Hustle Belt: for Mid-American Conference fans

Happy Friday folks! We’ve made it through another week, and we’re excited to help you ring in another weekend. Another week down, another week closer to football! Despite football season being right around the corner, the boys open up the show this week with some huge news out of the basketball world. Emoni Bates, the former number three overall recruit in the class of 2022, announced his commitment to Eastern Michigan on Wednesday. Bates spent his freshman season at Memphis, and averaged 9.7 points and 3.3 rebounds per game for the Tigers. It was an up and down season, both for Bates and for the Tigers squad in general. Bates missed significant time due to injury and only played 18 games over the course of the season. A native of Ypsilanti, Bates ultimately chose EMU over blue blood programs such as Louisville and Illinois. Without a doubt, this is a huge signing for Stan Heath as he enters his second year as head coach in Ypsilanti. With Noah Farrakhan and most other contributors returning from last year, the Eagles will be in great position to compete at the top of the conference next year. Elsewhere in hoops, the MAC celebrated an NBA draft selection for the second straight year. This year, it was courtesy of Toledo product Ryan Rollins, who was drafted by Golden State with the 44th overall pick. It seems to be a great landing spot for Rollins, as Golden State is coming off of their fourth NBA title in seven years. Also in the NBA, for Bowling Green Falcon Daeqwon Plowden signed a Summer League contract with New Orleans and will look to earn a roster spot in the Las Vegas Summer League next month. To close out the show this week, it’s a bittersweet send off for Zach. Zach has been around since the beginning of the podcast two years ago, and is sad to be stepping away. You’re all in great hands though, as Steve will be back next week to help kick off our pre-season football coverage. Steve and Vannzee will have all of the coverage you need come football season. There’s a lot of exciting stuff to look forward to. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Have a great weekend and a great week ahead, and we’ll talk to you again next Friday! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Howdy folks! We hope you’ve all had a good week to this point. We have officially reached the dog days of summer, where baseball has wrapped up and football is still about two months away. But that’s ok - we’ve got plenty to talk about to get you through! Zack and Zach open up the show this week by discussing former Toledo forward Ryan Rollins and his prospects in tonight’s NBA Draft. Rollins, who was MAC Freshman of the Year in 2020 and first team All-MAC last year, is widely considered to be a second round pick. Despite concerns about his defense and outside shooting ability, many NBA teams remain intrigued by his athleticism and potential. Next up, the boys discuss the recently released MAC championship odds for the upcoming football season. According to the bookmakers, Toledo is the pre-season favorite (tell us if you’ve heard that before) with Kent State, NIU, Miami, and Central Michigan right behind them. The odds certainly reflect the parity of the conference, where a new team seems to sneak into the title conversation every year. To close out the show this week, the boys are joined by Christian Booher. Christian is the Sports Editor at CM Life, the Central Michigan student newspaper. Christian stopped by to talk Chippewas football and give his thoughts on the upcoming season. CMU returns a ton of talent, but also have to replace key contributors such as Kalil Pimpleton, Luke Goedeke, and Bernhard Raimann. In year four under Jim McElwain, the Chips seem to be positioned to compete for a conference title. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Stay cool out there, have a great week ahead, and we’ll see you back here next Friday! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! We’ve made it through another week, and we hope you’ve been keeping cool and hydrated as summer has descended upon us. It’s a big week for the show this week, as this is episode 100. On a typical week, we try to have a structure to the show, but given the occasion this week, we wanted to keep it a bit looser. The boys spend the bulk of the time this week reflecting on 100 episodes and reading some Twitter responses from the fans. First up, we asked you all to tell us your favorite memories as a fan of your MAC school or of the conference in general. We got some GREAT responses - from last second touchdowns, to improbable upsets, to field storming occasions, there were some great answers. We close out the show this week by taking a look at a more specific topic: questions and concerns heading into football season. While there were no coaching changes in the MAC this off-season, there was plenty of roster movement via the transfer portal. Which schools will benefit from that? Will the MAC pick up a Power 5 upset this year? Who will emerge from the loaded MAC West? These are questions we’re all contemplating as the season approaches, and the boys give their thoughts on each topic. We say this every week, but we want to place some extra emphasis this time around: we can’t thank you all enough for stopping by and lending us your ears. Not just this week, but every week. It’s been a great journey to get to 100 episodes, and we’re excited to continue to build this. We couldn’t do it without all of you! We hope you all have a great weekend and a great week ahead, and we’ll see you back here next Friday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks, we’ve missed you! We’re