Kent State (3-5, 2-2 MAC) hosted Bowling Green (3-5, 1-3 MAC) on Saturday afternoon for their 93rd matchup in series history— one which saw the Flashes erase an early 21-3 deficit to win by a final score of 24-21.
Kent State received the ball to start the game, but it was Baron May and the Bowling Green Falcons finding the score board first, as May— in for injured QBs Drew Pyne and Lucian Anderson III— connected with Jacob Harris in the end zone from 13 yards out to open up the scoring at 7-0.
Kent
State would start with the ball in the second quarter, but their offensive struggles from the first quarter carried over, as the Flashes ultimately punted. Will Hryzsko would be the one to finally break the chain, converting a promising drive with a short field goal to out the margin at 7-3 in favor of the Falcons.
Austin Dendy’s touchdown run to cap off an 11-play, 75-yard drive before the end of the first half gave the visiting Falcons even more momentum momentum going into the break, putting the halftime tally at 14-3, then flip the quarters to add another touchdown to start the second half, with Baron May calling his own number on a 13-play, 75-yard drive to push the lead to 21-3.
The Flashes would respond quickly, needing only 2:18 of game clock to set up a Dru DeShields touchdown toss to Cade Wolford to make it 21-10 Falcons with 6:24 to go in the third quarter.
That’s where it would all go wrong for BG, as they were forced to punt on their next possession, gave up a 45-yard touchdown to Gavin Garcia on the ground, then missed a field goal from Kent State’s 25-yard line to put them in a perilous position at the start of the fourth quarter.
BGSU’s defense did its best to keep the margin at four points. Evan Branch-Haynes’ sack of DeShields for 11 yards forced a punt on KSU’s next possession, but the Flashes defense would get a sack of their own to eventually get the ball back via punt.
Sensing a potential turning point after an uncharacteristic shank from BG punter John Henderson, Kent State marched down the field to set up wide receiver Da’Realyst Clark to pass the ball on a fake jet sweep toss, finding fellow receiver Wayne Harris open in the endzone to take the 24-21 lead with under seven minutes remaining.
Bowling Green was unable to stir together a rally after that, with Baron May exiting the game late with a non-contact injury, forcing fourth-string QB Hunter Najm into action. The Falcons would lose the game without a chance at the endzone.
The victory assured Kent State will finish with at least three wins in a season for the first time since 2022, a remarkable feat considering not only the fact the Golden Flashes only one a single game under previous head coach Kenni Burns over the last two seasons, but also that the entire coaching staff are interim replacements.
BGSU, meanwhile, drops another contest, falling to 1-3 since the start of conference play.
Takeaways
Bowling Green had a lead and gave it away just as easily. The offense played as expected, but the defense was shockingly bad. Despite only allowing 294 yards total, missed tackles would hurt them significantly. Where do the Falcons go from here? A flat offense and a collapsing defense make you wonder if they can get it together. The player of the game for the Falcons was Austyn Dendy. He had a breakout game with 93 yards rushing and one touchdown. In a run heavy offense, he made himself a spot in the room.
Kent State was down 21-3, and they found a way to win the game. That’s what happens when you have nothing to lose, and take advantage of a defense that couldn’t figure it out in the second half. This should definitely remove the interim title from Mark Carney. Da’Realyst is the realest, he can do it all. He gave the Flashes the lead with a touchdown pass, and helped earn a huge win.
Plays of the Game
The play of the game for the Falcons was the opening touchdown to Jacob Harris. The son of a Falcons legend may quietly be their best player.
Kent State’s best play— and ultimately the overall play of the game— goes to wide receiver Da’Realyst Clark, who caught the Falcon secondary sleeping and found his fellow receiver in the end zone on a fake jet sweep pass play to put the Flashes in the lead for good.
Up Next
The Falcons return home to take on Buffalo on Saturday, November 1st, with kickoff set for 12:00 PM ET on ESPN+.
The Golden Flashes travel to Muncie, Indiana to take on Ball State for weeknight action on Wednesday, November 5th. Time and network to be determined.
