Ohio will be back in action this weekend after a bye week in Week Six. The team will go north for a road battle against Mid-American Conference foe Central Michigan. The Bobcats enter well-rested and ready to go for the remainder of MAC play.
Ohio coach Tim Albin sat down with the media on Monday morning for his weekly press conference; here is what we learned.
Tough road test
Ohio hasn’t played great on the road over the last two seasons. So far this year, Ohio is 3-2 with all three wins coming at home and both losses coming in its only two road games. In 2023, two of Ohio’s three total losses came on the road.
The Bobcats will be looking for their first road win of the season in Mount Pleasant, Michigan, this weekend. Ohio will have a handful of tough road battles to overcome later in its schedule.
“The message to the team to this point is that it’s a great quality in a football team to be able to go on the road in our league and find a way to get wins,” Albin said. “It’s not easy to do.”
At the pace Ohio is currently on, road wins are becoming increasingly important.
The effects of a bye week
It can be easy for a team to come off a bye a bit sluggish. After sitting for a week without any in-game action, teams often take a quarter or two to get going. Through hard work and preparation, Albin is preparing to make sure this doesn’t happen on the road against Central Michigan.
The Bobcats have been victim to slow starts at several points this season. Despite finishing with 30 points, Ohio was unable to score in the first quarter against Akron.
To Ohio’s benefit, Central Michigan is coincidentally coming off its bye week. It shouldn’t be a surprise if these two offenses get off to slow starts on Saturday as a result.
“We’ve got it in us,” Albin said. “We just have to go out and prepare well on Monday and then again on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday and then get on a plane and do it on Saturday.”
Recent struggles with Central Michigan
Ohio hasn’t fared well against Central Michigan in its history. In 35 total matchups against Central Michigan, Ohio has tallied 27 losses.
The Bobcats will be coming off a rare win entering this matchup after they were able to take down the Chippewas 34-20 in Athens last fall. Ohio has not won a game on the road at Central Michigan since the 2011 season.
“In my 20 years here, I haven’t fared very well,” Albin said. “...We have a huge challenge ahead.”
Ohio will be looking for its first stretch of back-to-back wins against Central Michigan this weekend since the 2000 and 2001 seasons.
Injuries
As Ohio’s early season injuries begin to heal, it has new injuries to deal with, specifically on the offensive line.
Safety and defensive captain Adonis Williams Jr. hasn’t played a snap since the first half of Week One against Syracuse. Since then, he has entered every single Ohio game since listed as “Questionable” but has yet to touch the field. Once again, against Central Michigan, Williams will be a game-time decision.
Ohio’s main concerns with injuries come at the offensive line position. Linemen Jacob Dennison and Carson Heidecker are both expected to miss this weekend’s game after injuries against Akron.
Promising injury news from Albin’s weekly press conference was Anthony Tyus, who is expected to be a full go this weekend. Tyus appeared to have suffered a minor injury toward the end of Ohio’s game against Akron but is expected to be good to go without missing time.