excited to be back after a week off, and there’s a lot to catch up on in the MAC universe! To lead off the show this week, the boys discuss RB Kobe Lewis’ decision to transfer from Central Michigan. Lewis missed last season after sustaining a knee injury in camp, but rushed for 1,074 yards and 12 TD’s in 2019. The Chippewas still have Lew Nichols and will be just fine at running back, but Nichols and Lewis together could have formed quite the backfield duo next season. Regardless, best of luck to Kobe at his next stop! Next up, Zach and Zack look back at the baseball postseason. Central Michigan beat Ball State on back to back days to capture the MAC title and earn the conference’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Assigned to the Gainesville regional, CMU knocked off Liberty in 12 innings on Saturday before ultimately seeing their season come to an end on Sunday afternoon against Florida. The Chippewas gave the Gators all they could handle. battling back from a 5-0 deficit before falling to the hosts 6-5. To close out the show, the boys look back at the responses to a few Twitter questions from the past two weeks. First up, the fans give their opinions on the football season win totals that were released this past week by DraftKings. There was some great debate about which teams were being overestimated and underestimated heading into the year. Next up, the boys debate the best and worst uniforms and color schemes in the MAC. Who has the best color scheme in the conference, in your opinion? As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Enjoy the weekend, and we’ll see you back here next Friday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! It’s been another long week, but we’re happy to be here to help you ring in the weekend. To open up the show this week, the boys take a look back at the NCAA softball postseason. As you’ll recall from last week, Miami won the MAC this year and earned the conferences automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Assigned to the Blacksburg regional, the RedHawks lost their opening game to Kentucky before taking down St. Francis (PA) in game two. Facing the host Virginia Tech in game three, the RedHawks raced out to a 4-1 lead before the Hokies stormed back to win 5-4. Despite not advancing, it was a great season for Miami, who reached the 40 win plateau. Elsewhere in softball, Bowling Green traveled out west to Colorado to take part in the National Invitation Softball Championship. The Falcons went 2-2 in the tournament, defeating Stephen F. Austin and George Washington and losing to Virginia and Kansas. Similar to Miami, the Falcons have a lot to be proud of despite not collecting any post season hardware. With a number of key contributors returning next year, Bowling Green’s future looks bright. In football news, Vannzee laments the loss of a three star QB recruit for Eastern Michigan, and the boys discuss the transfer of WR Jalen McGaughey from Ball State to Central Michigan. As if you weren’t already excited enough for football season, the MAC released kickoff times and broadcast partners for the first few weeks of the season. The conference has a number of notable national television performances, including Central Michigan traveling to Oklahoma State (remember what happened the last time these two met?) and Toledo traveling to Ohio State. There’s a lot to look forward to on the gridiron this fall! To close out the show, the boys discuss the ongoing MAC baseball tournament. The weather has played a factor, with the Ball State/Ohio game being postponed multiple times due to rain. Regardless, the first round of the tournament proved to be quite eventful, with both contests ending in walk off fashion. In the second round, Ball State will face Central Michigan with a trip to the title game on the line, and Toledo will face Ohio in an elimination game. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Don’t forget to subscribe to the pod on your favorite platform! We appreciate all of you, and hope you all have a great weekend and a great week ahead. See you next week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! We hope you’ve had a good week to this point, and as always we thank you for joining us. We have a variety of things to cover this week, and we think there’s a little something for everybody! To open up this week’s show, the boys take a look back at last weekend’s MAC softball tournament. Bowling Green, Central Michigan, and Ohio performed admirably, but this was ultimately Miami’s championship to win. The RedHawks survived a scare in the semi-finals, knocking off Central Michigan 2-1 with an eighth inning walk off, and used that momentum to blow past Bowling Green 11-0 in the title game. The Chippewas will now represent the MAC in the NCAA Tournament, where they’ve been installed as the three seed in the Blacksburg region. CMU will open up the tournament against Kentucky on Friday afternoon. Speaking of Central Michigan, the Chippewas women’s lacrosse team made their first NCAA Tournament appearance this past Friday after winning their first MAC championship. CMU faced perennial power Northwestern, and the Wildcats proved to be too much for the Chippewas in their 22-7 victory. Regardless of the early exit, this is clearly a program on a positive trajectory, and Sarah Tisdale has done a great job in her seven seasons at the helm of the program. Switching to hoops, Zack and Zach discuss the rising NBA Draft stock of Ryan Rollins. The Toledo product declared for the draft back in March, and since his declaration has seen his stock rise rather quickly. Some mock drafts now have him as a late first round selection, and