Does MAC hotel policy give road teams an advantage?

Oct. 5—On Friday night, after a healthy dinner and goodbyes to his family, Toledo coach Jason Candle will do the same thing he's done prior to each home game the past two seasons: check into an area hotel all alone.

The news in May of 2020, that Mid-American Conference football programs would no longer stay in hotels the night before home games, was met with applause and fanfare from faculty members at all 12 member institutions. The reaction from the league's head coaches was dramatically different, as they lost access to an important night of meetings, meals, and assurances that players were fast asleep in their beds.

"It's a unique deal in our conference now," Candle said. "It's not what it used to be. Having the team together and around each other, I think that's a big deal. Some people think it's not, I do."

With three small children running — or crawling — around the house and filling each corridor with noise, concentrating on the details of a game plan and getting a comfortable night's sleep isn't on the agenda. So Candle uses his own money to pay for a hotel room.

Players don't have the same luxury. Instead, they're sequestered in their residence halls, apartments, and houses in heavily student populated areas where going to bed early on Friday night is as easy as an introduction to stochastic calculus exam.

"I liked going to the hotel because we could isolate and focus as a team," senior defensive lineman Desjuan Johnson said. "There can be a lot of distractions at home. It's easier to focus and lock in at the hotel. There's nothing to do at the hotel but focus and go to sleep."

The rule, which was voted on by MAC presidents, will be revisited after the 2022 season. It was agreed upon at the height of the coronavirus pandemic when uncertainty about the 2020 season swirled. Bowling Green had recently eliminated its baseball program, Akron cut men's cross country, men's golf, and women's tennis, and Western Michigan announced a 20-percent reduction of its athletic budget, creating a sense of financial doom among athletic departments that are heavily subsidized by their universities and student fees.

Millions of dollars in losses and declining enrollment were inevitable. Toledo booked between 40 and 50 rooms at the Renaissance Hotel downtown at an average cost of $120 per room. Fund-raising dollars were used to pay for the expense.

In 2018, Bowling Green spent $5,792.21 per home game and UT spent $4,591.40, according to Gatehouse Media.

"My preference — and I've indicated this — is that it should be up to the individual school," Toledo athletic director Mike O'Brien said. "But I understand the league parameters."

Several coaches believe there is a disadvantage for home teams, especially for noon games. While the visiting players are sequestered in a hotel reviewing final preparations for the game, the home team is spread out across town. There's no bed check or wake-up call.

Another perceived benefit is that hotels in small MAC cities have opened up for road teams. Toledo used to stay in Indianapolis or Fort Wayne when playing Ball State because the Cardinals booked the only hotel in Muncie that could accommodate a football team. The Rockets were able to book it this year.

"A noon game is a little different," UT offensive lineman Vitaliy Gurman said. "If you were in the hotel, it'd be easier, but it's the responsibility of the player. You have to know the game is in the morning, so you need to get to sleep a little earlier."

A long week of practice and school do the trick for Gurman, who is usually asleep by 10 p.m. on Fridays. Johnson, however, finds it difficult to lay his head on the pillow and fall asleep, sneaking in extra episodes of Hunter x Hunter.

"I understand [why coaches don't like it], but the road team isn't sleeping in their own beds either," O'Brien said. "Jason and I have talked about this. A home game at 12 noon, residence halls are not the quietest place on a Friday night. I get it, but the rule is the rule."

MAC home teams are 19-10 (65.5 percent) in 2021, slightly better than 2019 (44-24, 64.7 percent), the last year home teams were able to stay in hotels.

GateHouse Media published a comprehensive report on hotel stays in 2018, noting that Ohio State spent $93,000 and that hotels "provide a venue for camaraderie, structured team meals, the ability to monitor hydration, and a 'restful night of sleep' thanks to bed checks and a set lights-out time."

"Organization is an advantage, no matter what you're talking about," Candle said. "When you have young people in a common area, you know what they're getting fed and make sure what's being discussed in meetings and in preparation for the game. It's almost more routine and normal to be on the road than at home."

First Published October 4, 2021, 7:32pm