Kent State football was doomed after facing a 14-3 first quarter deficit to Bowling Green – and it did not get any better after that.

The Flashes could not regroup after falling behind and were outscored in the fourth quarter alone after giving up 21 points in the final frame of a 49-19 defeat.

“It was a tough loss- credit to Bowling Green; they’re a good program and are doing it the right way,” coach Kenni Burns said. “They did a great job coaching, and they got their guys ready to roll, and credit to them. Obviously, we have to play better, but I am proud of our team’s fight. But we have to execute to the end, as well, and we didn’t do that.”

The slow start would set the team up for its ninth loss of the season and seventh in a row.

A 1-9 overall and 0-6 record in Mid-American Conference play puts the team in last place in the MAC East, and are the only team in the MAC without a conference win so far this season.

The Falcons won its fourth straight game, improving to 6-4 on the season overall, with a 4-2 in-conference record – good enough for a tie for second place in the MAC East.

Recap

Kent State started the game’s scoring with a 48-yard field goal from junior kicker Andrew Glass, putting the Flashes up 3-0.

BGSU would use a pair of touchdowns to take a big lead before the second quarter started.

Senior quarterback Camden Orth’s one-yard touchdown run and sophomore tight end Harold Fannin Jr.’s 47-yard touchdown catch from senior quarterback Connor Bazelak gave BGSU a lead it would not squander.

The Falcons separated themselves in the second quarter by outscoring KSU 14-3 in the quarter.

Glass drilled a 32-yard field goal, the 50th of his career, to make it a one-score game early in the second quarter, trimming the lead to 14-6.

BGSU scored twice in the final 5:18 of the half to put the game away.

Orth not only threw a 45-yard touchdown pass to junior running back Ta’Ron Keith, but he also had a two-yard touchdown run with 51 seconds left on the clock, giving the Falcons a 28-6 lead going into the half.

The Flashes would be the only team to score in the third quarter and would do so on a redshirt senior Hayden Junker 21-yard touchdown catch from sophomore quarterback Tommy Ulatowski, making the score 28-13.

It was Junker’s first touchdown of the season and was Ulatowski’s seventh passing touchdown this season.

After a good defensive quarter in the third, Kent State allowed three fourth-quarter touchdowns to put the game away.

Redshirt senior running back Jaylen Thomas had his two-yard rushing touchdown, along with a failed two-point conversion, surrounded by Falcon scores in the final quarter.

Keith scored his second touchdown of the game on a two-yard run, junior running back Jaison Patterson added a three-yarder, and freshman quarterback Lucian Anderson III capped off the scoring with a one-yard rushing touchdown of his own, wrapping up the game with the 49-19 score.

Ulatowski started in his second straight game and completed 23 of his 40 pass attempts for 284 passing yards, with one touchdown and one interception.

The quarterback has thrown for over 220 yards in both of his starts this season – redshirt junior quarterback Mike Alaimo, who started the season as the starting quarterback, never reached 200 passing yards in a game.

With both quarterbacks contending for the starting job, Burns put the competition to bed after the game.

“Tommy’s won the job, and Tommy’s done a great job with it,” he said. “He’s grown and gotten better, and when Mike gets back, Mike will have a role, as well.”

Thomas has spearheaded the running game for the Flashes in the second half of the season and continued to play well, rushing 18 times for 73 yards and one touchdown – his second of the season.

“He runs behind his pads, he fights for extra yards, he has a good feel for the inside zone/ outside zone stuff, he’s durable – he doesn’t get hurt very often, and it doesn’t have to be blocked perfectly for him,” Burns said. “You have a special back when you have a guy in the backfield, but he still finds a way to find three or four yards.

In the absence of breakout redshirt freshman wide receiver Chrishon McCray, Luke Floriea made himself known against BGSU. The senior wide receiver was targeted 18 times and caught nine balls for 95 yards – all season highs.

“We did some stuff, creatively, to get Luke involved, with Chrishon down, and it worked,” Burns said. “We got Luke some touches early on in the game, and then we moved him around different spots and created matchup things for Tommy. I thought Luke did a good job – he had a really good game.”

The defense was led by graduate student safety Bryce Sheppert’s seven total tackles, one tackle for loss and one interception – his first of the season.

KSU failed to pass the 20-point threshold for the eighth time this season and allowed 40 points or more for the fourth time Wednesday night.

Kent State’s defense allowing 190 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns is the most since its week one matchup against the University of Central Florida when the Flashes allowed 389 rushing yards and five rushing touchdowns in a 56-6 loss.

“It came back to misfitting some things,” Burns said. “We had a couple of young linebackers playing, and you could tell they knew that. We have some challenges, and we have guys that just have to grow and learn, and that’s part of the process.”

Looking ahead

The Flashes will have a little time to figure it out before heading to Muncie, Indiana, on Saturday, Nov. 18, to take on Ball State.

The struggling Cardinals sit in last place in the MAC West, with a 3-7 overall record to go along with its 2-4 in-conference record.

Ball State has controlled the all-time rivalry for the most part, winning 22 of the 30 matchups against KSU, including winning 19 of the most 23 recent contests.

Kickoff will be at 2 p.m. in Scheumann Stadium.

“We’re going to take every challenge we have, and we’ll just find a way to grow and respond in a positive way, and get creative, as coaches, and find ways to put these guys in the best situation, and just keep getting better,” Burns said. “That’s all we can do. You look at all the coaches in the MAC who started here; a lot of them had the same kind of struggles we have, and a couple of years later, it turned into a success, and that’s the plan here. I know that we’re moving in the right direction.”

John Hilber is a reporter. Contact him at [email protected].