Hustle Belt

With NIU leaving the conference, it’s a good time to start looking around at who could be on the target sheet for expansion. This time last week, NIU departed for the Mountain West as a football-only member. We still haven’t heard about what will happen to their other sports and how the MAC will deal with such a situation as of publication, but the assumption is the conference … [Read more...] about An exhaustive look at potential Mid-American Conference expansion candidates

Photo by Phillip Peters/E and P Photography/Getty Images Daytona Beach will play host to the 10th anniversary edition of the Tropical Bowl, which is expected to have 13 MAC participants. The 10th edition of the Tropical Bowl is set to take place on Saturday, January 19 at 12:00 p.m. Eastern time. The game, which normally takes place in Orlando, Florida, is set to take … [Read more...] about 13 former MAC players invited to 2025 Tropical Bowl

Photo by Brian Kersey/Getty Images After 12 seasons at Hustle Belt, it’s time to move on. After more than a decade at Hustle Belt, I have made the difficult decision that it is time to step away from writing. I grew up a fan of the Northern Illinois Huskies. My mom went there, both my older siblings— nine and seven years older than me, respectively— went there. I spent … [Read more...] about A Thank You and a Farewell from Dave Drury

NIU president Lisa C. Freeman, athletic director Sean T. Frazier, and head football coach Thomas Hammock take the podium to discuss the football program’s move to the Mountain West. | NIU Athletics Northern Illinois’ leaders took the podium Tuesday to discuss the football team’s groundbreaking move to the Mountain West in 2026. The most stable conference in college … [Read more...] about NIU to Mountain West: Reasons for move, NIU’s value in MWC, future for other sports

Photo by Gregory Fisher/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images Weaver leaves Ohio ranked fifth all-time in sacks, as the team’s leader in 2023 and 2024. The Ohio Bobcats are in the midst of their best run in program history. In the month of December, Ohio strung together three-straight 10+ win seasons, three-straight bowl wins, and claimed the 2024 MAC championship — its … [Read more...] about Ohio First Team All-MAC DE, two-time sack leader Bradley Weaver transfers to Rutgers