KENT, Ohio ? Ohio forced Kent State into five turnovers and limited the Golden Flashes to just 187 yards of total offense in a 50-0 pasting Saturday afternoon at Dix Stadium. The shutout was the first since the 1997 season and improved the Bobcats to 3-5 overall and 3-1 in the Mid-American Conference.

Ohio has now scored 50 or more points in consecutive games for the first time since 1920. The Bobcats defeated Eastern Michigan 55-27 last weekend in Athens.

?We built this game up right after the Eastern Michigan game,? said Ohio head coach Brian Knorr. ?We knew how big it would be. What this game does is it presents us with a great opportunity. We get a week off and then every game from here out becomes The Game.?

The Bobcats gained 351 yards, all on the ground, behind four players who rushed for over 60 yards. Quarterback Fred Ray led the charge with 68 yards on 12 carries and two touchdowns. Stafford Owens, a sophomore from Harvey, Ill., gained 66 yards on eight attempts, also with two scores. Backup quarterback Adam Porter made a strong showing on five carries totaling 65 yards. And senior running back Chad Brinker grounded out 60 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

Ohio also received rushing contributions from Brad Young (30 yards), Justin Roush (20 yards), Jason Caesar (19 yards), Keith Warren (12-yard touchdown run) and Anthony Hackett, a freshman receiver who scored on a reverse from seven yards out.

The Bobcats dominated early, using a Rob Stover interception on a first-quarter drive by the Golden Flashes (2-5, 0-4) to set up a one-yard touchdown dive by Ray. After another score by Ray and an Owens touchdown in the second quarter, Ohio took a 20-0 lead into halftime at Dix Stadium.

The Bobcats? defense continued to shine throughout the game with four interceptions, three by Kent State?s heralded sophomore quarterback Joshua Cribbs. The result of each pick was a touchdown by Ohio?s offense.

?Our defense is a young group and they just keep getting better and better,? said Knorr. ?They made some big plays ? big interceptions ? and gave our offense tremendous field position.?

The Bobcats will enjoy an off-week before traveling to Oxford for a showdown with Miami (5-3, 3-1) on Nov. 2.

?Confidence is something we haven?t had in a while and after these back-to-back games, I think we?re going to have a little confidence,? said Knorr. ?The off-week couldn?t have come at a better time. You hate to slow this momentum down but we?ve got a lot of guys who are banged up that need to get back. We left a lot of guys back in Athens and I am very proud of the kids who came up here today and played their tails off.?