Nathan Rourke jogged onto the field, buckled his chin strap and wiped his hands on his towel as he prepared to do it all over again.
The senior quarterback needed to give Ohio another opportunity to win. He did that in the fourth quarter with a nine-play, 75-yard drive that ended with him running the ball seven yards into the end zone to give the Bobcats a lead it never lost.
That’s what Ohio needed to seal a crucial 45-38 win over Mid-American Conference East Division foe Kent State on Saturday at Peden Stadium and keep its path to the MAC Championship clear.
Rourke finished 19-for-28 with two touchdowns and 342 yards, the first time he’s broken 300 passing yards in his career. He also had 14 carries fro 79 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. His fourth quarter touchdown run gave Ohio a 38-31 lead, and that was enough to give the Bobcats their sixth consecutive win over the Golden Flashes.
In past games this season, the Bobcats defense spoiled Rourke’s late-game heroics by failing to make fourth-quarter stops. Ohio did that Saturday and held the Flashes to 77 yards in the first 13 minutes of the fourth quarter.
The key stop came with five minutes left when safety Javon Hagan deflected a deep passing attempt to Isaiah McKoy. Had the wide receiver caught it, Kent would have likely scored a touchdown, tie the game and erase the work of Rourke.
Instead, the defense made the play. Ohio added insurance with a four-play, 51-yard touchdown drive on the next sequence to seal the win — and ensure that Rourke’s career day didn’t go to waste.
Kent did manage to score a touchdown with 31 seconds left, but it was too late. Ohio had already done enough to win thanks to another memorable performance from its quarterback. Its defense finally showed improvement in the fourth quarter, too, and the Bobcats remained in favorable position to make a run to Detroit.
Ohio will look to continue that trend next week on the road Oct. 26 against Ball State. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m.
