On Friday, the Mid-American Conference announced a return to play in football this fall.
RETURN OF THE MAC!#MACtion pic.twitter.com/IblsYCEjw9
— #MACtion (@MACSports) September 25, 2020
That video trumpets Wednesday, November 4th as the return to play date.
Of note: this is the day after Election Day. Earlier this summer, the MAC and ESPN worked to reschedule a game on November 3rd in order to give student-athletes the day off. That rescheduling became moot after the MAC postponed their fall football season at the start of August.
In a release, the MAC noted that teams will be playing six game schedules, concluding with the MAC Championship Game on December 18th or 19th. The release also says that players will be tested for COVID-19 four times a week, and that fans will be barred from attending games or tailgating.
The MAC’s change in thinking comes the day after both the Pac-12 and the Mountain West made the decision to return to play this fall. The Big Ten made their decision to come back last week.
There now remain just three FBS schools that won’t participate this fall – UConn, New Mexico State, and Old Dominion. Of those three, only Old Dominion (a member of Conference USA) is not an independent in football.
With MAC back, only 3 of 130 FBS programs won’t play this fall: UConn, New Mexico State & Old Dominion
— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) September 25, 2020
Alright folks: in a few weeks, we’ll all be able to kick back and enjoy some #MACtion.
