ATHENS, Ohio -- The Ohio football team (1-4, 1-0 MAC) finally returns to Athens for a Homecoming matchup Saturday, Oct. 9 when the Bobcats host Mid-American Conference West foe Central Michigan (2-3, 0-1 MAC). Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. and can be seen on ESPN+ where Doug Sherman and Tyoka Jackson will have the call. 

The Bobcats' matchup can also be heard on the Ohio Sports Network from Learfield. Russ Eisenstein returns for his 14th season as the "Voice of the Bobcats" and will be joined by Ohio alum Rob Cornelius, who has been a part of the broadcasts for two decades.

SERIES HISTORY VS. CMU
This is the 34th all-time meeting between Ohio and CMU, with Central Michigan holding a 26-5-2 record against the Bobcats. 

Ohio and CMU last met in Athens in 2017, with CMU winning 26-23 inside Peden Stadium. 

Ohio last defeated CMU in 2011, when they Bobcats' left Mount Pleasant with the 43-28 win. 

Ohio last defeated CMU in Athens in 2000, with Ohio winning 52-3.  

LAST MATCHUP VS. CMU
The Bobcats and CMU last met on Nov. 4, 2020 in the season opener in Mount Pleasant, with Ohio falling, 30-27. 

De'Montre Tuggle finished the contest with a team-high 79 rushing yards on 16 attempts. His kickoff return for a touchdown to start the second half marked Ohio's first house call on a kickoff since DL Knock ran back the second-half kickoff 100 yards for a score in the 2018 season opener against Howard. Tuggle finished the contest with 160 kickoff return yards.

In his first career start, Kurtis Rourke completed 12 of his 19 pass attempts for 231 yards and two scoring strikes. He shared time under center with redshirt senior quarterback Armani Rogers, with the transfer from UNLV completing one pass for four yards and rushing for 32 yards on seven attempts.

Isiah Cox finished as the game's leading receiver with 102 yards on four receptions. The contest marked the third time in his career he went over the 100-yard receiving mark.

Defensively for Ohio, redshirt sophomore free safety Jamison Collier collected a team-high eight tackles, including seven solo stops. Redshirt sophomore Jeremiah Wood, redshirt senior defensive end Austin Conrad, and redshirt senior linebacker Jared Dorsa all added seven total tackles, with Wood leading the squad with 2.5 tackles for loss.

For Central Michigan, Richardson went 23-of-41 for 243 yards, with Pimpleton leading the Chippewas with five catches and 65 receiving yards. Lewis rushed for a game-high 112 yards on 28 carries. Central Michigan outgained Ohio, 427-345.

SCOUTING CENTRAL MICHIGAN
Central Michigan comes to Ohio with an overall record of 2-3 and a 0-1 mark in MAC play, after falling to Miami last weekend.

CMU averages 27.6 points per game, while allowing the same amount. They also average 154.2 rushing yards, 306.4 passing yards and 460.6 total yards per game. 

Meanwhile, the CMU defense allows 111.0 yards on the ground, 291.4 yards in the air and 402.4 total yards per game. 

Meanwhile, Daniel Richardson is 50-of-87 for 763 touchdowns and eight touchdowns, while Jacob Sirmon is 73-of-119 with six TDs. 

On the ground, Lew Nichols, III has rushed for 405 yards on 85 carries and two touchdowns. 

On the receiving end, Dallas Dixon had 410 yards on 28 completions and five touchdowns.   

LAST TIME OUT
Ohio football (1-4, 1-0) picked up their first win of the 2021 season Saturday afternoon (Oct. 2), defeating the Akron Zips (1-4, 0-1) by a score of 34-17 at InfoCision Stadium. The Bobcats leaned heavily on their rushing attack, spearheaded by running back De'Montre Tuggle and quarterback Armani Rodgers, to start conference play 1-0. Tuggle set a career high in rushing yards (201) on just 17 carries, good for an 11.8 yard/carry average while also adding a touchdown, while Rodgers put two scores on the board on the ground

The Bobcats finished with 458 total yards of offense, with the vast majority of those coming on the ground, as Ohio tallied 398 rushing yards. Those 398 yards came via 47 rushing attempts, a 8.5 yard per carry average.

