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ATHENS, Ohio— Peden Stadium shook as the final minutes ticked off the clock in Ohio's game against Kent State. Excitement surged through Ohio as it ran off Frank Solich Field to celebrate the 42-17 homecoming win. 

"We played basically a very clean game. Both sides of the ball were like lights out on third down,"head coach Tim Albin said. "Defense is getting after the quarterback. We had several tackles for losses and we took care of the football."

Ohio's defense flew around to record four sacks in the first half. Graduate student linebacker Keye Thompson (Barberton, Ohio) sacked Michael Alaimo for a loss of nine yards on third down to end Kent State's first drive of the game. Redshirt sophomore defensive end Bradley Weaver along with graduate student defensive end Shane Bonner (New Concord, Ohio) and graduate student linebacker Bryce Houston (Lewis Center, Ohio) teamed up for back-to-back sacks on Kent State's second drive for a loss of four yards total. 

The Bobcats needed to stay awake on defense, too. The Golden Flashes became the fastest team to record a touchdown on the Bobcats this season when they scored in the second minute of the second quarter.

Ohio regrouped fast and went on to record its other two sacks. Redshirt senior defensive tackle Rayyan Buell (Hornell, N.Y.), who leads Ohio with 3.5 sacks, knocked Alaimo back three yards in the middle of the quarter. Ohio closed the half with back-to-back sacks. Weaver picked up his second sack of the game after he took Alimo back a yard on first down. Ohio earned its crowning moment on the last play of the half when Bonner and graduate student defensive tackle Rodney Mathews (Memphis, Tenn.) sent Kent State back 10 yards. 

The defense's efficiency allowed the Bobcats to excel on offense. Junior wide receiver Miles Cross (Bowie, Md.) blazed the trail for the Bobcats with 125 yards and two touchdowns on seven receptions. Cross's first touchdown was off a 25-yard pass from graduate student quarterback Kurtis Rourke (Oakville, Ontario, Canada) to put the Bobcats on the board first. Cross collected his second touchdown on a 22-yard pass from Rourke that he tipped to himself in the endzone. Cross has the second-most receiving yards of the Bobcats with 246 on the season. 

"I'm just so happy for him. He's just what you're after. He's got a quiet demeanor, but he plays large.He plays loud," Albin said. "The one catch, the (defensive backs) kind of ducked it and took off and that was a big play on third down and in five or six. He's the total package. He can block and we're gonna need him to continue to make plays like he did the day without Jacoby (Jones)."

Ohio flashed its speed the most in the second half. Redshirt sophomore Sieh Bangura (Bowie, Md.) dashed down the field for two 3-yard touchdowns, the first in the third quarter and the second in the fourth. The two touchdowns were Bangura's first and second of the season. 

Other Bobcats to score were Graduate student wide receiver Sam Wiglusz and Rourke. Wiglusz caught a 30-yard pass from Rourke and tumbled into the end zone in the second quarter for his second touchdown of the season. Later on, Rourke scored his first touchdown of the season on a four-yard scramble up the middle. Freshman kicker Gianni Spetic (Chardon, Ohio) also contributed to the win. He went 6-for-6 in PATs. 

Rourke finished the game with 300 passing yards and three touchdowns on 32 attempts before being pulled in the fourth quarter. 

Graduate student quarterback Parker Navarro (Tempe, Az.) got in on the action as soon as he hit the field. Navarro sprinted 52-yards to move the Bobcats into the red zone on his first drive. The Bobcats did not score on the drive, although they ended it on the Golden Flashes' three-yard line. Navarro led the Bobcats in rushing yards with 65 on three attempts on Saturday. 

Although Kent State tacked on a field goal and a touchdown in the second half, it wasn't enough to catch up. Ohio had set itself apart from its opponent once again for its second-biggest win of the season. 

Furthermore, Saturday marked the first time the Bobcats started the season 2-0 in Mid-American Conference play since 2016. 

"Last year, and then where we are now, there's gonna be something like this every week. We're going one at a time and there's gonna be more of that stuff coming with those types of stats or data," Albin said. "That's going to keep coming and the bull's eye is going to get bigger. We're going to embrace it. We're going to accept it. We're going to keep that bull's eye on our chest, moving around. A moving target is harder to hit, and that's gonna just push them to keep getting better."

Ohio has a week to reset before it travels to Dekalb, Illinois, to take on Northern Illinois. The two are set to kick off at 4 p.m. on Oct. 14. 

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