Home Conferences FBS 2026 season

The weekly grind · 2026

Mid-American

MACtion

Toledo holds the Mid-American lead heading into this week's games.

Mid-American is more top-heavy than deep. Toledo gives the league punch, but the middle tier falls away faster than the top leagues.

#11Overall

#11In FBS

+16.0Conference strength

+20.5Upper strength

13Teams

0Top-25 teams

Mid-American, at a glance.

Top 10 by power rating — 2026 season, through the latest games.

Team Record Power

Toledo

6-2 +23.7

Western Michigan

6-3 +21.9

Ohio

7-2 +21.0

Miami (OH)

5-4 +16.3

Buffalo

6-3 +14.9

Central Michigan

3-5 +14.4

Eastern Michigan

4-5 +13.8

Bowling Green

2-7 +13.3

Ball State

3-5 +13.0

Akron

1-8 +12.6

Power snapshot Projected 2026 standing

MACtion

The MAC sent three programs to a combined 27-13 in 2025 with average recruiting ranks above #100: Western Michigan went 10-4 with the 104th recruiting class (+82 coaching gap), Ohio went 9-4 with the 121st class (+81), and Toledo went 8-5 with the 73rd class (+60). The same conference where Northern Illinois went 3-9 with a #84 recruiting class. MACtion's identity has always been "more competitive than the rankings say" — the 2025 results proved that again.

0 top-25 teams.

The depth argument for this conference rests on how many credible opponents are clustered behind the leader. A wide talent spread separates the haves from the have-nots.

Where things stand right now.

Toledo holds the Mid-American lead heading into this week's games.

Tools Matchup simulator Compare teams Playoff forecast Style map Head to head Power map

The Conference Leader

Toledo Holds the MAC’s Highest SP+ Rating at #13

Toledo enters 2026 with the MAC’s highest SP+ ranking (#13 nationally) and a +60 coaching premium on a #73 recruiting class. They went 8-5 in 2025, which undersells how good they are by the power metrics. Three MAC titles, a win over Penn State in 2016, and an NFL draft pipeline that starts at the offensive line — Toledo’s formula doesn’t change and it keeps working. The Tuesday night game that ends with Toledo covering is almost always the one worth watching.

Why it matters →

The Best Record

Western Michigan Went 10-4 With the 104th Recruiting Class

Western Michigan’s coaching premium is +82 — a #104 recruiting rank producing an SP+ of #22 and a 10-4 record in 2025. In a conference where most programs overperform, Western Michigan overperformed the most. Ten wins from Kalamazoo, Michigan with a class that ranked in the bottom half of FBS. The program nobody outside the MAC watches closely produced results that deserve national attention.

Why it matters →

The Other Side

NIU Went 3-9 With a Better Recruiting Class Than Toledo’s

Northern Illinois went 3-9 in 2025 with a #84 recruiting class — a -30 coaching gap that is the conference’s worst. The program that beat Iowa in 2013 and built the MAC’s most famous single-game moment holds the second-worst SP+ ranking in the conference entering 2026. Ball State went 4-8 at sp#126. The MAC’s MACtion identity runs through programs that overperform — and NIU is currently the argument for why coaching matters more than recruiting.

Why it matters →

Active arcs

Hot6wk ago

Ohio State Coach Ryan Day Comments on Upcoming Illinois Game

Can Kent State sustain its momentum against stronger opponents?

Kent State

Active2mo ago

Western Michigan's running QB tests Michigan's defense

Can Western Michigan's mobile quarterback stress Michigan's defense?

Western Michigan

Active5wk ago

Boise State Enters AP Poll After Dominant Road Win Over Western Michigan

Can Boise State sustain its momentum following this strong start to the 2026 season?

Western Michigan

Active6wk ago

NCAA Admits Replay Errors in Western Michigan-Michigan Game

Will the NCAA take further action to address replay protocol failures?

Western Michigan

Active2mo ago

South Carolina's dominance starts with blowout of Kent State

Can the Gamecocks maintain their momentum against tougher opponents?

Kent State

All arcs →

Fan pulse Last 30 days · 1,128 mentions

16% positive 52% neutral 32% negative

Buffalo

184

↓ negative

Sacramento State

181

→ neutral

Ohio

140

↓ negative

Western Michigan

101

↓ negative

Central Michigan

↓ negative

Massachusetts

→ neutral

Fan confidence by FBS percentile

Where each Mid-American program stands nationally in fan sentiment (100th = most positive in FBS, 0 = least). Conference median: 62nd percentile. The label is the band (Bullish, Leaning, Mixed, Souring); the number after it is the change in percentile points since the prior week.

Bullish+65

Bullish+40

Bullish+6

Bullish+10

Bullish+41

Leaning-9

Leaning+10

Leaning+11

Mixed+10

Mixed+3

Souring-41

Most volatile: Kent State

Fan confidence has swung 100 percentile points in the last 8 weeks — currently at the 97th percentile nationally.

The coaching premium

Recruiting class rank vs. SP+ performance — where coaches add or subtract value

Above line = coaching premium

Below line = underperforming

Gap = recruiting rank minus SP+ rank

Positive gap means the coaching staff won more than the recruiting class predicted. Data: Mid-American teams, 13 programs.

Standings

2026 season, in progress — sorted by power rating. The tag beside a team is its long-run program standing.

