Saturday’s Football Results
Ohio 35, Bowling Green 20*
Central Michigan 24, Eastern Michigan 13*
Toledo 45, Akron 3*
Miami 38, Lindenwood 0
Western Michigan 47, Rhode Island 14
UConn 20, Buffalo 17
San Diego State 6, Northern Illinois 3
Missouri 42, UMass 6
Stories Courtesy of the Associated Press
Ohio 35, Bowling Green 20
Box Score
ATHENS, Ohio (AP) — Parker Navarro threw for two touchdowns and ran for two more, Sieh Bangura rushed for 115 yards and reigning Mid-American Conference champion Ohio beat Bowling Green 35-20 on Saturday in a league opener for both teams.
Navarro scored on a 34-yard run with 6:20 left in the fourth quarter to cap the scoring. Bowling Green turned it over on downs on its next possession and DJ Walker ended the Falcons’ final drive with an interception to seal it.
It was Ohio’s third interception of the game, highlighted by Cameron Hollobaugh’s 71-yard pick-6.
Ohio (3-2) improved to 18-1 at home dating to the 2022 season.
Navarro was 17 of 25 for 208 yards with an interception for Ohio. Navarro added 66 yards on 11 carries. Mason Williams caught eight passes for 93 yards and a score. Chase Hendricks scored from 25-yards out on his only catch.
Drew Pyne was intercepted three times to go with his one touchdown for Bowling Green (2-3). Chris McMillian had 89 yards rushing with a touchdown.
Central Michigan 24, Eastern Michigan 13
Box Score
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. (AP) — Angel Flores rushed for 137 yards and threw a touchdown pass, and Nahree Biggins rushed for 115 yards and a touchdown to lead Central Michigan to a 24-13 win over in-state rival Eastern Michigan in the Mid-American Conference opener for both teams.
Flores led the Central Michigan offense with 22 carries. He threw two passes, one of them a two-yard touchdown to Langston Lewis with 10:46 remaining in the second quarter for a 21-3 lead.
That score was Central Michigan’s last until a 22-yard field goal in the fourth quarter.
Starting quarterback Joe Labas (14-for-26, 138 yards) opened the scoring for the Chippewas in the first quarter with a 1-yard touchdown pass to Brock Townsend. Biggins doubled their tally with a 49-yard touchdown rush less than five minutes later.
After Rudy Kessinger’s second made field goal for EMU, quarterback Noah Kim punched in a 14-yard touchdown to trim the deficit to 21-13 with 10:45 remaining in the third quarter. Kim had the ball punched out by Kalen Carroll at the 1-yard line, then recovered his own fumble for a touchdown.
Kim was picked off by Maddix Blackwell at the end of the third at the Central Michigan 24-yard line for the game’s only turnover.
It was the 103rd total and 54th consecutive meeting between Eastern and Central Michigan, in a rivalry that began in 1902.
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Eastern Michigan (1-4, 0-1) will face Buffalo next Saturday, while Central Michigan (3-2, 1-0) will face Akron.
Toledo 45, Akron 3
Box Score
TOLEDO, Ohio (AP) — Tucker Gleason threw three touchdown passes and ran for another score and Toledo rolled to a 45-3 rout of Akron on Saturday.
Gleason completed 16 of 19 passes for 237 yards. Junior Vandeross III led the Rockets with nine receptions for 122 yards and two touchdowns. Eric Holley III also had a TD catch.
Chip Trayanum had 75 yards rushing and a touchdown for Toledo (3-2, 1-1 Mid-American Conference).
Gleason threw a 28-yard touchdown pass to Vandeross on the first play from scrimmage. Trayanum added an 11-yard TD run and Gleason’s 2-yard run into the end zone made it 21-0. Gleason and Vandeross connected for a 26-yard touchdown to make it 28-0 early in the second quarter.
Brayden Roggow and Michael Johnson Jr. were a combined 14-of-25 passing for 79 yards for Akron (1-4, 0-1), which was held to just 145 yards of offense compared to 545 by the Rockets. Owen Wiley made a 39-field goal for the Zips.
