	Dix Stadium • Kent, OH (Wagon Wheel)	ESPN+	KSU 33–27	20,472
October 22	1:00 p.m.	Toledo	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Buffalo, NY	ESPN+	UB 34–27	14,190
October 22	1:00 p.m.	Bowling Green	Central Michigan	Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI	ESPN3	BGSU 34–18	14,676
October 22	2:00 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN	ESPN+	EMU 20–16	15,698
October 22	2:00 p.m.	Northern Illinois	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH	ESPN+	OHIO 24–17	15,922
October 22	3:30 p.m.	Western Michigan	Miami (OH)	Yager Stadium • Oxford, OH	CBSSN	WMU 16–10	21,618
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 9

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
October 29	12:00 p.m.	Toledo	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI	ESPNU	TOL 27–24	14,270
October 29	12:00 p.m.	Miami (OH)	Akron	InfoCision Stadium • Akron, OH	ESPN+	M-OH 27–9	11,749
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 10

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
November 1	7:00 p.m.	Ball State	Kent State	Dix Stadium • Kent, OH	ESPNU	BSU 27–20	6,455
November 1	7:30 p.m.	Buffalo	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH	ESPN2	OHIO 45–24	16,401
November 2	7:00 p.m.	Central Michigan	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, IL	ESPNU	CMU 35–22	6,055
November 2	7:00 p.m.	Western Michigan	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH	ESPN2	BGSU 13–9	7,589
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 11

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
November 8	7:00 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	Akron	InfoCision Stadium • Akron, OH	CBSSN	EMU 37–21	12,589
November 8	7:30 p.m.	Ohio	Miami (OH)	Yager Stadium • Oxford, OH (Battle of the Bricks)	ESPN2	OHIO 37–21	15,490
November 8	8:00 p.m.	Ball State	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH	ESPN	TOL 28–21	14,462
November 9	7:00 p.m.	Buffalo	Central Michigan	Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI	ESPN2	CMU 31-27	9,103
November 9	7:00 p.m.	Kent State	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH (Anniversary Award)	CBSSN	KSU 40–6	7,291
November 9	7:00 p.m.	Northern Illinois	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI	ESPNU	NIU 24-21	8,722
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 12

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
November 15	7:00 p.m.	Bowling Green	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH (Battle of I-75)	ESPNU	BGSU 42–35	20,027
November 15	7:00 p.m.	Ohio	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN	ESPN2	OHIO 32–18	6,722
November 16	6:00 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	Kent State	Dix Stadium • Kent, OH	ESPN2	EMU 31–24	3,998
November 16	7:00 p.m.	Miami (OH)	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, IL	CBSSN	M-OH 29–23	5,187
November 16	8:00 p.m.	Western Michigan	Central Michigan	Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI (rivalry, Michigan MAC Trophy)	ESPNU	WMU 12–10	10,097
December 2	1:00 p.m.	Akron	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Buffalo, NY	ESPN+	UB 23–22	12,247
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Week 13

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
November 22	7:00 p.m.	Ball State	Miami (OH)	Yager Stadium • Oxford, OH (Red Bird Rivalry)	ESPN+	M-OH 18-17	14,021
November 22	7:00 p.m.	Bowling Green	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH	ESPNU	OHIO 38-14	11,693
November 25	12:00 p.m.	Central Michigan	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI (rivalry, Michigan MAC Trophy)	CBSSN	EMU 38–19	14,213
November 25	12:00 p.m.	Toledo	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI	ESPNU	WMU 20–14	8,645
November 26	1:00 p.m.	Kent State	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Buffalo, NY	ESPN+	KSU 30–27 OT	12,302
November 26	1:30 p.m.	Akron	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, IL	ESPN3	AKR 44–12	6,288
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

MAC Conference Championship Game

Main article: 2022 MAC Championship Game

Date	Time	Visiting team	Home team	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Ref.
December 3	12:00 p.m.	Ohio	Toledo	Ford Field • Detroit, MI	ESPN	TOL 17–7	15,550
#Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time.

