Football Travels to Ohio for MAC Game on Oct. 18

October 13 | Football

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Pregame Coverage:
Akron Game Notes in PDF Format
Terry Bowden – Weekly Press Conference Video
Terry Bowden – MAC Weekly Media Teleconference Audio
MAC Weekly – Oct. 13

Gameday Coverage:
Listen to Free Audio Stream (TuneIn.com)
Watch on ESPN3 / WatchESPN
Follow Free Live Statistics

Game 7: Akron (4-2, 2-0) at Ohio (3-4, 1-2)
Saturday, Oct. 18
Peden Stadium (24,000)
Athens, Ohio
2 p.m.

THIS WEEK
Akron hits the road for back-to-back Mid-American Conference games. The Zips' first stop is Ohio on Saturday, Oct. 18 at 2 p.m. at Peden Stadium.

ESPN3 will broadcast the game live online with Jim Barbar calling the action and John Gregory providing color commentary.

The Zips' radio broadcast will air on the Akron-IMG Sports Network [SportsRadio 1350 AM (WARF) in Akron (flagship), 1420 WHK in Cleveland, 1440 WHKZ in Warren/Youngstown] with Steve French calling the action, Brad Detwiler providing analysis, and Joe Dunn with sideline reports. The pregame show starts at 1 p.m. ET. A free audio stream is available at GoZips.com/TuneIn.

Under the guidance of third-year head coach Terry Bowden, the Zips stand 4-2 overall and 2-0 in MAC play after a 29-19 win over Miami (Ohio) on Oct. 11. The 2014 Akron squad returns 48 lettermen, including 14 starters. The Zips utilize a spread offense and a 4-3 defense.

After six games, junior RB Conor Hundley (Hamilton, Ohio) is the Zips' leading rusher with 316 yards and a touchdown on 49 carries. Under center, junior QB Kyle Pohl (Farmersville, Ohio) is 119-of-210 for 1,289 yards and seven touchdowns. Redshirt freshman QB Tommy Woodson (Monroeville, Pa.) is 28-of-53 for 305 yards and two touchdowns in five appearances. Junior WR Zach D'Orazio (Avon Lake, Ohio) is the top receiver with 30 catches for 333 yards. Defensively, junior LB Jatavis Brown (Belle Glade, Fla.) is the team leader with 50 tackles, including a team-best 35 solo stops, 7.5 TFL, 4.0 sacks, and a forced fumble.

In this week's national rankings, Akron is ranked among the nation's Top 20, including No. 8 in red zone defense (0.667), No. 10 in scoring defense (17.3), No. 10 in sacks (3.50), and No. 12 in turnover margin (1.17). Individually, senior LB C.J. Mizell (Tallahassee, Fla.) is No. 8 in fumbles recovered (2), and junior P Zach Paul (Broadview Heights, Ohio) is No. 12 in punting (45.6).

Ohio, under the tutelage of 10th-year head coach Frank Solich, stands 3-4 overall and 1-2 in MAC play after a 31-13 loss to Bowling Green on Oct. 11. The Bobcats return 15 starters to their multiple offense and 4-3 defense.

After seven games, freshman RB A.J. Ouellette is the Bobcats' top rusher with 333 yards and four touchdowns on 65 carries. Redshirt sophomore QB J.D. Sprague is 74-of-151 for 910 yards and a touchdown, while redshirt junior Derrius Vick is 40-of-65 for 530 yards and four touchdowns. Sophomore WR Sebastian Smith has 242 yards and two touchdowns on 21 receptions. Defensively, redshirt freshman LB Quentin Poling leads the Bobcats with 53 tackles, 4.5 TFL, three sacks, and three interceptions.

In the NCAA stats, Ohio is ranked No. 19 in punting (40.43), No. 25 in kickoff returns (23.90), and No. 26 in punt returns (11.71). Junior RB Daz'Mond Patterson is No. 8 in kick returns (463) and No. 20 in kickoff returns (25.7).

AKRON-OHIO CONNECTIONS
Akron associate head coach and defensive coordinator Chuck Amato was the head coach at N.C. State from 2000-06 when Ohio's wide receivers coach Dwayne Dixon served as the Wolfpack's receivers coach from 2005-06.

Junior CB Bryce Cheek's (Lewis Center, Ohio) father Paul Cheek played football and ran track at Ohio.

AKRON-OHIO: THE SERIES
Saturday's game is the 31st meeting between Akron and Ohio in series history, which began in 1912. The Bobcats lead, 17-12-1.

