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Mitten Masterkey

Mitten Masterkey Week 11: WMU-EMU set for MACtion, UM tries out post-Beck offense vs. Oregon

It's a full slate with all five teams playing this weekend — and early next week — including some head-to-head MACtion for two in-state foes.

Andrew Graham

— 4 min read
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Mitten Masterkey Week 11: WMU-EMU set for MACtion, UM tries out post-Beck offense vs. Oregon
(Via Eastern Michigan Athletics/Walt Middleton)

Bowl hopes might hinge on several results Saturday and during MACtion — all but for Western Michigan, sitting happily at 7-3 and almost assuredly getting scooped up for a bowl down the line.

Michigan, at 5-4, needs to win one more game to get there, but plays three-straight (currently) ranked opponents, two on the road: At Oregon, vs. undefeated UCLA, at Ohio State.

Michigan State, at 3-6, needs to win out and faces Washington at home, then gets a Friday visit from Oregon, and will finish on the road at Rutgers.

Central Michigan, at 5-5, has to split the difference of its final two games, beating one of Buffalo and/or Ball State, both on the road, to get a sixth win.

And Eastern Michigan, now at 4-6, needs to win its final two games to get to six wins and have a shot at getting picked for a bowl with automatic eligibility. It's not guarantee that either the Chippewas or Eagles would get selected for a bowl with six wins, either, as there may not be enough available slots as a number of bowls — like the one in Detroit — have shuttered.

But enough on those possibilities, and more of turning focus to this weekend and subsequent MACtion, in which at least two of the aforementioned squads — Michigan, Central Michigan — can pick up a sixth win.

Let's dig in.

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Mitten Football will be at…

Spartan Stadium on Saturday, followed up by a stop at Waldo Stadium on Tuesday night.

(Do recommend a trip to Eugene for anyone considering it in the coming seasons; Buffalo does not need to be as high on any lists, but is still fun.)

The schedule and TV assignments

Games are Saturday unless otherwise noted.

3:30 p.m. — Michigan at Oregon, CBS
4:15 p.m. — Michigan State vs. Washington, BTN
Tuesday (Nov. 17), 6 p.m. — Western Michigan vs. Eastern Michigan, ESPN2
Wednesday (Nov. 18), 7:30 p.m. — Central Michigan at Buffalo, ESPNU

And for the uninitiated, this master schedule absolutely rocks (just be aware times are central).

Listen to “In The Pocket”

Mitten Football is doing a podcast, with Andrew Graham and the Detroit News’ Connor Earegood covering all the CFB news, notes, happenings and the like across the Mitten each week. 

Pregame, halftime reading from Mitten Football, others

Picks, preview

Read the full joint here with all the analysis and scores.

  • Oregon over Michigan
  • Washington over Michigan State
  • Western Michigan over Eastern Michigan
  • Central Michigan over Buffalo

A unit to watch: Michigan's offense

This sort of has to be the answer, as offensive line coach Jay Hill will take over as the play caller. And with the offensive line coach taking over, it'll be fascinating to see how the menu of calls or different formational looks Michigan gets to changes, and if Hill ends up hewing the game plan in a way that helps his offensive line excel in ways it has very much not in 2026. If nothing else, how that offensive line group looks with Hill dialing it up vs. the now-ousted Jason Beck will be quite informative on what some of the root causes for Michigan's ills are. The structure of the offense is not going to be massively overhauled, but perhaps Hill knows what to call up to get that group playing confident, physical football. Or, perhaps not.

And beyond that, it sounds like Saturday will feature some sort of re-emergence of Bryce Underwood into the lineup, at least at points, though reports are that Tommy Carr will start again. In truth, the quarterback situation seems less impactful on whether or not Michigan stands a chance than if the offensive line can find some good level of play.

A fun prediction: Noah Kim gets back into the lineup

Not fun, per se, in the sense that it's looking for anything zany or particularly exciting to happen, but Kim playing for EMU after missing the last two games and being banged up vs. Toledo would be a boon for the Eagles. And Kim in the offense with Nick Devereaux for the first time since the first drive against Wisconsin would be a nice pairing for EMU to be able to exploit again. Plus, with Harold Mack, Benson Prosper and tight end Josh Long, EMU has some juice with its weapons in the passing game to get after the Broncos.

But that will be way easier done with Kim under center. And after last playing on Oct. 17, Kim will have had a full month to get healthy and ready to play again come Tuesday night. So, here's to hoping it'll be the Eagles somewhat close to full strength to duke it out against the Broncos — who have some healing of their own to do — on Tuesday night.

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