2026 MAC Football Week 11 Game Preview: Akron Zips vs. Western Michigan Broncos

The Western Michigan Broncos (6-3, 4-1 MAC) travel to northeast Ohio to take on the Akron Zips (1-8, 0-5 MAC) for a Tuesday night fight to maintain relevance in the conference title race.

WMU is coming off a win over Bowling Green to keep pace with several other MAC teams in the title chase, while Akron once again lost in frustrating fashion last time out against league-leading Ohio.

Can the Broncos continue to put the pressure on at the top of the table, or will the Zips manage to overcome their inconsistencies and pop a MAC titan in the jaw?

Game notes

• Date and Time: Tuesday, November 10th, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. Eastern time
• Location: Summa Field at InfoCision Stadium in Akron, Ohio
• TV options: The game will be on CBS Sports Network. A valid cable subscription is required for viewing.
• Streaming options: The game will be available for streaming on applicable cable/satellite services. A valid subscription is required for viewing on any platform.
• Western Michigan radio: Robin Hook (play-by-play) and John Creek (color) will provide the WMU call for Jack 106.5 FM
• Akron radio: Dave Skoczen (play-by-play) and Joe Dunn (color) will provide the Akron call for WHLO-AM 640.
• Gambling Considerations: Western is a 13.5-point favorite; over/under is 48.5-49.5 by book, per Covers.
• All-time series: Western leads the series with a 17-5 record in 22 contests dating back to 1938. The Broncos have won 8 of the last 10 matchups, and have a three-game winning streak (2020-21, 2024).

Western Michigan outlook

The Broncos secured bowl eligibility last week, taking down the Bowling Green Falcons in relatively convincing fashion. They're still in a position to go to Detroit despite their loss to Toledo, at 4-1 in league play.

From here on, they'll need to win out and hope Toledo suffers a loss in order to get back into one of the first two slots. WMU holds a tiebreaker over Buffalo if it comes down to that at season's end due to their league-opener win against the Bulls on the road.

If this is your first time tuning in to the Broncos since the infamous Michigan game or last season, the main difference between the 2025 and 2026 versions of WMU is their increased dependence on the pass game. To wit, quarterback Broc Lowry already has more touchdowns through nine games in 2026 (11) than all of 2026 (nine) and will likely surpass his passing yardage from last season within 3-4 games assuming he maintains his 155 yards per game (up from 128.6 last season).

That's thanks to the emergence of the play action game and how it's opened up opportunities. True sophomore receiver Aveion Chenault has been the biggest beneficiary of this change, leading the team in catches (33) and yards (540) as the biggest downfield threat. Tight ends have also greatly benefited, especially in the redzone, combining for five of the team's 12 receiving scores.

The old adage about the run opening up the pass applies to this offense, with former Freshman All-American halfback Jalen Buckley engineering the rushing attack. Through nine games, he sits at 144 carries for 771 yards and eight touchdowns. Last week saw Michigan transfer Cole Cabana get his first extended look at halfback, rushing for 110 yards and a touchdown vs. Bowling Green and could look at more snaps moving forward. Lowry is the team's second-leading rusher with 259 yards and four touchdowns; he'll need to be accounted for in option looks.

On defense, the Broncos have dealt with up-and-down performance due to injuries, with middling numbers in rushing yards, passing yards and total yards allowed– but crucially, have been strong in redzone defense (75 percent; second in league) and scoring defense, leading the MAC with 19.2 points per game allowed on average.

JUCO transfer linebacker Justyce Betts has manned the middle for WMU, 11th in the MAC in total tackles (66), while picking up four tackles-for-loss, an interception, a forced fumble and a pass break-up. The cornerback pair of Joshua Franklin and Jarvarius Sims have been steady as well, with 10 combined pass break-ups. The safety room is perhaps the deepest part of the defense. Micah Davis has only played five games but makes a significant difference when on the field from a leadership perspective. Daeh McCullough played admirably in his absence, with two interceptions and three pass break-ups on the year, while Joey Pope has five PBUs and 45 tackles.

Dieter Kelly, who many will remember for his electric debut vs. Michigan, has taken over placekicker duties after an injury to Palmer Domschke. Kelly is 11-of-12 on the year and hasn't missed a kick since September against Boise State. Ryan Millmore is tied for the best punting average in the MAC, at 45.3 yards per boot.

