ATHENS, Ohio—Led by a record-breaking offensive performance, the Ohio football team (2-2) defeated the Fordham Rams (3-1), 59-52.

"I said last week, and I will say it again. One thing for certain is that this team has got fight," said head coach Tim Albin. "I challenged them at halftime. They took it well and our guys kept fighting. Unbelievable game at home with another outstanding crowd here on campus."
 
Redshirt junior quarterback Kurtis Rourke (Oakville, Ontario, Canada) made program history, going for 527 yards in the air, breaking a record that was set in 1983. He finished the game 41-for-50 in addition to rushing 62 yards on 17 attempts. The offense also set a program record, gaining 692 total yards.

Both redshirt sophomore running back Tyler Toledo (Canal Winchester, Ohio) and junior wide receiver Jacoby Jones (Tunica, Miss.) each scored their first touchdown as Bobcats while redshirt sophomore wide receiver Keegan Wilburn (Nelsonville, Ohio) made history with the third-longest kickoff return for a touchdown in program history at 98 yards. Freshman kicker Nathanial Vakos (Avon, Ohio) extended his perfect collegiate record, going 1-for-1 on field goals and 6-for-6 on PAT attempts.
 
Ohio opened the game with a 14-play, 75-yard drive that resulted in a one-yard rushing touchdown from Rourke. With 1:24 remaining in the quarter, a 36-yard pass marked redshirt junior Tyler Foster's (Pickerington, Ohio) second collegiate touchdown, giving the Bobcats a 14-0 lead. 
 
The Rams scored their first touchdown with 13:53 remaining in the half, completing an eight-play, 75-yard drive with a 38-yard reception, putting the score at 14-7. Vakos extended the Bobcats' lead with a 34-yard field goal, but Fordham quickly struck, cutting Ohio's lead to three points with a 74-yard reception. 
 
A 13-yard rushing touchdown by Toledo with 2:50 remaining in the half put the Bobcats ahead 24-14, but the Rams answered with their own seven points. With six seconds until halftime, a 21-yard reception by Jones gave the Bobcats a 31-21 lead.

Fordham opened the second half with a touchdown; Wilburn scored on the kickoff return, running 98 yards to reclaim Ohio's 10-point lead. The Rams scored on three-straight drives, taking a 49-38 lead with 53 seconds to go in the third quarter. 
 
Foster started the fourth quarter with a touchdown for the Bobcats. Sophomore wide receiver Miles Cross (Bowie, Md.) successfully caught the two-point conversion, cutting the Rams' lead to three points. A 36-yard Fordham field goal put the score at 52-46. With 52 seconds remaining in the game, Jones tied the game with a 5-yard reception. Vakos' successful point conversion gave Ohio a one-point lead. Redshirt senior linebacker Bryce Houston (Lewis Center, Ohio) closed the game with a 42-yard fumble recovery, putting the final score at 59-52. 
 
Up next, the Bobcats travel to Kent, Ohio to open MAC play on Saturday, Oct. 1. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. and the game can be watched on ESPN+. 

 

STATE COLLEGE, Pa. – Certainly not the worst performance that Central Michigan could have turned in.
 
But against the No. 14 team in the nation, the Chippewas needed more, and they needed to be nearly perfect.
 
Penn State took advantage of every CMU miscue on Saturday in handing the Chippewas a 33-14 nonconference loss before 106,624 at Beaver Stadium.
 
"I'm proud of the way our team fought," CMU coach Jim McElwain said. "I thought the guys never quit; that team on the other side knew what the Chippewas were all about towards the end of that game and that's something that makes me proud."
 
The Chippewas turned it over four times, muffed a punt on their own 10-yard line, and had two touchdowns wiped out by penalty in falling to 1-3. They open Mid-American Conference play on Oct. 1 at Toledo.
 
"Now quarter one's over for us and we head into quarter two and that starts league play and we're excited to make that happen," McElwain said. "We've got to get ready to get on a bus and go play the best team in our conference on the road right off the bat."
 