he has the chance to be the first MAC player selected in the first round since CMU’s Chris Kaman in 2003. To close out the show, the boys take a look at this weekend’s baseball slate. This is the last week of the regular season, and there is still a lot to be determined. Central Michigan currently holds a half game lead on first place over Ball State. If you recall, the regular season champion hosts the conference tournament, so this is a big deal. Central Michigan hosts Toledo this weekend, and Ball State travels to Miami, and both teams will have home field advantage on the mind. The other intrigue surrounds the three and four seeds, as there are still three teams that have a chance to qualify for the conference tournament. As of now, Toledo and Ohio sit in third and fourth, respectively. Miami sits in fifth, and can move into fourth with a good performance against Ball State this weekend. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks! Please don’t forget to like and subscribe to the pod on your favorite podcast platform so you don’t miss any content. Have a great weekend and a great week ahead, and we’ll talk to you again this week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome back to another episode of the Bandwagon folks! As always, we’re thankful for the support and are glad you stopped by. The boys open up the show this week with a number of news stories from around the conference, leading off with the athletic re-brand at Akron. The Zips announced a new athletic identity on Monday, replacing their eight current logos with a stylized “A.” The reaction from the fan base has been mixed, as these things tend to be. We saw it last year with the Western Michigan re-brand, and the Zips fan base seems to be similarly split. Zack and Zach give their thoughts on the new identity. Next up, the boys discuss the recent and sudden passing of Eastern Michigan assistant football coach Freed Reed. Reed had been in Ypsilanti for the last seven seasons and most recently served as the defensive pass game coordinator and safeties coach. Coach Reed spent 25 years coaching college football and clearly made an impact at every stop he made. A veteran of the MAC, Reed also had stints on the coaching staff at Ohio and Buffalo in addition to his time in Ypsilanti. Our thoughts are with his family and the entire EMU football program. A great story from the conference this past week is the Central Michigan women’s lacrosse team, who in just their seventh season of competition won the MAC and qualified for their first NCAA tournament. Their reward? The Chippewas will face perennial power Northwestern, who has won seven national titles since 2005. CMU will travel to Evanston for a 5:00 pm start on Friday. The main event of the weekend in the MAC is the softball tournament, which is being held for the first time since 2019. Miami is clearly the favorite here, having won the MAC going away with a 24-5 record in the conference. They will be the top seed and host for the conference tournament, and will host fourth seeded Bowling Green in one of the semifinals on Thursday. While Miami has the best offense in the MAC, the Falcons have strong armed Payton Gottshall on the mound, who leads the MAC in ERA, opponent batting average, wins and strikeouts. In the other semifinal, Ohio will take on Central Michigan. The Bobcats took two of three from the Chippewas in their only series this season. To close out the show, the boys recap the week that was in MAC baseball. Ball State maintained their slim lead on first place, taking three of four games from Kent State over the weekend. Central Michigan kept pace, taking three of four themselves from Western Michigan. Qualification for the MAC tournament is still up for grabs - Ohio and Toledo currently sit in third and fourth place, but there is a group of four other teams still in contention. Ohio especially has a big series this weekend, traveling to Muncie to take on first place Ball State. Thanks again for stopping by this week folks. Have a great weekend and a great week ahead, and we’ll see you back here next week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! We’re glad you made it through another week. and we’re excited to help you ring in the weekend. To open up the show this week, Zach and Zack briefly discuss some transfer portal news in football and basketball. On the hardwood, second year Eastern Michigan coach Stan Heath landed two commitments, with Duquense transfer Tyson Acuff and Georgetown transfer Jalin Billingsley both announcing they would continue their careers in Ypsilanti. Acuff is a Detroit native, and Billingsley a former three star recruit. These additions give the Eagles immediate depth, and both could certainly develop into very good MAC players. Elsewhere in hoops, Emoni Bates, a Ypsilanti native and the top rated recruit in the class of 2022, announced his intention to transfer from Memphis. Eastern Michigan is listed as one of his six target schools, and it would be a huge windfall for the conference if Bates ended up selecting his hometown school. This is certainly a story we’ll be monitoring. In football news, Toledo WR Matt Landers announced he would enter his name in the portal and seek a new home. Landers spent only one season with the Rockets, transferring to Toledo from Georgia after the 2020 season. Though Landers had a slow start to the year and only had 20 catches on the season, he did catch five touchdowns and boasted an absurd 25.7 yards per catch average. In MAC baseball, all eyes were on Muncie this weekend, as first place Central Michigan traveled to second place Ball State. The Chippewas entered the series with a 17 game win streak