While the Ohio Bobcats went 8-5 overall and 6-2 inside the MAC, their last season ended in disappointment.

After rolling off six straight wins, the Bobcats had the chance to lock up the MAC East with a win at Kent State in the final game of the regular season. However, they would end up getting crushed 28-6 by the Golden Flashes. That loss seemed to still be on the minds of the players when they got rolled by Troy 48-21 in the New Orleans Bowl.

Looking ahead to the 2011 season, the Bobcats will bring back just 11 starters but are a legitimate threat to win the East with a very manageable conference schedule.

Here is a look at what Ohio will send to the field on both sides of the ball, plus my thoughts on where they will finish up the year in the MAC standings.

Offense:

The Bobcats not only have to replace starting quarterback Boo Jackson, but they lose starting running back Vince Davidson and their top two receiving threats in Terrrence McCrae and Steven Goulet.

The leading candidate to take over for Jackson is sophomore Tyler Tettleton, who could surprise in his first season as the starter. While Tettleton likely won’t match Jackson’s 345 yards and seven touchdowns on the ground, he should be able to cut down on the 17 interceptions Jackson threw last year.

It looks as though senior Donte Harden will take over for Davidson as the starting running back. Harden finished fourth on the team with 244 yards and three touchdowns on just 51 carries last year.

Also in the mix is Iowa State transfer Beau Blankenship and redshirt freshman Ryan Boykin.

While the Bobcats bring back starting wide out Lavon Brazill and starting tight end Jordan Thompson, one player who could make a big impact on the outside this year is senior Phil Bates.

In 2010, Bates rotated with Jackson at quarterback, but was primarily used as a rusher. He finished second on the team with 513 yards, but had a team best 6.7 ypc. This year Ohio plans on using Bates in multiple roles, but the main goal is to use him at wide receiver.

The strength of the offense lies in the trenches, as Ohio should have one of the top offensive lines in the conference. They have three very talented players back in senior right guard Joe Flading, senior left guard A.J. Strum, and junior right guard Eric Herman.

Defense:

Things don’t look as good up front on the defensive side of the ball, as the Bobcats have to find four new starters on the defensive line.

They bring back defensive end Curtis Meyers, who missed most of last year with an ACL injury and like what they have in junior defensive tackle Carl Jones, but this unit lacks experience and is a lot smaller than they were a year ago.

With all the struggles that are expected on the defensive line, the Bobcats are counting on their three returning starters at linebacker to pick up their game and carry the defense in 2011. The unit is headlined by senior middle linebacker Noah Keller and senior outside linebacker Eric Benjamin.

The only starter back in the secondary is junior corner Travis Carrie, but they bring back junior free safety Gerald Moore, who was lost in the opener against Wofford. Moore earned 3rd-Team MAC honors as a freshman in 2009.

Even though this unit is less experienced, they could actually improve on their numbers from last year.

2011 Prediction: 3rd MAC East – The Bobcats have arguably the easiest road schedule of any team in the MAC this season. Their four road games are against the likes of Buffalo, Akron, Central Michigan, and Bowling Green, who combined for just 5 conference wins last year.

But I don’t think this team will be able to win either home game against Temple or Miami with all the talent they lost from last year.

For more on the Bobcats upcoming season, check out our Ohio football predictions article. If you want to see where we have all 13 teams finishing in the conference, take a look at our 2011 MAC football predictions.