Postseason

Bowl Games

See also: 2022–23 NCAA football bowl games

The MAC finished with a 4–2 bowl record which was good enough to win the Bowl Challenge Cup^[44][45]

Legend
	MAC Win
	MAC Loss

Bowl game	Date	Site	Television	Time (EST)	MAC team	Opponent	Score	Attendance
Bahamas Bowl	December 16	Thomas Robinson Stadium • Nassau, Bahamas	ESPN	11:30 a.m.	Miami (OH)	UAB	L 20–24	12,172
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl	December 20	Albertsons Stadium • Boise, ID	ESPN	3:30 p.m.	Eastern Michigan	San Jose State	W 41–27	10,122
Boca Raton Bowl	December 20	FAU Stadium • Boca Raton, FL	ESPN	7:30 p.m.	Toledo	Liberty	W 21–19	20,622
Quick Lane Bowl	December 26	Ford Field • Detroit, MI	ESPN	2:30 p.m.	Bowling Green	New Mexico State	L 19–24	22,987
Camellia Bowl	December 27	Cramton Bowl • Montgomery, AL	ESPN	12:00 p.m.	Buffalo	Georgia Southern	W 23–21	15,322
Arizona Bowl	December 30	Arizona Stadium • Tucson, AZ	Barstool Sports	4:30 p.m.	Ohio	Wyoming	W 30–27 OT

Selection of teams

• Bowl eligible (6): Bowling Green, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan, Miami (OH), Ohio, Toledo
• Bowl ineligible (6): Akron, Ball State, Central Michigan, Kent State, Northern Illinois, Western Michigan

MAC records vs. other conferences

2022–2023 records against non-conference foes:

Regular season Power Five Conferences Record ACC 0–1 Big 12 0–3 Big Ten 1–6 BYU/Notre Dame 0–0 Pac-12 1–2 SEC 0–7 Power 5 Total 2–19 Other FBS Conferences Record American 0–2 C–USA 1–0 Independents (Excluding BYU/Notre Dame) 4–1 Mountain West 0–2 Sun Belt 1–4 Other FBS Total 6–9 FCS Opponents Record Football Championship Subdivision 10–2 Total Non-Conference Record 18–30

Postseason Power Five Conferences Record ACC 0–0 Big 12 0–0 Big Ten 0–0 BYU/Notre Dame 0–0 Pac-12 0–0 SEC 0–0 Power 5 Total 0–0 Other FBS Conferences Record American 0–0 C–USA 0–1 Independents (Excluding BYU/Notre Dame) 1–1 Mountain West 2–0 Sun Belt 1–0 Other FBS Total 4–2 Total Bowl Record 4–2

Mid-American vs Power 5 matchups

This is a list of games the MAC has scheduled versus power conference teams (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12, BYU, Notre Dame and SEC). All rankings are from the current AP Poll at the time of the game.

Date	Conference	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
September 1	Big 12	Central Michigan	No. 12 Oklahoma State	Boone Pickens Stadium • Stillwater, OK	L 44–58
September 1	SEC	Ball State	Tennessee	Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN	L 10–59
September 2	Big Ten	Western Michigan	No. 15 Michigan State	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	L 13–35
September 3	Pac-12	Bowling Green	UCLA	Rose Bowl • Pasadena, CA	L 17–45
September 3	Big Ten	Buffalo	Maryland	Maryland Stadium • College Park, MD	L 10–31
September 3	Pac-12	Kent State	Washington	Husky Stadium • Seattle, WA	L 20–45
September 3	SEC	Miami (OH)	No. 20 Kentucky	Kroger Field • Lexington, KY	L 13–37
September 10	Big Ten	Akron	No. 14 Michigan State	Spartan Stadium • East Lansing, MI	L 0–52
September 10	Big 12	Kent State	No. 7 Oklahoma	Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK	L 3–33
September 10	Big Ten	Ohio	Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA	L 10–46
September 17	SEC	Akron	No. 15 Tennessee	Neyland Stadium • Knoxville, TN	L 6–63
September 17	Pac-12	Eastern Michigan	Arizona State	Sun Devil Stadium • Tempe, AZ	W 30–21
September 17	SEC	Vanderbilt	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, IL	L 28–38
September 17	Big 12	Ohio	Iowa State	Jack Trice Stadium • Ames, IA	L 10–43
September 17	Big Ten	Toledo	No. 3 Ohio State	Ohio Stadium • Columbus, OH	L 21–77
September 17	ACC	No. 23 Pittsburgh	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI	L 13–34
September 24	SEC	Bowling Green	Mississippi State	Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, MS	L 14–45
September 24	Big Ten	Central Michigan	No. 14 Penn State	Beaver Stadium • University Park, PA	L 14–33
September 24	SEC	Kent State	No. 1 Georgia	Sanford Stadium • Athens, GA	L 22–39
September 24	Big Ten	Miami (OH)	Northwestern	Ryan Field • Evanston, IL	W 17–14
September 24	SEC	Northern Illinois	No. 8 Kentucky	Kroger Field • Lexington, KY	L 23–31

Mid-American vs Group of Five matchups

The following games include MAC teams competing against teams from the American, C-USA, Mountain West or Sun Belt.

