With less than a minute remaining in Ohio and Marshall’s 56th Battle for the Bell meeting, Thundering Herd sophomore quarterback Rakeem Cato had the Bobcats right where he wanted: deep in their territory with the ball in his hands.
Ohio redshirt senior Matt Weller kicked a field goal to put the Bobcats ahead 27-24 on their previous drive, and Cato needed to make a play to give his team a shot to tie or win the game, but Ohio senior linebacker Jelani Woseley ripped the moment away from Cato.
“They didn’t stop anything big all night. They benefited and I threw a bad ball,” Cato said. “They put the ball in my hand sand I failed to lead us to victory. That’s something that is hard right now.”
Cato’s assessment wasn’t far from the truth, as he seemed to be able to find the wide-open receiver with relative ease.
He picked apart Ohio’s defense with slant routes and bubble screens for the majority of the game for 432 yards on 44 completions — a Marshall record — and three touchdowns.
“I threw it and I felt that I didn’t put enough arm strength into it,” Cato said. “The defender made a spectacular play. If I would have hit (redshirt junior tight end) C.J. (Crawford) with that one, he turns and walks in the end zone.”
The difference between success and failure in football often comes down to minor miscues, as referenced Saturday.
“It was crunch time, we had to make a play (and) they were marching down (the field),” Woseley said. “We just have to make plays to get the offense the ball, give them a chance. We knew we had to make a stop.”
Ohio has benefitted from at least one clutch turnover in each of this season’s wins, including Woseley’s two interceptions against Penn State and Marshall.
Redshirt sophomore safety Nathan Carpenter’s interception returned for a touchdown against New Mexico State and fumble recovery against the Thundering Herd.
“(The turnovers have) certainly been a plus for us in these three ball games, but it is something you have to continually work at and you just never know, sometimes they come in bunches, and when they do it’s tough on you,” said Ohio coach Frank Solich.
nr225008@ohiou.edu