and a 21-1 record in the MAC, but the Cardinals proved to be the better team. Led by Amir Wright and a strong pitching staff, Rich Maloney’s squad swept all four games of the series, moving into first place and giving them a 1.5 game advantage over CMU in the standings. The regular season champion gets to host the conference tournament, so this was a huge victory for the Cardinals. With three weeks left in the regular season, these two teams will be neck in neck for the regular season title. To close out the show, James stops by to break down last weekends’ NFL Draft. The MAC had six players selected, the most since 2017, and we discuss each player and their landing spot. James shares why he thinks Skyy Moore can have an immediate impact in Kansas City, and why former CMU offensive lineman Luke Goedeke and Bernhard Raimann can both compete for starting positions. There is a solid crop of undrafted free agents from the conference as well, with high profile names like Kaleb Eleby, Kalil Pimpleton, and Dustin Crum all earning rookie contracts. The boys discuss which of the undrafted prospects have the best chance to earn a roster spot. Thanks as always for stopping by this week folks. As we say every week, don’t forget to subscribe to the pod on your favorite podcast platform to ensure that you don’t miss anything! We hope you all have a great week ahead, and we’ll see you back here next Friday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! We’ve made it through another week, and we’re happy to help be here to help bring in the weekend. To open this week’s show, the boys look back at the last few weeks in MAC baseball. Central Michigan is currently on an absurd 17 game win streak, and currently sits atop the conference with a 21-1 record in the MAC. Just behind them is Ball State, fresh off of a sweep of Northern Illinois. During the weekend sweep, Cardinals head coach Rich Maloney earned his 900th career win, no small feat at all. His Ball State squad has a huge opportunity ahead this weekend, as conference leading CMU visits Muncie for a weekend series. A couple of victories will establish the Cardinals as a legitimate contender for the Chippewas at the top of the conference. Moving into spring football talk, Zack gives a recap of the Eastern Michigan spring game. The conditions were not great, unfortunately, but Vannzee still saw a lot that he liked from the quarterbacks and the defense. Despite a number of players entering the portal, Zack feels optimistic about this EMU squad and thinks that a bowl game is a reasonable expectation. To close out the show, Zach is joined by Collin Murphy, the Sports Editor for the Western Herald. Collin stopped by to discuss how the Broncos will replace Kaleb Eleby and Skyy Moore, the state of the WMU defense, and the overall feeling of the Western fan base as the Broncos enter year six of the Tim Lester era. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Don’t forget to subscribe to the show on your favorite podcast platform! Have a great weekend, and we’ll see you all back here next week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Welcome back inside the Bandwagon, folks! This week, former Ball State kicker Ian McGarvey stops by to chat with the boys. McGarvey was the Cardinals kicker from 2007-2010 and is the all time leading scorer in program history. On this week’s pod, he stops by to discuss the Cardinals undefeated 2008 season with the boys. There’s a lot we cover here, and anybody who followed the MAC at the time will remember a lot of what Ian discusses. From the Indiana game, which gave the Cardinals their signature victory but also saw them lose all-MAC performer Dante Love to a scary injury, to facing a Central Michigan squad led by Dan LeFevour and Antonio Brown, Ian covers all of the ups and downs of the season (including Brady Hoke departing for San Diego State afterwards). This interview was so great that we decided to make it it’s own episode. Next week, we’ll be back to more of our regular programming, and will get you all caught up on MAC baseball and spring football. Please don’t forget to subscribe to the pod on your favorite podcast platform - we don’t want you to miss anything! Have a great week folks, and we’ll see you back here next week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! We’ve reached that odd point of the year where the basketball season has ended, spring football games are on the horizon, and there’s a little bit of everything going on. So what did we decide to do this week? Give you a little bit of everything! To lead off the show, the boys recap the weekend that was in MAC baseball. Central Michigan continues to dominate, sweeping four games from Northern Illinois to move their win streak to nine. The Chippewas sit 13-1 in the conference and in sole possession of first place, and it seems like Ball State will be the only true challenger for CMU. Speaking of Ball State, the Cardinals flew out to the west coast this past weekend to take on nationally ranked Oregon. Ball State gave the Ducks all they could handle, but were ultimately only able to win one of the four games. The Cardinals still find themselves in good position, sitting at 12-1 in the conference. The arrow is pointing up in Ypsilanti, as Eastern Michigan is coming off of a strong performance this past weekend against Miami. The Eagles traveled to Oxford and took three of four from the RedHawks, and Eric Roof’s squad now find themselves in sole possession of third place in the conference. Moving into hoops, Zach and Zack take a look at the most recent news out of the transfer portal. Eastern Michigan PG Bryce McBride announced his transfer to Youngstown