YPSILANTI, MI. – Kent State head coach Doug Martin had a message for his team during the week as the Golden Flashes prepared for their match-up against Eastern Michigan. That message was – Don’t let one loss beat you twice.
Taking his advice to heart, KSU traded field goals for touchdowns in the first quarter and added two second half TDs to register a 28-6 win over Eastern Michigan Saturday at Rynearson Stadium.
Martin’s advice was meant to help his team rebound after a disappointing last-minute loss to Bowling Green the previous week. According to linebacker Cobrani Mixon, the Flashes were ready to play. “We just wanted to come out with emotion,” Mixon said.
Whatever emotion Kent State brought the the field, it increased quickly when Derek McBryde recovered an Eagles fumble during a return of the opening kickoff. Eight plays later, quarterback Spencer Keith hit Jonathan Simpson with a one-yard scoring pass. Freddy Cortez added the extra point.
“Getting off to a fast start was going to be huge for us,” Martin said. “You couldn’t have ask for a better setup than that, (and) our offense did a nice job of capitalizing on that. That was probably the key to the game.”
Joe Carithers’ 30-yard field goal capped a seven-play 47 yard drive for EMU, but Kent State responded in lighting-quick fashion. After Anthony Bowman returned the kickoff 33 yards to the Eastern Michigan 48-yard line, Keith went deep on the next play, hitting Tyshon Good on a 48-yard TD pass. It was Kent State’s sixth one-play scoring drive of the season.
Eastern was again able to move the ball on its next possession, but a 12-play, 56-yard drive was stopped at the KSU 8. The Eagles turned to Carithers again, and he delivered with a 25-yard field goal.
It appeared as if Eastern Michigan might put a touchdown on the board early in the second period. Quarterback Alex Gillett started a promising drive with a 37-yard run. Three plays later, Gillett hit Nick Olds with an 18-yard pass that set up EMU with a first down at the Kent State one-yard line.
When three rushes yielded a loss of one yard, Eastern Michigan coach Ron English elected to go for the touchdown on fourth down. The gambled failed when Terrence Blevins was tackled by Quinton Rainey for a five yard loss.
“I thought the goal line stand really turned the game,” English said. “We had four chances to get in there, and we didn’t get that done.”
After KSU’s defense stopped the Eagles threat, Kent State’s offense stopped a pair of its own drives before intermission. Two Golden Flashes passes were picked off as Keith threw interceptions on successive possessions.
Keith finished the game completing 10-of-24 for 164 yards, with two TDs and two interceptions.
In addition to 195 passing yards, KSU also had 152 rushing yards. Jacquise Terry led the way with 79 yards (18 carries), while Keith contributed another 48 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. “I think he showed today that he’s a good runner also,” Martin said.
Keith’s one-yard TD run in the third quarter and a 31-yard TD pass from Leneric Muldrow to Kendrick Pressley – along with Cortez’ PAT kicks – accounted for all the second half scoring.
“This (game) was a character check for our football team coming off a real tough loss last week,” Martin said. “Our deal was to be emotionally ready to play, and I think our team did that – from the opening kickoff to the end of the game.”
He continued, “I don’t know that we’re great on either side of the ball, but we’re pretty daggone good because we play off of each other,”
English, meanwhile, indicated his youthful squad is still a work in progress. “They’re getting better. They’re just not good enough yet,” English said.
NOTES:
- Kent State (3-4, 2-1 MAC) will be at Ohio (5-2, 3-0 MAC) Saturday.
The Golden Flashes are 2-1 in MAC play for just the third time in this decade.
- Eastern Michigan (0-6, 0-3 MAC) hosts Ball State (0-7, 0-3)
- KSU junior linebacker Dorian Woods had a game-high and career-high 13 tackles.
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