Toledo avenged last season’s 21-14 overtime loss in last season’s regular-season finale and leads the series 14-10.
Miami 38, Lindenwood 0
Box Score
OXFORD, Ohio (AP) — Jermaine Mia Agee returned a blocked punt for a touchdown and Kam Perry had two receiving touchdowns to lead Miami (Ohio) over FCS-member Lindenwood 38-0 on Saturday.
Koy Beasley blocked A.J. Vinatieri’s punt attempt in the first quarter, with Mia Agee’s return marking the first points of the game.
Perry had three receptions for 122 yards, with a 33-yard touchdown in the second quarter and a 66-yard score in the third.
Henry Hesson was 13 of 22 for 208 yards and the two touchdown connections to Perry.
Kenny Tracy racked up 122 yards and a touchdown on the ground for Miami (1-3). Jordan Brunson also had a rushing touchdown.
Silas Walters and Eli Coppess both picked off Nate Glantz, who was 9 of 25 for 87 yards passing for Lindenwood (2-3).
Western Michigan 47, Rhode Island 14
Box Score
KALAMAZOO, Mich. (AP) — Ofa Mataele ran for touchdowns of 22 and 3 yards, Broc Lowery accounted for two TDs and Western Michigan scored 44 consecutive points as the Broncos beat Rhode Island 47-14 on Saturday night.
Palmer Domschke kicked a 29-yard field goal to cap a 15-play, 68-yard drive that took six minutes, 58 seconds off the clock and the Broncos went 72 yards in 13 plays to take a 10-7 lead when Lowery scored on a 4-yard run with 13:35 left in the second quarter.
Lowery threw a 10-yard TD pass to Aveion Chenault and Devin Miles scored on a 1-yard run for Western Michigan (2-3) and Domschke made field goals of 41 and 49 yards about three minutes apart to make it 44-7 with 2:54 left in the third quarter.
Devin Farrell hit Marquis Buchanan for a 56-yard gain on the second play from scrimmage and a pass interference penalty made it first-and-goal before Antwain Littleton Jr. ran for a 2-yard TD to open the scoring just over a minute into the game. Rhode Island (4-1), No. 7 in the FCS coaches poll, had four three-and-outs and three turnovers in its next eight possessions.
Farrell threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Littleton on the first play of the fourth quarter.
Hunter Smith kicked a 21-yard field goal to cap the scoring.
UConn 20, Buffalo 17
Box Score
BUFFALO, N.Y. (AP) — Joe Fagnano led UConn down the field on a last-minute drive, setting up Chris Freeman for a 44-yard field goal with 11 seconds remaining and the Huskies beat Buffalo 20-17 on Saturday.
Gunnar Gray threw a 5-yard touchdown pass to Al-Jay Henderson with just over a minute to go to tie the game for the Bulls (2-3). Fagnano then completed five passes and took the Huskies 49 yards on 10 plays in 53 seconds.
Cam Edwards scored on an 8-yard run for UConn (3-2) to break a 7-7 halftime tie then the teams exchanged field goals to leave the Huskies ahead 17-10 entering the fourth quarter.
Fagnano threw a 25-yard TD to Skyler Bell for the game’s first points before Buffalo tied it on Lamar Sperling’s 63-yard run.
Fagnano was 19-of-31 passing for 155 yards and he rushed for 64 more.
Gray was 17 of 29 for 125 yards. Sperling made nine catches for 106 yards. Al-Jay Henderson had 24 carries but for just 63 yards.
San Diego State 6, Northern Illinois 3
Box Score
DEKALB, Ill. (AP) — Gabe Plascencia kicked a 25-yard field goal as time expired to give San Diego State a 6-3 over Northern Illinois on Saturday.