Penn State (4-0) went 59 yards in nine plays on its first possession for a 7-0 lead. On the Chippewas' ensuing possession, the Nittany Lions returned an interception to the CMU 15 and scored three plays later for a 14-0 advantage midway through the first quarter.
 
The Chippewas responded with back-to-back scores as Daniel Richardson tossed a 2-yard TD pass to freshman Finn Hogan on fourth down to cut it to 14-7. Richardson then connected with tight end Joel Wilson for a 14-yard TD to tie the game with under four minutes to play in the half.
 
Penn State re-took the lead, for good as it turned out, on a 14-yard TD run by Kaytron Allen with 1:38 to play in the half.
 
That capped a 34-yard drive made possible when the Chippewas, needing to move the ball and keep the clock running to get the halftime tied, failed to do so and were forced to punt from their own end zone.
 
It was in the third quarter that the mistakes began to take their toll on the Chippewas.
 
• CMU forced a Penn State punt on the first drive of the third quarter. CMU return man Jordyn Williams muffed the catch and Penn State recovered at the 7. Two plays later, the Nittany Lions were in the end zone again and the deficit grew to 27-14.
 
"We said going into the game we need to play field position and at the end of the day they got their points on short fields," McElwain said, alluding to the fact that three of Penn State's five scoring drives covered 7, 15 and 34 yards.
 
• The Chippewas then had a TD nullified – the first of two on the day – by an offensive pass interference penalty. Another penalty on the same drive pushed the Chippewas farther back and they failed to convert on fourth down, coming away empty after sitting at first-and-goal and still very much in it down two scores.
 
• Trailing 33-14, the Chippewas had another TD pass wiped out by a penalty, this time a hold. One play later, CMU fumbled the ball and Penn State recovered at its own 23.
 
"You can literally call a penalty on every play if you wanted to, right?" McElwain said. "It's the choice and the decision on when. I'm not blaming (the loss) on that; don't get me wrong. It's pretty amazing how that stuff works when you're playing on the road and your guys are fighting their tails off. That's what it is when you're on the road. That's the way it works."
 
Said CMU wide receiver Carlos Carriere: "We know what we're capable of, we've just got to start fast and not beat ourselves like we did a couple of times. We don't take moral victories, but it was encouraging. You want to play well against a team like that."

ATHENS, GA- Kent State closed the non-conference portion of its season on Saturday, giving the top-ranked Georgia Bulldogs all they could handle in a 39-22 setback inside Sanford Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

The Flashes forced the Bulldogs' first three turnovers of the season and scored 22 points on a defense that came in tops in the FBS, allowing 3.3 points per game.

Kent State took a big punch early, one that saw Georgia score on the second play from scrimmage. They threw a counter-punch back when strong punt coverage forced a muffed punt that Bryce Sheppert recovered inside the Bulldog 30. The Flashes cashed in with the first of three field goals on the day, connecting from 45-yards out.

The defense continued to force Georgia miscues, Montre Miller picked off a pass in the red zone and Marvin Pierre forced and recovered a fumble in the first half. Immediately following the Pierre turnover, Collin Schlee hit Devontez Walker on a quick screen. Walker picked up a series of blocks, including a key one from Kris Leach and raced 56 yards down the sidelines to make it a 12-10 ballgame. Georgia would score late in the half to take a 26-13 lead into the locker room.

The second half saw the trading of field goals as Glass went 3-3 on the day, hitting from 45, 45 and 22. Kent State would find the end zone again on a Marquez Cooper short touchdown run to cut the lead to 10. The key play of that drive was a fake punt at midfield, Josh Smith found Zayin West wide open to convert the first down. The ensuing two-point conversion was no good and it would be as close as the Flashes would get the rest of the way.

