Central Michigan (2-0, 0-0 MAC)
Noon ET, Saturday, Sept. 13, Kelly/Shorts Stadium
The Chippewas are coming of a 38-17 win over Purdue of the Big Ten. Really, CMU jumped into the driver’s seat early and appeared in control much of the contest. It was 14-0 in favor of the Chips midway through the first quarter and 21-7 by halftime.
After a Purdue field goal, Central distanced itself with a pair of touchdowns.
No small part of the credit goes to the CMU defense, which pounced on three Boilermaker turnovers. Brandon Greer’s 57-yard interception return set the tone for the game, especially since it was followed up with a 65-yrd Cooper Rush to Anthony Rice TD pass on Central’s next possession.
Purdue had seven possessions in the second half. Two drives ended with back-to-back turnovers (one fumble, one interception) and the final two drives ended on downs.
Rush completed 11 of 16 for 172 yards with two TDs and one interception for the CMU offense. Senior Thomas Rawls, meanwhile, broke 100 yards for the second time in two outings as he rushed for 155 yards on 31 carries (5.0 ypc) with two TDs against Purdue.
SYRACUSE
The Orange had last week off after opening with a 27-26 double overtime home win over FCS power Villanova.
The visiting Wildcats led in total yards (389-320) and several other categories. Their time of possession advantage was a whopping 37:48-22:24.
However, Syracuse pulled even on a field goal as time expired in the final period. It then took a gutsy fake field goal turned into a touchdown and a two-point conversion stop in the second overtime to pull it out, but the Orange survived.
Senior Terrell Hunt is listed as this week’s starter at QB. He was 10 of 17 for 94 yards, while Austin Wilson completed 11 of 17 (89 yards) for the Orange.
Prince-Tyson Gulley (5-8, 193, Sr) notched 11 rushes for an even 100 yards and one TD to lead the ground game. Jarrod West (59 yards) and Ashton Broyld (57 yards) each had five catches in the win.
Indiana State (1-1, 0-0 MVFC) at
Ball State (1-1, 0-0 MAC)
3 p.m. ET, Saturday, Sept. 13. Scheumann Stadium
ESPN 3
BALL STATE
Were it not for a late collapse, Ball State would have celebrated its own win over a Big Ten team last weekend. The Cardinals were up on Iowa 13-3 late in the fourth quarter before Jake Rudock rallied the Hawkeyes to a pair of touchdowns and a 17-13 victory.
Statistically, Iowa dominated in total offensive yardage (455-219), first downs (27-13) and passing yards (342-129). However, mistakes and a shaky kicking game hindered the Hawkeyes. Ball State turned two fumbles into 10 points and Iowa missed three mid-range field goals.
Cardinals QB Ozzie Mann completed 15 of 30 pass attempts for 129 yards while Rudock was setting a new career high (322 yards) for Iowa.
Jahwan Edwards led BSU’s rushing with 81 yards on 21 carries. KeVonn Mabon caught three passes for 44 yards.
INDIANA STATE
After dropping their opener at Indiana, 28-10, the Sycamores rebounded for convincing 49-14 home win over Tennessee Tech last week. The hosts were able to take advantage of four TNTC turnovers while staying turnover-free themselves.
Senior quarterback Mike Perish had a huge day, completing 26 of 34 for 383 yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions. Senior receiver Gary Owens (5-9, 185) was a significant part of the aerial show, registering six receptions for 199 yards and one touchdown. Jamar Brown found paydirt twice in his five receptions for 45 yards.
LeMonte Booker (77) and Buck Logan (51) combined for 128 of ISU’s 160 rushing yards.
Indiana State rolled out to a 28-0 lead early in the third quarter. After a pair of Golden Eagle touchdowns in the period, ISU added three more TDs to cement the win.
Northern Illinois (2-0, 0-0 MAC) at
UNLV (1-1, 0-0 MW)
7 p.m. ET, Saturday, Sept. 13
Sam Boyd Stadium
Northern Illinois continued one streak and ended another last week with a 23-15 win over Northwestern of the Big Ten. The Huskies currently own the nation’s longest (true) road winning streak (16 games) and will seek to continue that Saturday as they tangle with UNLV. In defeating Northwestern, NIU broke through for their first victory against the Wildcats, who had six wins and a tie over the previous seven meetings.
It was a scoreless game through halftime, but sophomore QB Drew Hare got the call for NIU in the third quarter and the Huskies rallied for 23 points the rest of the way.
Hare was just 6 of 10 passing, but the six completions went for 109 yards and – more importantly – two touchdowns. Both scores came when Hared connected with DaRon Brown (6 receptions/128 yards). An 18-yarder put NIU in front, 10-7 late in the third period. Midway through the final stanza, Hare hit Brown on a 59-yard scoring play. The QB later added a four-yard run with 3:27 left to put the game out of reach.
Northern had a slight advantage (401-394) in total yardage. While there were some key pass plays, the bulk of NIU’s offense came via the run as they out-gained Northwestern 221-72 on the ground. Akeem Daniels led the way with 81 yards on 16 carries.
UNLV
The Runnin’ Rebels’ offense is stuck on 13.
UNLV managed to edge Northern Colorado, 13-12, last week after a 58-13 thumping at Arizona to open the season.
Four turnovers certainly didn’t help UNLV’s cause against the Bears, but UNC blew a chance to move in front with 5:45 remaining in the game when Seth Czapenski missed a 24-yard field goal.
