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Last Saturday, Kent State had every opportunity to defeat the Temple Owls and not only stay in the Mid-American Conference Eastern Division, but also enhance KSU’s football profile among students, faculty, and the community of Kent. The Golden Flashes forced two interceptions, recovered a fumble, blocked two punts (one recovered for a touchdown), and twice forced the Owls inside their five yard line. However, Temple was by far the better team as it left Dix Stadium with a 28-10 win that has KSU’s chances of a MAC East title on life support.
When he met the media for his weekly briefing, head coach Doug Martin was still smarting as he came in carrying a half sheet of white paper with some writing on it. “This is the exact same notes I had from our team meeting Sunday,” he said. “If you had told us before the Temple game we were going to block two punts and Temple was gonna turn the ball over three times, we would say we were gonna win that football game.”
KSU, however, missed some early opportunities and managed just 223 yards of offense.
It didn’t go so well on the other side of the ball, either. The previously staunch defense – one of the nation’s best in yards allowed – yielded 465 yards against Temple. That included 368 passing yards by Temple QB Mike Gerardi.
“Temple did not play that great a game.” Martin said. “We forced them into a lot of errors. The problem was we had three fumbles and had seven dropped passes, including two for touchdowns, which negates all the good work we did on the other side.”
Many fans are hoping that in the final two games, KSU can right the ship (posting a winning season for the first time since 2001) and become bowl eligible. In 2006, KSU used a five- game winning streak through the months of September and October to get into the Eastern Division race, only to lose four of their last five. Last season, a three-game skein in October raised hopes that they would be in the race with Temple and Ohio, but the Flashes dropped their final three contests.
Sophomore quarterback Spencer Keith left last week’s game in the fourth quarter with a hand injury which was diagnosed as a sprained right (throwing hand) thumb. X-Rays proved to be negative, but he was day-to-day through the week and should start on Saturday
The Flashes finish their three-game homestand Saturday afternoon as they welcome the Black Knights of the United States Military Academy (Army) to Dix Stadium for the very first time.
Like Kent State, Army has had a run of down years in football, but it looks like the Black Knights are turning the corner under second-year head coach Rich Ellerson. They come into the game with a 5-4 overall mark, needing one win in their final three games to become Bowl Eligible. The Cadets have not been in a bowl game since 1996.
Army, like the other service academies, runs the triple-option offense It is an offense that very few schools run, and will be a test for the Kent State defense Saturday.
The Kent State “D” is still number one against the run (69.3 ypg) in not only the MAC, but also in the FBS. Last Saturday against Temple, running back Bernard Pierce was held to just 84 yards, 36 of which come on one run in the third quarter.
This Saturday, the defense will face an Army rushing attack that is averaging 277.2 yards per game, eighth best in the FBS. Sophomore running back Jared Hassin leads the team in rushing with 783 yards and eight touchdowns. Hassin has gained over 100 yards in four consecutive games, tying a school record after gaining 114 yards in the Cadets 42-22 loss at home to Air Force.
Defensively, the Cadets allow 320 total yards per game and 24 points per contest. They also have had 12 sacks over their last four games, led by senior defensive end Josh McCrary who has 9 ½ so far this season and 27 ½ for his career – No. 1 on the all-time list at West Point. In addition, McCrary has 12 ½ tackles for losses so far this season.
KSU is the third MAC team Army faces in 2010. The Knights opened their campaign with a 31-27 win at Eastern Michigan before losing a shootout with Temple at West Point, 42-35. This will be just the second meeting between the Kent State and Army, with latter pulling out a 17-14 win at Michie Stadium in 2006. They will meet again in 2012 back at West Point.
Martin finished his weekly comments with a challenge to his players. “This is all on the players now. They can go out and get done what they want to get done,” he said. “They have a chance to be a 7-5 team and go to a bowl game with Army, Western Michigan, and Ohio coming up and … Their heart will be exposed.”
Kickoff Saturday is set for 2:00PM
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