Ohio's most impressive win of the season came against Toledo last Wednesday night. It was a statement win, the kind of win that sends a message throughout the conference.
The message Ohio sent was only timely for about a day.
Tuesday night at Akron, the Bobcats will play for a berth in the MAC Championship Game on Dec. 2 in Detroit. With a win, Ohio will clinch the MAC East. With a loss, Akron will be in the driver's seat with just a game remaining.
With all of that surrounding the team, coach Frank Solich addressed the media Friday afternoon.
All or nothing
Solich tried to play off the mindset of approaching the game as a be-all, end-all game. He stressed the importance of not putting too much pressure on his team.
"We don't try to build one game up as, 'This is it, fellas,'" Solich said. "We still have to play against Buffalo. Hopefully, we still have to play a bowl game. Nothing is ever always lost or never always won — you always have the next one to go to."
Still, it would be wishful thinking to consider the upcoming Akron game as just another game.
Akron finishes the season with a game at home against Kent State, which is 2-8. An Ohio loss likely ends any hopes of a MAC Championship appearance for a second straight season.
"You have to make sure you're not trying to build too much hype into a game because there's another game after that," Solich said. "Sometimes, too much hype can lead to you not playing well. If your energy is going to be there, it's going to be because of how you led yourself into the game. That's all you can ask for from your players: that they have good energy and play smart football."
Big boys playing big
In three of the Bobcats' last four games, they've rushed for over 330 yards. While that looks good statistically on quarterback Nathan Rourke and his running backs, A.J. Ouellette and Dorian Brown, the hidden unit behind those numbers is the offensive line.
The front five, which has just one senior — redshirt senior center Jake Pruehs — allowed just one sack against Toledo and none against Miami.
"It may play the biggest role of all, because, unless you're Superman, you're probably not going to get much done if the offensive line isn't taking care of business up front," Solich said.
The offensive line is also one of the main reasons the Bobcats have scored 220 points in the second half in comparison to allowing just 93. When the offensive line takes over the ball and the game, there's not much else that opposing teams can do to stop them.
"That's what you look for when you're building your team," Solich said. "I think there's a wear-down approach that occurs. When guys are pounding down on you play after play, defensive lineman have to take on a physical offensive lineman, and then here comes a running back that is a good size and physical."
Odds and ends
- Akron quarterback Thomas Woodson was suspended for the team's last game against Miami but will be back against Ohio.
- Ohio linebacker Evan Croutch is questionable for Tuesday's game. Solich didn't specify how close Croutch is to returning, saying "I believe he has a chance" to play.