Plascencia’s winning kick came after a strong rush resulted in a short punt by Northern Illinois (1-3) to the Aztecs 44 with 1:44 remaining. Five Lucky Sutton rushes, a facemask penalty and an offsides after an NIU sub couldn’t get on the field on time set up Plascencia for the game-winner.
Plascencia has kicked 17 consecutive field goals, the second-best active streak in the FBS behind BYU’s Will Ferrin. The senior has made 22 of 23 in his career.
Both team’s first drives, both over seven minutes, resulted in field goals but then the game became a defensive struggle.
The Aztecs (3-1) outgained the Huskies 266-179 with NIU passing for just 57 yards. The teams combined to go 9 of 30 on third down and 2 of 5 on fourth. There were 13 punts.
Sutton rushed for 88 yards on 17 carries. Jayden Denegal was 13-of-20 passing for 110 yards.
Owen Chambliss had 11 tackles, seven solo, and Chris Johnson six solo to lead the Aztecs defense, which blanked Cal 34-0 last week and Stony Brook 42-0 in SDSU’s opener. In between came a 36-13 loss at Washington State.
Andrew Glass kicked a 31-yard field goal for NIU’s only points. Telly Johnson Jr. had 53 yards rushing on 16 carries. Quinn Urwiler had 16 tackles, 10 solo, and Filip Maciorowski 13 tackles, five solo.
Missouri 42, UMass 6
Box Score
COLUMBIA, Mo. (AP) — Beau Pribula completed a Missouri-record 21 straight passes, Ahmad Hardy ran for 130 yards and three touchdowns and the No. 20 Tigers beat UMass 42-6 on Saturday night to improve to 5-0.
“It’s good to be undefeated with things to improve,” Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz said. “I think that’s kind of the mentality of our coaching staff and our players. During the bye week, we’ve got to sharpen our edge. We cannot get complacent, so having things to work on is a positive.”
Hardy sparked the Tigers’ opening drive, gaining 41 yards on four carries before limping off the field after a tackle. While Hardy headed to the medical tent, Jamal Roberts finished off the drive with a 9-yard touchdown run.
UMass (0-4) capitalized on a mistake by Pribula when linebacker Timmy Hinspeter returned an interception 63 yards to the 21. Six plays later, AJ Hairston threw a 2-yard scoring pass to Max Dowling. Defensive tackle Sterling Webb blocked the extra point to keep it 7-6.
Pribula played virtually flawless after the interception, completing 21 consecutive passes to break the school record of 20 set by Chase Daniel in 2008. Pribula finished 26 of 29 for 241 yards and a touchdown.
“I think he does a really good job with his accuracy,” Drinkwitz said about Pribula, the Penn State transfer. “I think our pocket climbing is an issue right now. The pick was a tipped ball because we climbed too far in the pocket. It kind of happened to us with two other sacks, too.”
Kevin Coleman Jr. led the Tigers in receiving with 12 catches for 108 yards.
Hardy entered the weekend as the No. 2 rusher in FBS. It was his seventh consecutive 100-yard rushing game. The Tigers rushed for 268 yards, with Roberts chipping in 52 yards and backup Marquise Davis adding 77 yards, all in the fourth quarter.
Coleman compared Hardy and Roberts to the Detroit Lions running back tandem of David Montgomery and Jahmyr Gibbs.
“I told them they both need each other,” Coleman said. “You just don’t want one guy getting all the carries. You want a break, you want a break from getting tackled, you want a break for your body wanting to stay healthy, but you need that one-two punch. I told them boys, “You all got to eat together. When one person is doing good, just next person wait your turn, and you’ll start doing good right after.’”
Hairston was 11 of 31 for 75 yards, along with a touchdown and an interception.
The Tigers’ pass defense bounced back after allowing 302 yards passing last week to South Carolina. An interception by safety Santana Banner set up Missouri for an 8-yard touchdown drive in the third quarter.
“We really focused on sticking to doing what we do, nothing special, Banner said. “You know, trying to do too much and make a play ends up creating more plays for the offense. So we really focus on doing our 1 (of) 11.”