#	Team	Record	Power	Resume
1	Toledo National Program II#46	6-2	+23.7	+60.6
2	Western Michigan Regional Program I#83	6-3	+21.9	+64.9
3	Ohio Regional Program I#77	7-2	+21.0	+70.8
4	Miami (OH)Regional Program I#85	5-4	+16.3	+50.7
5	Buffalo Regional Program IV#114	6-3	+14.9	+85.2
6	Central Michigan Regional Program IV#111	3-5	+14.4	+68.8
7	Eastern Michigan Regional Program V#126	4-5	+13.8	+48.0
8	Bowling Green Regional Program IV#118	2-7	+13.3	+61.6
9	Ball State Regional Program V#132	3-5	+13.0	+73.8
10	Akron Regional Program V#133	1-8	+12.6	+10.6
11	Massachusetts Regional Program VI#136	4-4	+12.2	+76.9
12	Kent State Regional Program VI#138	3-6	+10.4	+56.5
13	Sacramento State Regional Program V#130	2-7	+8.5	+26.4

Projected standings · Mid-American · 2026

Win projection

Odds of winning at least N conference games from current power ratings — full slate played out, not locked to results. Avg = expected wins; W-L = most-likely record.

#	Team	W-L	Pwr	Avg	≥8	≥7	≥6	≥5	≥4	≥3	≥2	≥1
Favorites
1	Toledo	6-2	+8.7	5.6	5	24	54	80	94	99	✓	✓
2	Ohio	5-3	+6.0	5.2	3	17	44	72	90	98	✓	✓
3	Western Michigan	5-3	+6.9	5.2	3	17	44	72	91	98	✓	✓
Challengers
4	Miami (OH)	4-4	+1.2	4.2	1	4	18	42	70	89	98	✓
5	Central Michigan	4-4	−0.7	3.8		2	11	32	60	84	96	✓
6	Buffalo	4-4	−0.2	3.8		2	11	31	59	83	96	✓
The field
7	Bowling Green	4-4	−1.8	3.7		2	9	27	56	81	95	✓
8	Eastern Michigan	4-4	−1.3	3.7		2	9	27	55	81	95	99
9	Ball State	4-4	−2.1	3.7		2	9	27	55	80	95	99
10	Akron	3-5	−2.5	3.4		1	7	22	48	75	92	99
Rebuilding
11	Massachusetts	4-4	−2.9	3.6		2	8	26	53	79	94	99
12	Kent State	3-5	−4.6	3.2		1	4	16	40	68	90	98
13	Sacramento State	3-5	−6.6	2.8			2	10	29	57	84	97

How they play

Six advanced-stat dimensions per team, ranked against all 134 FBS programs, 2026 season. Every column reads higher-is-better. Click a column to sort.

ScoringConvertsBig playsDefensePacePass rate

Team	Scoring	Converts	Big plays	Defense	Pace	Pass rate	Identity
Toledo	+0.24	43.5%	+1.42	+0.03	71.0	46.8%	Big-play offense
Western Michigan	+0.11	41.1%	+1.20	−0.07	59.7	37.8%	Grind-it-out
Ohio	+0.19	45.4%	+1.24	−0.04	60.8	37.8%	Balanced
Miami (OH)	+0.15	40.9%	+1.37	−0.09	59.6	42.7%	Grind-it-out
Buffalo	+0.05	35.5%	+1.25	−0.10	73.7	44.0%	High-tempo
Central Michigan	+0.06	37.9%	+1.22	−0.14	59.8	36.4%	Grind-it-out
Eastern Michigan	+0.02	38.6%	+1.16	−0.15	67.0	55.2%	Balanced
Bowling Green	+0.01	38.6%	+1.13	−0.14	58.9	44.0%	Grind-it-out
Ball State	+0.10	39.0%	+1.35	−0.25	64.2	48.6%	Defense is the problem
Akron	+0.07	42.4%	+1.12	−0.22	67.2	48.6%	Defense is the problem
Massachusetts	+0.15	41.9%	+1.21	−0.04	58.9	44.2%	Grind-it-out
Kent State	−0.11	32.3%	+1.31	−0.10	62.9	47.9%	Can't sustain drives
Sacramento State	−0.07	37.4%	+1.10	−0.10	64.7	51.5%	No explosive plays

Identity is the single dimension where a team is most above or below the FBS average (pace, defense, big plays, or converting drives) — "Balanced" means nothing stands out either way. CFBD 2026 advanced stats, excludes garbage time.

Top players

Mid-American's highest CFB Zeitgeist Scores, 2026 season so far.

#	Player	Team	National
1	Michael MolnarLB	Ohio	#1 of 567
2	Andrew ZockEDGE	Toledo	#2 of 405
3	Myles BradleyEDGE	Bowling Green	#3 of 405
4	Quincy ByasEDGE	Eastern Michigan	#6 of 405
5	Isaac ZayLB	Toledo	#11 of 567
6	Dillon MooreLB	Western Michigan	#17 of 567
7	Boogsie SilveraS	Sacramento State	#11 of 537
8	Ahmed TounkaraIDL	Western Michigan	#13 of 300
9	Scoop Gardner Jr.EDGE	Western Michigan	#19 of 405
10	Justin TaylorS	Central Michigan	#17 of 537

Where Mid-American stands nationally

Conference strength, as a round-robin adjusted power rating.

1 SEC SEC

+24.4

2 B10 Big Ten

+23.3

3 IND FBS Independents

+21.7

4 B12 Big 12

+21.5

5 P12 Pac-12

+20.8

6 ACC ACC

+20.5

7 AAC American Athletic

+18.3

8 SB Sun Belt

+17.3

9 MW Mountain West

+16.5

10 CUSA Conference USA

+16.4

Mid-American title odds

Best available American odds · sportsbook consensus.

#	Team	Odds
1	Toledo	+120
2	Western Michigan	+200
3	Ohio	+300
4	Miami (OH)	+425
5	Central Michigan	+1000
6	Buffalo	+1200
7	Eastern Michigan	+1500
8	Bowling Green	+2000
9	UMass	+3000
10	Akron	+4200