Date	Conference	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
September 3	C-USA	Florida Atlantic	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH	W 41–38
September 10	Sun Belt	South Alabama	Central Michigan	Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI	L 24–38
September 10	Sun Belt	Eastern Michigan	Louisiana	Cajun Field • Lafayette, LA	L 21–49
September 10	American	Northern Illinois	Tulsa	H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK	L 35–38
September 17	Sun Belt	Marshall	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH	W 34–31 OT
September 17	Sun Belt	Buffalo	Coastal Carolina	Brooks Stadium • Conway, SC	L 26–38
September 17	American	Cincinnati	Miami (OH)	Paul Brown Stadium • Cincinnati, OH (Victory Bell)	L 17–38
September 24	Sun Belt	Ball State	Georgia Southern	Paulson Stadium • Statesboro, GA	L 23–34
September 24	Mountain West	Toledo	San Diego State	Snapdragon Stadium • San Diego, CA	L 14–17
September 24	Mountain West	Western Michigan	San Jose State	CEFCU Stadium • San Jose, CA	L 6–34

Mid-American vs FBS independents matchups

The following games include MAC teams competing against FBS Independents, which includes Army, Liberty, New Mexico State, UConn, or UMass.

Date	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
September 10	UMass	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH	W 55–10
September 24	Akron	Liberty	Williams Stadium • Lynchburg, VA	L 12–21
October 1	UMass	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI	W 20–13
October 15	UConn	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN	W 25–21
October 15	Buffalo	UMass	Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium • Amherst, MA	W 34–7

Mid-American vs. FCS matchups

The following games include MAC teams competing against FCS schools.

Date	Visitor	Home	Site	Score
September 1	St. Francis	Akron	InfoCision Stadium • Akron, OH	W 30–23 OT
September 1	Eastern Illinois	Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium • DeKalb, IL	W 34–27
September 1	LIU	Toledo	Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH	W 37–0
September 2	Eastern Kentucky	Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium • Ypsilanti, MI	W 42–34
September 10	Eastern Kentucky	Bowling Green	Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH	L 57–59 7OT
September 10	Holy Cross	Buffalo	UB Stadium • Buffalo, NY	L 31–37
September 10	Robert Morris	Miami (OH)	Yager Stadium • Oxford, OH	W 31–14
September 17	Murray State	Ball State	Scheumann Stadium • Muncie, IN	W 31–0
September 17	Bucknell	Central Michigan	Kelly/Shorts Stadium • Mount Pleasant, MI	W 41–0
September 17	LIU	Kent State	Dix Stadium • Kent, OH	W 63–10
September 24	Fordham	Ohio	Peden Stadium • Athens, OH	W 59–52
October 1	New Hampshire	Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium • Kalamazoo, MI	W 44–7

Head to head matchups

2022 MAC Head to head
Team	Akron	Ball State	Buffalo	Bowling Green	Central Michigan	Eastern Michigan	Kent State	Miami	Northern Illinois	Ohio	Toledo	Western Michigan
Akron	—	—	22–23	28–31	21–28	28–34	27–33	9–27	44–12	34–55	—	—
Ball State	—	—	—	—	17–16	16–20	27–20	17–18	44–38	14–38	21–28	30–37
Buffalo	23–22	—	—	38–7	27–31	50–31	27–30	24–20	—	24–45	34–27	—
Bowling Green	31–28	—	7–38	—	34–18	—	6–40	17–13	—	14–38	42–35	13–9
Central Michigan	28–21	16–17	31–27	18–34	—	19–38	—	—	35–22	—	17–38	10–12
Eastern Michigan	34–28	20–16	31–50	—	38–19	—	31–24	—	10–39	—	24–27	45–23
Kent State	33–27	20–27	30–27	40–6	—	24–31	—	24–27	—	31–24	31–52	—
Miami	27–9	18–17	20–24	13–17	—	—	27–24	—	29–23	21–37	—	10–16
Northern Illinois	12–44	38–44	—	—	22–35	39–10	—	23–29	—	17–24	32–52	24–21
Ohio	55–34	32–18	45–24	38–14	—	—	24–31	37–21	24–17	—	—	33–14
Toledo	—	28–21	27–34	35–42	38–17	27–24	52–31	—	52–32	—	—	14–20
Western Michigan	—	37–30	—	9–13	12–10	23–45	—	16–10	21–24	14–33	20–14	—

Updated with the results of all games through December 3, 2022.