Akron outlook

The Zips have been on a major losing streak dating back into the non-conference slate, when they won their FCS tune-up against Robert Morris. Part of it has certainly been their fault, blowing multiple leads or one-score trailing scenarios with undisciplined play– but by the same token, their season outlook was blown asunder as soon as transfer QB Reese Poffenbarger was declared ineligible prior to the start of the season.

Combine that with even more injuries on both sides of the ball (including a long-term injury to newly-minted starting QB Cibastian Broughton), and the Zips wound up behind the eight-ball incredibly early.

Broughton returned two weeks ago, but got his first start since his injury against Minnesota back in September last week against Ohio, finishing 22-of-34 for 232 yards and an interception while adding 58 pre-sack yards on the run. His dual-threat ability and accuracy in the pass game (75 percent) are pluses– and could help in mitigating one of the worst offensive lines in the country, averaging nearly three sacks allowed per game.

Jordan Gant continues to post impressive statlines, collecting his fourth 100+ yard performance in his last five games vs. Ohio, with 112 yards and a score on just 16 carries. He's leaned upon as a three-down back for the Zips, with 730 yards and seven touchdowns to lead the team.

In the receiving game, the Zips live and die by the performance of their trio of capable passcatchers. A lot of Akron's issues over the season derived from Brayden Roggow's inaccuracy resulting in lots of fallow drives or turnovers; Broughton's presence has added a sense of security in that respect. Marcel Williams leads the team in receptions (37), yards (417) and touchdowns (three), while Kyan Mason sits right behind with 405 yards on 31 catches. Miles Burris has emerged to win the third receiver spot, with the majority of his season numbers (25 rec., 279 yards, TD) captured over the last three games (14 rec., 164 yards).

The defense has been put in a lot of compromising positions over the course of the year and the statistics show it, giving up 407 total yards and 32 points allowed per game (both second-worst in league) while rostering one of the country's worst pass rush attacks, with two interceptions and five sacks through nine games.

The secondary lost four key pieces before MAC play even started, with Daymond Davis out before the start of the season and Alex Branch, Iesa Jarmon and Catrell White all lost for the year by Week 4. Defensive end Omari Abor, who was showing promise with two TFLs, a sack and a interception in four games, is also injured long-term after four games played.

All of that said, their performance against Ohio was encouraging outside of two late explosives. They've also showed savvy in the first half of games against a decent amount of opponents, including Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Miami and UNLV.

Linebacker Donelius Johnson has been one of the MAC's best tacklers, standing fourth in the league with 80 tackles to go with 4.5 TFLs. FIU transfer end Dwight Nunoo has also been impactful, with 57 tackles, 4.5 TFLs and a forced fumble. Defensive end Cyrus Durham has been in and out of the lineup, but has 3.5 of the team's five collective sacks as well as 5.5 TFLs. Tairan Davis Jr. and Rodrick Hunter have stepped up in the defensive backfield, each with an interception, while Aamii Branch leads the team with seven PBUs.

Kicking has been a struggle; Aiden Stire took over duties from Matthew Schramm (55 percent) in October, but has not fared much better (6-of-8), with a miss in each of the last two games. Joseph Castle averages 42 yards per punt. The Zips do have one of the MAC's better returners in Brandon Hills, who averages 26 yards per return and has multiple runbacks of 40 yards or more.

There's nothing left in the season to play for except for pride and the chance to play spoiler. Though, another storyline to watch coming out of this game will be the job security of head coach Joe Moorhead and the rest of his staff. Through six seasons, they're 14-42 (9-27 MAC), with 2024 and 2025's success (nine wins in two seasons) marred by APR restrictions. 2026 has been a total freefall, and there's a new athletic director in place in Andrew Goodrich; the pieces may align for a late-season move.

Game outlook

One would like to have optimism that the Zips can put up a fight in this one, especially considering the home field advantage, but simply put, Akron has not earned the right for such benefit of the doubt.

Western is the better team from top to bottom, and have seemingly gotten over some of their early season woes to find a balance that works moving forward.

The odds have this as a two-score game in favor of the visitors, and considering the direction of both teams, it feels right to go over. That said, if Akron plays WMU similarly to how they played EMU and Ohio, they might have a chance if they can find some complete drives on offense.