Sports
Brian Smith Week One Press Conference Notebook
By: Andrew Bowlby
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) – Ohio Football is less than a week from its return, and head coach Brian Smith spoke to the media Friday morning ahead of the week one game with Rutgers.
Lineup Roles Assigned
Smith confirmed multiple players who will be starting and playing in depth roles for the opening week matchup.
One of which is that Sieh Bangura will be the Bobcats starting running back. Bangura will make his return to Athens after a year away. In his three previous seasons with the Bobcats, Bangura rushed for nearly 2,000 yards and 22 touchdowns.
Sophomore Duncan Brune will also see the field more after just 26 carries in 2024. Additionally, the Bobcats also have Doe Boyland (a transfer from Drake), Aginon Wilson and freshman duo Mike Taylor Jr. and Irving Brown on the roster.
On the defensive line, Smith says that with the amount of turnover the room experienced, there will be numerous players who will play.
“There’ll be a fairly good rotation,” Smith said. “I think when you have a lot of new players, that tends to be what happens.”
Facing a Former Star and Strong D-Line
One of the main pieces Ohio lost on its defensive line is Bradley Weaver. A standout defensive end who amassed 29.5 TFL and 14.5 sacks in his career in Athens, plus a selection to the First Team MAC Defense last season.
This year, Weaver will face the Bobcats for the first time after transferring to Rutgers.
“I’m excited to see [Weaver] because I love him as a person. He was a joy to coach,” Smith said. “Obviously provides some challenges, but I hope that him and [Shedrick Rhodes] get some opportunities to go against each other. They’ve been battling for years since they’ve been here, and I think that’ll be fun to see.”
Weaver, along with the other defensive lineman for the Scarlett Knights will pose challenges for a reshuffled Bobcats OL.
“I have a lot of belief and trust in our players and our coach’s ability to prepare them,” Smith said. “I think having an athletic quarterback can always equalize some of those challenges too.”
Year Two of Parker Navarro Starting
With now a full season of starting experience for Ohio QB Parker Navarro, he is in a better spot to lead the Bobcats offense. Although Navarro put together a stellar campaign in 2025, there are still opportunities to grow.
“You always want to grow in your decision making as a quarterback,” Smith said. “That was something early in the season that I think were issues with him. The second half of the season he was really good in how he made decision, and that was a huge part of his success.”
Smith also attributes the growth for Navarro, and potential future growth to a ever-growing connection between the two.
“Some of our growth throughout the season too was myself just getting a little better feel of him and what he was good at. I think I was able to call games better for him throughout the season,” Smith added.
Defending Champion Mentality
Since the MAC Championship game was moved to Ford Field in Detroit in 2004, there have been just two schools to repeat at conference winners. Central Michigan took the MAC crown in 2006-07, and Northern Illinois won the MAC 2011-12.
For the Bobcats, they will play this season as the defending champions and need to hold that mentality.
“We talked about that kind of early in spring ball just how challenging it is,” Smith said. “It’s one thing to win a championship and it’s another thing to repeat as a champion. What happened last year is over, and we need to focus on what our team is this year and kind of move on to what’s next for us.”
The Bobcats season starts Aug. 28 at 6:00 p.m. in SHI Stadium. The game will be aired on the Big Ten Network.