Pin ‘Em Down: Week 1 Staff Picks

“Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.”

These words are attributed to legendary football coach Vince Lombardi, one of the most quotable sources in sports history. Sports fans are fueled by winning and competition, so here at Hustle Belt, we decided to implement a new competitive pick ‘em contest for the 2018 season.

The weekly pick ‘em series will be called “Pin ‘Em Down,” a fitting name suggested by associate managing editor James Jimenez. Eight of our staff members will select the winners of all of the MAC games each week, and there will also be an opportunity for fans and readers to participate.

Weekly Twitter polls will be posted on @HustleBelt in the several days leading up to the games. The team which receives more votes in each poll will be selected as the “Fan Pick” for the final column.

Non-conference season is a busy time, as 12 different contests will ensue from Thursday evening to Saturday night. So, for Week 1, each participant picks 12 games — 12 opportunities for MAC programs to “Fly the Flag.”

The standings are all at 0-0, but you can count on the variation between the records to increase week by week. The prize has yet to be determined, but it could range from bragging rights to a MAC pirate flag to even a coupon for an Arby’s #1 roast beef sandwich — I don’t know.

However, here are all of the Week 1 selections. In coincidental fashion, no two sets of picks are the same:

Steve Helwick

Breakdown:

• Ball State 9, Central Connecticut (FCS) 0
• Western Michigan 5, Syracuse 4
• Eastern Michigan 9, Monmouth (FCS) 0
• Illinois 8, Kent State 1
• Ohio 9, Howard (FCS) 0
• Miami (OH) 5, Marshall 4
• Kentucky 6, Central Michigan 3
• Iowa 6, Northern Illinois 3
• Buffalo 9, Delaware State (FCS) 0
• Toledo 9, VMI (FCS) 0
• Nebraska 9, Akron 0
• Oregon 9, Bowling Green 0