Schlee finished with 174 yards on 14-of-21 passing and the touchdown to Walker. Walker was the game's leading receiver, catching seven passes for 106 yards and a score. Cooper rushed for 90 yards on 21 carries and that second-half touchdown. JoJo Evans led the defense with 10 tackles while Miller and Pierre forced turnovers and CJ West recorded a big third-down sack.

Kent State now turns its attention to Mid-American Conference play with the Ohio Bobcats coming to Dix Stadium next weekend. It will be homecoming weekend and kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. Tickets and ticket packages are still available for the final four home games of the season, full details are available at KSUTix.com.

LYNCHBURG, Va. – The University of Akron football team battled down to the wire against Liberty on Saturday, Sept. 24, before the Flames (3-1) exited their showdown with the Zips (1-3) on the strength of a 21-12 victory.

Akron redshirt junior QB DJ Irons (Lawrenceville, Ga.) was 29-for-52 on the evening for 269 yards and one touchdown. Redshirt junior WR Daniel George (Fort Washington, Md.) pulled in a game- and career-high 11 catches for 93 yards, while redshirt sophomore RB Cam Wiley (Las Vegas, Nev.) rushed for 52 yards on 12 carries.

The Zips outgained the Flames offensively in the game, 321-309, including a 269-152 edge in passing yards.

Sophomore WR Alex Adams (Osyka, Miss.) accounted for Akron's touchdown with an 11-yard reception from Irons at the 14:21 mark of the fourth quarter.

Freshman PK Noah Perez (Phoenix, Ariz.) went 2-of-3 on the evening connecting on a pair of field goals from 26 and 34 yards, while coming up just short on a 55-yard attempt.

Redshirt senior LB Bubba Arslanian (Aurora, Ohio) registered a game- and team-high 16 tackles on the strength of six solo tackles and 10 assists. Redshirt freshman CBDarrian Lewis (Akron, Ohio) added eight tackles, including two tackles for a loss, while posting his first career interception in the third quarter fueled by a quarterback hurry from redshirt senior DL Zach Morton (Detroit, Mich.).

Akron returns home on Saturday, Oct. 1 to host Bowling Green in its Mid-American Conference opener. The Homecoming showdown with the Falcons is slated for a 3:30 kickoff at InfoCision Stadium-Summa Field.

STATESBORO, Ga. - Despite a season-high 496 yards of total offense from Ball State, a pair of late touchdowns gave Georgia Southern a 34-23 victory Saturday night at Allen E. Paulson Stadium.
 
Trailing 20-13 midway through the third quarter, the Cardinals (1-3) used a 19-yard touchdown reception from Jayshon Jackson and a 25-yard field goal from Ben VonGunten to take a 23-20 lead with 12:39 remaining in the fourth.
 
However, the host Eagles (3-1) countered with 14 unanswered points to win its final non-conference game of the season.

"Obviously disappointed that we couldn't finish the game," head coach Mike Neu said. "We had the lead at 23-20, they stopped us on a three-and-out and we had a short punt that gave them great field position. They took it down and scored a touchdown and we weren't able to answer.

"We had a drive going, and an unacceptable penalty on the sideline after a big run by Carson Steele hurt us. That's got to be taken out of the game. I'm the head football coach here, and I am going to have to adjust some things because the penalties are showing up and we're beating ourselves. I don't want to take anything away from Georgia Southern, they're a good football team, but we are beating ourselves and that has got to get cleaned up."
 
Jackson led all players with a season-high 122 receiving yards on 10 catches, while VonGunten put all three of his field goal attempts through the uprights to remain perfect on the season.
 
Quarterback John Paddock also turned in a solid effort with career highs of 338 passing yards and 33 receptions. He connected with seven different receivers, including a nine-yard touchdown pass to Tanner Koziol in the second quarter.

Defensively, Clayton Coll led the way with 10 tackles. Jack Blanco and Jordan Riley added nine and eight, respectively. Riley also chipped in a team-high four pass breakups. Tavion Woodard recorded the first sack allowed by the Eagles this season for a one-yard loss.

