By Michelle Richardson
OHIO GAME NOTES
https://ohiobobcats.com/documents/2024/11/17/11.20.24_vs_Toledo.pdf
TOLEDO GAME NOTES
https://utrockets.com/documents/2024/11/17/11_-_Toledo_Football_Game_Notes_-_Ohio_Game.pdf
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ATHENS, Ohio – The Ohio football team (7-3, 5-1 MAC) is set to continue midweek MACtion when they hit the road to take on the Toledo Rockets (7-3, 4-2 MAC) on Wednesday, Nov. 20. Kickoff is set for 7 p.m. ET and can be seen on ESPN2 with Clay Matvick and Steve Addazio on the call.
The Bobcats’ matchup can also be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield, presented by Holzer Health System. Veteran Ohio radio personality Marty Bannister is stepping into the 2024 play-by-play role and will be joined by Rob Cornelius, who has been a part of the broadcasts for two decades.
SERIES HISTORY VS. TOLEDO
The Bobcats and the Rockets have met 55 times since 1925, posting a 21-33-1 record.
They last faced off in Detroit, Mich. In the 2022 MAC Football Championship. Ohio fell, 17-7.
SCOUTING TOLEDO
The Rockets are currently 5-4 overall and 2-3 against MAC opponents. On Nov. 12, they took down Central Michigan, 37-10. Toledo sustained two conference losses in October, falling to Buffalo (Oct. 12) and Bowling Green (41-26).
As a team, Toledo averages 29.90 points per game on 122.9 rushing yards and 294.20 passing yards. Their opponents average 21.10 points per game.
Junior quarterback Tucker Gleason is 167-for-274 on 2,032 yards over nine games, throwing 19 passing touchdowns and seven interceptions. Gleason isn’t afraid to use his legs, recording 69 carries and six rushing touchdowns so far this season.
Senior running back Delbert Mimms III leads Eastern Michigan on the ground currently with 138 attempts and seven touchdowns on 558 yards. Junior running back Elijah Jackson-Anderson has accumulated 218 rushing yards, scoring twice, while sophomore running back Deion Brown has scored one touchdown on 21 carries and 101 yards. Sophomore quarterback John Alan Richter has made appearances in four games, going 38-for-58 and recording four touchdowns on 460 yards through the air.
Senior wide receiver Jerjuan Newton leads the Rockets’ receivers with 823 yards and 10 touchdowns on 52 catches. Senior tight end Anthony Torres trails with six touchdowns on the season, while junior wide receiver Junior Vandeross III has scored four times on 58 catches and 653 yards in the air.
Defensively, senior safety Maxen Hook has a team-best 87 tackles, including 52 solo stops and one tackle for loss. Additionally, Maxen has recorded four pass break-ups, one interception, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery on the season. Senior linebacker Daniel Bolden trails with 75 total tackles, with junior safety Emmanuel NcNeil-Warren trailing with 61 tackles on the season. Senior linebacker Jackson Barrow leads the Rockets in tackles for loss (8) while junior defensive end Anthony Dunn Jr. leads in sacks (4). Sophomore safety Braden Awls is responsible for three of Toledo’s nine picks; junior defensive back Nasir Bowers and junior cornerback Avery Smith are credited with two interceptions apiece.
Freshman placekicker/punter Dyan Cunanan is the Rockets’ leading scorer and is credited with 72 points. Currently, Cunanan is 33-for-33 on PATs and 13-for-16 on field goals, with his longest hitting 54 yards. Senior placekicker Michael Denning is responsible for 48 of Toledo’s 57 kickoffs, accumulating 2,942 yards. Punter Emilio Duran’s longest punt of the season clocks in at 70 yards, recording 45 punts on 1,851 total yards.
LAST TIME OUT
The Ohio football team took down Eastern Michigan 35-10 Wednesday evening (Nov. 13) at Frank Solich Field at Peden Stadium.
Graduate student quarterback Parker Navarro had a career night, tying the school record for most rushing touchdowns in a game (4), marking the fourth quarterback in program history to hit this benchmark. Additionally, Navarro set a personal record for single-game passing yards (277).
The first quarter started slow for both teams, as neither could convert on third down. However, it was a testament to the defensive approach of both teams. Eastern Michigan finished the first quarter 1-for-5 on third down and Ohio 2-for-5.
Ohio had the first chance to score on a field goal attempt toward the end of the first quarter. Sophomore kicker Gianni Spetic lined up a for a 31-yard boot, but the kick was blocked by Joey Zelinsky.
Eastern Michigan nabbed the first touchdown of the game on the first drive of the second quarter. Quarterback Cole Snyder tossed an 18-yard pass to Delbert Mimms III to put Eastern Michigan ahead. It didn’t take Ohio long to catch up, though. Navarro made quick ground with three straight passes greater than 20 yards to put Ohio into the red zone. Navarro then ran home 14 yards to tie the game at seven even.