Blake Decker completed 11 of 18 for 121 yards and one TD for UNLV. However, he also tossed three interceptions. Marcus Sullivan added another INT on his only attempt.
The Rebels’ strength proved to be the run game, which provided 211 of the team’s 332 total yards of offense. George Naufau had 22 carries for 90 yards while Keither Whitely picked up 82 on 12 trips.
Devonte Boyd (58 yards) and Devante Davis (18 yards) each had two catches for UNLV.
Western Michigan (1-0, 0-0 MAC) at
Idaho (0-1, 0-1 Sun Belt)
5 p.m. ET, Saturday, Sept. 13
Kibbie Dome
ESPN3
WESTERN MICHIGAN
The Western Michigan Broncos get back into action Saturday after a week off. They flirted with a win over Purdue in Week One, pulling to within three at 37-34 with 8:11 remaining. However, Purdue put the game away with a late TD run.
The Broncos displayed a relatively balanced attacking, picking up 243 yards passing and 213 on the ground against Purdue. Quarterback Zach Terrell completed 23 of 41 with two TDs and one interception. Sophomore Daniel Braverman pulled in 10 receptions for 130 yards with a long of 47.
Jarvion Franklin paced the ground game with 19 totes for 163 yards and three TDs. His 61-yard burst up the middle gave WMU a second quarter lead.
IDAHO
The Vandals’ opening game at Florida was cancelled due to bad weather and field conditions. After more than a two-hour delay at Louisiana-Monroe last week, Idaho finally got to play some football.
After trailing 21-7 at the half, the Vandals twice fought back to tie the hosts.
It was 31-all when UL-Monroe took over at its own 27 with less than a minute left. Six plays later, Centaius Donald scored the game-winner from one-yard out with nine seconds left.
ULM rolled up 534 yards on the Idaho, with 384 coming through the air. The visiting Vandals, who had 442 yards of offense, were hurt by 12 penalties for 119 yards, as well as three turnovers – albeit one came on a desperation pass to end the game.
Matt Linehan completed 26 of 47 for 324 yards with three TDs and two interceptions.
Senior RB Jerrel Brown (6-0, 219) totaled 117 yards on 22 carries.
Bowling Green (1-1, 0-0 MAC)
Noon ET, Saturday, Sept. 13
Doyt Perry Stadium
ESPNU/Watch ESPN
The Bowling Green Falcons bounced back in a big way last week with a 48-7 blasting of VMI. It was a win the Falcons needed following the opening loss at Western Kentucky – a game in which BG also lost stellar starter Matt Johnson.
As disappointing as Johnson’s long-term loss was, the Falcons appear to have a very suitable replacement. Sophomore James Knapke stepped in and completed 22 of 31 for 237 yards and one TD with one interception in his debut. Knapke and Cody Callaway (3 for 3, 29 yards) spread the wealth among 10 different receivers. Freshman wideout Roger Lewis (6-1, 196) led the way with six catches for 140 yards and one TD.
Travis Green (18/129 yards, 2 TDs) and Fred Coppet (9/73 yards. 1 TD) led the Falcons rushing attack.
INDIANA
The Hoosiers come to Bowling Green with a title they probably haven’t held very often – if at all. They lead the nation in rushing yards per game.
Indiana opened the season two weeks ago with a 28-10 victory over Indiana State. Since IU didn’t play last week, the 455 yards rushing against ISU is their average. By contrast, Indiana State had 30 yards on the ground.
Junior Tevin Coleman easily surpassed the Sycamore’s total offense number (170 yards) with a career high 247 yards rushing and two TDs. Senior D’Angelo Roberts had a pretty good day himself with 129 yards and one touchdown.
Hoosiers quarterback Nate Sudfield completed 11 of 18 for 111 yards and was intercepted once.
Kent State (0-2, 0-1 MAC) at
No. 22 Ohio State (1-1, 0-0 Big Ten)
Noon ET, Saturday, Sept. 13
Ohio Stadium
ABC/ESPN2
Having dropped both outings in 2014, Kent State finds itself with an ultra-tough matchup this week when it visits the Ohio State Buckeyes.
Ohio State fell at home to Virginia Tech last week, 35-21, after struggling during the early going against Navy in Week One.
The Buckeyes lost senior QB and Heisman Trophy hopeful Braxton Miller for the season just before the season opener. Freshman J.T. Barnett was at the held against VT, and he struggled. Barnett connected on just 9 of 29 attempts, although it yielded 219 yards. He had one interception and three interceptions in the passing game and also ran for 70 yards on 24 carries. The Buckeyes totaled 108 yards on the ground and 327 overall -- just three yards more than Virginia Tech.
The Hokies, who led 21-7 at intermission, broke a 21-all tie with two fourth quarter touchdowns. The second was a 63-yard interception return that sealed the verdict. With the loss, Ohio State dropped from a No. 8 ranking to No. 22
KENT STATE
Visiting South Alabama built up a 16-0 lead midway through the second quarter and then held off Kent State the rest of the way. The Flashes closed to within three at 16-13 just seconds into the fourth quarter on a 44-yard pass from Colin Reardon to Casey Pierce. However, KSU missed a field goal at the end of a 12-play, 61-yard drive on its next possession. The Golden Flashes then punted and threw an interception on their next two posessions.
Reardon finished with just 17 completions in 40 attempts. He tossed two TD passes and was intercepted once.
Senior tight end Casey Pierce led all Kent State receivers with 80 yards on four grabs. Nick Holley paced KSU’s ground game with 47 yards on 14 carries.