Bowling Green State University running back Ta’ron Keith had 103 yards rushing and 130 yards receiving in the win. (Daniel Carlson/BGSU Athletics)
KENT, Ohio — The Bowling Green State University football team went on the road and came away with a 30-point win Wednesday night, securing bowl eligibility in the process.
The Falcons seized control early and rolled along to a 49-19 victory over Kent State University in Mid-American Conference action at Dix Stadium.
The Falcons improve to 6-4 overall and 4-2 in MAC play, and BGSU has won four-straight games. BGSU is bowl-eligible for the second year in a row. BGSU has not gone to a bowl in back-to-back years since going to four in a row from 2012-15.
Ta’ron Keith had a game to remember, becoming the first player in school history with 100 rushing yards and 100 receiving yards in the same game.
Keith had 103 yards on just nine carries, and had a team-high eight receptions for a career-high 130 yards. He had one rushing and one receiving touchdown.
BGSU wide receiver Odeiu “O.J.” Hiliare finished with 29 receiving yards, which pushed over 1,000 for his BGSU career. He is the 41st Falcon to reach this plateau.
BG spotted KSU an early 3-0 lead, but the Falcons scored a pair of touchdowns in the final 2:01 of the first quarter and were never headed.
The Falcons scored five times on the ground. Camden Orth had two TDs, with Keith, Jaison Patterson and Lucian Anderson III each rushing for one score.
Harold Fannin Jr. had four receptions for 92 yards and a touchdown in the win.
BG quarterbacks combined to throw for 286 yards, as Connor Bazelak was 13-for-19 for 188 yards and a TD, while Orth was a perfect 4-for-4 for 98 yards and a score.
It was a well-rounded road win for the Falcons. Defensively, Patrick Day had 11 tackles and forced a fumble, while Cashius Howell had two sacks. On special teams, Jhaylin Embry had a 58-yard kickoff return and a 40-yard punt return, while Jackson Kleather ran for 17 yards on a fake punt to pick up a first down.
“2-0 in the MAC and that’s what we wanted to be in MACtion,” BGSU coach Scot Loeffler said. “I thought we played good, complimentary football.
“We protected the ball well, got the ball back. Great job on the fake punt, great return yards. I thought our defense played great as usual,” Loeffler continued.
“We used everyone we could possibly use on the offensive side to create some type of yardage. I thought we played a good team win and good complimentary football.”
On the opening drive, Kent State worked into Bowling Green territory, but a Cashius Howell sack on third down halted the drive to force a Kent State field goal from 48-yards out to make it a 3-0 start.
KSU got the ball back, but a hard hit from Patrick Day forced a fumble early in the drive. Darren Anders recovered the fumble to give BGSU the ball on the Kent State 31.
The Falcons added their first points soon after. A 22-yard catch by Odieu Hiliare put the Falcons inside the 10. Orth punched it in from the one-yard line to push Bowling Green in front, 7-3, with 2:01 left in the first quarter.
The defense came through once again on the next Kent State drive. Darren Anders and Chace Davis made their way into the backfield for another third down sack and a loss of 12, forcing a three-and-out.
Jhaylin Embry returned the punt 40 yards into Kent State territory, and on the very next play, Bazelak connected with Fannin on play action for a 47-yard touchdown to make it a 14-3 BGSU advantage. It marks the third game in a row he has a touchdown reception.
The Golden Flashes responded with a field goal on their next drive to cut the lead to 14-6. Kent State attempted to add another field goal to their tally, but the 36-yard attempt doinked off the upright to keep the 14-6 score intact.
The next drive saw Orth and Keith go 74 yards for the Falcons. Orth first found Keith for a 29-yard gain down the sideline to put Bowling Green in Kent State territory. On the next play, they connected again, this time over the middle for a 45-yard touchdown strike to make it a 21-6 BGSU lead.
Later in the half, Jackson Kleather broke off a 17-yard rush on a fake punt to give BGSU a new set of downs. Bazelak to Fannin for 34 yards moved the Falcons inside the red zone.
Orth capped off the drive with his third touchdown of the half, and second on the ground, from two yards out to push the lead to 28-6 heading into halftime.
On the first drive of the second half, Keith broke off a 24-yard rush followed by a 30-yard carry to move the Falcons inside the red zone, but a fourth-down stop by Kent State turned the ball over on downs.
The Golden Flashes were able to find the end zone for their first touchdown of the game to cut the score to 28-13.
Bowling Green responded, as Finn Hogan hauled in a 20-yard reception to move the Falcons down to the two-yard line before Keith ran it in to increase the score to 35-13.
In the fourth quarter, Kent State snagged an interception and scored on the following drive to cut the deficit down to 35-19 with the Falcons stopping the two-point conversion attempt.
Once again, the Falcons responded. Embry returned the kickoff 58 yards to give the Falcons possession on Kent State’s side of the field. Keith broke free again, this time with a 25-yard run to set up a 3-yard rushing touchdown for Jaison Patterson that pushed the lead to 42-19.
On the ensuing drive, Deshawn Jones Jr. stepped in front of a Tommy Ulatowski pass and returned the pick 57 yards and into the red zone. Just over a minute later, Lucian Anderson III scored on a 1-yard run, with Alan Anaya’s seventh PAT of the game completing the scoring.
The next drive saw Davian Mayo bat down a fourth-down pass as BGSU stopped the Flashes on downs, and two kneel-downs later, the Falcons were officially bowl-eligiblity.
Defenisively, BGSU forced two turnovers to give the Falcons a takeaway in its 11th game in a row. BGSU notched its 11th fumble recovery of the season. They entered the game No. 2 in the nation in the category. BGSU now has 24 takeaways.
BGSU outside linebacker Cashius Howell finished with two sacks. It is the third game in a row he has recorded at least one sack. He now has 7.5 for the season and five over the last three games.
Tommy Ulatowski, in his second career start, was 23-of-39 passing for 284 yards and a score and an interception for Kent State.
The Falcons will return home to Doyt Perry Stadium for their next contest, hosting the rival Rockets of Toledo in the Battle of I-75 on Tuesday night, Nov. 14. The game is set for a 7 p.m. kick, and will air on ESPN2.
