Two of the most dangerous sights to see in 2025 — (1) Toledo after a loss, and (2) Toledo at the Glass Bowl.
Kent State wound up staring down both on Saturday. The Toledo Rockets unleashed all their frustration
after squandering a 21-0 lead to arch rival Bowling Green the week prior. Toledo (4-3, 2-2 MAC) decimated Kent State (2-5, 1-2 MAC) 45-10, piling on 45 unanswered points to conclude the game. The Rockets are now outscoring opponents 195-34 in four outings at the Glass Bowl this year, defeating opponents by a combined score of 135-34 following losses. All four Toledo home games featured at least 45 points and 500 yards of offense, resulting in victories of 24 points or greater.
One week ago, Kent State started with a bang as Da’Realyst Clark returned the opening kickoff for a touchdown vs. UMass. For the second-straight week, the Golden Flashes reached paydirt on the game’s first play. After an opening kickoff touchdown, Kent State quarterback Dru DeShields launched a 75-yard deep ball to Cade Wolford. Wolford’s second 70+ yard touchdown of the year gave the Golden Flashes a 7-0 road advantage, after after forcing a three-and-out, they extended the margin to 10-0.
Kent State’s defense forced Toledo’s offense to a second-straight three-and-out, but right when the conditions were settling for an upset, everything flipped. The Rockets finally edited the scoreboard on their third series of the game as Tucker Gleason connected with Trayvon Rudolph for a 58-yard touchdown. Toledo’s top 15 scoring defense then locked in, forcing four consecutive punts to turn a 10-point deficit into a 17-10 halftime lead.
Toledo piled on the points after the break, outscoring Kent State 28-0 in the final two frames. Gleason fired two third quarter touchdowns, and the Rockets also received a boost from the special teams later in the frame. Eric Williams completed the trifecta by blocking a punt, recovering the fumble, and scoring the touchdown. It marked Toledo’s second blocked punt of 2025 and first touchdown stemming from a blocked punt since Reggie Gilliam in 2018.
After gashing the Kent State defense with a season-high 294 passing yards and career-best four touchdown strikes, Gleason got a well-earned breather to conclude the game. Third-string redshirt freshman Kalieb Osborne (backup John Alan Richter was ruled out due to injury) finished the job at quarterback and recorded his first passing touchdown, hitting Terrell Crosby Jr. in the fourth quarter to conclude the 45-0 run.
Toledo’s offense saw several stellar individual outings in the 552-yard outburst. Rudolph, who once posted 309 receiving yards on Kent State in 2021, attained a team-high 119 yards — marking his second longest output since that career-high showing. Junior Vandeross III added eight receptions and 76 yards in a game where 10 Toledo receivers attained double-digit yards receiving. In the rushing department, Kenji Christian attained a season-high 113 rushing yards, stepping up in place of injured starter Chip Trayanum who missed his first game since transferring to Toledo.
Defensively, strong safety Braden Awls secured the lone turnover of the game. The strong safety totaled his sixth interception since 2024 and his second in two weeks, snatching DeShields in the third quarter. It was a rare misfire for the Kent State starter who entered the contest with nine touchdowns compared to one interception. Kent State’s offense accumulated 120 yards on the first two drives but only managed 104 on its final 10 series, unable to find success in either the run or pass game.
Kent State remains winless on the road since Nov. 26, 2022 after struggling in the final three quarters in the Glass Bowl. Meanwhile, Toledo jumps above .500, improving to 3-0 after a loss this year. The Rockets now boast a seven-game win streak over Kent State dating back to 2010. The two teams resume on opposite sides of the country next week as Kent State hosts Bowling Green for the Anniversary Award, while Toledo concludes non-conference play with a Pacific Northwest road trip to Washington State.
