The University of Akron Athletics
University of Akron
3-8 , 2-5
Kent State
0-11 , 0-7
Zips Claim Wagon Wheel for Second Straight Season with 38-17 Victory at Kent State
November 19 | Football
KENT, Ohio - The Akron Football team claimed the Wagon Wheel for the second straight season after defeating rival Kent State 38-17 at Dix Stadium Tuesday evening.
Akron's rushing attack helped the Zips roll past the Golden Flashes with 277 yards gained on the ground. Redshirt junior Jordon Simmons led the ground game with 113 yards and 10.3 per carry. Redshirt sophomore Charles Kellom also cracked the century mark with 104 yards rushing and one touchdown. Redshirt junior Tahj Bullock rushed for two touchdowns and 35 yards.
Sophomore Adrian Norton recorded over 100 receiving yards against the Golden Flashes, posting 107 yards on five receptions and 21.4 yards per catch. Kellom added 44 yards receiving to his rushing performance while redshirt junior Jarvis Rush recorded his first NCAA touchdown reception on a 36 yard strike from redshirt junior Ben Finley.
Finley threw for 250 yards (14-29-0) and one touchdown when he found Rush.Â
Redshirt junior Garrison Smith was perfect on night kicking, going 3-for-3 after hitting 43,27 and 26 yard field goals.
The Zips racked up 527 total yards on offense, 277 on the ground and 250 through the air, while averaging 6.8 yards per play and out-gaining Kent State.
Redshirt sophomore Elijah Reed and junior Bryan McCoy led the Zips defense with seven tackles each while seniors Antavious Fish and Paul Lewis III combined for 10 tackles with five each. Senior CJ Nunnally IV and redshirt junior Justin Anderson and Dimitri Madden all recorded a sack in the win. Reed recorded one interception and returned the INT for 26 yards.
Akron's defense held up against Kent State's offense, giving up 281 total yards.
The Zips improved to 3-8 on the year and 2-5 in Mid-American Conference play, while the Golden Flashes fell to 0-11 and 0-7.
Kent State took an early 7-0 lead, but Akron got on the scoreboard with 10:34 left in the first quarter to cut the deficit to 7-3 when Smith hit a 43-yard field goal.The Zips then took the lead on a three-yard rushing touchdown from Bullock, making the score 10-7.
Akron continued to expand its lead, scoring again with 13:05 left in the second quarter to go ahead 17-7 when Kellom ran for 13 yards.The Zips continued to add to their lead after Kent State narrowed the gap to 17-10, scoring again to go ahead 20-10 after Smith hit a 26-yard field goal.
Akron continued to extend its advantage, scoring again with :00 left in the second quarter to go up 23-10 on another field goal from Smith, this time a 27-yard field goal.The Zips kept scoring, tacking on a touchdown to increase their advantage to 30-10 when Bullock scored on a eight yard rush.
Akron held the Golden Flashes off the board before scoring for a final time with 4:17 left in the third quarter, stretching their lead to 38-10 when Finley hit Rush on a 36-yard reception. Akron didn't score again and Kent State tacked on seven more points to finish off the scoring.
Game Notes» Simmons and Kellom all rushed for over 100 yards for the Zips.
» Akron outgained Kent State 527-281, including a 277-52 advantage on the ground.
» Akron had their highest scoring quarter in the third period, when they put up 15 points.
» Akron converted 8 of 15 third downs while Kent State was successful on 1 of 11.
» Smith knocked through three field goals for the Zips with a long of 43 yards.
» Akron won the time of possession battle 36:32 to 23:28.
» The Zips offense came out of halftime firing on all cylinders, scoring 15 unanswered the rest of the way.
What's Next?
Akron concludes the 2024 season at InfoCision Stadium - Summa Field when they host the Toledo Rockets on Tuesday, November 26 for a 7 p.m.Â
Team Stats
AKR 0, KSU 7
KSU - Floriea,Luke 80 yd pass from Ulatowski,Tommy (Hryszko,Will kick) 3 plays, 84 yards, TOP 01:20
AKR 3, KSU 7
AKR - Smith,Garrison 43 yd field goal 7 plays, 42 yards, TOP 02:50
AKR 10, KSU 7
AKR - Bullock,Tahj 3 yd run (Smith,Garrison kick), 8 plays, 50 yards, TOP 03:54
AKR 17, KSU 7
AKR - Kellom,Charles 13 yd run (Smith,Garrison kick), 7 plays, 91 yards, TOP 03:58
AKR 17, KSU 10
KSU - Hryszko,Will 40 yd field goal 8 plays, 53 yards, TOP 04:30
AKR 20, KSU 10
AKR - Smith,Garrison 26 yd field goal 9 plays, 62 yards, TOP 02:31
AKR 23, KSU 10
AKR - Smith,Garrison 27 yd field goal 9 plays, 89 yards, TOP 01:43
AKR 30, KSU 10
AKR - Bullock,Tahj 8 yd run (Smith,Garrison kick), 9 plays, 65 yards, TOP 04:08
AKR 38, KSU 10
AKR - Rush,Jarvis 36 yd pass from Finley,Ben (Kellom,Charles pass) 7 plays, 81 yards, TOP 04:38
AKR 38, KSU 17
KSU - McCray,Chrishon 37 yd pass from Ulatowski,Tommy (Hryszko,Will kick) 4 plays, 59 yards, TOP 01:16
