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ATHENS, Ohio – The Ohio football team honored Turn It Gold and defeated Morgan State 21-6 today (Sept. 14), marking the first time since 2019 Ohio's defense didn't allow any touchdowns.
"Playing on the Frank was fun again. It's my second time getting to do it, and it's an honor every time running out there, those stands are packed. It's a fun atmosphere, and today we had a little extra motivation with the Turn It Gold Initiative," graduate student linebacker Blake Leake (Culpepper, Va.) said. "Going out there and playing a football game is nothing compared to what those families and what those kids have to go through. That was a little extra motivation for the whole team. Today, we had the yellow socks on yellow wrist bands and shirts, so we went out there and football is easy compared to some other things that could go on in life."
Ohio's defense proved its worth in the first half, holding Morgan State to just two field goals and an average of three yards per play. Sophomore defensive end Kadin Schmitz (Ashland, Ohio) recorded 1.5 tackles per loss in the first half, one of which he knocked Morgan State back six yards. Alongside him in effort was Leake, who led the defense with seven total tackles before halftime.
Leake led the Bobcats in tackles at the end of the night. He had 12 total tackles, including four solo and one for loss.
"We had some big stops. I just thought that going in the game we had an advantage with our with our defensive line versus their offensive line. I thought we had an advantage in the special teams, and that that's how it played out." said head coach Tim Albin.
After the Bobcats recorded their first touchdown in the air, they switched their game to the ground. Graduate student quarterback Parker Navarro (Tempe, Ariz.) pulled off a trick play for a 10-yard rush before the end of the first quarter. In the third quarter, graduate student running back Anthony Tyus III (Portage, Mich.) picked up his second touchdown of the day on a 13-yard rush.
All of sophomore kicker Gianni Spetic's (Chardon, Ohio) extra point attempts were good on Saturday. He ended the day 3-for-3 to become 7-for-7 in PATs on the season.
"We rep things like that through all week in practice. We watch film, and we just saw that from film, that it could be there when we get into that red zone area," Tyus said. "We got in there first drive, and after watching film and just being in sync with the office coordinator, we had to play call. I knew what I had to do, and we executed high level and ended up with a six in the endzone."
The defense came back to life in the third quarter. After a weak snap, redshirt junior defensive end Bradley Weaver (Hilliard, Ohio) blocked a 22-yard field goal attempt from Beckett Leary. Redshirt junior linebacker Shay Taylor (Mount Perry, Ohio) recovered the ball for 21 yards.
That wasn't the only time Ohio took the ball away from Morgan State. Back in the second quarter, graduate student Marcel Walker-Burgess (Piscataway, N.J.) intercepted a pass intended for Jaden Coffen. Although Walker-Burgess only gained a yard, the catch helped Ohio end the quarter safely.
Ohio had good hands on both sides of the ball. Graduate student wide receiver Coleman Owen (Gilbert, Ariz.) recorded 112 yards on six receptions, including a 53-yard trip in the first quarter. Tyus recorded the second-most yards with 38 yards on three receptions.
Tyus led Ohio in rushing yards with 90 yards on 16 attempts. Redshirt junior quarterback Nick Poulos (Granite Bay, Calif.) had the second most with 37 yards on eight attempts. Poulos replaced Navarro at the beginning of the second half.
Navarro finished the game 12-for-15 with 162 yards in one half. Polous ended his half 2-for-4 with 25 yards.
Ohio will be back in action next Saturday (Sept. 21) at Kentucky. Kickoff is set for 12:45 p.m. from Kroger Field.
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