Ohio Sports Time

Ohio Sports Time - Ohio sports news and opinions for college and professional sports teams in Ohio. Our mission is to discuss major sports happenings across the state of Ohio. We cover teams like the Cleveland Indians, Cincinnati Reds, Cleveland Browns, Cincinnati Bengals, Cleveland Cavaliers, and Ohio colleges like the Ohio State Buckeyes, Cincinnati Bearcats, all 6 Ohio MAC schools and more. Basically if it's a sport and it's happening in Ohio, Ohio Sports Time is the place to discuss it.

Sunday, October 29, 2006

Ohio College Football Rankings after Week #9 by Ohio Sports Time

1. Ohio State – 9-0 (5-0 Big Ten) – Minnesota, the recipient of the weekly Buckeye pounding, must have forgotten their offense on Saturday. Or maybe the Buckeyes are that good… OSU is at Illinois this coming weekend for their next big blowout.

2. Ohio 6-3 (4-1 MAC) – By beating Kent State 17-7 on the road, the Bobcats now control their own destiny for a MAC East title and berth into the MAC Championship game. With the toughest schedule in the MAC and 32nd toughest overall, Ohio has proven that they are much-improved from a year ago. This week’s match-up is @ Eastern Michigan where Ohio will face an improving EMU Eagles squad.

3. Cincinnati 5-4 (2-2 Big East) – Cincinnati picked up their 2nd straight win and 4th in their last 5 games as they beat Syracuse 17-3 this past weekend. The schedule takes a nasty turn as the final games in 2006 for UC are @ #4 West Virginia and vs. #16 Rutgers before closing the season @ UCONN.

4. Kent State 5-2 (4-0 MAC) – Despite the week off before the Ohio game, Kent looked uninspired and unable to adjust to the weather conditions at Dix Stadium on Saturday. Had it not been for QB Julian Edelman, the Flashes would have been shut out and completely dominated. This weekend will send the Golden Flashes to Buffalo to face off with the 1-7 (0-5) Buffalo Bulls.

5. Toledo 3-6 (1-4 MAC) – Toledo’s 35-20 win over Akron may finally be the breakthrough the Rockets needed as they finally gained their 1st MAC win of the season. With their next game @ Northern Illinois on November 7th, the Rockets will have their hands full with Garrett Wolfe & Company.

6. Akron 3-5 (1-3 MAC) – The Zips found themselves down 14-0 in the 1st Quarter on the road @ Toledo on Saturday night and never make up the deficit in the 35-20 loss. After falling to 1-3 in MAC play with the loss, the Zips head home to face Bowling Green next weekend and could knock BG out of the MAC East race.

7. Miami 1-8 (1-4) – I said it earlier in the season that Miami is not as bad as their record indicates. While this team is not as good as I or anyone else expected, they definitely are struggling badly. The turnaround from solid program to almost MAC East doormat should have head coach Shane Montgomery under fire. A lot of fire…

8. Bowling Green 4-5 (3-2 MAC) – I do not care what your record is, if you lose to Temple, at home or on the road, you deserve to be dead last on this list. How did this team beat Ohio back in September? BG is @ Akron this week in a key battle where the winner will still hold on to hope of a MAC East crown.

Monday, October 23, 2006

Ohio College Football Rankings after Week #8 by Ohio Sports Time

1. Ohio State – 8-0 (4-0 Big Ten) – Another week, another blowout win for the Buckeyes as the Indiana Hoosiers were this past weekend’s victim. OSU faces Minnesota on Saturday for their next blowout of the week.

2. Kent State 5-2 (4-0 MAC) – The Golden Flashes’ had the week off and should have plenty of time to prepare for Frank Solich’s Ohio Bobcats. Saturday’s game features two teams which have not had much success in the MAC standings over the years as Kent’s last MAC title was in 1972 and Ohio’s last title in 1968. I will be making my first trip to Dix Stadium and I look forward to watching a good game with a lot on the line.

3. Ohio 5-3 (3-1 MAC) – The Bobcats looked solid as they beat up on Buffalo 42-7 on Saturday. This weekend’s showdown in Kent is an extremely large one as the winner will control their own destiny for a MAC East title and berth into the MAC Championship game.