Awards and honors

Player of the week honors

East Division

Week		Offensive				Defensive				Special Teams
		Player	Team	Position		Player	Team	Position		Player	Team	Position
Week 1[46]		Kurtis Rourke	Ohio	QB		Marcus Fuqua	Buffalo	S		Nathanial Vakos	Ohio	K
Week 2[47]		Matt McDonald	Bowling Green	QB		Khalib Johns	Kent State	LB		Josh Smith	Kent State	P
Week 3[48]		Matt McDonald (2)	Bowling Green	QB		Karl Brooks	Bowling Green	DE		Alex McNulty	Buffalo	K
Week 4[49]		Kurtis Rourke (2)	Ohio	QB		Ryan McWood	Miami	LB		Alex McNulty (2)	Buffalo	K
Week 5[50]		Dante Cephas	Kent State	WR		Shaun Dolac	Buffalo	LB		Tristian Vandenberg	Ohio	K
Week 6[51]		Sieh Bangura	Ohio	RB		Ryan McWood (2)	Miami	LB		Graham Nicholson	Miami	K
Week 7[52]		Sieh Bangura (2)	Ohio	RB		Demetrius Hardamon	Bowling Green	LB		Nathanial Vakos (2)	Ohio	K
Week 8[53]		Ron Cook	Buffalo	RB		Marcus Fuqua (2)	Buffalo	S		Sami Sir	Bowling Green	P
Week 9[54]		No nominees				Jacquez Warren	Miami	DB		Dom Dzioban	Miami	P
Week 10[55]		Kurtis Rourke (3)	Ohio	QB		Keye Thompson	Ohio	LB		Ta'ron Keith	Bowling Green	RB
Week 11[56]		Collin Schlee	Kent State	QB		Marvin Pierre	Kent State	LB		Alex McNulty (3)	Buffalo	K
Week 12[57]		Odieu Hiliare	Bowling Green	WR		Alvin Floyd	Ohio	S		PaSean Wimberly	Bowling Green	RB
Week 13[58]		CJ Harris	Ohio	QB		Keye Thompson (2)	Ohio	LB		Cory Smigel	Akron	K

West Division

Week		Offensive				Defensive				Special Teams
		Player	Team	Position		Player	Team	Position		Player	Team	Position
Week 1[46]		Daniel Richardson	Central Michigan	QB		Eric Rogers	Northern Illinois	CB		Mitchell Tomasek	Eastern Michigan	P
Week 2[47]		Dequan Finn	Toledo	QB		Braden Fiske	Western Michigan	DL		Nick Mihalic	Western Michigan	P
Week 3[48]		Samson Evans	Eastern Michigan	RB		Kempton Shine	Eastern Michigan	CB		Jesus Gomez	Eastern Michigan	K
Week 4[49]		John Paddock	Ball State	QB		Daveren Rayner	Northern Illinois	LB		Tom Foley	Northern Illinois	P
Week 5[50]		John Paddock (2)	Ball State	QB		Jaquan Amos	Ball State	S		Mitchell Tomasek (2)	Eastern Michigan	P
Week 6[51]		Carson Steele	Ball State	RB		Quinyon Mitchell	Toledo	CB		Lucas Borrow	Ball State	P
Week 7[52]		Dequan Finn (2)	Toledo	QB		Jordan Riley	Ball State	S		John Richardson	Northern Illinois	K
Week 8[53]		Sean Tyler	Western Michigan	RB		Corvin Moment	Western Michigan	LB		Palmer Domschke	Western Michigan	K
Week 9[54]		Tucker Gleason	Toledo	QB		Maxen Hook	Toledo	S		Mitchell Tomasek (3)	Eastern Michigan	P
Week 10[55]		Carson Steele (2)	Ball State	RB		Cole Pearce	Ball State	LB		Ben VonGunten	Ball State	K
Week 11[56]		Bert Emanuel, Jr.	Central Michigan	QB		Thomas Incoom	Central Michigan	DL		Mitchell Tomasek (4)	Eastern Michigan	P
Week 12[57]		Tucker Gleason (2)	Toledo	QB		Jose Ramirez	Eastern Michigan	DE		No nominees
Week 13[58]		Samson Evans (2)	Eastern Michigan	RB		Jose Ramirez (2)	Eastern Michigan	DE		Mitchell Tomasek (5)	Eastern Michigan	P

MAC Individual Awards

The following individuals received postseason honors as voted by the Mid-American Conference football coaches at the end of the season.^[59]

Award	Player	School
Offensive Player of the Year	Kurtis Rourke	Ohio
Defensive Player of the Year	Jose Ramirez	Eastern Michigan
Special Teams Player of the Year	Alex McNulty	Buffalo
Freshman Player of the Year	Sieh Bangura	Ohio
Vern Smith Leadership Award	Kurtis Rourke	Ohio
Coach of the Year	Tim Albin	Ohio

