Click here to read the 2018 Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl Weekly Release – Week 7 – October 13 (PDF)
WEEK 7 PREVIEW: The MAC has six conference games Saturday. One of the top games on the MAC schedule features Ohio at West Division leader Northern Illinois in a division crossover game. Western Michigan will try to keep pace with Northern Illinois as the Broncos go to Bowling Green. Buffalo, which leads the East Division, hosts Akron. Also in the West, Toledo is at Eastern Michigan and Ball State visits Central Michigan. In the East, Kent State plays at Miami.
In Conference USA on Saturday, West Division co-leader UAB goes to Rice after the Blazers picked up a key victory over Louisiana Tech last week. The other co-leader, UTSA, hosts Louisiana Tech in the Alamodome Also in the West. Southern Miss visits North Texas as both the Golden Eagles and the Mean Green try to keep pace in the division standings. East Division leader Middle Tennessee, which got a big victory over Marshall last Friday, has a huge division game at FIU. Marshall, part of a group with 1-1 conference records in the East, will try to rebound as the Herd heads to Old Dominion in a East matchup. One of the other 1-1 East teams, Charlotte, will host WKU.
IN THE POLLS: UAB (4-1 overall, 2-0 C-USA) is receiving votes in the Amway Coaches Poll.
CONFERENCE USA NOTES: IMiddle Tennessee graduate QB Brent Stockstill became the 11th player in C-USA history to pass the 10,000-yard mark in passing yards last Friday against Marshall. He became the third active FBS player to reach that mark and the 24th all-time. UTSA is 2-0 in C-USA play for the first time after the Roadrunners beat Rice 20-3. The three points are the fewest that UTSA has allowed to an FBS team. UAB ranks second nationally in passing yards allowed (134.2 yards per game), Florida Atlantic junior RB Devin “Motor” Singletary leads the FBS ranks with 14 rushing TDs.
MAC NOTES: Ohio head coach Frank Solich earned his 100th career victory with the Bobcats after a 27-26 victory at Kent State. Solich ranks third all-time in the MAC in career coaching wins. Northern Illinois is off to a 3-0 start in MAC play after a 24-16 win at Ball State. The Huskies lead the MAC in scoring defense at 23.7 points per game. Toledo won the I-75 Trophy with a 52-36 victory over rival Bowling Green for the ninth consecutive year. Toledo WR Cody Thompson and Ohio WR Papi White (35 games) are tied for third in the country in consecutive games with a reception.
WEEK 7 SCHEDULE
CONFERENCE USA
Saturday, Oct. 13
* UAB at Rice (ESPN+)
* Southern Miss at North Texas (ESPN3)
* WKU at Charlotte (ESPN+)
* Marshall at Old Dominion (STAD)
* Louisiana Tech at UTSA (ESPN+)
* Middle Tennessee at FIU (beIN)
MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE
Saturday, Oct. 13
* Akron at Buffalo (CBSSN)
* Toledo at Eastern Michigan (ESPN+)
* Kent State at Miami (ESPN+)
* Ball State at Central Michigan (ESPN3)
* Western Michigan at Bowling Green (ESPN+)
* Ohio at Northern Illinois (ESPN+)
* – conference games
WEEK 6 RESULTS
CONFERENCE USA
Friday, Oct. 5
* Middle Tennessee 34, Marshall 24
Saturday, Oct. 6
* Florida Atlantic 52, Old Dominion 33
* UAB 28, Louisiana Tech 7
* UTSA 20, Rice 3
* North Texas 27, UTEP 24
MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE
Saturday, Oct. 6
* Buffalo 34, Central Michigan 24
* Western Michigan 27, Eastern Michigan 24
* Northern Illinois 24, Ball State 16
* Toledo 52, Bowling Green 36
* Miami 41, Akron 17
* Ohio 27, Kent State 26
* – conference games
WEEK 6 INDIVIDUAL HONORS
CONFERENCE USA
Offensive Player of the Week
Middle Tennessee QB Brent Stockstill: The graduate threw for 317 yards and two TDs, and ran for a score in a 34-24 victory over Marshall.
Defensive Player of the Week
Middle Tennessee S Jovante Moffatt: The senior had 17 total tackles and a forced fumble in a 34-24 victory over Marshall.
Special Teams Player of the Week
Florida Atlantic KR Kerrith White Jr,: The junior returned a kickoff 100 yards for a TD in a 52-33 victory over Old Dominion.
MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE
East Division Offensive Player of the Week
Ohio QB Nathan Rourke: The junior completed 18 of 20 passes for 284 yards and a TD, and ran for a score in a 27-26 victory over Kent State.
