If anyone has an excuse to be overconfident, Jake Percival would be that person.

The 157-pound Ohio wrestler has achieved three MAC championships, All-America status three times, a 134-9 career record and has never lost a MAC match.

But beyond his success on the mat, Percival embodies a growing trend of star performers who are gathering respect and results for the MAC conference.

Last year’s stars were NIU’s Ben Heizer and Percival, who managed to climb all the way to the NCAA Final at 184 and 157 pounds, respectively.

Having two MAC wrestlers place so high is becoming the rule instead of the exception. At least two MAC wrestlers have placed in the top five at the NCAA Championships in six of the last seven years. Compare that to only two wrestlers achieving top five status from 1990-’98.

“There’s definitely more respect [for the MAC],” Percival said. “The competition has gotten much better. There was, like, one All-American when I redshirted as a freshman. Now there are a lot.”

One reason for the increase in top-tier wrestlers is the improved recruiting bases, NIU coach Dave Grant said.

“MAC schools are spread out in some of the strongest wrestling states,” Grant said. “We have deep talent pools in the Midwest states, and it makes it easier to recruit.”

New faces on the sidelines have also been noticeable for Ohio coach Joel Greenlee. Four of the six MAC coaches have been hired after 1995.

“In the last five to six years, there’s been change in all the programs,” Greenlee said. “These new coaches have new and different ideas, and there’s been improvement almost across the board.”

The MAC coaches are also trying to do their part to further the conference. Earlier this year, the coaches sent a letter to the NCAA lobbying for additional qualifying spots in the national championships.

Despite only fielding 18 qualifying spots, the MAC was fifth in scoring, third in win percentage and second in qualifiers making the Top Twelve among all conferences represented in last year’s championships.

“We’ve done some great things in this conference,” Grant said. “There’s no doubt we should be getting more spots and more recognition.”