Zips Fall in Marathon Game at Western Michigan

Saturday, October 12

Kalamazoo, Mich

3:30 PM

University of Akron

1-6 , 0-3

Western Michigan

3-3 , 2-0

1st

2nd

3rd

4th

Akron

Western Michigan

October 13 | Football

Box Score Photo Gallery

KALAMAZOO, Michigan -- Redshirt junior Ben Finley threw for 395 yards and sophomore Adrian Norton put up 168 receiving yards, but Akron fell to Western Michigan 34-24 after a five-hour lightning delay at Waldo Stadium.

Offensively, Akron had an outstanding day, logging 501 total yards, 88 on the ground and 413 through the air. Akron averaged 7.7 yards per play and out-gained Western Michigan by 114 yards (387 total yards). The Zips converted 46.2 percent of third-down attempts (6-of-13) and 80 percent in the redzone (4-of-5).

Finley went 24-for-36 on the way to the 395-yard outing with one interception and a 60-yard pass to Norton. Norton hauled in eight passes for the 168 yards to lead the receiving corps .

Redshirt junior Jordon Simmons paced the Zips rushing attack by accumulating 63 yards and one touchdown, averaging 4.8 yards per carry. Simmons also tacked on 97 receiving yards on six targets with a 52 yard long gain. Redshirt junior Tahj Bullock also added 14 yards and two touchdowns on the ground, as well as 54 receiving yards.

Redshirt senior Kabbash Richards led the Akron defensive effort, collecting 1.5 TFL and one sack, while redshirt senior Nathan Kapongo and senior Bennett Adler added 1.5 TFL each for a total of five yards.

Redshirt sophomore Elijah Reed had six tackles and 1.0 TFL, while Kapongo and junior Bryan McCoy led the squad in total tackles with nine and eight, respectively.

Akron's defense held up fairly well against the run, limiting Western Michigan to 196 yards on the ground.

The Broncos improved to 3-3 on the year and 2-0 in Mid-American Conference play, while the Zips fell to 1-6 overall and 0-3 in conference matchups.

How It Happened

Akron scored first with 10:21 left in the first quarter to take a 3-0 lead.The Zips then followed with another score to increase the lead to 10-0.

Akron then added a touchdown with 14:16 left in the second quarter to make it a 17-0 lead.Western Michigan scored to grab a 24-17 lead, but the Zips scored again to even the game at 24-24. Akron didn't score again in the game and Western Michigan added 10 more points to finish off the scoring.

Game Notes

» Akron outgained Western Michigan 501-387, including a 413-191 advantage through the air.
» Akron had their highest scoring quarter in the first period, when they put up 10 points.
» Akron converted 6 of 13 third downs while Western Michigan was successful on 7 of 14.
» The Zips had two players with more than eight tackles in the ballgame led by Nate Kapongo, who had nine.
» Akron got off to a fantastic start in the contest, putting 17 unanswered points on the board before Western Michigan could respond.
» Finley completed 66.7% of his passes on the day, going 24-for-36 while averaging 11 yards per attempt.
» Hayden Wolff led the Broncos passing attack, completing 17 of his 25 attempts for 191 yards and two touchdowns.
» Jalen Buckley led the Western Michigan rushing attack with 103 yards.

UP NEXT
Week seven is the bye week for the Akron. The Zips return to #MACtion at InfoCision Stadium-Summa Field against Eastern Michigan on Saturday, Oct. 26. Kickoff is TBD.