Sports
Ohio earns program’s 600th win in victory over South Alabama
By: Meg Kuczinski
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ATHENS, Ohio (WOUB) – Ohio (1-1) took down South Alabama (0-2) in the Bobcat’s home opener 27-20.
Both teams came into this match up 0-1 and were seeking their first win of the season.
The Jaguars would find some difficulty on offense throughout this game as they were playing with their second-string quarterback, Bishop Davenport. South Alabama’s first drive stalled out, and Ohio picked up where they left off at the 21-yard line. The Bobcats had success in the air for their first drive, however, it wouldn’t amount to a score quite yet.
South Alabama finally was able to find some success with Fluff Bothwell’s 18-yard rush and Bishop Davenport’s 23-yard pass to PJ Martin. However, that drive stalled as well, and the Jaguars’ punted it back to the Bobcats.
On the first run of their second drive, Rickey Hunt Jr. rushed to the right for a gain of 59 yards. Despite their early success, Gavin Forsha sacked Parker Navarro for a loss of five yards. Gianni Spetic’s 45-yard field goal attempt capped Ohio’s drive to set the score at 3-0.
On the ensuing Jaguars drive, Ketrel Bullock rushed for 22 yards to set up South Alabama at the 47-yard line. Soon after, Bishop Davenport completed his pass to Devin Voisin for a gain of 15 yards. The first quarter ended with the Bobcats holding a 3-0 lead over South Alabama.
Once the Bobcats got the ball back midway through the second, they slowly pushed their way toward the end zone when Anthony Tyus III rushed up the middle for a gain of seven yards for an Ohio touchdown; 10-0 in the second quarter.
The Jaguars took the ball back over, but it was not long before they were forced to punt, and soon after, the Bobcats suffered offensive struggles too.
After taking the ball over from Ohio, Davenport got the Jaguars pass game rolling with a 13-yard competition. Davenport passed deep to the right to complete a 30-yard pass to Jamaal Pritchett for a first down. After a roughing the passer call, the Jaguars took over at the 10-yard line. South Alabama was unable to find the end zone, but Laith Marjan’s 28-yard field goal attempt was good, resulting in a 10-3 score.
The Bobcats took over on offense at the tail end of the first half. Navarro passed up the middle for 15 yards to Chase Henricks. Ohio slowly inched their way down the field until Navarro completed a 33-yard pass to Chase Henricks for a touchdown to set the score at 17-10 at the half.
The third quarter opened with the ball in the Bobcat’s hands. Navarro rushed for a gain of 14 yards to the 43-yard line and then completed a pass to Rodney Harris II to push the offense to the 34-yard line. After a pair of competitions to Chase Hendricks, Navarro rushed up the middle for a touchdown extending the Bobcats lead to 24-10.
“They were dropping a lot of guys on the coverage and some looks, and it just left me a little bit open. It always feels good to run around free,” Navarro said.
The Jaguars took the ball back over, and Davenport completed a pass to Devin Voisin for a 13-yard gain. South Alabama continued to push their way up the field, this time with another pass to Voisin for 18 yards and then another pass to Voisin.
They slowly inched their way to the endzone in a long drive, but their persistence finally paid off when Jamaal Pritchett found the endzone for the Jaguars, slicing into the Bobcats lead.
South Alabama kicked off their opening drive of the fourth quarter but was unable to reach the endzone. Marjan made another field goal, this time from 38 yards out, and South Alabama trailed by only four.
A few drives later, Parker Navarro secured a first down for the Bobcats with an 18-yard run. Ohio began to find more success on offense when Mason Williams took off on a 15-yard run and Rodney Harris II caught Navarro’s pass for a 15-yard gain. The Bobcats were unable to find the endzone but Gianni Spetic kicked a 26-yard field goal to set the score at 27-20.
Although this was a hard-fought battle between these two teams, the Bobcats ultimately pulled out the upset 27-20 for their 600th program win and are looking forward to their game next week against Morgan State.
Long-snapper Colby Garfield described the 600th win in program history when he said
“It feels amazing,” Garfield said. “The season just started. So, we’re excited to see what the rest of the year has.”
Head Coach Tim Albin spoke about the positives of tonight’s game and what he would like to see next week against the Bears.
“Going to enjoy this for 24 hours, continue to have a one game at a time mindset, and keep pressing,” Albin said.
Next week, Ohio will face Morgan State, while South Alabama will take on Northwestern State.