State after two years in Ypsilanti. Tyler Cochran will be making his third stop in the MAC, announcing that he’ll be transferring to Toledo from Ball State. Prior to suiting up for the Cardinals, Cochran spent two seasons in DeKalb as a member of the Northern Illinois program. Lastly, Buffalo got some good news former Boston College guard Kanye Jones announced his transfer to Buffalo. Just a freshman last year, Jones averaged less than 10 minutes per game, but he certainly seems like a piece that could grow into a prominent role in upstate New York. To close out the show, the boys take a look at the USFL rosters and discuss the former MAC players you may see on the field this weekend. There are a ton of familiar faces here, highlighted by former Kent State DB Nate Holley and Ohio LB Blair Brown. The USFL kicks off this weekend, and 11 former MAC players will be on the field. Best of luck to all of them! As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. We hope you all have a great weekend, a great week ahead, and we’ll see you back here next week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks, and welcome back inside the Bandwagon! We hope you’ve all had a good week to this point. Despite being in the transition from winter to spring sports, we had a busy week in the MAC - there’s a lot to get to on this week’s show! The boys start out in men’s hoops, where Western Michigan named Dwayne Stephens as the new head men’s basketball coach. Stephens arrives in Kalamazoo having spent the past 19 seasons just up the road in East Lansing, where he served as an assistant coach at Michigan State. Stephens has been in contention for a number of MAC jobs over the past few years, and he’s finally found a home in Kalamazoo. Elsewhere in men’s hoops, Ohio G Mark Sears entered the transfer portal, while Toledo F Ryan Rollins and Western Michigan G Lamar Norman, Jr. both declared for the NBA draft. All three players have the option to return to their previous schools, though it certainly seems unlikely that all three will compete in the MAC next season. On the other side of the spectrum, reigning MAC Freshman of the Year Payton Sparks of Ball State removed his name from the transfer portal and will officially be returning to Muncie. This is a huge get for new head coach Michael Lewis, who has a solid young foundation to build on. In women’s hoops, Buffalo named Beck Burke as the new head women’s basketball coach after Felisha Leggette-Jack left for Syracuse last week. Burke comes to Buffalo from USC Upstate, where she was the 2022 Big South Coach of the Year. Unfortunately for Burke, former Bulls Saniia Wilson and Georgia Woolley announced they will be following Leggette-Jack to Syracuse. Woolley was the MAC Freshman of the Year, avergaing 14.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game. In baseball, Ball State and Central Michigan continue to sit atop the standings. Both were dominant this past weekend, with the Chippewas sweeping four games from Ohio and Ball State taking three of four from Toledo. Elsewhere, Kent State got a win over nationally ranked UConn. To close out the show, the boys talk a little football. Buffalo RB Dylan McDuffie re-entered his name into the transfer portal, after briefly exploring the option to transfer earlier this winter. McDuffie was the sixth leading rusher in the MAC last year and the leading rusher for the Bulls, who have now lost both their starting running back and their starting quarterback from last season. Ron Cook, Jr. seems primed to fill McDuffie’s shoes in the backfield. Lasty, Zack and Zach take a look at the 2022 MAC football schedule and give some initial reactions. Kent State has a brutal non-conference schedule (as usual), and a few MAC teams host power five opponents at home. We are still five months away from football, but the season can’t get here fast enough! As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Don’t forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform so you don’t miss anything! Have a great weekend, and we’ll see you back here next week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! Another week is in the books, and we’re excited to give you a new episode of the Bandwagon to send you into the weekend. It’s hard to believe we’re approaching 100 episodes! To kick off this week’s show, the boys take a look back at Toledo’s run in the WNIT. Tricia Cullop’s squad fell in the quarterfinals, losing to Middle Tennessee State 73-71 in overtime. Despite the loss, it was still a historic season for the Rockets, who won 29 games despite being picked eighth in the MAC preseason poll. Despite falling short of their ultimate goal, it was a wildly successful season for the Rockets. Elsewhere in women’s hoops, former Buffalo coach Felisha Legette-Jack was named the head coach at Syracuse, her alma mater. Legette-Jack leaves Buffalo as the all time winningest coach in program history, with 202 wins over 10 years. She leaves a heck of a legacy at Buffalo, and returns to Syracuse to see if she can restore the Orange to their former glory. In men’s hoops, both Ball State and Miami named their new head coaches this week. Ball State hired former UCLA assistant and Indiana native Michael Lewis, who has been a part of two Final Four teams as an assistant coach. This seems like a home run hire for the Cardinals, who badly needed a coach that can re-energize their fan base. For Miami, the RedHawks hired former Xavier head man Travis Steele, who comes to Oxford after four years in charge of the Musketeers. Steele has a reputation as a great recruiter, and compiled a 70-50 record while at Xavier. Both hires seem to be great on paper. We’ll