All-Conference Teams

The following players were listed as part of the All-Conference teams.^[59]

Position Player Team First Team Offense WR Alex Adams Akron WR Devontez Walker Kent State WR Dante Cephas Kent State WR Sam Wiglusz Ohio OL Sidy Sow Eastern Michigan OL Marcellus Marshall Kent State OL Nolan Potter Northern Illinois OL Hagen Meservy Ohio OL Nick Rosi Toledo TE Brady Hunt Ball State QB Kurtis Rourke Ohio RB Carson Steele Ball State RB Marquez Cooper Kent State PK Alex McNulty Buffalo First Team Defense DL Karl Brooks Bowling Green DL Thomas Incoom Central Michigan DL Jose Ramirez Eastern Michigan DL Desjuan Johnson Toledo LB Bubba Arslanian Akron LB Shaun Dolac Buffalo LB Dallas Gant Toledo LB Zaire Barnes Western Michigan DB Marcus Fuqua Buffalo DB Donte Kent Central Michigan DB Quinyon Mitchell Toledo DB Maxen Hook Toledo P Mitchell Tomasek Eastern Michigan First Team Specialists KRS Jaylon Jackson Eastern Michigan KRS Keegan Wilburn Ohio

Position Player Team Second Team Offense WR Jayshon Jackson Ball State WR Odieu Hiliare Bowling Green WR Mac Hippenhammer Miami WR Jerjuan Newton Toledo WR Corey Crooms Western Michigan OL Ethan Crowe Ball State OL Jamezz Kimbrough Central Michigan OL Brian Dooley Eastern Michigan OL Rusty Feth Miami OL Sam Allan Kent State TE Christian Sims Bowling Green QB Dequan Finn Toledo RB Samson Evans Eastern Michigan RB Sean Tyler Western Michigan PK Nathanial Vakos Ohio Second Team Defense DL DeVonte O'Malley Northern Illinois DL Jamal Hines Toledo DL Andre Carter Western Michigan DL Braden Fiske Western Michigan LB Clayton Coll Ball State LB James Patterson Buffalo LB Ryan McWood Miami LB Dyontae Johnson Toledo DB Amechi Uzodinma Ball State DB Nic Jones Ball State DB Nico Bolden Kent State DB C.J. Brown Northern Illinois DB Nate Bauer Toledo P Dom Dzioban Miami Second Team Specialists KRS Ta'ron Keith Bowling Green KRS Ja'Shaun Poke Kent State

Position Player Team Third Team Offense WR Shocky Jacques-Louis Akron WR Quian Williams Buffalo WR Tanner Knue Eastern Michigan WR Hassan Beydoun Eastern Michigan OL Anthony Whigan Akron OL Gabe Wallace Buffalo OL Desmond Bessent Buffalo OL Deiyantei Powell-Woods Central Michigan OL Logan Zschernitz Northern Illinois TE Joel Wilson Central Michigan QB DJ Irons Akron QB Collin Schlee Kent State RB Harrison Waylee Northern Illinois RB Sieh Bangura Ohio PK Jesus Gomez Eastern Michigan Third Team Defense DL Zay West Kent State DL Michael Kennedy Northern Illinois DL James Ester Northern Illinois DL Jack McCrory Ohio LB Kyle Moretti Central Michigan LB Matthew Salopek Miami LB Keye Thompson Ohio LB Corvin Moment Western Michigan DB Jordan Riley Ball State DB John Saunders Jr. Miami DB Tariq Drake Ohio DB Keni-H Lovely Western Michigan P Luke Elzinga Central Michigan Third Team Specialists KRS Jalen Walker Miami KRS De'Javion Stepney Central Michigan

NFL draft

The following list includes all MAC players who were drafted in the 2023 NFL draft.

Player	Position	School	Draft Round	Round Pick	Overall Pick	Team
Sidy Sow	OG	Eastern Michigan	4	15	117	New England Patriots
Karl Brooks	DT	Bowling Green	6	2	179	Green Bay Packers
Zaire Barnes	LB	Western Michigan	6	7	184	New York Jets
Jose Ramirez	LB	Eastern Michigan	6	19	196	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Lew Nichols III	RB	Central Michigan	7	18	235	Green Bay Packers
Nic Jones	CB	Ball State	7	33	250	Kansas City Chiefs
Desjuan Johnson	DE	Toledo	7	42	259	Los Angeles Rams