Around the Group of 5: Week 10 (Football)
For the first time this season, all five conferences in the Group of 5 will touch the field.
Let's look at the results from opening night in the Mid-American Conference.
Kent State (1-0) knocked off Eastern Michigan (0-1) 27-23.
You can’t ask for anything better on an opening night than a back and forth game. That’s what Kent State and Eastern Michigan brought to both sides of the field.
Both quarterbacks, Dustin Crum of Kent State and Preston Hutchinson of Eastern Michigan had decent starts.
Crum completed 21-29 pass attempts for 219 yards and two touchdowns, along with rushing for one touchdown. On the other side, Hutchinson completed 21-35 pass attempts for 241 yards and two touchdowns to his wide receiver Thomas Odukoya. Hutchinson also had one rushing touchdown.
As both teams gave up scoring chances, it became evident that whichever team’s defense could make the crucial stops would win the game. Eastern Michigan would get one interception from defensive back Noski LaFleur, but on a late fourth quarter drive down the field, Hutchinson threw his second interception of the night to cornerback Jeremiah Salaam that would seal the win for the Golden Flashes.
Buffalo (1-0) defeated Northern Illinois (0-1) 49-30.
The Buffalo Bulls came out of the gates red hot on both sides of the field. Offensively, a combination of pounding the ground with running back Jaret Patterson and attacking through the air by quarterback Kyle Vantrease mounted an early lead.
Patterson rushed for 137 yards and two touchdowns on 20 carries. Vantrease produced quality plays, completing 11-17 pass attempts for 175 yards and one touchdown, despite throwing one interception. Wide receiver Antonio Nunn had quite the night as well, averaging 17 yards per reception on his six receptions for 102 yards.
On the other side of the field, the Buffalo defense made it a stressful night for quarterback Ross Bowers and the Huskies. The Bulls created five turnovers, three of which resulted in defensive touchdowns to further the lead for Buffalo.
Despite the five turnovers, Bowers had an average performance completing 17-28 pass attempts for 202 yards, one touchdown and one interception. Nevertheless, only converting on five of 14 third downs and five turnovers derailed any hopes of a comeback for the Huskies.
Miami (OH) (1-0) conquered Ball State (0-1) 38-31.
The Miami (OH) RedHawks exemplified the old saying of “next man up” on opening night. Starting quarterback Brett Gabbert was knocked out of the game after getting hit helmet on helmet by safety Bryce Cosby. Cosby was ejected and AJ Mayer stepped in behind center, promoting a rally from a 21-10 deficit by completing 16-24 pass attempts for 212 yards and three touchdowns.
Running back Zach Kahn rushed for two touchdowns on nine carries for 42 yards, along with tight end Jack Coldiron catching two touchdowns on three receptions for 29 yards.
Things got interesting in the late portion of the fourth quarter as both teams were tied up at 31-31. Drew Plitt was driving the Cardinals down the field for a potential game winning play, only to end up throwing a tipped interception to Ryan McWood. That led to the game winning touchdown run by Kahn.
Central Michigan (1-0) lasts out Ohio (0-1) 30-27 in a nail biter.
Throughout the entire game both teams were boxing it out. Whether it was the two freshman quarterbacks, Daniel Richardson of Central Michigan or Kurtis Rourke of Ohio leading their offensive units or the defensive units making crucial stops.
In spite of how close the game was, the Chippewas salvaged a win with a late 22-yard field goal by Marshall Meeder to go up 30-27, along with preventing any comeback Ohio had in mind on fourth down.
Lastly, two blowouts occurred on opening night. Western Michigan destroyed Akron 58-13 in every facet, along with Toledo triumphing Bowling Green 38-3.
Jordan Hession is a junior majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email hessionjordan@gmail.com.