The two teams produced similar totals on the night. The Cardinals had 496 total offensive yards, 338 yards through the air, 158 rushing yards and 25 first downs, while Georgia Southern had 474 total yards, 310 yards passing, 164 yards on the ground and 26 first downs.

Both teams were perfect in the red zone. Ball State produced three field goals and a pair of touchdowns, while Georgia Southern had three touchdowns and a field goal.

The biggest differences came in third-down conversions and penalties. The Cardinals went 6-of-15 on third down, while the Eagles were 9-of-16. Ball State had seven penalties for 95 yards, while Georgia Southern had four for 35 yards.
 
The Cardinals return home Saturday, Oct. 1, for a Mid-American Conference showdown vs. Northern Illinois. Kickoff is set for 2:00 p.m. ET at Scheumann Stadium.

 
No. 8 Kentucky 31, NIU 23
Boxscore
LEXINGTON, Ky. – A gritty Northern Illinois University football team played eighth-ranked Kentucky to the final minutes before falling, 31-23, at Kroger Field Saturday behind back-up quarterback Ethan Hampton and a valiant defensive effort.
 
Hampton completed 13-of-25 passes for 196 yards and the Huskies out-gained Kentucky on the ground 128-103, while the NIU defense sacked UK quarterback Will Levis five times. However, Levis threw four touchdown passes, including plays that went for 69, 70 and 40 yards, to lead the Wildcats to the win and a 4-0 record. The Huskies completed non-conference play with a 1-3 record.
 
"I thought we had every opportunity to go out there and win the football game," said NIU head coach Thomas Hammock. "We just have to continue to fight to get 11 guys doing their job every play, because you change three plays from that game and it takes 21 points off the board [for Kentucky]. I'm proud of our fight, proud of our effort. I thought [going in] that we could play with these guys. I believe in our football team. We have a good football team, we have to continue to get better."
 
Trailing 31-14 after Levis found Tayvion Robinson with a 40-yard touchdown pass on the Wildcats' first drive of the fourth quarter, the Huskies scored nine points in the final 5:26 of the game to make it a one score game. Kicker John Richardson made a 38-yard field goal with 5:26 on the clock to complete a seven-play, 55-yard drive that featured Hampton completions of 24 and 19 yards to Fabian McCray and Cole Tucker.
 
On Kentucky's ensuing possession, Levis was sacked for the fifth time with Cade Haberman doing the honors for NIU, forcing a UK punt and giving NIU the ball on its 32. Hampton found Kacper Rutkiewicz, who made a pair of defenders miss for a 63-yard pick-up to the Kentucky five-yard line. Four plays later, Justin Lynch faked a handoff up the middle and ran into the end zone untouched to pull the Huskies within eight, 31-23.  Hampton's two-point pass attempt fell incomplete. 
 
After recovering a bouncing onside kick, Kentucky was able to run out the clock.
 
"We have confidence in our defensive line and those guys went out there and did a great job," Hammock said. "We're only going to get stronger as the season goes along.  I loved the way Ethan managed the game and guys made plays. We didn't turn the ball over; we had to stay on the field and be effective and I thought we did that for long stretches in the game."  
 
With the score tied 14-14 at halftime thanks to a late Huskie touchdown, Kentucky scored just one minute into the second half when Levis hit Barion Brown in the middle of the field and the speedy receiver went all the way to the end zone for a 21-14 UK lead. The play came just after NIU safety C.J. Brown narrowly missed an interception.
 
After a series of punts, Kentucky drove 36 yards in seven plays to the NIU 31 where the Huskies forced a 49-yard field goal attempt by the Wildcats Mark Ruffalo, who made the kick for a 24-14 Kentucky lead.
 
The Huskies took the opening kickoff and drove 75 yards in 11 plays and 6:07 to take a 7-0 lead. The rushing duo of Harrison Waylee and Antario Brown were joined by Justin Lynch, who carried twice on the drive from the quarterback position, before Hampton hit Tewes for a two-yard score on third and two.
 
