Ohio is always a contender, but never the champion. Does the 56-year drought end in Detroit?
The Ohio Bobcats (9-3, 7-1 MAC) are one step away from completing a journey 56 years in the making.
Ohio is always a contender, but never the champion. The Bobcats have only suffered one losing season since 2009, and that was an odd transition year in 2021 when Frank Solich unexpectedly stepped down in the summer to head the reigns to his longtime protégé Tim Albin.
Albin only needed one year to adjust, and now he routinely wins games on a field named after his former mentor. Albin’s Bobcats currently own the MAC’s best overall record at 9-3, and with a victory in the MAC Championship Game or the ensuing bowl, Ohio can generated 10 wins for the third year in a row.
Despite all the success, the year 1968 always creeps back into the picture. That’s the last time Ohio won a MAC title. The Bobcats are 0-5 in MAC Championship Games, most recently qualifying under Albin in 2022, and now they aim to snap a drought that’s lasted five decades and change. Here’s how Ohio landed on this stage.
The journey
Ohio is fresh off a 10-3 season, but make no mistake about it, the 2024 Bobcats are a far different team than the 2023 Bobcats. Ohio was severely gutted by graduation and the transfer portal over the offseason.
Notable losses include starting quarterback Kurtis Rourke, who guided Indiana to the College Football Playoff this year, as well as the team’s top three rushers, top seven receivers, and top three tacklers including two First Team All-MAC linebackers. In fact, all six of Ohio’s 2023 All-MAC selections graduated or transferred out of the program. Even defensive coordinator Spence Nowinsky, who captained a 6th-ranked scoring defense and 4th-ranked total defense, departed to accept a co-defensive coordinator gig at Memphis.
Albin essentially started from scratch, relying on development of his 2023 backups as well as several key transfer additions. As expected, it was a rocky start to the 2024 season as Ohio stumbled out of the gate in a 38-22 loss to Syracuse — which looks much more respectable in present-day given Syracuse’s 9-3 record and several high profile wins. The Bobcats proved themselves the following week, however, taking down a decent South Alabama team in a close finish in Athens, OH.
After dismantling its FCS opponent, the Bobcats concluded non-conference play in SEC country at Kentucky. It was the only game Ohio lacked starting quarterback Parker Navarro all year, and the offense greatly suffered while the defense had an uncharacteristically brutal day. Kentucky clobbered the Bobcats 41-6, setting Ohio to 2-2 entering MAC play.
The Bobcats eased into their conference slate with matchups against a pair of 4-8 finishers in Akron and Central Michigan. Ohio picked apart Akron with 20 points of separation, but the Chippewas were a much tougher contest for Albin’s team. After establishing a 24-0 lead on the road, Ohio needed to fend off a late rally as Central Michigan posted 17 points in a dramatic fourth quarter.
Rich Barnes-Imagn Images
Situated at 4-2 and 2-0 in MAC play, Ohio would face its greatest challenge on Oct. 19. In-state rival Miami (OH) played host to the Bobcats in the Battle of the Bricks rivalry, and the result wasn’t as close as the scoreboard indicated. Ohio trailed 30-6 with under seven minutes to go, marred by a lackluster offensive showing. The Bobcats ultimately fell 30-20, but at the time, they didn’t realize another matchup with Miami would loom in Detroit.
Ohio recovered spectacularly from its lone MAC defeat to rattle off five-straight wins to conclude the 2024 regular season. Perhaps the Bobcats’ greatest statement of 2024 was made in their final Saturday game before the midweek slate, annihilating a quality Buffalo squad 47-16. The Parker Navarro to Coleman Owen connection dominated the Bulls’ secondary while Ohio gashed Buffalo’s offensive line with four sacks and seven tackles for loss.