SCOUTING OHIO
Ohio is 1-4 overall and 1-0 in the MAC after defeating Akron last Saturday. 

Overall, the Bobcats are averaging 16.6 points per game to go along with 345.0 total yards per game. 

De'Montre Tuggle leads the ground game with 399 yards, while averaging 79.8 yards per game with two touchdowns. O'Shaan Allison adds 256 yards on the ground. 

Quarterback Kurtis Rourke is 73-of-115 with 602 yards, five touchdowns and three interceptions. While, Tyler Walton leads the receivers with 19 catches for 196 yards and two touchdowns.

A GREAT WEEK FOR DE'MONTRE
Running back De'Montre Tuggle has a great week in the awards category. He was named the MAC East Offensive Player of the Week and Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award National Player of the Week Honorable Mention

Tuggle led Ohio offensively this weekend, helping the Bobcats open MAC play with a 34-17 victory at Akron - the first for first year head coach Tim Albin. Tuggle, a redshirt fifth year from Channelview, Texas, finished the game with a career-high 201 yards on 17 carries and one touchdown. Tuggle rushed for an average of 11.8 yards per carry and rattled off a 63-yard rush on the Bobcats' second drive of the game.

MAC EAST DEFENSIVE POW
Defensive end Will Evans was named the MAC East DPOW on Oct. 4. 

Evans led Ohio on the defensive end. The redshirt fifth year from Augusta, Ga., finished the game with six total tackles, all solo. He also finished the game with two sacks for 11 yards and two tackles for loss. Evans also registered one pass breakup and forced one fumble in the win.

MAC EAST SPECIAL TEAMS POW
Punter Jonah Wieland was named the Mid-American Conference East Special Teams Player of the Week on Sept. 20. 

The redshirt 5th year transfer led Ohio on special teams on Thursday (Sept. 16) at Louisiana. Wieland recorded four punts 165 yards for an average of 41.2 yards per punt, while recording a long punt of 46 yards, while placing two punts within the 20.

WIN #1 FOR ALBIN
First year head coach picked up his fist victory as the Bobcats' head coach on Oct. 2 in the 34-17 victory over Akron. 

MONSTER DAY FOR TUG
Running back De'Montre Tuggle registered a career day on the ground for the Bobcats against Akron. 

Tuggle ran for a career-high 201 yards on only 17 carries and scored one touchdown in the 35-17 victory. 

ROGERS FINDING HIS OWN
Quarterback Armani Rogers is finding his way into the Bobcat's offense. 

Against Akron, Rogers ran for 106 yards and two touchdowns. 

In the last two games, Rogers has rushed for 174 yards and three touchdowns. 

MILESTONES HIT
Redshirt fifth year wide receiver Cameron Odom surpassed 1,000 career receiving yards on Sept. 11 against Duquesne, catching a 60-yard pass in the first quarter to secure the milestone. Odom has played in 45 games at Ohio, collecting 78 receptions for 1,066 yards and five touchdowns.

Meanwhile, redshirt junior running back O'Shaan Allison also surpassed 1,000 career rushing yards on Sept. 11 against Duquesne.

WALTON COMES INTO HIS OWN
Tyler Walton has stepped for the Bobcats on the receiving end over the past three games. 

This season Walton has 19 catches for 196 yards and two touchdowns. 

HOUSTON WE HAVE A PROBLEM
Redshirt junior linebacker Bryce Houston has taken advantage of his first five career starts. 

Houston leads Ohio in total tackles with 40, while registering 19 assisted, 21 solo tackles, three tackles for loss, one sack and two quarterback hurries.  

ELAD STEPPING UP
Redshirt sophomore safety Jett Elad stepped up defensively against Duquesne, setting career marks in total tackles (11), solos (6) and assisted tackles (5). 

