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DETROIT—The Ohio football program (9-4, 7-1) fell to the Toledo Rockets (8-5, 5-3) in the Mid-American Conference Championship, 17-7.
"I couldn't be prouder. Our locker room is obviously very disappointed right now. When you invest as much as this football team has and you keep stacking the days together, you're going to have some pain. I told them to keep their heads up, shoulders back and chest out," said head coach
Tim Albin. "This had been my most fun year of coaching, and not because of the seven or eight games we won in a row or the postseason. It's because of the guys you see to my right and everybody in the locker room. They have been remarkable, resilient, battered and bruised, counted out, and they just kept coming back to work every day."
In the air, redshirt sophomore quarterback
CJ Harris (West Bloomfield, Mich.) finished the game 17-for-31 on 163 yards. Redshirt freshman running back
Sieh Bangura (Bowie, Md.) led with four receptions while junior wide receiver
Jacoby Jones (Tunica, Miss.) accumulated 38 yards on three catches.
Bangura also led the team on the ground, scoring Ohio's only touchdown. He finished the game with 20 carries on 56 yards.
Defensively, graduate student cornerback
Zack Sanders (Lawrence, Kan.) led with 10 tackles and one tackle for loss while sixth year safety
Alvin Floyd (North Miami Beach, Fla.) had six solo tackles and redshirt senior linebacker
Bryce Houston (Lewis Center, Ohio) recorded two tackles for loss.
The Rockets struck on the first drive, taking an early 7-0 lead. With 6:47 remaining in the half, Bangura scored with a two-yard rushing touchdown. Freshman kicker
Nathanial Vakos (Avon, Ohio) followed with a good kick, tying the game 7-7. Just before halftime, Toledo kicked a 44-yard field goal to take a 10-3 lead.
After a scoreless third quarter, the Rockets wrapped up a 16-play, 90-yard drive with a passing touchdown, taking a 10-point lead with 10:36 left in the game. Unable to score again, the Bobcats fell at Ford Field, 17-7.
"This has been about our journey, not the destination," said Albin. "I very boldly said at MAC Media Day that I thought we could make a championship run, and that's what we did."
Up next, the Bobcats will wrap up their 2022 season at a bowl game. Stay up to date on OhioBobcats.com or by following the team on Instagram (@OhioFB), Facebook and Twitter (@OhioFootball).
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