Ohio began its season with a win against Kent State on a field goal as time expired.
KENT — Josiah Yazdani says he doesn’t get iced.
With three seconds remaining in regulation, Yazdani, a redshirt junior, set himself in position to kick a potential game-winning field goal, but Kent State called a timeout.
He set himself in position again, and another time out was called.
Because he didn’t miss a single field goal last regular season, it isn’t surprising he wasn’t fazed by the additional minutes of waiting.
After the Golden Flashes’ second time out, Yazdani finally was snapped the ball and from 44 yards away, he clinched the Bobcats’ first win of 2014 — against a Mid-American Conference rival, nonetheless.
“I knew I was going to make it, “ Yazdani said.
If the Bobcats hadn’t fumbled on their previous four possessions, Yazdani wouldn’t have needed to be called upon in the final seconds, but he was and sealed the 17-14 victory.
“I felt it off my foot and I had no doubt in my mind,” he said. “I just turned around, gave God some credit and ran around a little bit.”
“I don’t even know if I saw the ball, to be honest.”
Midway through the second quarter, Ohio had jumped out to a 14-7 lead after quarterback Derrius Vick and wide receiver Landon Smith connected for a pair of touchdowns.
The Bobcats were unable to put away the Golden Flashes in the second half, though.
On its first four drives of the half, running backs Daz Patterson, Tim Edmond and Dorian Brown fumbled in Kent State territory.
Offensive coordinator Tim Albin typically benches a running back after he fumbles, and because three had turned the ball over and freshman Papi White left with an injury, the Bobcats went through the depth chart.
And despite the turnovers, the Bobcats kept running.
A.J. Ouellette, a freshman, was called upon to receive the carries during Ohio’s final drive. In his first-ever collegiate game, he rushed six times for 28 yards to put the Bobcats in field goal range.
“I just knew the ball was in the offense’s hands and that’s all you can ask for at the end of a game,” Vick said. “We have the best kicker in the MAC — anywhere — so as long as I give him a chance, we had a win.”
Vick finished 18-for-24 with 262 passing yards and a pair of touchdowns to pace the offense, which out-gained Kent State 437-295.
Although the fumbles gave the Golden Flashes multiple opportunities to eventually tie the game with 3:34 remaining, the Bobcats showed resilience — something that was not apparent last year when Kent State scored 34 unanswered points in a blowout.
Saturday, the Bobcats kept fighting until the final snap.
“Maybe last year we wouldn’t have came back,” Vick said.
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