I don't know if I'd go that far. The better teams in the MAC have been very athletic and every bit as athletic as SBC teams IMO. Teams like Toledo, Miami (OH), Northern Ill etc.. have had a lot of speed and very good skill players which has allowed them to be competitive with the big boys. I think where a lot of them fail is on defense where they have good speed but just not a lot in the trenches and they tend to give up a lot of points. The SBC and MAC are very similar in that they are able to produce speed, good skill players with open offenses but usually struggle on the defensive end, especially on the line.