Sept. 20, 2008
EVANSTON, Ill. - Junior safety Steven Jackson matched his career high with 12 tackles and the Ohio University football team intercepted four passes on Saturday afternoon, but the Bobcats were unable to overcome Northwestern in a 16-8 defensive struggle at Ryan Field.
Ohio (0-4, 0-1 Mid-American Conference) allowed NU to gain just 280 yards of total offense on the day, marking the third time in four games this season that the Bobcats have limited their opponents to fewer than 300 total yards. The Green & White picked off Wildcat quarterback C.J. Bacher four times and hurried him on seven occasions, forcing him to complete just 18-of-35 passes for 133 yards.
Senior safety Michael Mitchell (Ft. Thomas, Ky.) sparked Ohio to its highest interception total since stealing five passes against Wyoming in the 2007 season opener with a career high-tying two picks, while Jackson (Austin, Texas) had one early in the third quarter and freshman safety Travis Carrie (Antioch, Calif.), who made his first-career start on Saturday, snagged one midway through the same period.
Ohio also forced three fumbles on the day, as Jackson, junior cornerback Idris Lawrence (Columbus, Ohio) and sophomore linebacker Stafford Gatling (Burlington, N.C.) each jarred the ball loose once. Junior cornerback Thad Turner (Marietta, Ga.) came up with the Bobcats' lone fumble recovery of the day when Northwestern muffed a punt at its own 28-yard line.
Jackson was the Bobcats' top tackler on the afternoon with a dozen stops to match the career high he set against Miami on Nov. 12, 2007, while Carrie piled up 11 tackles, nine of the solo variety, in the most significant playing time of his young career. Junior linebacker Lee Renfro (Burnside, Ky.) also had nine stops, as seven Ohio players registered at least seven tackles on the day.
"Our defense played well in the second half to force the turnovers we needed," Ohio head coach Frank Solich said. "We pride ourselves on taking opponents' passing games away, and they started to do that today. The second half was two great quarters for the defense, and we weren't able to capitalize on the turnovers they created."
Junior quarterback Boo Jackson (Gardena, Calif.) guided the Ohio offense to 232 total yards on Saturday afternoon, completing 27-of-42 passes for 228 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions. Jackson's 27 completions and 42 attempts were both career highs, and both figures marked the seventh-highest single-game totals in school history.
Jackson completed passes to seven different receivers on the day, but his favorite target was sophomore wide receiver LaVon Brazill (Latana, Fla.), who pulled in nine balls for 79 yards, both career highs. Senior tight end Andrew Mooney (Lubbock, Texas) had five grabs for 40 yards and a score, while redshirt freshman running back Donte Harden (Erie, Pa.) was also a popular option out of the backfield as he finished with a career-high four catches for 41 yards.
Harden led the way for Ohio on the ground with 19 yards on nine carries, but Ohio was held to just four rushing yards in the contest to mark its lowest output since finishing with -6 yards against Rutgers on Sept. 16, 2006.
Northwestern got on the board first with a 33-yard field goal at the 7:56 mark of the first quarter, and were marching again before Mitchell brought NU's second drive to a halt with his first interception of the season. After an Ohio punt, the Wildcats tacked on another field goal, this one of the 46-yard variety, to edge out to a 6-0 lead with 1:08 left in the opening frame.
The Bobcats took the ball deep in their own territory near the end of the first period and proceeded to head down the field, using a career-long 36-yard catch and run by Brazill to work its way onto the Northwestern end of the field. The drive came to a halt when NU's Brad Phillips intercepted Jackson on an attempt into the end zone.
After the teams traded punts, Northwestern was the benefactor of a Jackson fumble deep in Ohio territory, taking over at the 10-yard line after Corey Wootton pounced on the loose ball. The Bobcat defense was up to the task, however, and forced NU to settle for a 24-yard field goal to push the margin to 9-0 with 5:33 remaining in the first half.
Northwestern regained possession at its own 48-yard line with just under two minutes on the clock and embarked on an eight-play drive that saw Omar Conteh put the game's first touchdown on the board from a yard out, giving NU a 16-0 lead at the break.
Jackson got Ohio off to a great start in the third quarter with his second interception of the year, corralling a deflected ball at the NU 43 to give the Bobcats tremendous field position early in the second half. An 18 yard pass from Jackson to Brazill moved the Green & White down to the opponent 12-yard line before the drive stalled and senior kicker Barrett Way (Richmond, Va.) saw a 27-yard field goal attempt blocked by the Wildcats.
After Northwestern intercepted another pass to take possession in Ohio territory, Carrie returned the favor for the Bobcats with a pick that he returned six yards to his own 25-yard line with 8:16 left in the third quarter.
The game's flow stalled until around the four-minute mark of the third quarter, when Ohio took over on its own 48 following a 22-yard return of a Northwestern punt by Brazill. Keyed by a 38-yard catch and run by Harden, the Bobcats ripped off a five-play, 52-yard drive that was capped when Jackson found Mooney on a 12-yard scoring strike to get the Green & White on the board. Ohio kept its offense on the field for a two-point conversion, and Jackson connected with Brazill in the back of the end zone to make the score 16-8 and cut NU's lead in half.
Mooney's touchdown reception was the 11th of his Ohio career, tying him with two others for third place on Ohio's all-time chart.
The Bobcats got the ball back just minutes later when Northwestern's Eric Peterman muffed a punt at his own 28-yard line and Turner jumped on the loose ball to give Ohio its best field position of the afternoon. The Bobcats weren't able to put points on the board, however, when NU managed to block its second field goal of the game, this time a 38-yard try by Way.
Mitchell gave Ohio another spark with less than 10 minutes left in regulation, picking off his second pass - and the Bobcats' fourth - of the day to give the Green & White the ball at the home team's 36-yard line. Faced with third and two deep in NU territory, Harden earned a tough first down on the second effort of a run into the middle of the field, but the Wildcat defense tightened up and yielded only three yards on Ohio's next three plays to deal Ohio a fourth-and-seven situation. The Bobcats were able to move the chains when Jackson connected with redshirt freshman wide receiver Riley Dunlop (Liberty Township, Ohio) for a 10-yard strike that placed the ball at the Wildcats' 13-yard marker. Following a penalty on Ohio, Brazill snagged his ninth reception of the game, but had the ball jarred loose by NU linebacker Malcolm Arrington, and defensive tackle John Gill pounced on the ball at his own 17 to secure possession for the Wildcats.
The Bobcats got the ball back deep in their own territory with less than a minute left and no timeouts remaining, but were unable to maneuver down the field in time to get the equalizing score.
"Football is all about how you prepare," Solich said. "Everyone wants to win, and it's easy to play when things are going your way. You find out about what kind of team and what kind of people you have when things aren't going your way. We'll keep battling to get things turned around, and I think we'll be ready for the game next week."
Ohio will welcome VMI to Peden Stadium next Saturday in a Homecoming clash slated to kick off at 2 p.m. ET. Russ Eisenstein, the Voice of the Bobcats, and color analyst Rob Cornelius will hit the air at 1 p.m. for the pre-game show on the Citizens Bank Ohio ISP Sports Network.