He also added one tackle for loss, two pass breakups and one quarterback hurry. 

On the season he now has 25 total tackles, one tackle for loss, three pass breakups and one quarterback hurry.  

ALVINNNNNNN
Redshirt senior Alvin Floyd is helping lead the Bobcats on the defensive end as well. Through five games he is tied for second on the team with 31 total tackles, 14 assisted and 17 solo. He also has one forced fumble and the Bobcats lone interception so far. 

MAN THE CANNONS
Redshirt sophomore linebacker Cannon Blauser has made the most out of moving into a starting role. On the season, Blauser has 31 tackles, 15 solo and 16 assisted - with four tackles for loss, two sacks, three quarterback hurries and one fumble recovery. 

On Sept. 25 at Northwestern, Blauser led Ohio with seven total tackles and six solo, with a tackle for loss, quarterback hurry and his first fumble recovery of the season. 

At Akron on Oct. 2, Blauser added two sacks. 

SACK MACHINES
On Oct. 4 at Akron, the Bobcats defense was able to get to the quarterback constantly, registering seven sacks for over 49 yards, while also recording eight tackles for loss for 50 yards. 

ALBIN TAKES OVER
Tim Albin enters his first season as head coach in 2021 after serving as Ohio's offensive coordinator for the past 16 years under Frank Solich. 

Albin joined the Ohio Football coaching staff as offensive coordinator in 2005, reuniting with Frank Solich after four seasons together at Nebraska. The 2021 season will mark Albin's 17th year in Athens. Since his arrival in Athens, Albin has produced offensive units that have consistently ranked among the top of the Mid-American Conference. He also has directed an offensive attack that has practically rewritten all of Ohio's rushing, passing records, and scoring records. In the past 10 seasons, Albin's offensive units rank No. 1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 on the Ohio all-time Top-10 single season scoring list. The Bobcats 368 points in 2018 rank fourth on the all-time list. 

Albin spent the 2004 season as offensive coordinator and running backs coach at North Dakota State, helping the Bison to an 8-3 record and No. 25 national ranking in their first season at the Division I-AA level. NDSU finished the season averaging 378.5 yards of total offense, including 192.4 on the ground, and had four offensive players named first-team All-Great West Football Conference. Albin served with Solich at Nebraska from 2000 to 2003. He started with the Cornhusker program as a graduate assistant, a position he held for three seasons before being promoted to running backs coach and passing game coordinator for the 2003 season. Prior to his stint at Nebraska, Albin was the head coach at Northwestern Oklahoma State for three seasons, winning the NAIA national championship in 1999 with a 13-0 record. He was named NAIA Football Coach of the Year by Rawlings and American Football Coach Magazine as the Rangers recorded their first undefeated season in history.

THE KING OF KICKOFFS
For the second time in three games dating back to 2020, redshirt fifth year running back De'Montre Tuggle returned a kickoff for a touchdown. 

The latest one game against Duquesne as he took the opening kick 86 yards to the house for his first touchdown of the season. 

He last kickoff return touchdown came last November against Bowling Green.  

CAREER DAY FOR BUCK
Redshirt junior wide receiver Jerome Buckner posted a career day for the Bobcats against Syracuse on Sept. 4. 

Buckner grabbed a career-high seven receptions for a career mark of 102 yards.

QBs vs. SYRACUSE
Starting quarterback Kurtis Rourke made his fourth career start on Saturday and his first against a Power 5 opponent. 

Rourke went 21-of-28 with 142 yards and an interceptions late in Ohio's 29-9 loss. 

Armani Rogers went 1-for-2 with a long pass of 32 yards. 

Meanwhile, wide receiver Cam Odom recorded his first career pass attempt and completion with a 38-yard toss to Rourke in the second quarter. 

BOBCATS FALL TO SYRACUSE
The Ohio football team kicked off their 2021 season on Saturday night (Sept. 4) in front of a near-capacity crowd, welcoming Syracuse into Peden Stadium. The Bobcats lost to the Orange, 29-9. Jerome Buckner led the offensive effort for the Bobcats en route to setting a career high in both receptions (7) and receiving yards (102) while on the defensive side of the ball, Ohio was led by safeties Alvin Floyd and Jarren Hampton who each recorded 10 total and four solo tackles.

