Decided to snoop around all fan boards for each team in the MAC.

Akron: A mix of confidence and weariness among the board - main panic / anger is over Ali Ali potentially not being approved by NCAA for immediate eligibility which would likely result in him being forced to sit out the year, thus wasting a roster spot for Zippy Groce. A few posters noting how it could be the "Last Dance" of sorts for this team. Still going to be a strong team with or without Ali.

Buffalo: A whole bunch of cautious and optimistic individuals - Felcher is their PG1, but are lacking in paint presence through their scrimmages. Zaakir inconsistent, Sabol apparently kept waving others out of a specific corner when he was shooting threes - sounds like an easily exploitable weakness. Wide expectation of Halcovage taking 2-3 years to reform the squad.

Fiami: Very good reception on Travis Steele and his practices getting their massive frosh class up to speed - Morgan Safford left team because of academic/ personal reasons it looks like, massive loss for them. Their starting center Mirambeaux is also off the team temporarily for the same reason but should be back soon. If he ends up out, it'll be the third guy in two years booted from Oxford due to flunking out. Woof. Other than that, their young talent shouldn't be underestimated. This frosh class for them will be strong.
Also - new student section is starting up for them, so we will need to step it up here.

BALLS state: A mixture of resignation and dread with a dash of optimism. Losing Sparks, Bumbalough and Sellers is going to hurt them tremendously. A lot of positive opinions on Lewis and him hopefully turning them around in a few years. Anderson will solidify their PG position.

Kent State: High expectations to repeat - mainly complaints about their supposedly explicit choice in warmup music.

NIU: Mainly discussion of their new court and transfer players. Very low key, seems like they are expecting a bit better year than last.

BG: Some negativity regarding their weaker NC schedule and bad scrimmage loss to a D2 team, but hopeful positivity regarding coach Simon and Spurgin. Spurg is going to be a threat down low this year.

Toledo: Moss has drastically improved his shooting over the offseason, Cochran and Simmons are in for break out seasons this year. They seem to be a strong transition and defensive teams which isn't new, but they are apparently prioritizing guard rebounding as well.

East Mich: Lovejoy apparently hurt and will likely miss start of the year. Martynov seems to play a bit smaller than his height. Frontcourt shows holes. A lot of relief Emoni is off the team - apparently might have caused them more harm than good. Geeter and Billingsley seem to have upside. Some say on their board this year is pivotal for Heath if he stays or gets fired.

Central Mich: Some confusion over if their team is now an intramural team.

Western Mich: JaVaughn Hannah with a fracture to his foot and is likely out until December. Their big transfer Javonte Brown also has not been cleared by the NCAA. B Artis is back and will likely be their starting PG. They have more height on the team than the past years. Some talk over how they could finally breach .500 this year.

Haha, agreed. Never really saw how Luke helped them. I'm keeping my eye at the situations at Akron and Miami with Ali Ali / Anderson Mirambeaux

Ball St. announcers on ESPN+ repeatedly describe Bumbalough as a "great shooter", which I never saw. A shooter? Yes. But not a maker.

Flipping through ESPN+ last night I stopped at Niagara at ND game and within seconds, Niagara transfer guard Bumbalough assists on an and-one followed by a 3-pointer, making my several-years critique of him look not so accurate. After his made 3, the announcers said something like, "it was only a matter of time for such a great shooter." He ended the game hitting 2 of 7 from 3.

https://x.com/jonrothstein/status/1727356595061891144?s=4...

Ali Ali had his appeal for immediate eligibility denied by the NCAA.

I wonder how the NCAA decides on this. Aziz Bandaogo was initially denied, then granted eligibility after reconsideration a few days ago.