2026 MAC Football Week 1 Game Preview: Eastern Michigan Eagles vs. San Jose State Spartans

We get a rare instance of two teams who played in Week 0 taking on each other in Ypsilanti this weekend, as the Eastern Michigan Eagles (1-0, 1-0 Mid-American Conference) take on the San Jose State Spartans (0-1, 0-0 Mountain West Conference) this Friday night.

Both teams had decidedly different tests; Eastern Michigan played in front of the home crowd under the lights and pulled away late against a conference foe to open the season, while San Jose State went against a blueblood program in the mid-day heat and suffered a brutal loss.

We'll find out more about these mettle of these two teams when they take each other on atop the grey turf of Maxx Crosby Field at The Factory.

Game Notes

• Date and Time: Friday, Sept. 4th, 2026 at 6:30 Eastern time
• Location: Rynearson Stadium in Ypsilanti, Michigan
• Network: The game will be streamed exclusively on ESPN+, a paid subscription service.
• EMU Radio: Tom Helmer (play-by-play) and Rob Rubick (color) will provide the EMU call for WEMU-FM 89.1.
• SJSU Radio: Neal Rhule (play-by-play) and Greg Kampke (color) will provide the SJSU call for the SJSU Spartan Radio Network.
• Gambling Considerations: Eastern Michigan is a 3.5-point home favorite, with an over/under set at 55.5-56.5 by book, per Covers.
• All-Time Series: This will be the first matchup between these two teams in the regular season. EMU is 2-0 in bowl games against the Spartans.

San Jose State outlook

The Spartans were put into a blender in their Week 0 contest, traveling to Los Angeles to take on the USC Trojans.

It wasn't particularly close; USC held a 28-0 lead going into the halftime break despite SJSU getting into the redzone at least once, and the Spartans could only muster a field goal to start the third quarter before the Trojans established a garbage time situation a mere five minutes later.

Sometimes you just have to take your lumps and walk away with a lesson learned, and that's what Ken Niumatalolo and crew hope to do when they travel to Michigan this weekend.

The Spartans are in their third season under the former Navy head coach, and suffered heavily in 2025, finishing 3-9 to end the year. Their campaign started with a wild loss to Central Michigan under the national spotlight and only got worse from there, though they did collect wins against New Mexico and Hawai'i in conference play.

When the team is at full tilt, they're a pass-happy spread offense which isn't afraid of stacking yards and points; last season against Hawai'i, they posted 630 yards of total offense to take away a 45-38 win.

Now they start from essentially zero, as only two starters on offense and one on defense return with six-plus starts under their belt. To this end, the staff went aggressive in the transfer portal, bringing in 48 new players, including 33 transfers.

Amongst the new blood is former Hawai'i backup QB Luke Weaver, who posted a decent statline (21-of-32, 236 yards, two touchdowns, one interception; 42 rushing yards, one rush TD) in adverse conditions against USC in his first game as SJSU's full-time starter.

True freshman Carson Clark starred at receiver, with 74 yards and no drops on six targets. San Diego State transfer Jerry McClure was the secondary receiver and hauled in one of the two touchdowns on the game.

The old man in the room is starting halfback Jabari Bates, who in his fifth year with the team, now has the full-time tag at starter after picking up three starts prior. He and Weaver split the rushing duties, with Bates getting 11 carries for 34 yards against a stout USC front.

Defensively, they do return a 12-game starter at linebacker in Ethan Powell (37 tackles, 2.5 tackles-for-loss, PBU in '25) and fifth-year corner Caleb Womack, who was a top five cornerback in the country in Week 0 per Pro Football Focus against USC in his first start for the program. Powell had eight tackles (second-lead), while running mate Naseri Danielson led the team with 10 stops on the night and hauled in a pick.

Trajan Sinatra kicked in his lone field goal in his debut after transferring in from Idaho State (18-of-22 in '25).

This version of the Spartans seems to be in transition, looking to find contributors at every unit. A game against a team of an approximate talent level should allow them to see what they've really got under the hood. Though, if last year was any indication, their lack of defensive continuity and expereince could come back to bite them.

