Ford Field has been the home of the MAC Championship Game since 2004 and that doesn’t appear to be changing any time soon.
Dec 02, 2016 Central Michigan’s involvement has brought out the three highest crowds for a MAC title game at Ford Field. The highest attendance for a MAC title game is 25,483, when Central Michigan beat Ohio, 31-10, in 2006. CMU beat Miami.
- Nov 30, 2014 The MAC Championship game wasn't a thing until 1997, first hosted by Marshall. Campus sites use to host these things until somebody had the bright idea to just have this game at Ford Field.
- Ford Field is a multi-purpose indoor stadium located in Downtown Detroit, Michigan and home of the Detroit Lions. Plan Your Visit.
At a press conference on Friday, MAC Commissioner Dr. Jon A. Steinbrecher and Detroit Lions and Ford Field President Rod Wood announced that the conference and the venue had reached an agreement on a two-year extension to keep the game at Ford Field through at least 2021.
“We thought Ford Field was one of the best venues in the country bar none,” Steinbrecher said. “Detroit is special. So given the investment they have made in this facility, given what’s going on in Detroit and the continued reemergence of they city, it’s a wonderful place to be.”
The MAC has a long history at Ford Field. The first collegiate football game at the facility was the 2002 Motor City Bowl between Toledo and Boston College.
Recently, the MAC has lost its place as an every-year participant in Ford Field’s annual bowl game. Since the venue did away with the Little Caesars Bowl (previously Motor City Bowl) in 2013, the MAC has served only as a primary backup for the bowl if a Big Ten or Atlantic Coast Conference team is unavailable to fill a slot.
The Motor City Bowl and Little Caesars Bowl featured MAC teams annually from 1997-2013. Central Michigan served as a replacement for an ACC school in a 21-14 loss to Minnesota in 2015.
Geoff Robinson is a freelance writer.
With Ford Field undergoing significant construction this summer, the Mid-American Conference will take its football media day down the road.
The media day will be at the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio, in July.
It has been a staple at Ford Field, along with the MAC championship game.
Ford Field wasn’t available to host the media day until Aug. 1.
“Which is too late in our coaches’ calendars, with football camps opening on campus,” said Ken Mather, spokesman for the MAC.
Mather called the move to Canton a “one-year move to provide a special experience for our students and coaches.”
The MAC has assured all member schools it will return to Ford Field for media day for 2018 and beyond.
C-usa Championship Game
The MAC championship game has been at Ford Field since 2004, and is operating on a contract to remain in Detroit through the 2019 season.
Ford Field in February announced $100 million in renovations, including the addition of bigger, state-of-the-art scoreboards; an upgrade to the stadium’s sound system; and upgrades to suites, among other projects.
tpaul@detroitnews.com
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