YPSILANTI, Mich. — Ohio started its Mid-American Conference schedule off with a bang, defeating Eastern Michigan 27-20 in double overtime Saturday afternoon at Rynearson Stadium.
The Bobcats (3-1) couldn’t muster an offensive touchdown in regulation, but they escaped with a thrilling victory thanks to two sharp drives in overtime.
Here are three things to note from the game:
Rourke “calmed down” before leading OT win
Ohio quarterback Nathan Rourke earned his spot as the starter before the Bobcats played Kansas last week. But in the first half against Eastern Michigan, he looked lost at times, missing targets and failing to evade pressure.
“A lot of the sacks, they were my fault,” said Rourke, who was dropped four times after taking just two sacks in the first three games. “I gotta process things faster, and I gotta make better decisions.”
Two Ohio drives cut short by fumbles erased what could’ve been a better day for Rourke, but as it stood, he entered overtime having completed 16-of-26 passing for 168 yards.
On his two overtime possessions, Rourke connected for two touchdown passes. He looked much more like the player Ohio coach Frank Solich saw in the first three games of the year.
“I think he calmed down,” Solich said of Rourke. “You gotta remember he’s still a young guy in our offense. He had a great start to the season, and I think he was putting a little pressure on himself to play well in this game.”
If Rourke was putting pressure on himself, it was likely because Quinton Maxwell, who was the starter to begin the year, was ready on the sideline.
Instead, Solich stuck with Rourke. It was the first time through four games that only one of the two quarterbacks played.
“Every time I came off the field and having something (go wrong) on me,” Rourke said, “I looked at them keeping me in as a sign of confidence in me.”
Cornerback play answers questions
Still dripping with sweat after the game, cornerback Bradd Ellis smiled as he recalled his pick six.
Eastern Michigan quarterback Brogan Roback threw 47 times against Ohio, but Ellis, fellow cornerback Jalen Fox and the rest of the Ohio secondary held up against a barrage that worked Roback’s favor a year ago.
Roback completed 29 of 39 passes for 347 yards and three touchdowns against Ohio last season. This time around, he settled for 271 yards and just one score.
“It wasn’t perfect from either of us,” Ellis said. “But I definitely think the corners stepped up and answered some questions today that some people have had. So I’m ecstatic.”
The emphasis of Eastern Michigan’s passing attack was the back-shoulder throw, in which the receiver falls away from his defender and the quarterback aims to put the ball where only the receiver can get it.
Ellis said he studied that passing play all week on film. It paid off on his interception — which led him to score Ohio’s only touchdown in regulation — and other pass breakups.
“Those guys knew that they were going to play a critical role in this win,” Solich said of his cornerbacks. “And they stepped up, rose to the occasion. I was proud of the way they battled and played.”
Ouellette plays big role once again
In 90-degree heat and handling easily the heftiest workload of his season, running back A.J. Ouellette had to dig deep.
“He was physically wore out toward the end of that second half and in the overtime,” Solich said. “But he wanted to stay in.”
The Bobcats rode Ouellette for 26 carries and 145 yards for his second-straight game of 100 or more rushing yards. He also caught one pass for 42 yards.
When the offense stalled — particularly when Rourke struggled in the face of pressure in the first half — Ouellette helped put Ohio in positions to score. He’d carried just 12 or fewer times in each of the team’s first three games, but the Bobcats knew he was capable of more.
“He’s a workhorse,” Solich said. “He gets up, he goes right back to work and you can’t find a guy with a bigger heart than what he’s got when he’s got the ball in his arms.”