see how they play out in real life. To round out the basketball talk, Zach and Zack take a few minutes to ponder the consequences of the transfer portal. High level MAC players like Ali Ali, Ben Vander Plas, and Trendon Hankerson all entered the portal this week, and this new era of player movement has made it incredibly hard for coaches at the mid-major level to maintain any sense of roster continuity. We’ll see if any of these players end up returning to their former schools. To close out the show this week, the boys take a look at the week that was in MAC baseball. Toledo got the signature win of the week, going down to Columbus and knocking off Ohio State, 7-6. Ball State has found it’s stride in conference play, having won seven in a row and sitting in first place at 9-1. Coincidentally, the Cardinals travel to Toledo this weekend to take on the Rockets. Bowling Green also picked up a signature win this week, traveling to East Lansing and knocking off Michigan State 12-3 on Tuesday evening. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Please don’t forget to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform so that you don’t miss anything! Have a great weekend, and we’ll see you back here next Friday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! We hope you’ve had a good week to this point, and we hope you enjoyed all of the post season basketball over the past week. We have a lot to cover on this weeks show! To open up the pod, the boys discuss Miami’s parting of ways with men’s basketball coach Jack Owens’. Owens went 70-83 in five seasons at the helm, and the RedHawks were never able to get over the hump and become true contenders in the conference. This makes three head coaching vacancies in the MAC, and Miami joins Western Michigan and Ball State in their search for a new head of the program. Moving into post season hoops talk, Zack and Zach discuss the valiant effort that Akron put forth in their first round NCAA tournament game against UCLA. The Zips led by one at half time and by eight in the second half, but the Bruins size proved to be too much for Akron to handle. Nonetheless, the future is bright for the Zips, who have basically their entire roster returning next year. Elsewhere in men’s hoops, Toledo submitted an incredibly disappointing performance in their NIT opener, losing to Dayton at home 74-55. Kent State didn’t fare much better in The Basketball Classic, losing their opening round game to Southern Utah. Ohio picked up the only post season victory, defeating Rice in the first round of the CBI before falling to Abilene Christian in the second round. In women’s hoops, Dyaisha Fair and Buffalo fought hard against Tennessee in the first round of the NCAA tournament. Despite an early Buffalo lead, the Volunteers pulled away in the fourth quarter for an 80-67 victory. Similar to Akron on the men’s side, the Bulls performed admirably but were unable to come out on top. In the WNIT, Toledo and Kent State were the only two of the five MAC squads to win their first round games, with Akron, Ball State, and Ohio all falling in the first round. Bowling Green ended their season on a high note, finishing third in the WBI tournament after defeating Nevada in the third place game. To close out the show, the boys re-acquaint themselves with the baseball standings, as conference play has begun in the last two weeks. Central Michigan and Ball State seem to have righted the ship after their early season struggles, and the two preseason favorites currently find themselves at the top of the standings. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Don’t forget to subscribe to the Bandwagon on your favorite podcast platform so that you don’t miss anything! Everyone have a great weekend, and we’ll see you here again next week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Long time no see folks! Is your head spinning from the packed weekend of hoops we just had? We certainly had to catch our breath after the championship games on Saturday, and there is a TON to cover on this week’s pod! Starting off on the men’s side of things, the boys look back at an incredible three days of basketball in Cleveland. Toledo once again failed to capture the title despite winning the regular season championship, falling to Akron in the semi-finals Friday night. In the other semi-final, Kent State knocked off Ohio to set up a rivalry showdown in the final game. After some locker room drama led to four Kent State players being suspended, Akron came out on top, dominating the Flashes on their way to a 75-55 victory. As a reward, the Zips earned a 13 seed in the upcoming NCAA tournament and will take on the UCLA Bruins on Thursday night in Portland. In other post season news, Toledo earned a trip to the NIT as a reward for their regular season MAC title. As a reward, the Rockets will get a home game and host in-state rival Dayton on Wednesday night. Elsewhere, Ohio accepted an invitation to the CBI and Kent State will participate in The Basketball Classic. On the women’s side of the fence, Dyaisha Fair and the Buffalo Bulls cut down the nets, holding off Ball State 79-75 in the final. Ball State had a bit of a Cinderella run to the final game, knocking off Toledo in the semi-finals. Unfortunately for Cardinal’s fans, Fair proved to be too much to handle, scoring 30 points in the final to lead the Bulls to victory. Buffalo will take on Tennessee in the opening round of the NCAA tournament on Saturday, the Bulls fourth tournament appearance in the last six years. Some folks were disappointed that Toledo didn’t get an at-large bid, and justifiably so. Instead, the Rockets will head to the WNIT with five of their conference partners. Toledo, Kent State, Akron, Ohio, and Ball State will all participate in the tournament, an unprecedented number in recent WNIT history. Bowling Green accepted an invitation to the WBI tournament, which will be held next week on the campus of Transylvania University in Lexington, KY. The boys close out the show by discussing the post-season awards. Sincere Carry was player of the year in men’s hoops, while Akron’s Jordyn Dawson took home the same award on the women’s side of things. It was well earned in both cases. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. If you’re not already, don’t forget to subscribe to the pod on your favorite platform - we don’t want you to miss anything! Have a great rest of your week, enjoy all of the hoops, and good luck on your brackets! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you’re a college hoops fan, these next two weeks are the best weeks of the year. It’s March Madness folks! The regular season has concluded, and the MAC men’s and women’s basketball tournaments are set to tip off. We’re excited to preview both tournaments for you on this weeks pod! To lead off the show, the boys discuss Clayton Bates’ resignation at Western Michigan. Bates was elevated to head coach after parting ways with Steve Hawkins and compiled an 11-39 record in his two seasons at the helm. This will be the first significant hire for new AD Dan Bartholomae. Vannzee gives some thoughts on potential canididates. In the men’s preview, Zach and Zack analyze the main storylines heading into the tournament. What’s wrong with Ohio? The Bobcats have lost four of five heading to Cleveland, and do not look like the same team that started MAC play 10-1. Elsewhere, Akron and Buffalo give us the best match up of the first round, and the winner of this four/five game will have a legitimate shot to cut down the nets. The boys round out the men’s preview by picking every game. Next week, we’ll see who comes out on top! In the women’s preview, Zach and Zack both agree that Toledo is the team to beat. The Rockets were picked eighth in the pre-season coaches poll but turned in a historic season, finishing 19-1 in MAC play. Toledo is securely in the one seed and will take on Ohio on Wednesday. Speaking of Ohio, the Bobcats ended up in the eight seed despite losing to Kent State on Saturday. The Flashes finished the season 10-10, and the Bobcats 9-10, yet Ohio ended up claiming eighth place due to the MAC’s no contest COVID cancellation policy. Our hosts close out the show by picking the bracket on the women’s side, and we’ll see next week who was more accurate! As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. Enjoy the conference tournaments, and we’ll see you back here next week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! The calendar has officially turned to March, and we hope the temperatures are starting to warm up in your neck of the woods. It’s the last week of the regular season in basketball, and we wanted to save the best for last this week. With that in mind, the boys open up the show this week with a quick recap of the second week of the college baseball season. Kent State traveled down to Lubbock, TX to take on the 20th ranked Texas Tech Red Raiders, and while the Flashes played well, they weren’t able to earn a victory over the perennial College World Series contenders. Central Michigan seemed to find their footing after a rough first weekend, traveling down to Western Kentucky and winning three of four games. Toledo also impressed, heading south to North Carolina and leaving with a 3-1 series victory over High Point. Men’s hoops is speeding towards the finish line, with the regular season finishing up on Friday. Bowling Green currently sits in ninth and still has an outside shot to get to Cleveland, the only team not in the current field who has yet to be eliminated. Unfortunately for Falcons fans, they face a tough test in their regular season finale, traveling to rival Toledo (who just so happens to have won the regular season conference championship). Kent State has continued their winning ways, as their winning streak stands now at 11 games, and the Flashes are far and away the hottest team in the conference as we head into Cleveland. On the other side of the spectrum, Ohio seems to be on shaky ground, having lost three of their last four contests (and losing their grip on the second seed in the process). In women’s hoops, Toledo and Buffalo have secured the top two seeds, but there is still a lot to be determined here. A game and a half separate fourth place from ninth, and the last day of the regular season on Saturday could see the order of the seedings completely re-shuffled. If you’re a fan of last minute drama, there will be plenty to be had here. Next week we’ll be back with a full preview of the men’s and women’s basketball tournaments. Thanks as always for stopping by this week folks, and we’ll see you back here next week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! Thanks as always for stopping by this week. The boys kick off this weeks pod by taking a look back at the last two weeks in men’s hoops. The story at the top of the standings has been Kent State and Buffalo, who have respectively won nine and seven games in a row. These are not squads that opposing teams will want to play in Cleveland. Towards the bottom of the men’s hoops standings, there’s another interesting race playing out: the race for the last two conference tournament bids. With only eight teams qualifying for the MAC tournament, four teams will ultimately stay home. Right now, 1.5 games separate seventh place and eleventh. The boys give their predictions as to who will make the cut. In women’s hoops, Akron continues to be a great story. The Zips have a firm grip on third in the conference, currently at 11-6 in MAC play. After winning only four league games last year, Melissa Jackson’s squad has been a great bounce back story. Similar to men’s hoops, there is a bit of the traffic jam in the middle of the standings. 