MIAMI/MAC FOOTBALL

Miami tapped to take crown in MAC Coaches Poll 

Brett Gabbert returns to lead Miami's offense. (MVSmith/MRO)

CLEVELAND, Ohio – The Miami RedHawks have been selected as favorites to win both the regular season crown and Mid-American Conference (MAC) Football Championship Game title in the 2024 Football Head Coaches Preseason Poll. Head Coaches were not allowed to vote for themselves in the poll.

The RedHawks received nine first place votes to claim the regular season championship, while notching 10 votes to win the 2024 conference title game. Miami claimed . . .

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. . . its fourth overall MAC championship title after defeating Toledo, 23-14 inside Ford Field last season.

Toledo, last year’s West Division champion, was picked to finish second and received three votes to win the regular season championship. The Rockets also garnered two votes to claim the championship game title.

This year marks the first integration of the new conference schedule format. This new model will allow for each team to face all 11 conference opponents home and away at least once during a three-year cycle. Additionally, the new format will incorporate protected opponents based on geographic location and rivalries and eliminates the MAC East and West Divisions.

The 78th season of MAC football kicks off on Thursday, August 29 and concludes with the 28th MAC Football Championship game will be held on Saturday, December 7 (12 p.m. ET) on ESPN between the top two teams based on conference winning percentage. This will mark the 21st MAC Football Championship game at Ford Field, home of the Detroit Lions.

The MAC will host its 2024 Football Kickoff today, July 19th, at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio from 9:00 am ET/8:00 am CT to 1:30 pm ET/12:30 pm CT. The event can be streamed here.

A complete list of the MAC Football Coaches Preseason Coaches Poll can be found below.

2024 MAC Football Coaches Preseason Poll

First Place votes in ( ) | *Coaches were not able to vote for themselves
 
1. Miami (9) – 119 points
2. Toledo (3) – 109 points
T3. Bowling Green – 92 points
T3. Northern Illinois – 92 points
5. Ohio – 81 points
6. Eastern Michigan – 64 points
7. Western Michigan – 60 points
8. Central Michigan – 59 points
9. Ball State – 42 points
10. Buffalo – 37 points
11. Akron – 24 points
12. Kent State – 13 points
 
Conference Champion: Miami (10), Toledo (2)