East Division Defensive Player of the Week
Miami LB Brad Koenig: The senior had four tackles, two interceptions and a fumble recovery in a 41-17 victory over Akron.
East Division Special Teams Player of the Week
Kent State K Matthew Trickett: The freshman made four field goals and averaged 40.5 yards on two punts in a loss to Ohio.
West Division Offensive Player of the Week
Toledo QB Eli Peters: The sophomore completed 17 of 35 passes for 184 yards and three TDs in a 52-36 victory over Bowling Green.
West Division Defensive Player of the Week
Western Michigan DT Ralph Holley: The sophomore had six tackles (2.5 for loss), a sack and a forced fumble in a 27-24 victory over Eastern Michigan.
West Division Special Teams Player of the Week
Eastern Michigan P Jake Julien: The sophomore had four punts inside the 20-yard line in a loss to Western Michigan.
WELCOME MAKERS WANTED
Elk Grove Village, Illinois, using its business slogan – Makers Wanted – was announced July 31 as the title sponsor of the Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl.
The tagline Makers Wanted is Elk Grove Village’s slogan and serves a call-to-action for a thriving community and the thousands of businesses based there. It is home to the largest contiguous industrial park in the United States, featuring six square miles and 62 million square feet of inventory. Over 5,614 businesses, including 300 manufacturers specializing in metal, plastic, rubber and food manufacturing, call Elk Grove Village their home. It is also a top national destination for data centers in the U.S. with two million square feet.
For more information, visit www.makerswanted.org.
C-USA VS. MAC
The 2018 Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl will be contested between Conference USA and the Mid-American Conference for the fifth-straight year. C-USA won the 2018 season series over the MAC 2-0.
Sept. 1
Marshall (C-USA) 35, Miami (MAC) 28
Sept. 22
WKU (C-USA) 28, Ball State (MAC) 20
The Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl is tied 2-2 all time between C-USA and the MAC.
2014
WKU (C-USA) 49, Central Michigan (MAC) 48
2015
Western Michigan (MAC) 45, Middle Tennessee (C-USA) 31
2016
Old Dominion (C-USA) 24, Eastern Michigan (MAC) 20
2017
Ohio (MAC) 41, UAB (C-USA) 6
“POWER FIVE” VICTORIES
A list of C-USA and MAC victories over “Power Five” opponents (teams from the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC).
Team (Conference) – Opponent: Score
Sept. 8
Eastern Michigan (MAC) – Purdue (Big Ten): 20-19
Sept. 15
Akron (MAC) – Northwestern (Big Ten): 39-34
North Texas (C-USA) – Arkansas (SEC): 44-17
Sept. 22
Buffalo (MAC) – Rutgers (Big Ten): 42-13
Old Dominion (C-USA) – Virginia Tech (ACC): 49-35
FATHERS AND SONS
There are currently nine FBS schools where a player is playing for his head coach father and four of those are in Conference USA. Middle Tennessee coach Rick Stockstill and graduate QB Brent Stockstill, Old Dominion head coach Bobby Wilder and senior LB Derek Wilder, UAB coach Bill Clark and sophomore LS Jacob Clark, and UTEP coach Dana Dimel and graduate FB Winston Dimel are the three C-USA family duos. The Stockstill (2015) and Clark (2017) duos have participated in the Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl.
MAKERS WANTED BAHAMAS BOWL PARTICIPANT SELECTION
The highest-ranked conference champion by the College Football Playoff Selection Committee from the American Athletic, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West or Sun Belt will play annually in one of the College Football Playoff bowls (PlayStation Fiesta Bowl or Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl for the 2018 season) if it is not selected for the Playoff Semifinals.
Conference USA has secured guaranteed commitments with six bowl partners for the 2018 season, as well as two secondary agreements: The Makers Wanted Bahamas, Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton, Gildan New Mexico, Hawai’i, R+L Carriers New Orleans and either the Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla or the SERVPRO First Responder Bowls are primary agreements. The Walk-On’s Independence Bowl in Shreveport, La., is a secondary agreement (should the ACC or SEC not be able to provide a bowl-eligible team), as is the DXL Frisco Bowl. There is no set selection order among C-USA’s bowl partners.
The MAC has 2018 primary bowl tie-ins with Makers Wanted Bahamas, Dollar General, DXL Frisco, Famous Idaho Potato, and Raycom Media Camellia Bowls. The MAC has secondary 2018 bowl agreements with the Quick Lane Bowl (should the ACC or Big Ten not be able to provide a bowl-eligible team) and other ESPN owned-and-operated bowl games.
The 2018 Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl participants – selected from among bowl-eligible teams in Conference USA and the Mid-American Conference – will be announced by the bowl, ESPN Events and conference partners once finalized.
