2021 MAC Championship Game

2021 Rocket Mortgage MAC Championship Game
2021 Rocket Mortgage MAC Championship Game
Conference Championship
Kent State Golden Flashes	Northern Illinois Huskies
(7–5)	(8–4)
23	41
Head coach: ; Sean Lewis	Head coach: ; Thomas Hammock
Date	December 4, 2021
Season	2021
Stadium	Ford Field
Location	Detroit, Michigan
MVP	Offense: Jay Ducker (RB, Northern Illinois); Defense: C. J. Brown (DB, Northern Illinois); Special Teams: John Richardson (PK, Northern Illinois)
Favorite	Kent State by 3.5
Referee	Jeremy Valentine
Attendance	10,317
United States TV coverage
Network	ESPN
Announcers	Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Andre Ware (analyst) and Paul Carcaterra (sideline)
MAC Championship Game
< 2020	2022 >

2021 Mid-American Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
Kent State xy	6	–	2	7	–	7
Miami (OH)	5	–	3	7	–	6
Ohio	3	–	5	3	–	9
Bowling Green	2	–	6	4	–	8
Buffalo	2	–	6	4	–	8
Akron	1	–	7	2	–	10
West Division
Northern Illinois xy$	6	–	2	9	–	5
Central Michigan x	6	–	2	9	–	4
Toledo	5	–	3	7	–	6
Ball State	4	–	4	6	–	7
Eastern Michigan	4	–	4	7	–	6
Western Michigan	4	–	4	8	–	5
Championship: Northern Illinois 41, Kent State 23
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant

The 2021 MAC Championship Game was a college football game played on December 4, 2021, at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan. It was the 25th edition of the MAC Football Championship Game and determined the champion of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) for the 2021 season. The game began at 12:00 p.m. EST and aired on ESPN. The game featured the Northern Illinois Huskies, the Western Division champions, and the Kent State Golden Flashes, the Eastern Division champions. Sponsored by mortgage lending company Quicken Loans through their Rocket Mortgage brand, the game was officially known as the Rocket Mortgage MAC Championship Game.^[2]

Teams

The 2021 MAC Championship Game will feature the Kent State Golden Flashes, champions of the East Division, and the Northern Illinois Huskies, champions of the West Division. This will be the teams' 30th all-time meeting; Northern Illinois enters the game leading the series 21–8.^[3] The teams first met in 1949, and have been Mid-American Conference opponents since 1975.^[3] The teams last met earlier in the season, with Kent State defeating Northern Illinois 52–47, to break a ten-game losing streak to the Huskies;^[4] prior to 2021, the teams last faced off in 2017, with Northern Illinois winning, 24–3.^[5]

Kent State

Kent State clinched a spot in the championship game following their win over Miami (OH).^[6] It marked their first Eastern Division title since 2012; Kent State is looking for their first MAC title since 1972.

Northern Illinois

Northern Illinois clinched a berth in the championship game following their win over Buffalo.^[7]

Game summary

2021 Rocket Mortgage MAC Championship Game

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Kent State	0	0	10	13	23
Northern Illinois	10	7	7	17	41

at Ford Field • Detroit, Michigan

Date: December 4, 2021
Game time: 12:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: n/a (game played indoors)
Game attendance: 10,317
Referee: Jeremy Valentine
TV announcers (ESPN): Jason Benetti (play-by-play), Andre Ware (analyst) and Paul Carcaterra (sideline)
Box score

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	Kent State	Northern Illinois
1	9:43	10	41	5:17	Northern Illinois	37-yard field goal by John Richardson	0	3
1	2:09	10	78	4:57	Northern Illinois	Clint Ratkovich 2-yard touchdown run, John Richardson kick good	0	10
2	8:33	15	81	7:52	Northern Illinois	Rocky Lombardi 1-yard touchdown run, John Richardson kick good	0	17
3	11:38	9	56	3:22	Kent State	41-yard field goal by Andrew Glass	3	17
3	3:55				Northern Illinois	Interception returned 26 yards for touchdown by CJ Brown, John Richardson kick good	3	24
3	0:27	9	75	3:28	Kent State	Nykeim Johnson 17-yard touchdown reception from Dustin Crum, Andrew Glass kick good	10	24
4	10:54	8	75	4:33	Northern Illinois	Rocky Lombardi 5-yard touchdown run, John Richardson kick good	10	31
4	6:55	5	21	2:48	Northern Illinois	Rocky Lombardi 2-yard touchdown run, John Richardson kick good	10	38
4	4:16	10	78	2:39	Kent State	Collin Schlee 4-yard touchdown run, Andrew Glass kick good	17	38
4	2:01	5	17	2:15	Northern Illinois	30-yard field goal by John Richardson	17	41
4	0:00	10	92	2:01	Kent State	Luke Floriea 17-yard touchdown reception from Collin Schlee, kick not attempted, time expired	23	41
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							23	41

