Wish it was September? Here is who CMU will face in 2022.

A familiar foe who the Chippewas defeated in 2016 on a hail mary in what was one of the biggest plays in program history. After a pair of home battles against South Alabama and Bucknell, the Chippewas finish the non-conference schedule with a trip to Happy Valley to face Penn State.

We already know the opening month opponents, and many will likely predict a 2-2 start to the season for CMU, but now let's take a closer look at the Mid-American Conference opponents the Chippewas will face in 2022.

FROM THE EAST

Bowling Green, Buffalo, Akron

The Falcons from BGSU finished 4-8 overall last season, including a 19-22 loss to common 2022 opponent South Alabama. They did have an upset win at Minnesota, but struggled otherwise.

The Buffalo Bulls are in their second season under head coach Maurice Linguist, who came to the program from the University of Michigan and has also spent time in the NFL. In his first season, the Bulls went 4-8 losing its last 4 games including an overtime loss to MAC champion NIU. With a strong recruiting class the Bulls should be better in 2022.

The Akron Zips haven't won more than 2 games in a season since 2018, when they went 4-8 overall. Last season the Zips were 2-10 with wins over Bryant and Bowling Green. The last time CMU faces off against Akron was in 2019 when the Chippewas won 45-24.

FROM THE WEST

Ball State, Western Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Northern Illinois, Toledo

Ball State went 6-7 overall last year ending the season with a 51-20 loss to Georgia State in the TaxAct Camelia Bowl on Christmas Day. The Cardinals will see a change in quarterback as Drew Pitt will move on after graduating. CMU defeated BSU 37-17 last November in Muncie, IN.

The Chippewas defeated both Western (8-5) and Eastern Michigan (7-6) last season to bring the Michigan MAC Trophy back to Mount Pleasant. It was the first time CMU had beaten both in-state opponents since the 2017 season. The Broncos and Eagles will look to keep building off their 2021 season with both programs reaching a bowl game. CMU will look to take down its Rival Western Michigan in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2009-10.

Northern Illinois is going to be a sore subject for CMU fans all year leading up to the 2022 matchup. The Chippewas blew a 3-score lead in the second half to the Huskies only to see a comeback win fall short on a botched snap. NIU, as we know, went on to win the MAC Championship while many people feel it should have been the Chippewas in that position. The 2021 MAC champs went 9-5 last season finishing with a 47-41 loss to Coastal Carolina in the Tailgreeter Cure Bowl. 7 of their 9 wins were within one score, suggesting the Huskies had a bit of destiny on their side after going 0-6 in 2020. Transfer quarterback Rocky Lombardi will be back in 2022, and the Huskies should be a tough out each week.

The Toledo Rockets took a small step back in 2021, finishing 7-6 overall and losing the Bahamas Bowl to Middle Tennessee 31-24. The Rockets returned a ton of production last season and did not live up to the expectations, such is life in the MAC. In 2022 the team will be led full time by quarterback DeQuan Finn, a for CMU commit who decided to leave the program when the coaching change took place following the 2018 season. Finn got to play extensively in 2021 for the first time in his career, but also saw split reps at times. This fall he will be the man, and someone CMU will have to slow down if they want to beat the Rockets again.

All game times and dates for conference play will be announced later this spring.