While the MAC is not known as a conference that sends a lot of football teams to bowl games, this year seven teams earned a bid.

The seven teams set a new MAC record for most teams to get bids to bowl games. The previous record had been five.

NIU made the biggest splash in MAC history when it became the first team in the history of the conference to go to a BCS Bowl game. The Huskies will take on the Florida State Seminoles in the Orange Bowl in Miami on New Years Day.

The six other teams to make a bowl game are Kent State, Toledo, Ball State, Bowling Green, Ohio and Central Michigan.

Kent State will take on Arkansas State in the GoDaddy.com Bowl on Jan. 6. Toledo will battle Utah State for the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl on Dec. 15.

Ball State will meet Central Florida on Dec. 21, for the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl. Bowling Green will play in the Military Bowl against San Jose State on Dec. 27.

On Dec. 28, Ohio will play Louisiana-Monroe in the AdvoCare V100 Independence Bowl. Central Michigan was the last team from the MAC to make a bowl and it will take on Western Kentucky in the Little Caesars Bowl on Dec. 26.

“I am extremely proud of the student-athletes, coaches and fans at our seven MAC member institutions that have received bowl invitations and our collective accomplishments as a conference this season,” said Jon Steinbrecher, Commissioner of the Mid-American Conference in a news conference. “The commitment of the student-athletes to excel has earned them this opportunity. I am very excited for our bowl lineup and I look forward to watching the MAC teams compete this bowl season.”