| Marathon MAC Football Championship Game | |
|---|---|
| Conference Football Championship | |
| Sport | College football |
| Conference | Mid-American Conference |
| Current stadium | Ford Field |
| Current location | Detroit, Michigan |
| Played | 1997–present |
| Last contest | 2019 |
| Current champion | Miami RedHawks |
| Most championships | Marshall Thundering Herd (5) |
| TV partner(s) | ESPN2 |
| Official website | MAC-Sports.com football |
| Sponsors | |
| Marathon Petroleum (2003–present) | |
| Host stadiums | |
| Marshall University Stadium (1997–2000, 2002) Glass Bowl (2001) Doyt Perry Stadium (2003) Ford Field (2004–present) | |
| Host locations | |
| Huntington, West Virginia (1997–2000, 2002) Toledo, Ohio (2001) Bowling Green, Ohio (2003) Detroit, Michigan (2004–present) | |
The MAC Football Championship Game is a football game between the winners of the East and West divisions of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) to determine the conference champion. The game has been played since 1997, when the conference was first divided into divisions and since 2003 has been sponsored by Marathon Petroleum (officially known as the Marathon MAC Football Championship Game). The winner of the game is guaranteed a berth in a bowl game which the MAC has contractual obligations to field a team. Unlike the MAC's Group of Five contemporaries, which hold their respective championship games on campus sites, the MAC Championship Game is held at a neutral site, Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan since 2004.
Dec 05, 2019 Three Reasons Why You Should Watch The MAC Championship – It was a weird year in the MAC, and Miami was able to take advantage of a down East division to make run.It was coming off a 6-6 season that was fine, but Ohio was supposed to be the star in the East with defending division champ Buffalo potentially rebuilding in a hurry. Amazing Championship Game. Ford Field - Detroit. The NIU versus Kent State MAC Championship game was an amazing to watch. Viewers were treated to a double overtime thriller that matched up two of the best offenses and defenses in the MAC conference in a.
In 2000, 2001, and 2007, due to an unbalanced conference schedule, the team with best division record within each division was awarded that division's championship game berth. In other years, the teams with the best overall conference records received a berth.
The game is held on the first Saturday in December, on the same weekend that other NCAA Division I FBS conferences hold their championship games.
Results by year[edit]
Below are the results from all MAC Football Championship Games played. The winning team appears in bold font, on a background of their primary team color. Rankings are from the AP Poll released prior to the game.
From 1997 through 2003, the championship game was played at campus sites. Since 2004, the game has been played at Ford Field in Detroit.
| Year | East | West | Site | Attendance | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Marshall Thundering Herd | 34 | Toledo Rockets | 14 | Marshall University Stadium • Huntington, WV | 28,021 |
| 1998 | Marshall Thundering Herd | 23 | Toledo Rockets | 17 | 28,085 | |
| 1999 | 11Marshall Thundering Herd | 34 | Western Michigan Broncos | 30 | 28,069 | |
| 2000 | Marshall Thundering Herd | 19 | Western Michigan Broncos | 14 | 24,816 | |
| 2001 | 20Marshall Thundering Herd | 36 | Toledo Rockets | 41 | Glass Bowl • Toledo, OH | 20,025 |
| 2002 | 24Marshall Thundering Herd | 49 | Toledo Rockets | 45 | Marshall University Stadium • Huntington, WV | 24,582 |