Eastern Michigan Outlook

EMU opened their season against a conference opponent in Sacramento State– a sentence which this time last year would have been very hard to believe.

The Eagles struggled to take control of the game in the first quarter, with their typically humming offense struggling to find breaks, while the defense ripped through Sac State's line to put the Hornets into the negatives for rushing between sacks and tackles-for-loss.

Finally, before the end of the period, Issac Kozy shook his defender and Noah Kim found him for a 40-yard touchdown to break a scoreless tie and establish the pace of play. From there, the Eagles did not relent, eventually taking home a 28-17 victory which saw EMU collect 348 offensive yards and two 20+ yard touchdowns.

The offense is guided by seventh-year quarterback Noah Kim, who was one of the MAC's most effective passers in 2025, amassing 2,817 yards through the air, with 24 total touchdowns (18 passing, six rushing) and 11 interceptions. He scored three of the team's four touchdowns last week, with two passing scores and one on the ground.

EMU has a plethora of receivers they're looking to depend upon, including all-MAC tight end Joshua Long (37 receptions for 357 yards, three TDs in '25), and the pair of receivers in Benson Prosper (team-leading seven catches and 81 yards vs. Sac State), Nick Deveraux (six receptions, 77 yards, TD last week). Issac Kozy's play last week could get him more opportunities down the stretch as well.

Halfback is a two-person job for the Eagles, with redshirt freshman Amareon Blue the lead back on the depth chart. He hauled in two receptions for 22 yards to go along with 55 rushing yards on 11 carries. Coastal Carolina transfer Brayden Bennett scored a touchdown last week as well.

Defensively, the Eagles looked up to the task against the Hornets, limiting their new conference mate to 49 rushing yards, 271 yards overall and forcing two turnovers on the night.

Along the way, the defensive line looked up to the task, notching five TFLs and two sacks. Sixth-year linebacker Zach Mowchan finally got his chance to shine as a starter, leading the team with 14 tackles and 1.5 TFLs. He and safety-turned-linebacker Barry Manning (six tackles) looked stout in rush defense.

Cornerback Caleb Dobbs led the team with two pass break-ups and paired nicely with debutante starter Rayquan Adkins, who was second-lead in tackles (six). Bryce Llewellyn, EMU's highest-profile returnee on the defense, will likely key heavily against such a high-octane offense as the team's leading tackler (87) and interceptor (two) in 2025.

Last week was an encouraging sign for a team incorporating three new coordinators (defense is split between two coaches), and if they can repeat the feat against San Jose State, they'll have made a statement to the rest of the conference about their potential.

If there is one weakness which must be addressed quickly, it's special teams.

The formerly-reliable Rudy Kessinger has struggled massively in recent months, and missed a 28-yard gimmie in a potential leverage situation. New punter Daniel Hull punted six times and had a boot blocked. Each try was an adventure, with the vast majority of yards collected on the bounce after minimal air time. You can't rely on luck with an egg-shaped ball forever. EMU will need to go back to basics in their operations so they don't give away games in the future.

Game Outlook 

EMU tends to live on the knife's edge even with their collection of talent, and this week will be no different.

They weren't very tested against Sac State, which is essentially an FCS team in a FBS trench coat, so we're yet to know if their rejuventated rush defense (which was one of the worst in the country last season) is a match-up issue or for real. The defensive backfield will also be challenged by one of the stranger, more aggressive offenses in college football.

Offensively, the key will be which team can establish the pace of play. If San Jose State gets ahead early through the air and can keep that tempo up, it might be a long day for a defense still learning their system. If Eastern Michigan can possess the ball with effective passing and a healthy dose of run, it should be enough to get past a porous, inexperienced SJSU defense.

The sportsbooks have this matchup as essentially a pick-em once you take into account the three-point home advantage, and it comes down to whether or not you think SJSU can find a play or two enough to sneak through or if EMU can build upon what they showed vs. Sac State against a team of similar ilk.

Eastern might be going through their own growing pains, but they're the more talented team on-paper and SJSU has not performed well against MAC squads in their history, with a 1-4 mark all-time, including three-straight losses.

EMU by points and the under is how it feels like this might go.