DEFENSIVE LEADERS STEPPING UP
Redshirt fifth year Jarren Hampton and redshirt senior Alvin Floyd stepped up defensively for Ohio against the Orange. 

Both finished the game with 10 total tackles, with six assisted and four solo tackles. 

SO LONG TO A LEGEND
Long-time Ohio head coach Frank Solich stepped down as the Bobcats head coach on July 14 after leading Ohio for the last 16 years. 

Solich owns a career coaching record of 173-101. His 173 overall wins rank as the fourth most among active NCAA FBS head coaches. He is the winningest head coach in Mid-American Conference history with 115 overall victories while his 77 conference-only wins rank second to former Central Michigan head coach Herb Deromedi's 90. His 16 years of service match Deromedi's (1978-93) for the most in MAC history. Ohio is 115-82 during the Solich era. His 115 victories are the second-most in program history behind Don Peden (121; 1924-46). Ohio has gone 77-46 in conference play since Solich's arrival in Athens in 2005.

Ohio has had a run of 12-straight non-losing seasons that has included 11 winning campaigns and six years with at least nine victories -- including a 10-win campaign in 2011. The 2012 season began with the Bobcats earning a signature win at Penn State, upsetting the Nittany Lions by a score of 24-14. Ohio captured division titles in 2006, 2009, 2011 and 2016. Solich led the Bobcats to 11 of their 13 bowl appearances and the first five bowl victories in program history, with back-to-back wins in the 2011 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl and '12 Independence Bowl and back-to-back-to-back victories in the 2017 Bahamas Bowl, '18 DXL Frisco Bowl and '20 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (2019 season).

LAST TIME WE SAW THE BOBCATS IN 2020
The last time we saw the Bobcats, Ohio rolled to a 52-10 victory over Bowling Green on Nov. 28 at Peden Stadium behind a career afternoon by senior running back De'Montre Tuggle and a stifling effort by the Bobcats' pass defense that featured three interceptions.

The Bobcats earned their fifth-straight win over the Falcons, including their third-straight in games played at Peden Stadium in the series.

Ohio has outscored Bowling Green by a 245-102 count in the last five meetings between the two teams. Bowling Green's 10 points mark the fewest the Bobcats have allowed the Falcons to score against them since shutting them out, 24-0, on Oct. 18, 1997.

NEW STAFF TITLES
Ohio football head coach Tim Albin announced the promotions of quarterbacks coach Scott Isphording and offensive line coach Allen Rudolph. Isphording has been elevated to the position of offensive coordinator, while Rudolph will now serve as the Bobcats' co-offensive coordinator.  

Isphording enters his ninth season at Ohio and had served as the Bobcats' quarterbacks coach since 2014. 

In 2016, Ohio's quarterbacks set single-season records in pass attempts with 458 combined. They also completed the second-most passes in school history with 250. Ohio passed for 3,142 yards which was second-most in school history and threw for 22 touchdown passes which ranks fourth all-time.

Rudolph enters his third season at Ohio and had served as the Bobcats offensive line coach since fall 2019. 

Rudolph, a 24-year coaching veteran, has run an O-line that helped the Bobcats score a program record 521 point in 2018, while averaging 40.1 points per game. His second year at Ohio saw the Bobcats score 446 total points (34.3 ppg), which is third in program history.  

Prior to his time at Ohio, Rudolph spent the previous three years as the offensive line coach at Arkansas State, helping to lead the Red Wolves to 23 victories and three bowl appearances – including a 31-13 win over UCF in the Cure Bowl in 2016.

RETURN OF TETT
Former Ohio football standout quarterback Tyler Tettleton has joined the Ohio football staff as an Assistant Football Coach/Passing Game Coordinator/Running Backs coach. 

