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| Friday, September 29 East division promises to be wild affair all season By Andy Spradling Special to ESPN.com | |||||
The battle for the Mid-American Conference East Division crown will have few cease-fires this season.
Case in point: Miami at Akron on Saturday. Akron (2-2 overall and 1-0 conference) is fresh of a 23-20 road win on Zac Derr's 18-yard game winning field goal over Ohio, while the RedHawks (3-1, 1-0) scored an easy win over Kent behind Cal Murray Jr.'s four first half touchdowns.
A big reason for Akron's success this season is 5-foot-11, 200-pound cornerback Dwight Smith, who picked off two Dontrell Jackson passes late in the game to help Akron hold off Ohio. Smith leads the nation with six interceptions in four games.
"He's had more opportunities this year," Akron coach Lee Owens said. "He has not been challenged as much in past. But we've always put him on the top receivers. He's had some great, athletic picks and he's continued to make great plays."
Ball State The Cardinals, who own the nation's longest losing streak at 20 games, host Northern Illinois after a bye week. Coach Bill Lynch is hoping for a fresh start after falling to nonconference foes Florida, Kansas State and Western Illinois. "We spent all week on our football team," Lynch said. "We have to do a better job at stopping the run (218.0), and better job running the football (98.7)." ... Fullback Tony DelAngel returns from injury as does linebacker Cornelius Bowick. Bowling Green Falcons (0-4, 0-1) travel to Kent State, after allowing Buffalo to end its 18-game losing streak at their expense. "Kent has always been a tough place to play," BG coach Gary Blackney said. "Our kids still feel good about themselves despite the record. They still have a lot of spirit." ... The Falcons are second in the MAC with a plus-eight turnover margin. "Our problem is we haven't been able to take advantage of the breaks our defense gives us," Blackney said. Buffalo The Bulls are in first place in the MAC. For now. Buffalo (1-3, 1-0) ended its 18-game losing streak with a 20-17 decision over Bowling Green, but the celebration will be short lived as the Bulls face a hungry Marshall squad in Huntington. ... The Bulls are third in the MAC in total defense, allowing 338.0 per game. Linebacker Duane Williams was the MAC defensive player of the week after making four sacks and forcing a fumble. ... Marquis Dwarte's 27-yard touchdown last Saturday gave the Bulls their first DI-A win in 30 years. "It was a culmination of things, mostly intangibles," coach Craig Cirbus said. "It's so difficult when we're playing well, don't come out on top. We ask them to hang in there and have faith." Central Michigan The Chippewas (1-3) open conference play when they travel to Toledo for a MAC West matchup after dropping a 47-10 decision to Boise State last Saturday. "We focused for 22 minutes," CMU coach Mike DeBord said. "They broke the game wide open, and we took a pretty good beating." ... Toledo, even though it's coming off a loss to Western Michigan, has DeBord worried. "They're a great team, with excellent talent and well-coached." Eastern Michigan Receiver Kenny Christian had 20 receptions for 198 yards against Temple, a MAC record and the fifth-best in NCAA history. He was named MAC offensive player of the week, although coach Jeff Woodruff was looking for more. "Unfortunately, he dropped three other balls that not only would have helped his stats, but would have gotten us on scoreboard in first quarter," he said. ... QB Walt Church was obviously successful as well, hitting 34-of-50 passes. "We're getting better. But we're a long way away from being a respectable program. That's the best game I've seen him play. He made some outstanding plays with guys hanging on him," Woodruff said. Kent State How bad was it against Miami last week? The Golden Flashes (0-4, 0-1) used not one, not two, not three, but four QBs in the loss to Miami. "They got after us from the onset," Kent coach Dean Pees said. "We made some team mistakes early. Against Miami you're going to pay, and we did." ... Kent is fourth in the MAC in rush defense (140.9) and has not allowed a fourth down conversion. "Our defensive front, I was happy until this week. We wore down mentally," Pees said. ... Chante Murphy rushed for 98 yards on 14 carries. Marshall With the Thundering Herd's 20-15 loss at North Carolina last Saturday, Marshall lost back-to-back games for the first time since 1992. ... Think Marshall won't be ready for it conference opener against Buffalo Saturday? Think again. "Our season starts Saturday," coach Bob Pruett said. "Because that's when we start our conference play. That's what gets you to the conference championship and to bowl games." ... Cornerback Maurice Hines will return Saturday after pulling a quadriceps muscle against UNC. Northern Illinois Justin McCareins has 21 receptions for 347 yards and one touchdown and his 115.7 yards per game to lead the MAC. ... Thomas Hammock's four rushing TDs gives him an 8.0 points-per-game average, fourth in the MAC. ... Safety Jermaine Hampton is third in the MAC with 12.5 tackles per game. Ohio Ohio dropped a heartbreaker to Akron, 23-20, but coach Jim Grobe isn't counting his team out of the division race. "Nobody knows what the future holds. There's going to be upsets and injuries. Our kids know we let one slip a way. We just have to be a better team against Western." ... Free safety Joe Sellers (ankle) and fullback Joe Sherrill (back) are questionable. ... Chad Brinker leads the MAC in kickoff returns with a 29.1 average. Toledo The Rockets (3-1, 0-1) host Central Michigan Saturday after falling in the much anticipated Western Michigan contest, 21-14. "Western played a great game," coach Gary Pinkel said. "They made the plays they needed to make, and played exceptionally well. I give them all the credit in the world." ... QB Taveras Bolden attempted 50 passes, hitting 23 for 188 yards. He was sacked four times, and threw a game-deciding interception. ... Chester Taylor, the MAC's leading rusher, gained 132 yards on 19 carries. Western Michigan Coach Gary Darnell said Western's win over Toledo could have gone either way. "I knew it was a game that would be a matter of a couple of plays," he said. "Fortunately we came away with a win." ... Don't count on Western Michigan to be flat after the big win over Toledo. Darnell knows his team will be ready. "Because it's Ohio it's not a concern, if a struggling team from the other division it might, which takes away from the week-to-week preparation," he said. ... Robert Sanford gained 93 yards on 22 carries and one TD, but it was the interception and score of nose tackle Marty Harig that grounded the Rockets. Andy Spradling covers Marshall University and the MAC for the Charleston Daily Mail | ALSO SEE Big Ten notebook Big 12 notebook Big West notebook Conference USA notebook WAC notebook | ||||
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