Central Michigan football coach Jim McElwain was pumped when he learned Sept. 25 the Mid-American Conference presidents voted unanimously to put together a six-game conference-only schedule in the fall amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Beforehand, McElwain didn't want anyone — especially his players — to get their hopes up about a fall schedule. Since early August, MAC's point of focus had been on competing in the spring. Nowadays, members of the conference can rejoice with a higher level of certainty about what is happening next.
"We tried to make sure the players and staff and everybody in the organization were really focused on the now," McElwain said three days after the MAC's announcement.