| 2003 | 13Miami RedHawks | 49 | 20Bowling Green Falcons | 27 | Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH | 24,813 |
| 2004 | Miami RedHawks | 27 | Toledo Rockets | 35 | Ford Field • Detroit, MI | 22,138 |
| 2005 | Akron Zips | 31 | Northern Illinois Huskies | 30 | 12,051 | |
| 2006 | Ohio Bobcats | 10 | Central Michigan Chippewas | 31 | 25,483 | |
| 2007 | Miami RedHawks | 10 | Central Michigan Chippewas | 35 | 25,013 | |
| 2008 | Buffalo Bulls | 42 | 12Ball State Cardinals | 24 | 12,871 | |
| 2009 | Ohio Bobcats | 10 | Central Michigan Chippewas | 20 | 23,714 | |
| 2010 | Miami RedHawks | 26 | 24Northern Illinois Huskies | 21 | 12,031 | |
| 2011 | Ohio Bobcats | 20 | Northern Illinois Huskies | 23 | 13,052 | |
| 2012 | 18Kent State Golden Flashes | 37 | 19Northern Illinois Huskies | 442OT | 18,132 | |
| 2013 | Bowling Green Falcons | 47 | 16Northern Illinois Huskies | 27 | 21,106 | |
| 2014 | Bowling Green Falcons | 17 | Northern Illinois Huskies | 51 | 15,110 | |
| 2015 | Bowling Green Falcons | 34 | Northern Illinois Huskies | 14 | 16,425 | |
| 2016 | Ohio Bobcats | 23 | 13Western Michigan Broncos | 29 | 45,615 | |
| 2017 | Akron Zips | 28 | Toledo Rockets | 45 | 16,225 | |
| 2018 | Buffalo Bulls | 29 | Northern Illinois Huskies | 30 | 10,255 | |
| 2019 | Miami RedHawks | 26 | Central Michigan Chippewas | 21 | 22,427 | |
Results by team[edit]
| Appearances | School | Wins | Losses | Win % | Year(s) Won | Year(s) Lost |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Northern Illinois | 4 | 4 | .500 | 2011, 2012, 2014, 2018 | 2005, 2010, 2013, 2015 |
| 6 | Marshall | 5 | 1 | .833 | 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002 | 2001 |
| 6 | Toledo | 3 | 3 | .500 | 2001, 2004, 2017 | 1997, 1998, 2002 |
| 5 | Miami | 3 | 2 | .600 | 2003, 2010, 2019 | 2004, 2007 |
| 4 | Central Michigan | 3 | 1 | .750 | 2006, 2007, 2009 | 2019 |
| 4 | Bowling Green | 2 | 2 | .500 | 2013, 2015 | 2003, 2014 |
| 4 | Ohio | 0 | 4 | .000 | 2006, 2009, 2011, 2016 | |
| 3 | Western Michigan | 1 | 2 | .333 | 2016 | 1999, 2000 |
| 2 | Akron | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2005 | 2017 |
| 2 | Buffalo | 1 | 1 | .500 | 2008 | 2018 |
| 1 | Kent State | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2012 | |
| 1 | Ball State | 0 | 1 | .000 | 2008 |
Mac Championship Game 2017
Eastern Michigan is the only team currently in the conference to have not attended a Championship Game. Marshall is the only Championship Game Winner to not be a current member of the MAC.
MVPs[edit]
| Year | MVP(s) | Team | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Randy Moss | Marshall | WR |
| 1998 | Chad Pennington | Marshall | QB |
| 1999 | Chad Pennington | Marshall | QB |
| 2000 | Byron Leftwich | Marshall | QB |
| 2001 | Chester Taylor | Toledo | RB |
| 2002 | Byron Leftwich | Marshall | QB |
| 2003 | Ben Roethlisberger | Miami | QB |
| 2004 | Bruce Gradkowski | Toledo | QB |
| 2005 | Luke Getsy | Akron | QB |
| 2006 | Damien Linson | Central Michigan | WR |
| 2007 | Dan LeFevour | Central Michigan | QB |
| 2008 | Mike Newton | Buffalo | DB |
| 2009 | Dan LeFevour | Central Michigan | QB |
| 2010 | Thomas Merriweather | Miami | RB |
| 2011 | Nathan Palmer | Northern Illinois | WR |
| 2012 | Jordan Lynch | Northern Illinois | QB |
| 2013 | Matt Johnson | Bowling Green | QB |
| 2014 | Drew Hare | Northern Illinois | QB |
| 2015 | Travis Greene | Bowling Green | RB |
| 2016 | Corey Davis | Western Michigan | WR |
Photo gallery[edit]
Before 2006 MAC Championship Game
2006 MAC Championship: Central Michigan vs. Ohio