Two drives later, the Eagles threatened to take their lead back. That was until graduate student defensive end Ben McNaboe picked off Snyder’s pass to Terry Lockett.
McNaboe wasn’t the only Bobcat to snag an interception Wednesday night. Senior cornerback Tank Pearson took away back-to-back drives from the Eagles in the third quarter for his second and third interceptions of the season. Pearson almost had another interception in the fourth quarter on a touchdown pass he broke up.
Eastern Michigan succeeded on a 29-yard field goal attempt after the play, but at that point, Ohio had built a steady lead. Graduate student running back Anthony Tyus III and Navarro both recorded a touchdown in the third quarter. Tyus finished the game with 32 yards on 12 carries.
Navarro sealed the deal with his third and fourth touchdowns by foot in the last half of the fourth quarter. In the air, he ended the night 22-for-32 for 277 yards with one interception. On the ground, Navarro covered 106 yards on 13 carries.
The Bobcats didn’t record a passing touchdown, but graduate student wide receiver Coleman Owen recorded his second-highest yardage of the season. He totaled 139 yards on eight receptions.
SCOUTING OHIO
The Bobcats are currently 7-3 overall and 5-1 against MAC opponents. They average 27.60 points per game on 201.8 rushing yards and 187.10 passing yards per game.
In the air, graduate student quarterback Parker Navarro is 138-for-210 on 1,636 yards with seven touchdowns. Navarro is also a threat on the ground, recording 103 carries for 662 yards and nine touchdowns. Notably, Navarro broke his single-game rushing yards record against CMU (176) and is the fourth quarterback in program history to score four rushing touchdowns in a game (Nov. 13 vs. .EMU). Redshirt junior Nick Poulos made his Bobcat debut against Morgan State (Sept. 14) and his first start against Kentucky (Sept. 21). He is currently 20-for-45 with one interception on 235 yards in the air while recording 134 rushing yards on 25 attempts.
Graduate student running back Anthony Tyus III solidified himself as a force to be reckoned with, finishing the game against Syracuse with 203 rushing yards, marking the first time since 2021 a Bobcat passed the 200-rushing-yards-mark in a single game. On the season, Tyus has 138 carries on a team-leading 726 yards and eight touchdowns (seven rushing, one receiving). Redshirt freshman running back Rickey Hunt Jr. has made appearances in nine games for the Bobcats, recording 366 yards and two touchdowns on 65 attempts. Hunt owns the longest rush of the year (59 yards). Freshman running back Duncan Brune net 87 rushing yards on 26 carries so far this season, scoring his first collegiate touchdown against Central Michigan (Oct. 12).
Graduate student wide receiver Coleman Owen leads the team with 882 yards and five touchdowns on 56 catches. Additionally, Owen scored his first rushing touchdown as a Bobcat against Buffalo (Oct. 26). Chase Hendricks has accumulated 380 receiving yards and one receiving touchdown so far this season. Redshirt sophomore wide receiver Rodney Harris II, redshirt junior wide receiver Caleb Gossett and redshirt freshman tight end Mason Williams have also contributed. Running backs Rickey Hunt Jr. and Anthony Tyus III have made themselves known as dual threats; both have multiple receptions under their belt this season, and Tyus’s first touchdown against Morgan State (Sept. 14) was the result of a 19-yard pass from Navarro.
On the defensive side of the ball, graduate student safety Dustin Johnson leads the team with 59 tackles, including 38 solo stops and 1.5 tackles for loss. Graduate student linebacker Blake Leake trails Johnson with 53 tackles, three tackles for loss and one pass breakup. Redshirt junior linebacker Shay Taylor and graduate student defensive end Marcel Walker-Burgess are just behind with 50 and 47 tackles, respectively. Notably, both Walker-Burgess and Taylor added to the Bobcats’ nine interceptions on the season, with Taylor closing Ohio’s dominant victory against Buffalo (Oct. 26) with a pick-six. Senior cornerback Tank Pearson claims a team-best three interceptions, snagging two against Eastern Michigan (Nov. 13). Graduate student defensive end Bradley Weaver leads the defense in sacks (6) and tackles for loss (9).
Kicker Gianni Spetic is currently Ohio’s leading scorer, responsible for 60 total points. Currently, he is 10-for-13 on field goals and 30-for-30 on PATs. Additionally, Spetic has also accumulated 3,218 yards on 52 kickoffs. Punter Jack Wilson has 45 punts on the season for 1,878 total yards, with his longest clocking in at 56 yards.
To read this week’s complete notes, click here.
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