Belt Loops: The MAC Is The 'La Liga' Of NCAA Soccer

Links for this Friday:

• Okay, the ACC is still better. But Akron remains ranked at fourth and NIU jumped from 20th to 13th by virtue of remaining a perfect 5-0-0. Nobody else has votes, but knocking on the door is 4-1-1 Buffalo and 4-1-0 Bowling Green. [NCAA]

• Friday night is MAC soccer night as well. Akron hosts New Mexico on Fox Soccer (and is live-streamed by MAC Sports) while BG travels to Belmont, NIU goes to Xavier and Buffalo takes a trip to Denver. Soccer! [MAC-Sports]

• In USA Today's poll they ask readers what ranked team will lose to an unranked opponent this weekend. Among the seven they choose, they at least include Boise State-Toledo (as opposed to, say, Wisconsin-NIU) but only five percent of responders picked that upset. For the record I am totally unsure that UT can even make this one close. Boise State is loads better than OSU (i.e., they have a quarterback who doesn't throw it 20 feet above the receiver) and BSU has done well in enemy territory. [USA Today]

• NIU receiver Martel Moore had a controversial play in the Kansas game that was ruled in complete and seems to keep getting reviewed and reversed by Big XII officials. Must not have anything better to do. [Red And Black Attack]

• You might remember WMU running back Brian Fields having a goal-line fumble in the CMU game last year, the one the Broncos lost by four points. (We do.) Yeah, he doesn't want to do that again. [MLive]