SATURDAYS TO SUNDAYS
A total of 12 former student-athletes who played in the Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl have played for NFL clubs in 2018.
S Kevin Byard – Tennessee (Middle Tennessee)
WR Corey Davis – Tennessee (Western Michigan)
S Kavon Frazier – Dallas (Central Michigan)
TE Tyler Higbee – Los Angeles Rams (WKU)
WR Richie James – San Francisco (Middle Tennessee)
G Taylor Moton – Carolina (Western Michigan)
T Chukwuma Okorafor – Pittsburgh (Western Michigan)*
CB Darius Phillips – Cincinnati (Western Michigan)*
WR Taywan Taylor – Tennessee (WKU)
DE Leterrius Walton – Pittsburgh (Central Michigan)
CB Darious Williams – Baltimore (UAB)*
T Andrew Wylie – Kansas City (Eastern Michigan)*
* – made NFL debut in 2018
MAKERS WANTED BAHAMAS BOWL MEDIA PROJECTIONS
Media Organization (Reporter) – Date: Predicted Matchup
Nassau Tribune (Renaldo Dorsett) – Oct. 10: Florida Atlantic vs. Akron
10th Year Seniors (John Marc Nutt) – Oct. 10: Marshall vs. Northern Illinois
USA Today (Erick Smith) – Oct. 9: Florida Atlantic vs. Toledo
CBSSports.com (Jerry Palm) – Oct. 9: Middle Tennessee vs. Northern Illinois
Bleacher Report (Kerry Miller) – Oct. 9: FIU vs. Akron
Athlon Sports (Steven Lassan) – Oct. 9: Florida Atlantic vs. Buffalo
The Sporting News (Bill Bender) – Oct. 9: Marshall vs. Toledo
Sports Illustrated (Eric Single) – Oct. 8: Florida Atlantic vs. Toledo
ESPN.com (Kyle Bonagura) – Oct. 7: UAB vs. Toledo
ESPN.com (Mitch Sherman) – Oct. 7: Marshall vs. Toledo
Orlando Sentinel (Brant Parsons) – Oct. 7: FIU vs. Northern Illinois
CollegeFootballNews.com (Staff) – Oct. 7: North Texas vs. Buffalo
SB Nation (Jason Kirk) – Oct. 7: Middle Tennessee vs. Buffalo
The Athletic (Stuart Mandel) – Aug. 23: Southern Miss vs. Buffalo
Phil Steele Magazine (Phil Steele) – Magazine: Louisiana Tech vs. Western Michigan
ESPN EVENTS
ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a large portfolio of 31 collegiate sporting events worldwide. The roster includes three Labor Day weekend college football games; FCS opening-weekend game; 14 college bowl games, 10 college basketball events, a college softball event and two college award shows, which accounts for approximately 300-plus hours of programming, reaches almost 64 million viewers and attracts over 700,000 attendees each year. With satellite offices in Albuquerque, Birmingham, Boca Raton, Boise, Dallas-Fort Worth, Honolulu, Las Vegas, Montgomery and St. Petersburg, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans
ESPN Events also manages the Big 12 Corporate Partner Program
Collegiate Football
Academy Sports + Outdoors Texas Bowl (Houston); AdvoCare Texas Kickoff (Houston); Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl (Tampa, Fla.); Birmingham Bowl (Alabama); Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl (Florida); Camping World Kickoff (Orlando, Fla.); Celebration Bowl (Atlanta); DXL Frisco Bowl (Texas); Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Boise); Guardian Credit Union FCS Kickoff (Montgomery, Ala.); Hawai’i Bowl (Honolulu); Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (Dallas-Fort Worth); Makers Wanted Bahamas Bowl (Nassau); MEAC/SWAC Challenge (Atlanta); Mitsubishi Motors Las Vegas Bowl (Nevada); New Mexico Bowl (Albuquerque); Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.); SERVPRO First Responder Bowl (Dallas-Fort Worth); The Home Depot College Football Awards (Atlanta)
Collegiate Basketball
AdvoCare Invitational (Walt Disney World Resort near Orlando, Fla.); Armed Forces Classic (Fort Bliss, Texas); Charleston Classic (South Carolina); College Basketball Awards Presented by Wendy’s (Los Angeles); Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (Honolulu); Jimmy V Men’s Classic presented by Corona (New York City); Jimmy V Women’s Classic Presented by Corona (South Bend, Ind.); Myrtle Beach Invitational (Conway, S.C.); NIT Season Tip-Off (Brooklyn, N.Y.); State Farm Champions Classic (Indianapolis) and Wooden Legacy (Fullerton, Calif.)
Collegiate Softball
St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational (Clearwater, Fla.)