The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Marshall
Zips Claim First Road Win at Marshall, 65-38
September 17 | Football
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HUNTINGTON, W.Va.– The Akron Zips out-scored the Marshall Thundering Herd 34-0 to end the first half en route to a 65-38 victory at Joan C. Edwards Stadium on Saturday.
In the win, Akron (2-1 overall) scored the second most points Zips' program history (65 points). The 65 points were also the most scored by a Marshall opponent in regulation at the stadium.
Akron scored on all sides of the ball, finishing with four passing, two rushing, two defensive, and one special teams touchdown while adding a field goal. Akron posted 26 first downs en route to 524 total yards of offense, including 379 yards in the air and 145 yards on the ground.
Junior QB Thomas Woodson (Monroeville, Pa.) connected on 21-of-32 passes for 379 yards with four touchdowns and a long of 43 yards. On the receiving end, senior WR JoJo Natson, Jr. (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) was targeted seven times for 134 yards and a touchdown, while junior WR Jerome Lane had seven touches for 115 yards. On the ground, junior RB Manny Morgan (Naples, Fla.) had 130 yards on 18 carries in his first start.
Defensively, the Zips had 11 tackles for 38 yards of total loss, including three sacks for 17 yards.
The Zips wasted no time getting into the endzone, opening the game with a five-play, 80-yard scoring drive. The aerial attack lasted 1:13 and was sparked by a 43-yard gain by Natson. Woodson followed with a 25-yard pass to Lane before finding junior TE Mykel Traylor-Bennett (Columbus, Ohio) for an eight-yard touchdown pass, his first touchdown of the season.
The Zips continued to attack during their second possession, starting the drive from their own 25-yard line. Again, Woodson found Natson for a 17-yard gain and Lane for a 22-yard pickup before a Marshall defender interrupted Lane's next reception, causing a fumble at the Marshall 25-yard line.
After the fumble the momentum shifted as Marshall scored 21-unanswered points. The first scoring drive was immediately following the turnover as Marshall's Chase Litton orchestrated a nine-play, 75-yard scoring drive, ending with a touchdown pass to Michael Clark to tie the game 7-7 with 8:18 remaining in the first quarter.
The Thundering Herd defense forced Akron to punt and blocked the kick attempt, regaining the ball on Akron's 33-yard line. Litton needed five plays to push the ball across the goal line, finding Deon-Tay McManus for an 18-yard TD pass.
The Thundering Herd continued to ride the momentum generated from the fumble by stopping the Zips after three plays, and opening their next scoring drive with a 23-yard pass play. With 46 seconds left in the first quarter, the Herd completed a 21-yard pass to the endzone to Josh Knight for the third touchdown of the quarter and a 21-7 advantage.
The Zips ended the first quarter with the ball, facing a second and nine on the Akron 38-yard line. Marshall pushed the Zips back three yards and stopped the third down attempt, forcing the Zips to punt.
After Marshall converted a third–and-10 with an 11-yard pass, Akron's junior DE Deon'Tae Moore (Akron, Ohio) blasted the Marshall quarterback, forcing a fumble. Senior DE Daumantas Venckus (Weston, Fla.) picked up the loose ball, taking the turnover 35-yards for Akron's second touchdown of the day, 21-14.
Again the Zips defense held their ground forcing Marshall to punt as Akron received the punt with a 15-yard penalty to start on the Akron 37-yard line. With the shift in momentum, Akron began to move the ball as Woodson targeted Lane for back-to-back 15-yard gains. On the ensuing play, Woodson found Natson on the far sideline for a 35-yard touchdown pass to tie the game 21-21 with 9:07 left in the half.
Zips held the Marshall defense in check again, forcing the Thundering Herd to punt when UA junior S Zach Guiser (Fayette City, Pa.) busted through the offensive line and blocked the punt. Sophomore LB Ulysees Gilbert III (Ocala, Fla.) grabbed the ball off the turf and returned it to the house as Akron regained a 27-21 advantage with 7:45 left in the half.
The Zips defense came through again, as Litton's pass was deflected and landed into the hands of Guiser for his first interception of the season and third career takeaway.
After the interception, the Zips used two long strikes for 64 yards to extend the lead to 34-21 with 5:02 remaining. First, Woodson found Austin Wolf for a 34-yard gain and threw a second strike to sophomore WR Kwadarrius Smith (Orlando, Fla.) for a 30-yard touchdown.
With 41 seconds left in the half, UA's sophomore CB Kyron Brown (Boynton, Beach, Fla.) recorded his first-career interception, taking into the redzone before being knocked out of bounds, while a 15-yard penalty placed the ball on the Marshall 11-yard line. Junior quarterback Tra'Von Chapman (Cincinnati, Ohio) entered the game behind center, and rushed the ball three straight times for 11 yards and a touchdown for a 20-point halftime lead, 41-21.
After the break, Marshall opened with an 11-play, 80-yard scoring drive that lasted 5:58 to cut the Akron lead to 13-points, 41-28. The Zips responded with a touchdown of their own, as Woodson led the troops down the field with seven plays for 75 yards, targeting Wolf in the endzone for his second touchdown of the season.
After the Akron defense stalled an 11-play, 48-yard Marshall drive, forcing a 29-yard field goal. The Zips ran out the third quarter, holding onto a 48-31 advantage.
In the final frame, Woodson needed only a minute to complete a nine-play, 75-yard drive, scoring at the 14-minute mark. He started the fourth quarter by hitting Wolf in the middle of the field for a 27-yard gain and added the points with a three-yard rush for a 55-31 Zips' lead.
The Zips continued to put the ball on the ground as Morgan rushed for 89 yards on six carries, including a 61-yard gain. Sophomore PK Tom O'Leary (Tucker, Ga.) ended the drive with a 26-yard field goal, 58-31.
Marshall added a late touchdown as Litton found Josh Knight for a 25-yard score. However, the Zips responded with final points of the game after junior LB DeMarcus Lloyd (Vienna, Ga.) returned a interception to give Akron the 65-38 victory. The 65 points scored were the most by a Marshall opponent in regulation at Joan C. Edwards Stadium.
The Zips return to InfoCision Stadium – Summa Field to battle Appalachian State on Saturday, Sept. 24, at 3:30 p.m. The game will be televised on the American Sports Network (ASN) and ESPN3.
ZipsFest, presented by Summa Health, opens at 1:30 p.m. in the Stile Athletics Field House. Stadium gates open at 2:30 p.m., and the first 5,000 fans in attendance will receive an Akron Zips rain poncho.
