MAC Football Results
Tuesday, Nov. 5
Toledo 35, Kent State 33
Western Michigan 35, Ball State 31
Wednesday, Nov. 6
Miami at Ohio, 8:00 pm ET (ESPN2)
Game stories courtesy of MAC Athletic Communication Departments
Toledo 35, Kent State 33
Box Score
TOLEDO, Ohio -- Toledo junior Shakif Seymour rushed for a career-high 175 yards and two touchdowns to lead Toledo to a hard-fought 35-33 triumph over Kent State in the Glass Bowl Tuesday night.
Seymour, taking over as the Rockets' main running option due to a first-half injury to sophomore Bryant Koback, gained 40 yards and two first downs in Toledo's final possession as the Rockets ran out the clock and held on to the victory.
With the win, Toledo (6-3, 3-2 MAC) gained bowl eligibility but more importantly stayed in the hunt in the MAC West Division. The Rockets are a half-game behind Western Michigan and Central Michigan (4-2) and tied with Ball State (3-2).
"Conference wins are tough to get in November," said Head Coach Jason Candle. "Everybody wants to be playing meaningful games in November and that's where we're at. We played a much-improved team tonight and it was a gritty performance from our guys. I'm really proud of their effort.
"We have a very young football team, and it can be really hard to predict what's going to happen. I trust the leadership and makeup of our players, we recruit guys who are winners. Pride is a tough thing, it can be a slippery slope. It can bite you or it can propel you to some great things. Our guys have responded the last couple weeks and they've gotten a couple tough wins."
Toledo held a 28-17 halftime lead but saw the lead go down to one, 28-27, when the Golden Flashes scored late in the third quarter. Seymour scored his second touchdown of the game to put Toledo up, 35-27, with 11:49 left. But Kent State responded with a 15-play, 70-yard drive that culminated with a five-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Dustin Crum to Keenan Orr on fourth down. Trailing by two, 35-33, the Flashes went for two and Crum came up inches short on the rushing attempt. Toledo never let Kent State have another chance to score by controlling the ball for the remainder of the game.
Toledo's offense racked up 483 yards of total offense, including 289 yards on the ground. Junior Eli Peters led the passing game, completing 15-of-25 passes for 194 yards and one score. The defense was led by senior linebacker Jordan Fisher (11 tackles, 1.5 TFL) and sophomore defensive end Jamal Hines (six tackles, 2.5 TFL).
Western Michigan 35, Ball State 31
Box Score
KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- For a program record sixth straight season the Western Michigan football team is bowl eligible after a dramatic 35-31 victory over Ball State on Tuesday night inside Waldo Stadium.
With the win the Broncos improve their overall record to 6-4 and 4-2 in Mid-American Conference play. Tuesday's victory also marks the third time since 2000 that WMU has captured an undefeated home season (2008, 2016).
The Broncos were guided by a stellar performance on the ground from senior running back LeVante Bellamy who finished with a 157 yards and three touchdowns on 31 attempts. It was Bellamy's fourth straight game with over 100 yards rushing and seventh this season.
With three scores on the ground Bellamy moved into sole possession of second place on WMU's single-season rushing touchdowns list with 20. The senior running back is just four behind school record holder Jarvion Franklin withr 24 rushing touchdowns back in 2014. For his career, Bellamy has the fourth most in school history with 33.
For just the fourth time in school history a quarterback ran for over 100 yards as senior Jon Wassink rushed for 131 yards and one touchdown on six attempts. Wassink averaged 21.8 yards per carry including a career-long 60-yard rush just five plays into the game.
For the game Western Michigan recorded 382 yards on the ground with 288 of those yards coming from Bellamy and Wassink. Through the air, Wassink was 13-of-24 for 124 yards and found six different receivers. Leading the way was fellow senior Keith Mixon Jr., with six receptions for 23 yards.
Defensively WMU was led by junior Treshaun Hayward with nine tackles (five solo). Behind Hayward was junior A.J. Thomas with seven tackles (four solo) followed by senior Justin Tranquill with six (three solo). Redshirt freshman Andre Carter and junior Kailien Guillory each recorded a sack on the night while junior Ali Fayad posted a team-high two quarterback hurries.
Western Michigan will play its final two regular season games on the road beginning on Tuesday, Nov. 12 at Ohio. Kick-off against the Bobcats will be at 7:30 p.m. on ESPN2. WMU ends the regular season on Tuesday, Nov. 26 at Northern Illinois.
To begin the game, the Broncos embarked on an eight play, 81-yard drive in just under three minutes that was capped off by a one yard rushing touchdown from Bellamy to give WMU a 7-0 lead. Ball State answered back nine plays later, rushing it in from five yards out to tie the game at 7-7 after one quarter of play.
Early in the second quarter the Brown & Gold regained the lead thanks to a 46-yard rushing touchdown from Wassink. On third down, Wassink faked a wide receiver screen and bolted 46 yards to give WMU a touchdown advantage early in the second.
The Cardinals cut the WMU lead down to four after connecting on a 44-yard field goal midway through the second before the Broncos extended its lead four plays later. Going 82 yards in just under two minutes, Mixon Jr., ran it in from 44 yards out on a reverse to give WMU a 21-10 lead heading into the locker room.
Coming out of halftime Ball State got the scoring started quickly, returning the opening kick-off of the second half 100 yards to slim WMU's lead down to 21-17. After the kick-off return, both offenses stalled as the two teams combined for just 147 yards in the third quarter.
At the start of the fourth, the Cardinals grabbed their first lead of the game at 24-21 after embarking on a 16-play, 80-yard drive that took 6:11 off the clock. WMU countered with a 13-play drive, nine of which came on the ground that resulted in a 16 yard rushing touchdown from Bellamy.
With 3:24 remaining, Ball State regained its lead after a four yard rushing touchdown from running back Walter Fletcher. All six plays for the Cardinals on the scoring drive came on the ground.
Trailing 31-28, Western Michigan drove the ball down the field and capped off a seven play, 62-yard drive with a nine-yard rushing touchdown from Bellamy to propel the Broncos back in front, 35-31. The game-winning drive featured a heavy rushing attack from Bellamy who carried the ball four times for 29 yards.
