We are who we are.  This does not mean we have to be who we used to be.

We are obviously NOT MAC football Champions!  Can someone tell me how many days it has been since our last MAC Championship (was that 1968) in football?  I'm beginning to think it is the "Bo Schembechler curse" after we won that one (was it because of a Kent forefeit?).  At any rate he said "Ohio can play football until hell freezes over and they will still never be MAC Champs" (or something like that).  After 45 years, I'm seriously beginning to think he was right...

OCF, I guess 1967 and 1968 were too far back for me to remeber it correctly!  Thanks for the correction, obviously, I missed your post about the good old days:)

The real question remains, how many days ago was that?  And, do you think the two of us will ever relive 1967-68?

Ohio has South Carolina Gamecock syndrome. Spurier and Frank started the same year in 2005. Every year the gamecocks are in the top 2-3 in the SEC East and have a shot at the SEC championship just like Ohio in the MAC. Every year we have an unexpected loss (Gamecocks) and every year the local paper says this is the year. The biggest problem both Ohio and South Carolina have is neither has been able to get the prototypical pro style quarterback. Spurier has been unable to get the type of QB that Georgia, LSU, Vandy (Cutler), Florida and the other schools have found. USC has put a ton of players into the NFL but can't recruit a really good QB and they never get over the hump. Ohio has the same problem but Miamii, CMU, N.Ill and others reach the MAC championship usually due to a really good pro style QB. South Carolina now has a TT clone in Conner Shaw and as usual it's what ultimately will stop USC from winning it all. No disrespect to TT because he is one of the all time greats but his injuries have hurt and he doesn't have the size to succeed in the NFL. Until we get the prototypical NFL QB I'm not sure we have a chance to make it to the promised land. Sure defense is critical to go all the way but look at the last few MAC champions.

Hate to repeat myself but there's a common theme to the MAC Championship winner

2009 LeFevour CMU 6'3" 230 drafted by Bears
2010 Dysert Miami 6'3" 230 Denver back up QB
2011 Harnish N. I'll 6'2" 220 Colts back up QB

it all starts with the QB

selective memory here. Boucher was the QB in the Miami championship, Lynch last year is not pro-style QB. I don't think you need a pro-style QB to win championships, Young, Newton come to mind in recent years. The game has changed and there are plenty of teams that win without Andrew Luck at the helm.

You make an outstanding point here and you prompted me to look further at this, building on what you started. So going back to the last 10 years of MAC Champions, every single championship team had NFL-caliber QBs.

2003 Big Ben Mia drafted by PIT
2004 Bruce Gradkowski Tol drafted by TB
2005 Luke Getsy Akr signed by SF
2006 LeFevour
2007 LeFevour
2008 Drew Willy Buf signed by BAL
2009 LeFevour CMU 6'3" 230 drafted by Bears
2010 Dysert Miami 6'3" 230 Denver back up QB
2011 Harnish N. I'll 6'2" 220 Colts back up QB
2012 Lynch NIU signed/drafted by ?
2013 ?

I'm not sure changing the system is the issue. Remember what our offense was like before we started implementing the pistol? Now, I wouldn't mind seeing some pro formations, but abandoning the pistol completely isn't the way to go.

Does that make Ball State and their pro style QB the MAC champs this year?  Or, will NIU win it and then have their guy get drafted? 

I really believe that the talent level is so close in the MAC that if you can get one of those "exceptional" QBs you can win a championship.  The jury is still out on TT, he is very good but the question is: is he good enough to get us a Championship?  We'll see...

I'm still not over that Miami loss. It's not that we lost to them (as bad as that sounds), it's how we lost and what it did to the attitude of the team.

What position do you think an NFL team would draft/sign him for?

All of the above.