Statistics

Statistics	KENT	NIU
First downs	24	28
Plays–yards	62–391	76–368
Rushes–yards	36–195	61–266
Passing yards	196	102
Passing: comp–att–int	16–26–2	7–15–1
Time of possession	19:59	40:01

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kent State	Passing	Dustin Crum	11/21, 128 yards, 1 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Xavier Williams	8 carries, 93 yards
	Receiving	Dante Cephas	7 receptions, 102 yards
Northern Illinois	Passing	Rocky Lombardi	7/15, 102 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Jay Ducker	29 carries, 146 yards
	Receiving	Trayvon Rudolph	3 receptions, 50 yards

References

^ "Officiating crews for the 2021 college football conference championship games". footballzebras.com. November 30, 2021. Retrieved December 4, 2021.
^ "Rocket Mortgage sponsors MAC championship game to help keep it in Detroit". Detroit News. Retrieved August 9, 2022.
^ ^a ^b "2021 Northern Illinois Football Game Notes - MAC Championship" (PDF). Northern Illinois Huskies Football. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
^ "Kent State scores 31 points in 2nd quarter, beats NIU 52-47". CBS Sports. November 3, 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
^ "2021 Northern Illinois Football Media Guide" (PDF). Northern Illinois Huskies Football. Retrieved December 3, 2021.
^ "Kent State football beats Miami, advances to MAC Championship game". kentwired.com. Archived from the original on November 28, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021.
^ "NIU Huskies Beat Buffalo, Clinch Mac West Division". chicago.cbslocal.com. Retrieved November 18, 2021.

[1] "Officiating crews for the 2021 college football conference championship games". footballzebras.com. November 30, 2021. Retrieved December 4, 2021.

[2] "Rocket Mortgage sponsors MAC championship game to help keep it in Detroit". Detroit News. Retrieved August 9, 2022.

[niu-notes-3] "2021 Northern Illinois Football Game Notes - MAC Championship" (PDF). Northern Illinois Huskies Football. Retrieved December 3, 2021.

[regularseason-4] "Kent State scores 31 points in 2nd quarter, beats NIU 52-47". CBS Sports. November 3, 2021. Retrieved December 3, 2021.

[5] "2021 Northern Illinois Football Media Guide" (PDF). Northern Illinois Huskies Football. Retrieved December 3, 2021.

[6] "Kent State football beats Miami, advances to MAC Championship game". kentwired.com. Archived from the original on November 28, 2021. Retrieved November 27, 2021.

[7] "NIU Huskies Beat Buffalo, Clinch Mac West Division". chicago.cbslocal.com. Retrieved November 18, 2021.

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v t e 2021 NCAA football conference championship games
Division I FBS	ACC American Big 12 Big Ten Conference USA MAC Mountain West Pac-12 SEC Sun Belt
Division I FCS	SWAC

v t e MAC Football Championship Game
Years	1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
Venues	Marshall University Stadium (1997–2000, 2002) Glass Bowl (2001) Doyt Perry Stadium (2003) Ford Field (2004–present)

v t e Northern Illinois Huskies football
Venues	Glidden Field (1903–1948, 1951–1965) Dekalb Township High School football field (1949–1950) Huskie Stadium (1965–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Ball State: Bronze Stalk Trophy
Culture & lore	"Huskie Fight Song" Huskie Band
People	Head coaches NFL draftees Statistical leaders
Seasons	1899 1900 1901 1902 1903 1904 1905 1906 1907 1908 1909 1910 1911 1912 1913 1914 1915 1916 1917–1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024
National championship seasons in bold

v t e Kent State Golden Flashes football
Venues	Rockwell Field (1920–1940) Memorial Stadium (1941–1968) Dix Stadium (1969–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Akron: Wagon Wheel Bowling Green: Anniversary Award
Culture & lore	The Marching Golden Flashes
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders NFL draftees
Seasons	1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024