4. Cincinnati 4-4 (1-2 Big East) – The Bearcats face South Florida on Sunday night and looked strong in the 2nd half to get their 1st Big East win of the season, 23-6. After leading 2-0 at the half, yes, 2-0, the UC defense scored on a fumble recovery TD and the offense came alive. The Bearcats have a home match-up with Syracuse this Saturday before ending the season with 2 of their last 3 games against ranked opponents.

5. Bowling Green 4-4 (3-2 MAC) – The closest thing to a guaranteed win in Division I-A football is coming up for the Falcons this week as they face the Temple Owls. BG fell to Central Michigan last Thursday night 31-14 and was outscored 17-0 in the second half. BG has not had consecutive losses this season and do not expect that to change this week as the Falcons should roll over the Owls.

6. Akron 3-4 (1-2 MAC) – The Zips gained their 1st MAC win of the season 24-13 over Miami on Saturday. Akron’s rushing attack was the difference in a game that was otherwise pretty even. The Zips will travel to Toledo to face the Rockets Saturday night and will need to put together a strong winning streak to have any hope at defending their MAC East title.

7. Toledo 2-6 (0-4 MAC) – With their loss to Eastern Michigan I really think they should be in 8th place on this list, but the close loss in 3OT @ Iowa State and win over Kansas still are both much more impressive than Miami’s lone victory over Buffalo. The Rockets will look for their 1st MAC win of the season as they host Akron in the Glass Bowl on Saturday night.

8. Miami 1-7 (1-3) – The RedHawks brief winning streak was ended on Saturday night as they fell 24-13 @ Akron. While QB Mike Kokal was solid yet again, the Miami rushing attack gained just 57 yards on 30 carries. The RedHawks have a more favorable match-up as they host the Ball State Cardinals this Saturday.

Sunday, October 15, 2006

Ohio College Football Rankings after Week #7

Below are the Ohio Sports Time NCAA Division I-A Ohio football rankings after week #7:

1. Ohio State Buckeyes - 7-0, 3-0 Big Ten - Buckeyes spank Michigan State 38-7. The Indiana Hoosiers will be the next victim for the Buckeyes on Saturday.

2. Kent State Golden Flashes - 5-2, 4-0 - The Golden Flashes won their 5th straight game by beating Toledo 40-14 on Saturday. When was the last time Kent State won 5 straight football games? Try 1976. The Flashes have a week off before hostin the Ohio Bobcats on October 28th, and I plan to be there.

3. Bowling Green Falcons - 4-3, 3-1 MAC - The BG defense held on to defeat Eastern Michigan 24-21 on Saturday to vault the Falcons up a notch to #3 this week. The win @ Ohio proves to be the difference in the #3 and #4 or 5 spots despite BG's other MAC wins being against Buffalo and EMU who have a combined 1-11 record in 2006. This week is a short one for the Falcons as they have a Thursday night game @ MAC West leader Central Michigan.

4. Ohio Bobcats - 4-3, 2-1 MAC - Last week I said "Ohio will have a chance to make a nice statement for the program and the MAC this weekend as they face the Illinois Fighting Illini this Saturday." Well a 20-17 win @ Illinois is indeed a statement for the program as Ohio now has wins over BCS programs in 3 straight years. Homecoming in Athens is this Saturday as the Bobcats will take on a much-improved Buffalo team.

5. Cincinnati Bearcats - 3-4, 0-2 Big East - The Bearcats continue to hang in with tough opponents as they fell to #8 Louisville 23-17 on Saturday. The "hang-in-there" results are nice, but to date their only wins on the season are against a I-AA school and over two MAC schools (Miami & Akron) who are a combined 3-10 on the season. UC's next game is against South Florida on Sunday night @ 8 pm.

6. Akron Zips - 2-4, 0-2 MAC - Nothing like a bye week to help you move up in the rankings. Thanks to the lousy play of the Toledo Rockets, Akron moves up to #6 this week. The Zips could easily be #2 on this list based on their talent and upset of NC State, but losses to Kent State, CMU and UC leaves the Zips at 2-4 through 6 games.I said it last week and it still is ture: "If Akron wants to defend their 2005 MAC Championship and contend in 2006, they're going to need to start getting some wins beginning October 21st against the Miami RedHawks."

7. Toledo Rockets - 2-5, 0-3 MAC - What the heck is going on? The same team that took Iowa State to 3-OT and beat Kansas in 2-OT has fallen apart. A 40-14 road loss to Kent State is the latest whipping that the Toledo Rockets have taken as they have fallen to 0-3 in MAC play this season. Saturday's game @ Eastern Michigan should prove to be the first MAC win for Toledo in 2006; if it is not then pigs may start to fly...