1.5 games separate fourth place and ninth, and there is a lot to still be decided down the stretch. To close out the show, Zach and Zack look back at the opening week of college baseball season. Kent State had the best win of the weekend, knocking off 2016 national champion Coastal Carolina 2-1 on Sunday. Eastern Michigan pitcher Adam Filinski gave us what may well be the performance of the weekend on Sunday afternoon. The true freshman pitched seven shutout innings, allowing only two hits in his first collegiate start to lead the Eagles to a 6-0 victory over Winthrop. If you’re not already, be sure to subscribe to us on your favorite podcast player! You can find us on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, and any other major podcast platform. Your support is very appreciated! Thanks for stopping by this week, and we’ll see you back here next Friday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! We’re taking a little break from basketball coverage this week, but don’t worry - we’ll be back next week with our usual discussion of what’s happening on the court. This week, we’re taking a quick detour, as baseball season is officially upon us! To open up this week’s pod, the boys take a look at the MAC baseball pre-season coaches poll, where Central Michigan was picked as the overwhelming favorite. This is understandable, as the Chippewas have won the conference in each of the past two years. Ball State and Kent State are expected to challenge Central, but the Chippewas are the strongest team in the conference right now, bolstered by an outstanding pitching staff. Elsewhere in baseball, the boys talk about the expectations for Akron in their second season back, as well as what to expect from Eastern Michigan. Additionally, Vannzee gives his thoughts on the MAC players who are most likely to hear their name called in this summers’ MLB draft. To close out the segment, we take a look at the schedule for this upcoming weekend of the season, as most MAC teams head south to open the year. Kent State and Central Michigan both travel to Conway, SC for a showcase event hosted by Coastal Carolina, while Ball State heads to a similar showcase event in Charleston to take on Bucknell and Iowa. To close out the show, James stops by to discuss the college football all-start games that have taken place over the past month. 27 MAC players participated in the five games, all of whom were hoping to bolster their draft stock. Some did just that, with Miami edge rusher Dominique Robinson drawing some rave reviews from scouts. The boys also discuss CMU OL Bernhard Reimann, who is likely to be the first MAC player drafted, and Armani Rogers, the former Ohio QB who is attempting to transition to TE. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. As mentioned previously, we’ll be back with hoops talk next week, as the conference tournament is fast approaching! Have a great weekend, and we’ll see you back here next Friday. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Happy Friday folks! The temperatures have warmed a bit this week, a subtle reminder that spring is right around the corner. The temperature has been consistently high in MAC basketball over the past month, and this week was no exception. We had quite a few surprising results, and a few potential contenders have emerged who we may have written off just a few short weeks ago. On the men’s side of things, the most surprising result of the week was Ball State’s 93-83 victory over Toledo on Friday night. The Cardinals shot a blistering 50.8% from the field and raced out to a 20 point first half lead on the way to handing the Rockets only their second conference loss. Unfortunately for Cardinals fans, Ball State followed up their upset with a disappointing home loss to Central Michigan, 89-85 in overtime. The Chippewas have emerged as one of the great stories in the MAC over the past few weeks. having won four of five games to get themselves back into contention for the MAC tournament. Elsewhere in men’s hoops, Kent State has started to round into form, as the Flashes have now won five in a row after wins over EMU and Bowling Green this week. Rob Senderoff’s team faces an important stretch this week, with games against Akron, Toledo, and Ohio. On the women’s side of the fence, Ball State continued their strong form and have now won five in a row. A large part has been due to the emergence of freshman guard Ally Becki, who earned MAC Player of the Week honors after averaging 21 points and eight assists per game. The Cardinals have a big match up on Saturday, as they travel to Kent State. The Flashes are the other contender for hottest team in the conference, as Todd Starkey’s team has a four game winning streak of their own. It was a tough week for Western Michigan. Entering the week, the Broncos sat third in the MAC with a 6-3, but an 0-3 week (which included disappointing home losses to Miami and Akron) has Western on shaky ground. The Broncos have a few chances to right the ship this week, with winnable games coming up against Bowling Green and Northern Illinois. As always, thanks for stopping by this week folks. We’ll be back next week with a MAC baseball season preview. Have a great week, and we’ll see you back here next Friday! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices