The much more likely explanation is that McDavis, Schaus and Co not only specifically requested a change in late October scheduling philopsohy, but also specifically requested the MAC schedule our premier conference matchup and archrival on our university's most well known day of the year.
I'd be VERY surprised if that were true. The university does not want it to be the most well-known day of the year. Two large events like this at once strains already thin resources (hotel, EMS, security, police, traffic, parking, etc.). A home game with Miami on another date would be an additional bonus for the city (hotels, food, etc.) vs. trying to cram everything into one weekend. I also think Solich and the coaching staff would want to minimize any distractions for players -- Halloween in Athens is a distraction.
The University doesn't want the drinking portion of Halloween to be the focus.. They do not mind a large event unique to this school and town that people for the most part speak positively of (a fun event for those involved, particularly students.. Incoming students know about Halloween. Its something many freshman look forward to).
What better way to make Halloween a more PR-friendly event for Ohio University than to throw in a non-party/drinking centered Bobcats athletics event into people's associations about OU Halloween? McDavis has been a big proponent of using athletics as another option for students to have fun.. This event goes right along with that strategy.
Further, I do not see this as "two big events." I see this as one big weekend for Ohio University. The biggest single weekend/event of the year. Halloween weekend. To see the potential here, I think thats the key point. I think this is a HUGE opportunity for Ohio athletics to make the Miami rivalry into something bigger than it already is. Make it into an event. We already have a well-known, incredibly popular Halloween tradition in Athens. Why not use that to our advantage and use the Halloween excitement to further show our hatred for Miami?
The marketing opportunities here are golden. "Miami student" is already a favorite costume for Ohio students.
Many of the big national rivalry games have big events going on off the field that make them an even bigger deal on the field... This is Ohio football's chance to cement a strong and incredibly unique tradition forever. Many big holidays have their own corresponding athletic events that go along with it.. We've already invented our own day for Halloween. The Ohio Bobcats can and should own Halloween...
0% chance we all of a sudden dropped the ball and let the MAC schedule us the one weekend we have never wanted to play on before. This was a planned move. The fact that we are playing Miami is a sign that is was calculated.. For this to work, it has to be an all-in move.. This wouldn't work if it was a game that did not matter...