In the Mid-American Conference, the outcomes of a long homecoming week varied.
As the weeks go on, so do the opportunities to either surge or plummet.
All six games this week in the Mid-American Conference were against other conference opponents, with all attempting to make a run towards postseason play.
Kent State (1-7, 0-4 MAC) traveled to Oxford to face on Miami (2-7, 2-3 MAC) looking to claim its first conference victory of the season. The Golden Flashes continued their struggles, falling 10-3 in what was considered a disappointing game by coach Paul Haynes
“We need to put more than three points on the board,” Haynes said. “We aren’t going to win many football games playing the way we are.”
Haynes and the Golden Flashes continue to struggle in the redzone. They threw for over 200 yards yet failed to put the ball in the endzone the entire game.
“It’s extremely frustrating,” Haynes said. “As coaches, we watch our team excel in practice and do most of everything correct, then just don’t execute it come game time.”
Toledo (5-3, 4-0 MAC) hosted Massachusetts (2-7, 2-3) this week in what turned out to be a shootout-type matchup. Coming off their bye week, the Rockets surged at home, defeating the Minutemen 42-35.
Toledo rolled with four touchdowns in the second half, overcoming a hot start from UMass, to stay unbeaten in the MAC on Homecoming Weekend.
“It was a great homecoming win,” Toledo coach Matt Campbell said. “Our team played a full game. We started slow, but we didn’t stop playing or executing.”
The Rockets drove 80 yards down the field for a game-winning touchdown with 34 seconds left in the game to secure a happy Homecoming.
“We seem to really come together and play our best at home,” Campbell said. “When we were down, we didn’t stop playing.”
Northern Illinois (6-2, 3-1 MAC) traveled to Eastern Michigan (2-6, 1-3) on Saturday and was triumphant in a 28-17 victory.
The Huskies took an early lead after redshirt sophomore quarterback Drew Hare covered three-fourths of the field with his legs on a 78-yard touchdown.
“It’s hard to replace Jordan Lynch, he knew that, but Drew’s done an outstanding job this year at leading our team,” coach Rod Carey said.
Neither team scored in the third quarter, while the Huskies put up 14 points in the fourth to close out the ball game.
“We’re moving along pretty well at this point,” Carey said. “I like how our team is communicating on the field and playing as a unit.
“I’m even more impressed with how well we’re playing on the road. Successful teams win on the road,” Carey said.
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