Falcons Fall at Akron

Saturday, December 5

Akron, Ohio

2:00 PM

Bowling Green State University

0-5 , 0-5

Akron

1-4 , 1-4-1

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Bowling Green

Akron

December 05, 2020 | Football

Box Score Help Us Sell Out the Doyt (Virtually) for Senior Day

BGSU hosts Miami to Close the Regular Season

By: AKRON, Ohio (BGSU Strategic Communications)

The University of Akron broke a tie score with a pair of second-quarter touchdowns, and the Zips went on to a 31-3 victory over the Bowling Green State University football team Saturday afternoon (Dec. 5). The Mid-American Conference game was held at InfoCision Stadium.

The Falcons actually had the advantage in total offense, gaining 295 yards to the Zips' 282. But, BG turned the ball over three times, while the hosts did not commit a turnover.

Leading by a touchdown, the Zips blocked a BG punt and returned it for a score late in the first half to double the lead.

Help Us Sell Out the Doyt (Virtually) for Senior Day

Teon Dollard accounted for roughly two-thirds of the Zips' offensive output, rushing for 185 yards and a pair of scores.

For the Falcons, Terion Stewart ran for 91 yards on 14 carries, while Matt McDonald was 14-of-26 for 153 yards through the air. Quintin Morris caught six of those passes for a game-high 81 yards.

FIRST QUARTER
• The first two plays from scrimmage were Teon Dollard carries that picked up a total of 36 yards and moved Akron across midfield. But, back-to-back incompleted passes, with Caleb Biggers breaking up the second-down toss, were followed by a sack of UA quarterback Zach Gibson by Kholbe Coleman. UA was forced to kick the ball away.
• But, the punt was fumbled, with the Zips recovering at the BG 11-yard line. However, a two-yard loss on first down was followed by another loss on second down. Roland Walder forced a fumble that was recovered by the Zips. After losing eight yards in three plays, the hosts got on the board when Cory Smigel hit a 36-yard field goal.
• Bryson Denley's return of the ensuing kickoff gave the Falcons the ball at the 34-yard line to begin BG's first drive of the game. Matt McDonald and the BG offense converted a third-down play, as McDonald found Julian Ortega-Jones on a crossing pattern for a first down.
•Three plays later, McDonald hooked up with Tyrone Broden for another third-down conversion, with the play gaining 16 yards. BGSU would move inside the 10-yard line before a sack quelled the drive, and Nate Needham kicked a 23-yard field goal to tie the score with 2:12 left in the period.
• McDonald was 5-for-5 for 47 yards on BG's opening drive.
• On the next drive, a Gibson pass to Michael Mathison moved the Zips over midfield as the quarter came to a close.

SECOND QUARTER
• That Akron drive resulted in a touchdown, as Gibson found George Qualls on a 12-yard scoring toss with 11:54 left before the half.
• On the second play of the next drive, McDonald hit Quintin Morris down the middle for a 53-yard gain to the Akron 20. But, the drive stalled there, and a 37-yard field-goal attempt was just wide.
• A penalty on the Falcons gave the Zips a first down on the next drive, and UA then converted on a third-and-4 play to get the ball over the 50-yard line. After a seven-yard gain on first down, however, the Falcons held the Zips to just a yard over the next two plays. UA lined up to go for it on fourth down, but after a false start penalty, the hosts punted, and the ball was downed at the BGSU 1-yard line.
• The Falcons were forced to punt from the end zone, and that punt was blocked. It was picked up by Gavin Blunt and returned approximately six yards for a score, and Smigel's PAT gave Akron a 14-point lead.
• On Akron's next drive, in the waning seconds of the quarter, Karl Brooks sacked Gibson for a loss of 12 yards.

THIRD QUARTER
• As the snow began to fly, Denley returned the second-half kickoff to the BGSU 41-yard line. Rushes by McDonald and Andrew Clair gained eight and six yards, respectively. But, with McDonald momentarily forced to the sideline, a third-down pass by LaBronz Davis was intercepted. A.J. Watts returned the pick 44 yards to the BGSU 39.
• A Gibson pass to Tristan Brank put UA inside the Falcon 5-yard line and two plays later, Dollard's 9-yard run gave the Zips a three-score lead.
• Terion Stewart carried the ball on the first two plays of the next drive, toting the rock 54 yards to the Akron 19 on the second of those two plays. Clair carried for nine yards to the 10, then picked up the first down on the next play. But, as he crossed the 5-yard line, he was hit and fumbled, with the ZIps recovering.
• A pair of Dollard rushes got the Zips out of the shadow of their own goal line, but the Falcons forced a punt, and Kyle Romenick's boot went just 14 yards and out of bounds, putting the Falcons in business at the Akron 43.
• Stewart had a pair of rushes for a combined 12 yards on the next drive, and Denley took the ball 12 more yards on a third-and-10 sweep. But, after getting inside the 20, the drive was dealt a blow on a fumble that lost five yards, and BG wound up turning the ball over on downs.
• At that point, nearly 43 minutes into the game, the Falcons had a 246-198 advantage in total offense, but trailed in the statistical category that matters most.
• The Falcon defense responded by holding the Zips to a three-and-out, with UA facing a fourth down as the quarter came to an end.

FOURTH QUARTER
• Jake Rogers, a native of nearby Medina, returned the Akron punt 33 yards to the Zips' 35-yard line on the first play of the period. But, BG's drive was stymied by a three-yard loss on second down and a false start prior to the fourth-down play.
• The Zips extended the lead on the next drive, with Dollard rushing for a 50-yard TD that ultimately capped the scoring.

STATS / NOTES
• BGSU, as mentioned, had a 295-282 advantage in total offense on the afternoon. The Falcons ran 65 plays to Akron's 56.
•Time of possession was nearly even, with UA having the ball for 30:05 and BG for 29:55.
• The Falcons' lone first-quarter drive lasted 8:20. BGSU went 4-of-5 on third-down conversions on that drive, with Matt McDonald completing all five of his pass attempts for 47 yards.
• Both teams had 132 yards of total offense in the first half.
• On the day, the Falcons were 7-of-16 on third-down conversions.
• Defensively, Darren Anders and Kholbe Coleman had eight tackles apiece, while Jerry Roberts had seven.
• Karl Brooks had a pair of quarterback sacks for a total of 15 yards. Roland Walder had one sack and three total tackles for loss, also for a total of 15 yards.
• Bryson Denley had four kickoff returns for a total of 101 yards, with a long return of 36 yards.

FROM COACH LOEFFLER
"We know where we are at. It's going to be a remarkable offseason and we need it. We are going to get it fixed. It's going to take a little bit of time, but we will get it fixed. We had ample chances today, but we didn't get it done. One thing that we will be next year is a disciplined team."

UP NEXT
• The Falcons will host Miami next Saturday (Dec. 12), with kickoff set for 12:00 p.m. at Perry Stadium.