FOLLOW OHIO FOOTBALL: Facebook |
Twitter |
Instagram
CLEVELAND— With head coach
Tim Albin earning Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year, redshirt junior quarterback
Kurtis Rourke earning MAC Offensive Player of the Year along with the Vern Smith Leadership Award and redshirt freshman
Sieh Bangura earning MAC Freshman of the Year, the Ohio football program was recognized 13 times in the 2022 All-MAC and Specialty Awards.
"I am beyond honored to receive this award. It represents a lot more than just me; it represents the team, staff an entire organization's journey. I am very fortunate to have a staff that thinks independently but it always working toward a common goal. All coaches are molded from their past experiences and coaches. I have been blessed to have played for, worked under and alongside the best in the game of football. I was very fortunate to have known and worked for Coach Solich for over 25 years. He has been instrumental to not only my family, but my career and core beliefs in football and coaching," said Albin. "I want to recognize Ms. Julie Cromer and President Hugh Sherman for giving me and and my staff the opportunity to continue working for Ohio in the greatest profession in the world."
Rourke (Oakville, Ontario, Canada) also earned All-MAC First Team Offense recognition along with sixth year offensive lineman
Hagen Meservy (Tulsa, Okla.) and graduate student wide receiver
Sam Wiglusz (Brecksville, Ohio). Redshirt junior wide receiver
Keegan Wilburn (Nelsonville, Ohio) represented the Bobcats on All-MAC First Team Specialists.
Freshman kicker
Nathanial Vakos (Avon, Ohio) is representing the Bobcats on the All-MAC Second Team, earning offensive recognition as a placekicker. In addition to his Freshman of the Year title, Bangura (Bowie, Md.) also earned All-MAC Third Team Offense recognition. Redshirt senior defensive end
Jack McCrory (Springfield, Ohio), redshirt senior linebacker
Keye Thompson (Barberton, Ohio) and graduate student safety
Tariq Drake (Leavittsburg, Ohio) earned All-MAC Third Team Defense honors.
Albin is in his second year as the Bobcats' head coach and 17
th year with the program. After a 3-9 2021 season, Albin led the Bobcats to a 9-3 finish in the 2022 regular season. Under his guidance, the Bobcats finished the nonconference schedule 2-2, with an opening night victory over Florida Atlantic (Sept. 3) and a record-setting offensive game against Fordham (Sept. 24). After falling in overtime against Kent, the Bobcats bounced back to go on a seven-game winning streak, finishing conference play 7-1. The team is undefeated on the newly-named Frank Solich Field, boasting a 6-0 home record after their 38-14 victory over Bowling Green.
Rourke went 244-for-353 on 3,256 passing yards, throwing 25 total touchdowns in 11 games. The redshirt junior made program history against Fordham (Sept. 24), going for 527 yards in the air, breaking a record that was set in 1983. He is also second in program history in passing yards in a season as well as passing touchdowns in a season. On the ground, Rourke net 249 yards on 74 carries and scored four touchdowns. He was named one of the Manning Award "Stars of the Week" twice and was a Davey O'Brien Award semifinalist. Rourke was named MAC Offensive Player of the Week three times and earned MAC Scholar Athlete of the Week honors once.
Bangura is leading the Bobcats on the ground with 11 touchdowns in 177 attempts and 884 rushing yards. Against Akron (Oct. 8), the redshirt freshman scored four touchdowns, three of which were rushing. In the air, Bangura has scored two touchdowns on 195 yards. He earned MAC Offensive Player of the Week honors in back-to-back weeks after his performances against Akron and Western Michigan (Oct. 15).
Meservy started in all 12 games inv the regular season for Ohio, helping the offense average 34 points per game, 142.3 rushing yards per game and 295.5 passing yards per game. So far this season, the Bobcats' offense has run 835 plays, scoring 50 touchdowns on 5,253 yards. Against Fordham (Sept. 24), the offense set a program record, gaining 692 total yards.
Wiglusz leads the receivers with 11 touchdowns on 66 catches and 814 yards. The graduate student opened the Bobcats' homecoming game against Akron (Oct. 8) with an impressive 75-yard catch, scoring Ohio's first six points just 12 seconds into the game.
Wilburn has played in 11 games for Ohio so far this season. He is the Bobcats' leading kickoff returner, recording 527 yards on 24 kickoffs. His longest return was against Fordham (Sept. 24), going for 98 yards to score a touchdown.
Vakos is having a strong freshman year for the Bobcats, kicking in all 12 regular season games. He went 19-for 22 on field goals and 47-for-48 on PATs, scoring a total of 104 points. Against Western Michigan (Oct. 15), his 55-yard field goal marked a personal record as well as tied him for the third-longest field goal in program history. Vakos earned MAC Special Teams Player of the Week twice.
McCrory is an integral part of Ohio's defense, starting in all 12 games for the Bobcats. The defensive end leads the team in quarterback hurries (7) and forced fumbles (3). He recorded 51 tackles, 24 of which were solo, as well as 7.5 tackles for loss, four sacks, two pass breakups and two fumble recoveries. Against Akron (Oct. 8), McCrory scored a touchdown off of a 13-yard fumble recovery, giving the Bobcats a healthy 48-20 lead over the Zips.
Thompson leads the team in tackles (96), assisted tackles (51) and solo tackles (45). Starting in all 12 games, he also recorded 6.5 tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one interception, three pass breakups, five quarterback hurries, two fumble recoveries and one forced fumble. Thompson earned MAC Defensive Player of the Week twice.
Drake has played in 10 games this season, starting in nine of those. He's recorded 47 tackles, 28 of which were solo. He also has three interceptions, four pass breakups and one forced fumble. Against Bowling Green (Nov. 22), Drake snagged two interceptions.
#OUohyeah
