Oct. 13, 2007
Final Stats | Quotes | Notes
ATHENS, Ohio - In front of a Homecoming weekend crowd on Saturday in Peden Stadium, the Ohio football Bobcats registered a 48-42 victory against the visiting Eastern Michigan Eagles in the program's highest-scoring game in more than a decade.
Both teams scored on nearly half of their total offensive possessions in the Mid-American Conference contest, but it was the home-standing Bobcats (3-4, 1-2 MAC) who jumped out to an early 28-0 lead and held on to out-distance the visiting Eagles (2-5, 1-2 MAC).
Bobcat tailback Kalvin McRae (Decatur, Ga.) and quarterback Brad Bower (Burr Ridge, Ill.) led the offensive attack on Saturday. McRae registered a season-high 170 yards for his 16th career game exceeding the century mark while Bower threw for a career-high three touchdowns and totaled 232 through the air.
The 90 combined points were the most in a game that Ohio had been involved in since the Bobcats and East Carolina totaled 100 in a 55-45 defeat in 1996.
For the first time in four games, the Bobcat offense was able to put Ohio on the board first. Thanks to the running of McRae, the Bobcats jumped out to a quick 21-0 lead. The Ohio senior capped off the first possession of the game with a 39-yard run - his longest of the season - to make it 7-0 just 1:19 into the contest. He then ended Ohio's second drive of the game with an eight-yard run.
The first quarter barrage continued when, on Ohio's third possession, quarterback Bower and the Bobcats went to the air to register a score. Bower recorded consecutive completions before receiver Taylor Price (Hillard, Ohio) took a reverse and tossed it 22 yards to tight end David Carter (Waynesboro, Pa.) in the end zone. The score put Ohio in front 21-0 with 4:08 remaining in the first half.
With the Bobcat defense doing its part as well, keeping the EMU offense in check during each of its first three possessions, the Ohio offense rolled over its success into the second quarter. On the first drive of the second period the `Cats marched 61 yards in 2:40 and took a four touchdown lead thanks to a seven-yard strike from Bower to Price that put Ohio ahead 28-0.
The Eagles were finally able to provide an answer on their next possession, however. A 17-yard scoring pass from EMU's Andy Schmitt to Jacory Stone capped a 60-yard drive to get the Eagles on the board at 28-7 with 9:02 remaining in the half.
The Bobcats were poised to go 5-for-5 on drives that ended in a score, but on their subsequent possession, EMU's Derrick Hunter forced McRae to fumble, then scooped it up and dashed 80 yards for the score, which cut Ohio's lead in half at 28-14 with 5:39 left in the half.
Ohio was able to light up the scoreboard one more time before the break. After starting its drive on the EMU side of the 50 for the second time in a row thanks to long Joshua Abrams (Dunwoody, Ga.) kickoff returns, the Bobcats gained 29 yards before Michael Braunstein (Gilbert, Ariz.) booted a 40-yard field goal with 2:26 on the clock to make it 31-14 in Ohio's favor.
As the two teams went into the locker room at the half, Ohio had a 305-149 advantage in total offense, and had racked up 17 first downs. McRae netted 101 yards on the ground in the half for the Bobcat offense, which had not scored that many points in any single half since putting up 31 on Ball State on Oct. 22, 2005.
Out of the break, each team failed to convert on its first possession, but the Eagles were able to cut the Ohio advantage to 10 points with a 38-yard scoring pass from Schmitt to DeAnthony White on the first play of their second drive. The score made it 31-21 with 3:10 left in the third.
Although they had already combined for 52 points, the two teams continued to keep the scoreboard moving. Bower hooked up with Carter for his second score of the day to put the Bobcats up 38-21 with 5:15 left in the third. EMU promptly answered with an 80-yard scoring drive, capped off by an eight-yard pass from Schmitt to Stone to bring the Bobcat lead back to 10 at 38-28 with 3:10 on the clock.
Ohio would once again go up by three scores as Bower and Andrew Mooney (Lubbock, Texas) combined for a nine-yard scoring pass with 13:44 left in the game that extended the Bobcats to a 45-28 lead. The Eagles would remain within striking distance, however, as Schmitt tied a career high with his fourth scoring toss of the game to make it 45-35 with 9:38 left in the contest.
The Ohio offense was able to tack on three more points on Braunstein's second field goal of the day - this one from 38 yards out - to extend to a 48-35 advantage. The Eagles then mounted one more scoring drive as back-up quarterback Kyle McMahon came on due to an injury to Schmitt and led a 78-yard march that was capped off by a five-yard pass to Tyler Jones with 2:49 left.
That would prove to be the last tally in the shootout as the Bobcats ran out the clock on the ensuing possession after recovering the onside kick.
Ohio amassed 510 yards of total offense in the game, marking the first time since last year's win at Northern Illinois that it had registered more than 500. With 269 passing and 241 rushing yards, it marked the second time this year that they had gone over 200 yards in both categories in the same game following a similar effort at Louisiana-Lafayette.
Ohio's 48 points were the most it had recorded in a game since putting up 50 against Kent State in 2002.
The Bobcats are now 45-39-1 all-time in their Homecoming games.
In a losing effort, EMU piled up 425 yards of total offense, including 276 in the second half.
Despite EMU's success moving the ball, the Bobcat defense did hold the Eagles to 0-for-4 on fourth down conversion attempts in the game, including two in the final quarter.
Ohio will be on the road the next two weeks starting with a trip to Toledo on Oct. 20.
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Jason Corriher is the football contact for the Ohio media relations office. He can be reached via email at corriher@ohio.edu.
