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Mark your calendars, plan your stadium trips, prepare for those Tuesday night watch parties, and make sure to avoid fall weddings.
We still have to travel halfway around the sun before the dawn of the 2021 college football season, but the schedules are finally in place. The Mid-American Conference launched its schedule Friday morning, featuring four non-conference matchups and eight conference clashes for all 12 member institutions.
While last year’s February schedule release for the MAC was all for naught due to the rare circumstances of the COVID-19 pandemic, the sport is hoping for a return to normalcy this fall with its traditional 12-game regular season schedules.
The reigning MAC champion Ball State Cardinals will be the first MAC team to take the field in 2021, hosting Western Illinois of the FCS on Sept. 2, the sport’s opening Thursday night.
After several weeks of non-conference battles, league play kicks off in the fourth week of the season when Toledo and Ball State meet at the Glass Bowl on Sept. 25.
Most notably, midweek MACtion makes its triumphant return on Tuesday, Nov. 2. The ESPN and CBS Sports Network schedules for Tuesday and Wednesday night games have yet to be released, but you can count on national television appearances during these weeknights. There are 11 Tuesday games and 9 Wednesday games spanning across four weeks in November, continuing the decade-long tradition of dominating the college football spotlight on weeknights.
The MAC Championship Game is currently slated for Saturday, Dec. 4 at Ford Field. After returning to the Friday night slot last fall, the conference title game will shift back to Saturday at Ford Field.
Below is the complete 2021 MAC schedule. Note that Tuesday and Wednesday games precede the corresponding Saturday listed in the chart.
2021 MAC Football Schedule
| Week (Saturday Date) | Akron | Ball State | Bowling Green | Buffalo | Central Michigan | Eastern Michigan | Kent State | Miami (OH) | Northern Illinois | Ohio | Toledo | Western Michigan |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Week (Saturday Date) | Akron | Ball State | Bowling Green | Buffalo | Central Michigan | Eastern Michigan | Kent State | Miami (OH) | Northern Illinois | Ohio | Toledo | Western Michigan |
| 1 (September 4) | @ Auburn | vs. Western Illinois [FCS] (Thu) | @ Tennessee | vs. Wagner [FCS] | @ Missouri | vs. St. Francis [FCS] (Fri) | @ Texas A&M | @ Cincinnati | @ Georgia Tech | vs. Syracuse | vs. Norfolk State [FCS] | @ Michigan |
| 2 (September 11) | vs. Temple | @ Penn State | vs. South Alabama | @ Nebraska | vs. Robert Morris [FCS] | @ Wisconsin | vs. VMI [FCS] | @ Minnesota | vs. Wyoming | vs. Duquesne [FCS] | @ Notre Dame | vs. Illinois State [FCS] |
| 3 (September 18) | vs. Bryant [FCS] | @ Wyoming | vs. Murray State [FCS] | vs. Coastal Carolina | @ LSU | @ UMass | @ Iowa | vs. LIU [FCS] | @ Michigan | @ Louisiana | vs. Colorado State | @ Pittsburgh |
| 4 (September 25) | @ Ohio State | vs. Toledo | @ Minnesota | @ Old Dominion | vs. FIU | vs. Texas State | @ Maryland | @ Army | vs. Maine [FCS] | @ Northwestern | @ Ball State | vs. San Jose State |
| 5 (October 2) | vs. Ohio | vs. Army | @ Kent State | vs. Western Michigan | @ Miami (OH) | @ Northern Illinois | vs. Bowling Green | vs. Central Michigan | vs. Eastern Michigan | @ Akron | @ UMass | @ Buffalo |
| 6 (October 9) | @ Bowling Green | @ Western Michigan | vs. Akron | @ Kent State | @ Ohio | vs. Miami (OH) | vs. Buffalo | @ Eastern Michigan | @ Toledo | vs. Central Michigan | vs. Northern Illinois | vs. Ball State |
| 7 (October 16) | @ Miami (OH) | @ Eastern Michigan | @ Northern Illinois | vs. Ohio | vs. Toledo | vs. Ball State | @ Western Michigan | vs. Akron | vs. Bowling Green | @ Buffalo | @ Central Michigan | vs. Kent State |
| 8 (October 23) | vs. Buffalo | vs. Miami (OH) | vs. Eastern Michigan | @ Akron | vs. Northern Illinois | @ Bowling Green | @ Ohio | @ Ball State | @ Central Michigan | vs. Kent State | vs. Western Michigan | @ Toledo |
| 9 (October 30) | *BYE* | *BYE* | @ Buffalo | vs. Bowling Green | *BYE* | *BYE* | *BYE* | *BYE* | *BYE* | *BYE* | *BYE* | *BYE* |
| 10 (November 6) | vs. Ball State (Tue) | @ Akron (Tue) | *BYE* | *BYE* | @ Western Michigan (Wed) | @ Toledo (Tue) | vs. Northern Illinois (Wed) | vs. Ohio (Tue) | @ Kent State (Wed) | vs. Miami (OH) (Tue) | vs. Eastern Michigan (Tue) | vs. Central Michigan (Wed) |
| 11 (November 13) | @ Western Michigan (Tue) | @ Northern Illinois (Wed) | vs. Toledo (Wed) | @ Miami (OH) (Tue) | vs. Kent State (Wed) | vs. Ohio (Tue) | @ Central Michigan (Wed) | vs. Buffalo (Tue) | vs. Ball State (Wed) | @ Eastern Michigan (Tue) | @ Bowling Green (Wed) | vs. Akron (Tue) |
| 12 (November 20) | vs. Kent State | vs. Central Michigan (Wed) | @ Miami (OH) (Tue) | vs. Northern Illinois (Wed) | @ Ball State (Wed) | vs. Western Michigan (Tue) | @ Akron | vs. Bowling Green (Tue) | @ Buffalo (Wed) | vs. Ohio (Tue) | @ Ohio (Tue) | @ Eastern Michigan (Tue) |
| 13 (November 27) | @ Toledo | vs. Buffalo (Tue) | vs. Ohio (Fri) | @ Ball State (Tue) | vs. Eastern Michigan (Fri) | @ Central Michigan (Fri) | vs. Miami (OH) | @ Kent State | vs. Western Michigan (Tue) | @ Bowling Green (Fri) | vs. Akron | @ Northern Illinois (Tue) |