Kent State 27, Eastern Michigan 23
Buffalo 49, Northern Illinois 30
Miami 38, Ball State 31
Central Michigan 30, Ohio 27
Toledo 38, Bowling Green 3
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The Broncos put up points on their first eight possessions - first a field goal dnd then seven straight touchdowns as they dominated Akron. D’Wayne Eskridge scored touchdowns on two of his three receptions, including a 76-yard gallop. Three different Bronco rushers reached the end zone as WMU rolled up 218 yards rushing and 266 passing yards.
Freshman Zach Gibson completed 18-of-30 for 125 yards with one interception for Akron, which is looking for its first win since 2018.
Kent State 27, Eastern Michigan 23
Dustin Cohen’s nine-yard TD pass to Mark Williams with 7:31 to play lifted Kent State to the victory. The Flashes led 20-9 after an early second quarter TD, but visiting EMU scored twice after intermission to gain a 23-20 edge.
Kent State had a balanced attack with 212 yards rushing and 219 through the air. Crum completed 21-of-29 with two TDs and one pick for KSU. Eastern Michigan QB Preston Hutchinson hit 21-of-35 passes for 241 yards with a pair of touchdowns and two interceptions. The Eagles, however, were limited to 61 rushing yards.
Buffalo 49, Northern Illinois 30
The Bulls took advantage of five NIU turnovers while claiming an opening night road victory.
Buffalo held a 21-16 halftime advantage but broke the game open with three unanswered third quarter scores and another Bulls TD early in the fourth.
Jaret Patterson provided two Bulls scores with 20 carries for 137 yards. Antonio Nunn grabbed six passes for 102 yards and a score.
Ross Bowers completed 17-of-28 for 202 yards with one TD and one pick. Tyrice Richie caught nine passes for 106 yards. Harrison Waylee and Ern Collins combined for 115 yards and one score as the Huskies ground game produced 156 yards and three touchdowns.
Miami 38, Ball State 31
The Cardinals offense exploded for several big scoring plays, but Ball State’s one turnover on the night was a costly one as it set up a last minute Miami touchdown for the win. Senior linebacker Ryan McWood deflected a Drew Plitt pass and gathered it in himself for a runback to set the RedHawks up.
Drew Plitt’s 66-yard TD-toss to Justin Hall gave the visiting Cardinals a 14-7 second quarter edge and BSU went up 21-10 after Caleb Huntley ripped off a 45-yard touchdown early in the third period.
Miami, forced to put in sophomore A.J. Myer after Brett Gabbert was knocked out of the game with a second quarter hit, finally found its stride and scored three unanswered touchdowns. Two went from Meyer to former high school teammate Jack Coldiron.
Miami was up 31-21 when Ball State rallied for 10 of its own points. The final three came as Jack Knight’s 47-yard boot just cleared the crossbar.
Plitt completed 19-of-32 with one TD and an interception for Ball State. Huntley logged 21 carries for 130 yards and a pair of scores. Justin Hall has a big night for BSU’s air game, catching four balls for 124 yards and a TD.
Mayer, who had seen very limited action, completed 16-of-24 passes for 212 yards and three touchdowns. Senior Jack Sorenson led MU receivers with seven catches for 139 yards.
Central Michigan 30, Ohio 27
The Chippewas defense halted OU’s last minute drive to preserve a narrow home victory against stubborn Ohio. De’Montre Tuggle’s 93-yard kickoff return to open the second half gave Ohio a 27-30 advantage. Central Michigan, however, forced a tie on Kobe Lewis’ eight-yard third quarter run and Marshall Meeder provided the game-winning points on a 22-yard boot with 9:05 to play.
Lewis was busy, carrying 28 times for 112 yards and two scores. His longest carry went for 11 yards. Overall, CMU produced 184 rushing yards. It got another 243 through the air as Daniel Richardson completed 23-of-41 for 243 yards and a score.
Toledo 38, Bowling Green 3
The Falcons upset UT last year, but Toledo made sure it didn’t happen again. The Rockets roared out to a 21-0 first quarter lead on three TD passses from Eli Peters to three different receivers. It was 28-0 before BG finally got on the board with a third quarter field goal and UT closed out a comfortable win over their neighboring rival with 10 fourth quarter points.
Toledo Eli Peters completed 20-of-32 for 214 yards with four touchdowns. He also ran for 67 yards as UT’s ground game amassed 310 yards. Shakif Seymore led the way with 93 yards and a score on 13 carries. Bryan Koback logged 21 carries for 74 yards.
Bowling Green quarterback Matt McDonald struggled to eight completions on 30 attempts with two interceptions. Julian Ortega Jones led Falcon receivers with three receptions for 61 yards.
Matt McDonald andTrevon Raymore led BG rushers with 41 yards apiece on a combined 10 carries.
Darren Anders and Jerry Roberts paced all defenders with 11 and 10 stops, respectively. Dyontae Johnson led UT with seven hits (six solo) and one TFL.