In the teams' last meeting on Oct. 5, 2013, Akron took an early lead on a 31-yard field goal in the first quarter, but the Zips were ultimately unable to find the holes in Ohio's defense in a 43-3 loss on a rainy Saturday afternoon at InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field.

UA was held to just 157 yards of total offense for the game, 56 of which came on the ground. QB Kyle Pohl threw 11 completions for 101 yards, finding both Imani Davis and Jerrod Dillard twice for a combined 41 yards.

Jatavis Brown and Malachi Freeman were bright spots for the Akron defense. Brown tied a game-high seven total tackles, including five solo efforts, and Freeman added five solo tackles of his own to go with one interception and two pass breakups.

Akron went down 2-0 after fumbling its first punt return of the day. Recovered by Mykel Traylor-Bennett, he was brought down in the endzone for a safety less than three minutes into the game.

The defense forced Ohio into a three-and-out on the ensuing possession and marched down the field for a drive that ended in Robert Stein's field goal at the 7:17 mark of the first quarter.

SERIES INFORMATION
Akron all-time vs. Ohio: 12-17-1
Akron in games at Akron: 9-5-1
Akron in games at Ohio: 3-12
Akron in games at a neutral site: 0-0
First meeting in series:1912, at UA, W, 27-0
Last meeting in series:2013, at InfoCision Stadium, L, 43-3

LAST GAME: AKRON 29, MIAMI 19
Akron football team found the end zone twice in the second half while posting nine sacks on defense to down the Miami RedHawks, 29-19, on Oct. 11 at InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field.

The win improved the Zips to 4-2 on the season and 2-0 in the Mid-American Conference. UA has won five-straight league games dating back to last season. The victory marked No. 150 in head coach Terry Bowden's career.

Akron was outgained by Miami, 412-318, but forced three turnovers and sacked RedHawk QB Andrew Hendrix nine times. Miami (1-6, 1-2 MAC) recorded just two sacks.

The Miami offense recorded 352 passing yards, paced by Hendrix who connected on 24-for-41 through the air. The Zips were held to just 167 in the air, however, key defensive plays helped Akron stop the RedHawk offense.

After connecting on 13-of-22 in the air for 103 yards, junior QB Kyle Pohl left late in the first half following a sack. Freshman Tommy Woodson took over as the signal caller and went 7-for-14 for 64 yards passing.

Senior RB Jawon Chisholm led the Zips offense on the ground with 102 yards rushing for two touchdowns, followed by RB Conor Hundley with 64 yards rushing and three receptions totaling 15 yards.

Senior LB Justin March recorded eight total tackles, six unassisted while junior LB Jatavis Brown posted six tackles, four solo.

MAC OPENERS
With their 31-6 win over Eastern Michigan, the Zips snapped a six-game losing streak in Mid-American Conference openers. Their last win in a conference opener was a 27-20 victory over Kent State on Sept. 15, 2007.

Since joining the MAC in 1992, Akron stands 7-16 overall in conference openers.

TOP OF THE MAC
The Zips are atop the MAC East standings, and they also lead all conference schools in several statistical categories: scoring defense (17.3), sacks (21), turnover margin (+1.7), and red zone defense (.667).

BOWDEN EARNS 150th CAREER WIN
With a 29-19 win over Miami (Ohio), the Zips gave head coach Terry Bowden the 150th victory in his career. In his 21 season overall, he stands 150-82-2.

ZIPS QUICK HITS
• Six of Akron's 2014 opponents—Marshall (Military), Pittsburgh (Little Caesars Pizza), Ohio (Beef 'O' Brady's), Ball State (GoDaddy), Bowling Green (Little Caesars Pizza), and Buffalo (Famous Idaho Potato)— participated in bowls in 2013.

• This is Akron's sixth season playing on-campus in InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field. The Zips have a 11-22 record at the venue (3-1 in 2014). The stadium opened in 2009.

• Only one Zips' alum is playing in the NFL this season. LB Chase Blackburn (2001-04) is in his 10th season in the pros and second season with the Carolina Panthers.

• The Akron defense has had at least one sack in every game this fall. The Zips finished with nine sacks in the win over Miami (Ohio) on Oct. 11, the most since they had nine at UCF (Oct. 16, 2004).

UP NEXT
Akron continues its two-game MAC road trip with a stop at Ball State on Oct. 25.