The momentum sustained on both sides of the ball as the Bobcats kicked off their midweek stretch with a 41-0 shutout of Kent State. The following week, they utilized dominance from Navarro in the run game (106 rushing yards, 4 TD) to throttle Eastern Michigan, 35-10. The defense then held its own in a pivotal contest at Toledo that featured immense MAC Championship stakes. Despite notching zero points in the first half, Ohio remained in the contest by means of its defense. That allowed the Bobcats to take over the fourth quarter, and they escaped the Glass Bowl with a 24-7 victory.
Ball State was the final obstacle standing in Ohio’s path toward a second MAC Championship Game appearance in three years. The Bobcats made light work of the Cardinals behind Navarro’s dual-threat capabilities and a stellar showing by Owen in the receiving game.
Ohio finished the regular season as the MAC’s only 9-win team, and it earned a chance to avenge its October loss to Miami (OH) in the conference championship. Neither team has lost since the Week 8 meeting, and this will be the Bobcats’ first opportunity to battle the RedHawks in Detroit for the conference crown — since the MAC scrapped divisions prior to this season. A win could make a 56-year wait finally worth it.
Players to watch
From 2020-24, Ohio’s offense operated under the stability of one quarterback. That quarterback Kurtis Rourke transferred to Indiana this offseason and is currently leading the greatest season in Hoosier history. Rather than consult the portal for a new No. 1 quarterback, the Bobcats simply promoted Rourke’s understudy. Parker Navarro earned his shine last December when leading the Bobcats to a victory over Georgia Southern in the Myrtle Beach Bowl.
In his first year as a full-time starter, Navarro quickly became one of the most lethal mobile quarterbacks in the MAC. Navarro currently ranks fifth among all FBS quarterbacks with 876 rushing yards and he’s tied for sixth nationally with 13 rushing touchdowns. The Arizona native exceeded 100 yards in five of 11 regular season games and enters the MAC Championship Game on a streak of three-straight games over the century mark.
As a passer, Navarro isn’t the type that typically slices apart defenses with 300 yards. His season-high was 277, but he possesses one of the more accurate stat-lines in the conference with a 65.0 completion rate. He threw 10 touchdowns and 10 interceptions, but the most impressive part of his passing game was the ability to avoid sacks — only getting sacked once on his last 105 attempts.
With a mobile quarterback, Ohio’s offense relies heavily on the ground game. The Bobcats hit a home run in the transfer portal by acquiring Anthony Tyus III from Northwestern, who checks in at second in the MAC with 960 rushing yards. The soon-to-be 1,000-yard rusher posted 100 yards four times in his first year as a Bobcat, and it’s not a rare occurrence for both Navarro and Tyus to finish simultaneously in triple-digit territory. The secondary tailback Rickey Hunt is best known for dominating the Myrtle Beach Bowl last December with five touchdowns on 18 touches. While Hunt didn’t have a performance like that in 2024, he picked up an impressive 5.0 yards per carry as the secondary option behind Tyus.
Jordan Prather-Imagn Images
Although Ohio is more renowned for its presence in the run game, the Bobcats have a 1,000-yard receiver within its offense. Coleman Owen was the overwhelming No. 1 target all year for Navarro, and the roommates connected for seven touchdowns this season — when no other Bobcat receiver collected more than one. Owen hauled in 62 receptions, and the next closest teammates was Chase Hendricks who logged 32. Rodney Harris and tight end Mason Williams are other options to watch, but Owen and Hendricks comprise of the majority of the receiving production.
While Navarro, Tyus, and Owen are all relatively new contributors in Athens, the offensive line comes equipped with MAC Championship experience. Center Parker Titsworth has been a staple of the unit, starting every game since the 2022 season. Christophe Atkinson and Jacob Dennison are other veterans on the team, keeping Navarro upright as a passer and allowing the dynamic run game to thrive.
