Nobody took last week's loss to Texas State harder than Greg Windham.
On Saturday, he made up for it.
Ohio used a powerful running attack to dominate the game and the clock, defeating Kansas 37-21 on Saturday afternoon in Lawrence, Kansas.
"I'm proud of our guys," coach Frank Solich said. "The way they came back from last week's loss, I think they showed a lot of resolve."
Simply put, the Bobcats dominated the game from start to finish. They rushed for 329 yards in total, including Windham's 146 yards on the ground. Dorian Brown also rushed for 122 yards. It was the first time since 2005 that Ohio had two rushers earn more than 100 yards rushing in a game.
"If you do have a running game, you have a chance to build up time on the clock," Solich said. "Then we were able to hit enough passes to keep drives alive, when we did stall out on the ground. That combination I think can help you possess the ball a great deal of time."
Ohio held possession for a staggering 43 minutes and 38 seconds, towering over Kansas' measly 13 minutes and 56 seconds.
And from the start, Ohio never let Kansas have any hope.
Windham looked poised and in control throughout the afternoon, as he led Ohio to a 22-0 lead after the first play of the second quarter.
"He's a strong, physical football player," Solich said of Windham. "There are times to slide, but if you're going to put it in the end zone or pick up a first down, he's the kind of guy that will go for that. He'll get the extra yards to keep drives going."
Absent A.J. Ouellette and Sebastian Smith, Ohio relied on Windham and Brown in the running game, but also Kyle Belack in the passing game. Belack caught four passes for 60 yards, including a highlight reel, one-handed catch that kept an Ohio drive moving.
It wasn't all offense on this day, however, as the defense only allowed 232 yards of offense the entire game. Kansas had to wait 18 minutes for its first first-down.
Tarell Basham capped off a record day for the Bobcats with a record of his own, as a fourth quarter sack gave Basham the all-time sack record.
“It feels great to have the all-time sack record, to know that all my hard work is showing," he said. "I’m not comfortable at all, I’m still going to go out there and fight to get those sacks. Hopefully next week we can set another record.”
But the most exciting part for the Bobcats had to be the continued progression of Windham, as in back to back weeks he's shined in the pass and run game.
Not bad for a second career start.
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