In three years as the Bobcats' starting quarterback, he helped guide Ohio to the 2011 Mid-American Conference East Division crown, a pair of bowl victories, including its first-ever bowl triumph in the 2011 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl and the program's first 10-win season since 1968.

Tettleton also set 27 Ohio football program records and became the first quarterback in school history to surpass 9,000 yards through the air. He also threw 67 touchdown passes during his career in Athens. In 2011, Tettleton set records for highest passer rating (148.9), most completions (265), most touchdown passes (28), most pass yards (3,306) and most total yards (3,960).

Tettleton spent the last season at LSU as an offensive assistant and spent 2019 as an offensive quality control coach with the Cleveland Browns.

After graduating from Ohio, Tettleton returned to his hometown of Norman, Okla. Where he served as a graduate assistant from 2014-17

SUPER SENIORS
With the ability to take an extra year of eligibility due the COVID-19 pandemic, a number of Bobcats chose to come back for one final ride with Ohio. 

Cam Odom, Will Evans, Alex Wolff, Jarren Hampton, Armani Rogers, Julian Ross, De'Montre Tuggle, Adam Luehrman, Nick Sink, Hagen Meservy, Chase Cokley, Ryan Luehrman, Jonah Wieland and Zach Burks will all be back for one more yet. 

Those players will be wearing a special patch on their jerseys to honor those Super Seniors

A LOOK BACK AT 2020
Ohio is coming off of a 2020 season that was shortened by the Covid-19 pandemic. Ohio finished the year 2-1, recording a pair of home wins over Mid-American Conference East Division rivals Akron (24-10) and Bowling Green (52-10) at Peden Stadium.

CONTINUITY ON OFFENSIVE STAFF
Wide receivers coach Dwayne Dixon (15 years) and offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach Scott Isphording (nine years). Co-offensive coordinator/offensive line coach Allen Rudolph is in his third year at Ohio. Tight ends coach Brian Metz, is in his second year with the Bobcats, however, Metz is no stranger to the Bobcats, having spent time as an intern with the program from 2013-14 and as an offensive graduate assistant from 2016-18. The newest addition to the staff in former Ohio quarterback Tyler Tettelton who will serve as Ohio's running backs coach/passing coordinator. 

AYE AYE, CAPTAIN
The Ohio football team has named seven team captains for the 2021 season – redshirt fifth-year running back Julian Ross (Kansas City, Mo.), redshirt fifth-year wide receiver Cameron Odom (Bedford, Ohio), redshirt fifth-year offensive lineman Nick Sink (Fishers, Ind.), redshirt senior defensive tackle Kai Caesar (Cache, Okla.), redshirt senior safety Alvin Floyd (North Miami Beach, Fla.), redshirt junior linebacker Bryce Houston (Lewis Center, Ohio) and redshirt sophomore quarterback Kurtis Rourke (Oakville, Ontario, Canada) 

Odom enters his third season serving as a team captain, while Caesar and Ross enter their second season. Meanwhile, Sink, Floyd, Houston and Rourke are all serving as captains for the first time. 

The Bobcats also had seven captains during the 2011 and 2018 seasons. 

Safety Jarren Hampton led Ohio with eight total tackles, including a team-high seven solo stops.

BOBCATS IN THE CFL
Five former Bobcats are currently active in the CFL, starting with former QB Nathan Rourke (BC Lions). Running back Maleek Irons and wide receiver Papi White are both with the Hamilton Tiger-Cats, while running back AJ Ouellette (Toronto Argonauts) and defensive tackle Casey Sayles (Winnipeg Blue Bombers) are also active.  

BOBCATS IN THE NFL
Two former Ohio football student-athletes are representing the Bobcats at the highest level of the sport -- Indianapolis Colts cornerback T.J. Carrie, Dallas Cowboys outside linebacker Tarell Basham. 

UP NEXT
The Bobcats are back on the road next weekend when they head to Buffalo to take on the Bulls on Saturday, Oct. 16. Kickoff is set for Noon ET on ESPN+. 

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