The goal for the entire conference is to get more than the mandatory 1 team into the NCAA tournament. At least it should be. There are some big name schools on the schedule in week 1, and playing these teams tough would help this endeavor. Beating a couple of them could be the difference between the NCAA and the N.I.T.
CBS sports already came out with their preseason tournament field. Yes, sports writers have that kind of free time, the losers. You can find it at CBSsports.com.
Two schools on the list have MAC opponents in week 1.