Kentucky came back with an even longer drive as they took 8:01 to go 75 yards in 16 plays, tying the game on a 15-yard pass from Levis to Barion Brown. The two drives consumed almost the entire first quarter.
 
NIU drove from its 25 to the 49 on its ensuing possession, where on fourth and 3, Hampton showed his quick kick abilities, booting a 51-yard punt for a touchback. The NIU defense was up to the task though. On second and five from the UK 38, the Huskies got to Levis for back-to-back sacks. JaVaughn Byrd and Demond Taylor combining on the first and Devonte O'Malley and James Ester forcing the punt with the second.
 
The Huskies couldn't overcome a holding penalty on its next possession and Kentucky took just three plays to score, despite a tremendous punt by Tom Foley that bounced out of bounds at the two-yard line. After Kavosiey Smoke gained 29 yards on two rushes, Levis hit Tayvion Robinson across the middle and the speedy receiver outran the NIU defenders the remaining 53 yards to the end zone for a 14-7 Kentucky lead after the PAT.
  
With 5:08 left in the half, NIU drove from its 25 to the Kentucky 46 where its drive stalled and a Foley punt put the Wildcats on its 11-yard line with 56 seconds remaining. Two plays later, JaVaughn Byrd forced Smoke to fumble and Nick Rattin recovered at the Kentucky 34-yard line with 42 seconds to play in the half.
 
Hampton completed passes of 20 and nine yards to Tucker and McCray, respectively, to get NIU to the five-yard line. Waylee gained two yards for a first down, then was stopped for no gain. Hampton threw incomplete and on second down.  The Huskies then went into their bag of tricks as Hampton pitched to Shemar Thornton who came around and found Tewes in the end zone for a three-yard score and, following Richardson's PAT, a 14-14 score as the first half came to a close.
 
The Huskies finished the game with a season high five sacks and held the Wildcats to 103 rushing yards on 35 carries.  Daveren Rayner made 10 tackles to lead NIU, and defensive tackle Demond Taylor and safety Devin Lafayette each added seven. Tewes led NIU with a career high six catches for 37 yards and two touchdowns.
 
NIU next opens Mid-American Conference play versus Ball State in Muncie, Indiana. Kickoff for the Battle for the Bronze Stalk is at 1 pm CT/2 pm ET with the game scheduled to be broadcast on ESPN+.
 
San Jose State 34, Western Michigan 6
Boxscore
SAN JOSE, Calif. – The Western Michigan football team stumbled on the road, falling to San Jose State 34-6 at CEFCU Stadium on Saturday night.

WMU (1-3, 1-0 MAC) was held to 206 yards off offense, with 135 on the ground and 71 through the air. The Broncos lone touchdown came via a Sean Tyler 90-yard kickoff return, the third of his career. Tyler also had a team-high 66 yards on the ground. Bricen Garner, Zaire Barnes and Corvin Moment all had seven tackles in the loss to lead the defense.

The Broncos opened the game forcing SJSU to punt and drove down the field with Mareyohn Hrabowski using his legs and his arm to get into the red zone. A 39-yard pass to Corey Crooms got the Broncos into Spartan territory and after a pass interference call, had a first and 10 from the SJSU 14. WMU got it down to the six yard line and opted to go for it on fourth down. Hrabowski was stopped in the backfield and San Jose State took over.

From there, the Spartans scored a field goal on a 71-yard drive and followed it up with three straight touchdown drives to take a 17-0 lead into the half. After holding the Broncos to a 3-and-out to open the second half, the Spartans scored on their opening drive of the third quarter on a 39-yard touchdown pass from Chevan Cordeiro to Charles Ross.

Western Michigan returns home to host New Hampshire on Saturday at 6 p.m. The Broncos will host their annual CommUniverCity Game, welcoming businesses from all over the Kalamazoo area. Tickets are available at www.wmubroncos.com/tickets.