Mid-American Conference to move to nine-game football schedule
The move, effective 2028, is meant to present additional league inventory while adjusting to NCAA developments.
The Mid-American Conference announced via press release on Tuesday morning the league will be moving to a nine-game league schedule starting in 2028.
“College football continues to change, and our responsibility is to make thoughtful decisions that position the Mid-American Conference and our institutions for long-term success,” Commissioner Dr. Jon Steinbrecher said via press release. “Moving to a nine-game conference schedule provides greater conference exposure for our programs while maintaining flexibility for meaningful non-conference competition.”
Such a move regarding league scheduling is a bit of a surprise, but in the current environment was likely necessary. The ACC, Big Ten, Big XII and SEC have all in recent years adopted a nine-game schedule due to recent expansion, with some conferences mandating more non-conference games against peer Power institutions, limiting the amount of games available to mid-major conferences.
In recent months, multiple MAC members have seen games with Power conference opponents either bought out or moved due to Power conference scheduling mandates, which was likely an indication a move of this nature was coming down the pipe.
The Mid-American Conference is also likely considering their future media rights deal; the current deal with ESPN is set to expire after the 2027 season, and a ninth game could be seen as attractive inventory for potential new partners while offering flexibility for conference members.
The 2027 season will be the last MAC slate with eight conference games. The league, which has 13 member institutions in football, will determine rotations for the new-look schedule at a later time.
