FOLLOW OHIO FOOTBALL: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram
ATHENS, Ohio— The Ohio football program is set to open the 2023 season in San Diego, Calif. when they take on San Diego State on Saturday, Aug. 26. The television platform and game time will be announced at a later date.
"We're excited to kick off our 2023 campaign out west against a championship-caliber opponent in San Diego State. Since facing them in the 2018 DXL Frisco Bowl, I've followed the Aztecs program and I respect the work that Coach Hoke and his staff have done developing a tough, relentless football program like ours," said head coach
Tim Albin. "We're a one-game-at-a-time operation, and we look forward to this challenge."
The Bobcats and the Aztecs first met on Dec. 19, 2018 at the DXL Frisco Bowl. Ohio became the first Mid-American Conference team to record a shutout in a bowl game, defeating San Diego State, 27-0. This win marked Ohio's fourth bowl victory in program history as well as the team's second time securing back-to-back bowl victories.
The Aztecs finished the 2022 season 7-6 overall and 5-3 against Mountain West Conference opponents. They ended their season at the EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl, where they fell to Middle Tennessee State 23-25.
San Diego had the most first-team all-MW selections (7), the most combined first and second team picks (11) and the most all-conference selections overall (16) as well as the Mountain West Special Teams Player of the Year—Jack Browning. Over the last eight years, an Aztec has been named Mountain West Special Teams Player of the Year five times.
Ohio finished the 2022 season 10-4 overall and 7-1 against Mid-American Conference opponents, wrapping up their record-setting performance with a 30-27 overtime victory against Wyoming in the Barstool Sports Arizona Bowl (Dec. 30). The 2022 season is the Bobcats' first 10-win season since 2011 and only the fourth in program history.
This performance earned Albin MAC Coach of the Year honors, redshirt junior quarterback
Kurtis Rourke (Oakville, Ontario, Canada) MAC Offensive Player of the Year honors as well as the Vern Smith Leadership Award and redshirt freshman running back
Sieh Bangura (Bowie, Md.) MAC Freshman of the Year accolades.
After the Bobcats open the 2023 season in San Diego, they will return to Athens to host LIU (Sept. 2). Next, they'll travel to Boca Raton, Fla. to take on Florida Atlantic (Sept. 9) before wrapping up non-conference play at Frank Solich Field at Peden Stadium when they take on Iowa State (Sept. 16).
#OUohyeah
