Toledo's defenders engulfed Boo Jackson to the point that the only visible picture was a part of a green shoulder pad flailing around a sea of white jerseys. The sight of Jackson falling to the ground was all too constant for the Bobcats.
The Rockets controlled the ball for much of the game and Ohio's offense never established itself as the Bobcats lost to Toledo, 20-13, in the Mid-American Conference opener at Peden Stadium.
This was one of the poorer ball games we've played in some time
coach Frank Solich said. We didn't have our guys prepared the way they needed to be.
The Bobcats (1-1) managed only 183 yards of total offense. The Rockets (1-1) sacked Jackson only twice, but he was forced out of the pocket on nearly every play. When he did have time to scan the defense, Jackson settled for short passes and crossing routes, which the Rockets almost always stopped for minimal gains.
They were throwing a lot of things we weren't really seeing on film Jackson said. Dropping eight guys and rushing three. Every third down they would do that and we really couldn't find the window to get in.
In the post-game news conference, Jackson looked like he just completed a boxing match instead of a football game. He said he's sore, but it's all part of playing football.
By far this is probably one of the games I got hit the most in
Jackson said. There's a lot of guys out there trying to protect me. Sometimes things break down and I try to make plays and just get hit.
Ohio's lone offensive bright spot happened when Jackson evaded two tacklers and found an open Riley Dunlop in the end zone for the team's only touchdown. The quarterback threw three interceptions and his 27 pass attempts amassed only 137 yards. All three interceptions occurred deep in Bobcat territory, and the Rockets converted touchdowns on two of them.
It rests solely on
I feel like
myself
Jackson said. If I didn't have those turnovers
it would have been a completely different ball game.
After gaining 230 yards on the ground last week against Wofford, the Bobcats managed only 46 yards on 28 carries, a 1.6 yard average. Running backs Ryan Boykin and Dallas Brown, both factors in last week's win, did not carry the ball once against Toledo. Solich said the tandem didn't see the field because Vince Davidson is better at pass protection.
We weren't getting things on the ground enough so we knew we were going to have to get some things through the air
Solich said. Vince is our most experienced guy at pass protection
and they came from a lot of angles.
With the game tied at 13 at halftime, Toledo dominated the third quarter, as the Bobcats ran only six offensive plays. Toledo's eventual game-winning touchdown occurred on a 24-yard pass from Austin Dantin to Kenny Stafford with 13:48 remaining. The Bobcats gained only two first downs after that.
Ohio committed five turnovers. The defense held the Rockets for much of the game, but Toledo starting drives deep in Bobcat territory made the job even tougher for Ohio.
It's going to be an uphill climb now
linebacker Noah Keller said. We definitely don't have the most favorable schedule coming up. We just gotta get ready for next week and hopefully start to get things rolling again.
