The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
Tennessee
Football Hangs Tough, Falls 47-26 at Tennessee
September 22 | Football
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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tied 23-all at the half, The University of Akron football team was out-scored 24-3 after the break to fall 47-26 to Tennessee in its final non-conference game of the season Saturday night at Neyland Stadium.
Akron (1-3) kept the Vols off-balance for most of the game, scoring on defense and holding UT to field goals instead of touchdowns. It wasn't until 9:02 left in the fourth quarter that either team grabbed a lead bigger than seven points.
Dalton Williams finished the contest 27-of-49 for 229 yards and three interceptions. His 121 completions through four games broke Charlie Frye's school mark for completions over a four-game stretch (110), which was set during the 2003 season.
Marquelo Suel hauled in a career-high 12 passes for 92 yards while Zach D'Orazio finished with six grabs for 72 yards.
Quentin Hines led the Zips with 76 yards on six carries, including a 70-yard touchdown run in the second quarter. Robert Stein finished the game a perfect 4-for-4 on field goal attempts. Troy Gilmer led the Akron defense with 10 tackles (five solo).
Tennessee's (3-1) Tyler Bray finished the game 27-of-43 for 401 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.
Akron opened the second half by driving to the Tennessee 15, but Williams would throw his second interception of the game. The UA defense would hold strong and stop UT for a second time on fourth down to get the ball back.
It looked as though the Akron defense forced Tennessee into its third turnover of the game, but the play was reviewed and reversed. UT would score four plays later to take a 30-23 lead at the 6:47 mark of the third quarter.
The Zips put together a 16-play, 60-yard scoring drive thanks to Stein's fourth field goal of the day, cutting the deficit to 30-26 with 14:50 remaining in the game. Akron's 16 plays on the scoring drive were the most this season. A UT field goal just over two minutes later pushed its lead back to seven (33-26) with 12:28 left in the contest.
Following Williams' third interception of the game, Tennessee scored on the next play to increase its lead to 40-26 (9:02). The interception came on a ball that was tipped by Suel. The Vols added a touchdown on its next possession for a 47-26 lead.
Avis Commack put Akron on the board just 35 second into the game when he picked off Tyler Bray and returned it 44 yards for a touchdown. It was UA's first pick-six since Nov. 27, 2009, when Miguel Graham returned one against Eastern Michigan.
Tennessee answered with a 13-play, 75-yard drive to tie the game at 7-all with 9:55 on the first quarter clock. UT tacked on a 37-yard field goal to take its first lead (10-7) at the 6:55 mark. The field goal was set up by a Williams interception.
Bre' Ford forced the second UT turnover of the game, forcing a fumble by Rajion Neal. Kurt Mangum recovered the fumble to give Akron first-and-ten at the UT 29. Stein connected on a 45-yard field goal to tie the game at 10.
The Volunteers opened the scoring in the second quarter with a 23-yard field goal to retake a 13-10 lead with 14:53 remaining before halftime. Nearly four minutes later, the Zips tied the game once again at 13-all thanks to a 32-yard field goal by Stein.
UT would respond with a seven-play, 75-yard drive for a touchdown and a 20-13 lead with 8:12 remaining in the first half. Stein added his third field goal of the half to close the gap to 20-16 with 5:04 left before intermission.
Akron grabbed its first lead of the second quarter when Hines scampered 70 yards for a touchdown, giving UA a 23-20 lead. The score came following a fourth-and-one stop by the Akron defense.
With 1:03 remaining in the half, Tennessee tied the game for the fourth time on a 22-yard field goal. The Zips would kneel on the ball and go into the locker room with the game tied 23-23.
The Zips return home for their next two games beginning with an ESPN3 contest against Miami (Ohio) on Saturday, Sept. 29. Kickoff is set for 2 p.m. ET.
Zips Notebook: The Bowden and Dooley families have only faced off once before tonight, with Bobby Bowden (FSU) and Vince Dooley (Georgia) coaching against each other in the 1984 Citrus Bowl (T, 17-17) ... the last player with a 70-yard run was Alex Allen (74) against Northern Illinois on Nov. 2, 2010 ... Dalton Williams' interception at the 11:35 mark of the third quarter snapped a streak of five-straight scores in the red zone for the Zips dating back to the Morgan State victory (Sept. 15) ... Marquelo Suel's previous career high was 11 catches against Central Michigan (Oct. 29, 2011) ... Akron's previous mark for most plays on a scoring drive this season was 14 against Morgan State ... Charlie Frye completed 36 passes against Kent State, 31 at Wisconsin, 22 against Eastern Michigan and 21 against Howard.
