2008 MAC Championship Game

The 2008 MAC Championship Game was played on December 5, 2008 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. The game featured the winner of each division of the Mid-American Conference. The game featured the Ball State Cardinals, of the West Division, and the Buffalo Bulls, of the East Division. The Buffalo Bulls upset the #12-ranked Ball State 42–24, ending hopes of an undefeated Cardinals season.

2008 Marathon MAC Championship Game
Conference Championship
Ball State Cardinals Buffalo Bulls
(12–0) (7–5)
24 42
Head coach: 
Brady Hoke		 Head coach: 
Turner Gill
APCoachesBCS
121312
1234 Total
Ball State 01077 24
Buffalo 702114 42
DateDecember 5, 2008
Season2008
StadiumFord Field
LocationDetroit, Michigan
MVPMike Newton.
RefereeTom McCabe[1]
Attendance12,871[1]
United States TV coverage
NetworkESPN2
AnnouncersSean McDonough, Chris Spielman, Rob Stone[2]
2008 Mid-American Conference football standings
Conf  Overall
Team W L    W L 
East Division
Buffalo x$  5 –3     8 –6  
Bowling Green  4 –4     6 –6  
Temple  4 –4     5 –7  
Ohio  3 –5     4 –8  
Akron  3 –5     5 –7  
Kent State  3 –5     4 –8  
Miami  1 –7     2 –10  
West Division
Ball State x  8 –0     12 –2  
Central Michigan  6 –2     8 –5  
Western Michigan  6 –2     9 –4  
Northern Illinois  5 –3     6 –7  
Toledo  2 –6     3 –9  
Eastern Michigan  2 –6     3 –9  
Championship: Buffalo 42, Ball State 24
  • $ – Conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions

This was not the first time these two conference rivals have met. They met 5 times previously before this big Championship Game, with Ball State leading the series 5-0. Against the odds Buffalo faced the undefeated Cardinals and came out victorious in this matchup. [3]

Selection process

The MAC Championship Game matches up the winner of the East and West divisions of the Mid-American Conference.

With the Buffalo Bulls having 24 upperclassmen, it made the task of knocking off the undefeated and top of the conference Ball State Cardinals more of a realistic venture. [4]

Scoring summary
QuarterTimeDriveTeamScoring information[1]Score
LengthTimeBall StateBuffalo
1 1:593 plays, 25 yards1:11Buffalo Naaman Roosevelt 2 yard pass from Drew Willy, A. J. Principe kick good 07
2 7:409 plays, 80 yards4:01Ball State MiQuale Lewis 4 yard run, Ian McGarvey kick good 77
0:006 plays, 18 yards1:00Ball State Ian McGarvey 47 yard field goal 107
3 11:247 plays, 80 yards3:36Buffalo Naaman Roosevelt 39 yard pass from Drew Willy, A. J. Principe kick good 1014
8:077 plays, 65 yards3:10Ball State MiQuale Lewis 1 yard run 1714
3:52Buffalo Mike Newton 92 yard fumble recovery, A. J. Principe kick good 1721
0:19Buffalo Sherrod Lott 74 yard fumble recovery, A. J. Principe kick good 1728
4 6:066 plays, 29 yards2:48Buffalo Naaman Roosevelt 8 yard pass from Drew Willy, A. J. Principe kick good 1735
4:178 plays, 66 yards1:41Ball State Louis Johnson 22 yard pass from Nate Davis, Ian McGarvey kick good 2435
2:534 plays, 25 yards1:22Buffalo James Starks 1 yard run, A. J. Principe kick good 2442
Final score2442

Starting lineups

Source:[5]

Ball StatePositionBuffalo
Offense
Louis JohnsonWRNaaman Roosevelt
Andre RamseyLTRay Norell
Michael SwitzerLGPeter Bittner
Dan GerberryCChris Lauzze
Kyle CornwellRGJeff Niedermier
Robert BrewsterRTAndrew West
Darius HillTEJesse Rack
Madaris GrantTEKyle Brey
Nate DavisQBDrew Willy
MiQuale LewisRBJames Starks
Briggs OrsbonWR–FBLawrence Rolle
Defense
Brandon CrawfordLEAndrae Smith
Rene PerryLDTMatt Brennan
Drew DuffinRDTAnel Montanez
Robert EddinsREMike Thompson
Kenny MeeksSLBRaphael Akobundu
Davyd JonesMLBAdekun Akingba
Bryant HainesWLBJustin Winters
B.J. HillLCBDomonic Cook
Trey BuiceRCBKendrick Hawkins
Alex KnippSSDavonte Shannon
Sean BakerFSMike Newton

References
  1. "Ball State vs Buffalo". MAC-Sports.com. December 5, 2008. Archived from the original on September 28, 2009. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  2. "Marathon MAC Football Championship Game" (PDF) (Press release). MAC-Sports.com. December 3, 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 28, 2009. Retrieved September 25, 2009.
  3. "Football Falls to Buffalo in MAC Championship Game".
  4. "Ball State vs. Buffalo - Game Recap - December 6, 2008 - ESPN".
  5. "Ball State vs Buffalo". ubbulls.com. Retrieved May 19, 2015.
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