West Division

Northern Illinois

The Huskies’ offense looks to be in good hands with Josh Haldi, as long as he can stay healthy. Sam Hurd, Shatone Powers and Dan Sheldon all return at wide receiver, while Jake VerStraete anchors an experienced offensive line. A.J. Harris will receive the majority of the carries in place of Michael Turner, who moved on to the NFL.

The defense is led by linebacker Brian Atkinson and safety Lionel Hickenbottom. The defensive line is a question mark after the loss of Jason Frank, Vinson Reynolds and Leonard Cooksey. Travis Moore will be counted on for big contributions from the defensive end position, assuming he gets healthy.

Bowling Green

The Falcons face the tough task of replacing quarterback Josh Harris, a dual threat who was just as dangerous running as he was passing the ball. The task falls to sophomore Omar Jacobs, who put up impressive numbers in 2003 during mop-up action.

Jacobs has the luxury of wide receiver Cole Magner still being around. Magner caught a school-record 99 passes last season.

On defense, the Falcons’ line will be their strength. Look out for defensive end Devon Parks, who as a true freshman in 2003 was named a freshman All-American by collegefootballnews.com.

Toledo

The Rockets have received plenty of preseason accolades, including being ranked 25th in Sports Illustrated’s college football preview issue. They should continue to be an offensive juggernaut, with the big three of quarterback Bruce Gradkowski, running back Trinity Dawson and wide receiver Lance Moore all returning. NFL prospect Nick Kaczur leads the offensive line.

The big question for coach Tom Amstutz is on the defensive line, where Toledo returns not a single starter. Of the eight defensive linemen on the Rockets’ two-deep roster, only two are upperclassmen. Anthony Jordan, Toledo’s leading tackler last season, returns to wreak more havoc on MAC offenses.

Western Michigan

Jason Babin is no longer playing for the Broncos. No sweeter words could be heard by MAC offenses. The Houston Texans’ first-round pick terrorized opponents last season to the tune of 33 tackles for loss, including 15 sacks. Linebacker Paul Tithof and defensive end Jack Gitler will have to pick up the slack caused by Babin’s departure.

After a closely contested battle to replace the departed Chad Munson, Blayne Baggett was named the starting quarterback over Ryan Cubit. His main target figures to be Greg Jennings, one of two thousand-yard receivers for the Broncos last season.

Ball State

The Cardinals no longer have the two-headed monster of Talmadge Hill and Andy Roesch at quarterback, forcing the inexperienced Joey Lynch to take over. Wide receivers Dante Ridgeway and Bryan Williamson, Ball State’s leading receivers in 2003, both return to take pressure off Lynch. Ball State’s offensive line brings back just two starters, so Lynch may have to do more than his fair share of escaping pressure.

Safety Justin Beriault heads a defense that gave up the fourth-most points in the MAC last season. The Cardinals’ defensive depth chart contains only three starters who started in 2003.

Central Michigan

As of press time, new coach Brian Kelly had not decided on a starting quarterback, but said that Grant Arnoldink and Kent Smith will both play in Central Michigan’s opening game against Indiana. Running back Jerry Seymour should be a steadying influence for whoever is under center, as he is coming off a 1,117-yard season.

Opposing quarterbacks may have their hands full passing the ball, because the Chippewas have a wealth of experience at the cornerback position. Marlin Maxwell and Richard Kiel return as the starters. The defense must improve on last season’s average of 35.7 points given up.

Eastern Michigan

The Eagles are another MAC squad with a new head coach, as Jeff Genyk takes over the reins after 12 years as an assistant at Northwestern. Eastern Michigan’s opponents will receive a heavy dosage of running back Anthony Sherrell, the only Eagle to rush more than 45 yards in 2003. He finished second in the MAC in rushing last season with 1,531 yards. Brothers Ken and Matt Bohnet will take the snaps for the Eagles. Ken saw limited playing time last year and put up a 66.7 passer rating.

The Eagles’ line is the anchor on the defensive side of the ball, as four seniors will start. Defensive tackle Matt Kudu, who led the Eagles with 4.5 sacks last season, is a player to watch for.

East Division

Miami of Ohio

Any discussion of the RedHawks has to start with the loss of quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, the 11th selection in April’s NFL draft who led the RedHawks to a bowl win last season. The tall order of stepping into Roethlisberger’s shoes falls to junior Josh Betts. Betts passed his first test with flying colors as Miami defeated Indiana State 49-0 in its season opener. Betts has an advantage with all three starters returning from last year’s receiving corps.

The defense is coming off a solid 2003 campaign in which it gave up a MAC-low 19.4 points per game. A key loss could prove to be linebacker Terrell Jones, a first-team All-MAC performer last season.

Marshall

The big news for the Thundering Herd is the return of quarterback Stan Hill, who missed six games in 2003 with a knee injury. In six games last season, Hill threw for 1,767 yards — nearly 300 yards a game. Hill’s go-to receiver will be Josh Davis, who takes over the No. 1 receiver role from Darius Watts, who is now with the Denver Broncos.

The Thundering Herd’s defense is highlighted by defensive linemen Jonathan Goddard and Reggie Hayes, who combined for 35 tackles for loss in 2003.

Akron

The Zips’ hopes in 2004 rest heavily on the shoulders of signal caller Charlie Frye, who looks to follow in the footsteps of superstar MAC quarterbacks Byron Leftwich and Ben Roethlisberger. Frye passed for 3,549 yards and 22 touchdowns in 2003. He isn’t just a passing threat, either, which is evidenced by his 510 rushing yards last season.

Kent State

The pressing issue for the Golden Flashes is quarterback Josh Cribbs’ situation (see box). Wide receiver Darrell Dowery returns after being Cribbs’ favorite target last season.

The Golden Knights allowed the third-most points in the MAC last season. The burden of improving that falls on linebacker Eric Mahl, who had 126 tackles and four fumble recoveries in 2003.

Central Florida

The Golden Knights boast a high-profile new coach in George O’Leary, who if it not for a resume gaffe would have been hired by Notre Dame in 2001. Central Florida is yet another MAC team that will feature a new starting quarterback. Steven Moffett takes over for southpaw Ryan Schneider. Travis Capers is the Golden Knights’ leading receiver and figures to be on other end of plenty of Moffett’s throws.

Opposing quarterbacks should take notice that the Golden Knights will start two unproven sophomores, Mike Walker and Travanti Johnson, at cornerback.

Ohio

The Bobcats have long been a running team under coach Brian Knorr, and that doesn’t figure to change in 2004. Ray Huston would have gotten plenty of carries out of the backfield but is out for the season after tearing knee ligaments.

The leading returning playmaker for the Bobcats’ defense is safety Rob Stover, who recorded 14 tackles for loss in 2003. He’ll receive support from linebacker Dennis Chukwuemeka, Ohio’s leading tackler in 2003.

Buffalo

The Bulls had a one-win season in 2003, but things may improve in 2004 due to this being fourth-year coach Jim Hofher’s most experienced squad yet.

Two bright spots for Buffalo are defensive tackle Rob Schroeder and guard Erik Zeppuhar. Schroeder has 13.5 tackles for loss and six blocked kicks in his career, while Zeppuhar leads all Bulls with 32 career starts.