 The Mid-American Conference will expand to 14 schools, the largest in its 65-year history, in 2012 when the University of Massachusetts-Amherst Minutemen joins the fold as an associate member in football only. The announcement was made Wednesday afternoon at a press conference at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Massachusetts.
This will be the fifth time since 1992 the conference has expanded and the third time it has accepted a member in football only, with Central Florida and Temple being the others. UCF left to join Conference USA after the 2005 season.
“The University of Massachusetts will add to the academic stature of the Mid-American Conference and bring a strong tradition and depth to our conference.” Commissioner Dr. Jon A .Steinbrecher said at the event. “The UMass football program will add quality to out conference football programs and balance our divisions. In addition, this addition allows our conference to expand our footprint into New England and into the Boston and Hartford/Springfield markets.
UMass-Amherst is located just north of Springfield and about 100 miles east of Boston. Its admission into the MAC will come in the 2012 football season, with the Miinutemen becoming eligible for the conference championship and bowl eligibility beginning in the 2013 season.
UMass began the move from the Football Championship Subdivision into the Football Bowl Subdivision last season, finishing with a 6-5 record. It’s highest profile game in 2010 was at a 42-37 loss at Michigan.
Per NCAA requirements for a school to move up a division, UMass must increase its scholarship limit in football from 63 to 85, and average a minimum of 15,000 fans their first two seasons (or be subject to review by the NCAA). Last season, the program averaged 13,005 per home game
Indications are the Minutemen will play their home games at Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL New England Patriots beginning with the 2012 season rather than on-campus. Last season a home game with traditional FCS power University of New Hampshire drew 32,348 fans.
“We feel this is the time is right for this landmark decision of UMass football elevating to the FBS level.” Athletic Director John McCutcheon said. “Playing in the FBS is where UMass should be positioned as the Flagship campus of the state system. The opportunities to play on a national level and what that means for exposure and visibility will be a tremendous asset, not only for athletics, but for the entire university. To have the opportunity to play MAC games in a state-of-the art facility like Gillette Stadium really is one of the key factors that makes this transition possible.”
After the transition, UMass will become the third New England-based school in the FBS, joining Boston College (Atlantic Coast Conference) and Connecticut (Big East).
Its move in football will not jeopardize the affiliation with the Atlantic-10 Conference, where most of the Minutemen athletic teams - including Men’s and Women’s Basketball – play. The school also remains in Hockey East with its men’s and women’s hockey teams. However, like Temple, UMass will be obligated to play two home and two road games with MAC Men’s and Women’s basketball teams every season.
The move to the MAC will be the fourth conference affiliation in Minutemen football history. Previous conference stints were with the Yankee Conference, the Atlantic-10, and, most recently, the Colonial Athletic Association.
In its history, UMass has won 22 conference championships. The last came with the CAA in 2007. The program also has participated in the FCS playoffs, winning the championship in 1998 and making it to the championship game in 2006, losing to Appalachian State.
UMass has sent several players to the NFL. The most notable were quarterback Greg Landry, who played 14 years with Detroit and the Baltimore Colts,, and tight end Milt Morin, who spent ten seasons with the Cleveland Browns. During the past season, UMass had six players on NFL rosters at one time during this past season.
As for the MAC and how divisional alignment will look when the Minutemen join in 2013, it remains to be determined. One possible move is for Bowling Green to switch back into the Western Division in football only while remaining in the Eastern Division in Men’s and Women’s Basketball. Another possibility is changing the divisions into north and south. A resolution may occur at the league meetings coming up in May.
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