Mid-American Conference
The Mid-American Conference (MAC) is a college sports conference whose full members are located in the Great Lakes region of the United States. It sponsors 11 men's sports and 12 women's sports at the NCAA Division I level. In football, the MAC is one of 10 conferences that play in the top-level Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS).
The MAC was founded in 1946 by five schools in Indiana, Michigan, and Ohio, but only one of the founding members, Ohio University, is still in the conference. All but two of its current full members are in those three states.
Sports sponsored[change | change source]
- Baseball (men only)
- Basketball (both men and women)
- Cross country (both men and women)
- Field hockey (women only)
- Football (men only)
- Golf (both men and women)
- Gymnastics (women only)
- Lacrosse (women only)[1]
- Soccer (both men and women)
- Softball (women only)
- Swimming and diving (both men and women)
- Tennis (both men and women)
- Track and field, indoor (both men and women)
- Track and field, outdoor (both men and women)
- Volleyball (women only)
- Wrestling (men only)
Members[change | change source]
Full members[change | change source]
Currently, the MAC has 12 full members, all public schools, each of which competes in at least 15 MAC sports. Every member of the conference competes in football, baseball, men's and women's basketball, and the following women's sports: cross country, soccer, softball, indoor and outdoor track and field, and volleyball. In many sports, the conference is split into East and West Divisions.
| School | Location | Founded | Type | Nickname | Joined MAC |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Division | |||||
| University of Akron | Akron, Ohio | 1870 | Public | Zips | 1992 |
| Bowling Green State University | Bowling Green, Ohio | 1910 | Public | Falcons | 1952 |
| University at Buffalo | Buffalo, New York | 1846 | Public | Bulls | 1998 |
| Kent State University | Kent, Ohio | 1910 | Public | Golden Flashes | 1981 |
| Miami University[a 1] | Oxford, Ohio | 1809 | Public | RedHawks | 1977 |
| Ohio University | Athens, Ohio | 1804 | Public | Bobcats | 1948 |
| West Division | |||||
| Ball State University | Muncie, Indiana | 1918 | Public | Cardinals | 1973 |
| Central Michigan University | Mount Pleasant, Michigan | 1892 | Public | Chippewas | 1971 |
| Eastern Michigan University | Ypsilanti, Michigan | 1892 | Public | Eagles | 1971 |
| Northern Illinois University | DeKalb, Illinois | 1895 | Public | Huskies | 1975, 1997[a 2] |
| University of Toledo | Toledo, Ohio | 1872 | Public | Rockets | 1950 |
| Western Michigan University | Kalamazoo, Michigan | 1903 | Public | Broncos | 1947 |
- ↑ This school is often called "Miami (Ohio)" to distinguish it from the University of Miami in Florida.
- ↑ Northern Illinois left the MAC in 1986 and returned in 1997.
Associate members[change | change source]
The MAC has 19 "associate members" that play only one or two sports in the conference. Of these schools, only one has two sports in the MAC, and that school will move one of its two MAC sports to another conference in 2021. Another school will become an associate member in July 2021.
A major recent change in associate membership happened in 2019 when the MAC absorbed the Eastern Wrestling League, a single-sport conference that had existed since 1975. All seven of the EWL's final members thus became MAC associates.[2]
The most recent changes to associate membership took place on July 1, 2020 when the MAC added three members in the new conference sport of women's lacrosse,[1][3] along with one former wrestling member dropping the sport.[4]
SIU Edwardsville, in full Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, will leave the MAC men's soccer league in 2021 to return to its former soccer home of the Missouri Valley Conference. It will remain a MAC member in wrestling.[5]
Another change in associate membership was announced in June 2020. Bellarmine University, which started a transition from NCAA Division II to Division I that July, will join the MAC field hockey league in July 2021.[6]
- Current
- Future
| School | Location | Founded | Joining | Type | Sport(s) | Current main conference | Nickname |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bellarmine University | Louisville, Kentucky | 1950 | 2021 | Private | Field hockey | ASUN | Knights |
References[change | change source]
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mid-American Conference. |
- "Mid-American Conference". getsomemaction.com. Retrieved 2020-01-16.
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Mid-American Conference (November 6, 2019). "Women's Lacrosse Coming in 2020-21; Detroit Mercy & Youngstown State As Affiliates". Press release. https://getsomemaction.com/news/2019/11/5/general-womens-lacrosse-coming-in-2020-21-detroit-mercy-youngstown-state-as-affiliates.aspx. Retrieved February 8, 2020.
- ↑ Mid-American Conference (March 5, 2019). "MAC Announces Historic Wrestling Expansion". Press release. https://getsomemaction.com/news/2019/3/4/mac-announces-historic-wrestling-expansion.aspx. Retrieved March 15, 2019.
- ↑ Mid-American Conference (June 23, 2020). "Robert Morris to Join MAC as Affiliate Member in Women's Lacrosse". Press release. https://getsomemaction.com/news/2020/6/23/general-robert-morris-to-join-mac-as-affiliate-member-in-womens-lacrosse.aspx. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
- ↑ Old Dominion University Athletics (April 2, 2020). "ODU Discontinues Wrestling Program". Press release. https://odusports.com/news/2020/4/2/odu-discontinues-wrestling-program.aspx. Retrieved April 15, 2020.
- ↑ Missouri Valley Conference (June 12, 2020). "MVC Adds SIUE as Men's Soccer Affiliate". Press release. http://mvc-sports.com/news/2020/6/12/mvc-add-siue-as-mens-soccer-affiliate.aspx. Retrieved June 24, 2020.
- ↑ Mid-American Conference (June 9, 2020). "Bellarmine to Join MAC as Affiliate Member in Field Hockey". Press release. https://getsomemaction.com/news/2020/6/7/bellarmine-to-join-mac-as-affiliate-member-in-field-hockey.aspx. Retrieved October 1, 2020.