As sharp as Ohio’s offense has been at times, defense is the stronger and more consistent unit leading the team to victories. Everything starts up front with defensive end Bradley Weaver who leads the Bobcats in sacks for the second-straight year. Weaver backed out of the portal over the offseason and returned with a purpose, registering 8.0 sacks and 13 tackles for loss as the team’s premier defensive lineman. His pass rushing is assisted by Cincinnati transfer nose tackle CJ Doggette who commands plenty of attention at nose tackle in the 3-3-5 scheme.
Top-tier linebacker play graced Ohio’s campus last season, and while Bryce Houston and Keye Thompson weren’t seamless replacements, the Bobcats did a great job at filling those vacancies. Outside linebacker Blake Leake leads the group with 73 tackles while inside linebacker Shay Taylor features a loaded stat-line of 63 tackles, nine tackles for loss, two forced fumbles, and four pass breakups.
Interceptions haven’t been a frequent occurrence for the Ohio secondary, except for cornerback Tank Pearson who has three on the year. Miami features a talented receiving corps, so Pearson and fellow cornerback Roman Parodie will have their work cut out for them — but the duo will be a viable counter with 84 collective tackles and 15 pass breakups. One other crucial component of the secondary is free safety Adonis Williams. The junior missed roughly half the season, but Ohio hasn’t lost since he returned on Oct. 19. Williams is one of the more veteran members of the group and the coverage specialist suited up for the 2022 MAC title game vs. Toledo.
Finally on special teams, Gianni Spetic is in his second year handling placekicking duties. Spetic isn’t called upon too often with only 14 attempts this season, but he’s been quite reliable with 11 makes. However, Ohio refrains from long attempts, only trying one kick longer than 46 yards in 2024.
Team statistics
Offense
- Scoring offense: 28.5 points per game (t-63rd in FBS)
- Passing offense: 178-of-290 (61.4%), 2,205 yards, 12 touchdowns, 11 interceptions, 7.6 yards per attempt, 12.4 yards per completion, 183.8 yards per game (68th in FBS)
- Rushing offense: 482 carries for 2,518 yards, 29 touchdowns, 5.2 yards per carry, 209.8 yards per game (14th in FBS)
- Red zone offense: 40-of-44 (82.1%); 32 touchdowns (25 rush, 7 pass), 8 field goals (t-20th in FBS)
- First downs: 248 first downs (123 rush, 100 pass, 25 penalties) (t-69th in FBS)
- Conversion rates: 70-of-150 (46.7%) on 3rd down (t-16th in FBS), 5-of-9 (55.6%) on 4th down (t-54th in FBS)
Defense
- Scoring defense: 18.7 points per game (17th in FBS)
- Opponent passing offense: 230-of-375 (61.3%), 2,485 yards, 15 touchdowns, 9 interceptions (t-74th in FBS), 207.1 yards per game (50th in FBS)
- Opponent rushing offense: 372 carries, 1,164 yards, 11 rushing touchdowns, 3.1 yards per attempt, 97.0 yards per game on average (t-7th in FBS)
- Sacks/tackles-for-loss: 30 sacks for 229 yards, averaging 2.50 sacks per game (t-35th in FBS); 80 tackles for loss for 345 yards, averaging 6.7 TFLs per game (t-30th in FBS)
- Red zone defense: 26-of-30 (86.7%), 20 touchdowns (13 rush, 7 pass), 6 field goals (t-97th in FBS)
- Opponent first downs: 203 first downs (69 rush, 121 pass, 13 penalties) (18th in FBS)
- Opponent conversion rates: 64-of-169 (37.9%) on 3rd down (61st in FBS), 8-of-19 (42.1%) on 4th down (20th in FBS)
Special teams
- Kicking: 11-of-14 (85.2%) (t-55th in FBS), long of 46 (t-111th in FBS)
- Punting: 54 punts, 2,219 yards, 41.1 average (97th in FBS)
- Returning: 22 kickoff returns, 489 yards, 1 touchdown, 22.2 average (32nd in FBS), 14 punt returns, 137 yards, 1 touchdown, 9.8 average (44th in FBS)