8. Miami RedHawks - 1-6, 1-2 MAC - Apparently the snow caught everyone in Buffalo, NY off guard this past week as the Saturday match-up between the Miami RedHawks and Buffalo Bulls was postponed and played on Sunday instead. Tied at 21 heading into the 4th Quarter, the RedHawks scored 17 straight and held on for a 38-31 win over the much-improved Bulls. Miami looks to keep their new streak alive and ruin Akron's season in Saturday evening's match-up with the Zips.

Sunday, October 08, 2006

Ohio College Football Rankings After Week #6

Below are the Ohio Sports Time NCAA Division I-A Ohio football rankings after week #6:

1. Ohio State Buckeyes - 6-0, 2-0 Big Ten - No doubts that the Buckeyes are #1 in the state as they will hold on to this ranking all season. OSU travels to East Landsing, Michigan to face the MSU Spartans this weekend.

2. Kent State Golden Flashes - 4-2, 3-0 - The Golden Flashes now have won 4 straight after defeating Temple 28-17 this weekend. A home match-up with Toledo will be a true test for Kent this weekend.

3. Cincinnati Bearcats - 3-3, 0-1 Big East - I'll be honest when I say I did not believe the Bearcats were better than most, if not all, of the Ohio MAC schools this season. But wins in Week #5 & 6 over Miami and Akron vault UC into the #3 spot. While the Bearcats are now 3-3 on the season, this weekend's matchup with #8 Louisville will prove to be too much for the Bearcats.

4. Bowling Green Falcons - 3-3, 2-1 MAC - The Falcons had a respectable showing @ Ohio State in their 35-7 loss last week. BG will be pleased to see a major drop-off in their opponents' talent level this week as they face Eastern Michigan this weekend.

5. Ohio Bobcats - 3-3, 2-1 MAC - The Bobcats ended a 3-game losing streak by upsetting the WMU Broncos 27-20 in Athens on Saturday. Ohio will have a chance to make a nice statement for the program and the MAC this weekend as they face the Illinois Fighting Illini this Saturday.

6. Toledo Rockets - 2-4, 0-2 MAC - With a 3-OT loss @ Iowa State and a home win over Kansas, many thought the Rockets would be atop the MAC West again this year. But two losses to MAC West-rivals Western and Central Michigan leave the Rockets at 0-2 in MAC play heading into a road match-up @ Kent State this Saturday.

7. Akron Zips - 2-4, 0-2 MAC - The expectations for the Zips in 2006 were very high, but with a 20-14 loss @ UC on Saturday, Akron drops to 2-4 to start the season. If Akron wants to defend their 2005 MAC Championship and contend in 2006, they're going to need to start getting some wins beginning October 21st against the Miami RedHawks.

8. Miami RedHawks - 0-6, 0-2 MAC - While the RedHawks fell to 0-6 on the season in their 28-25 loss to NIU on Sunday night, this team is not nearly as bad as their record indicates. The RedHawks will look to get their first W of the season on Saturday as they travel to New York to face off with the Buffalo Bulls.

Friday, October 06, 2006

MAC Football Programs Lead in Graduation Success Rates

A new article over on VanDelaySports.com entitled "MAC Football Programs Lead I-A Public Institutions In Graduation Success Rates" describes how the Mid-American Conference leads the nation in graduation rates. Eight of 12 MAC schools can boast 70% or higher graduation rates while no other Division I-A conference has more than three schools in their conference with 70% or better grad rates.

While Mid-majors and non-BCS Conference schools attempt to brag about their success as they work to get a larger piece of college football's money pie, only the MAC, as a whole, seems to be doing it the right way. If you look at the number of institutions at the 70% rate or above, the MAC not only blows away all of the BCS conferences, but they also blow away Conference USA (3/8), Mountain West (2/6), Sun Belt (1/8) and WAC (0/8). Check out the link above for more; I think you will find that the MAC is truly the conference that believes in the "student" athlete.

Ohio College Football Rankings After Week #5

Looks like I forgot to post the NCAA Division I-A Ohio football rankings for the week so here's the abbreviated version:

1. Ohio State
2. Kent State
3. Toledo
4. Akron
5. Cincinnati
6. Bowling Green
7. Ohio
8. Miami