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Davis, Franklin lead Western Michigan past Ohio

Vick's return not nearly enough to spark Bobcats


KALAMAZOO, Mich. – Derrius Vick returned from injury and gave Ohio a spark offensively in the second half but it was not nearly enough as Western Michigan ran away with a 42-21 victory against the Bobcats on Saturday at Waldo Stadium.

JD Sprague started at quarterback, but Vick, who was the starter until an injury but practiced all week, took over after Sprague got hurt and was ineffective. With Ohio playing from behind, Ohio was forced to throw a lot, and Vick went 18 of 31 for 246 yards with a touchdown and an interception.

Sprague was just 2-of-5 passing for 38 yards and led the Bobcats to only two first downs on five possessions. By then, Ohio was down 21-7.

Even so, the Bobcats (4-5, 2-3 Mid-American Conference) actually had the early lead when Brett Layton intercepted a Zach Terrell pass tipped by Quentin Poling and returned it to the Western Michigan 3-yard line, setting up a Daz’mond Patterson touchdown run.

Terrell was hard to stop the rest of the day, especially relying on Corey Davis, and so was freshman running back workhorse Jarvion Franklin. Terrell went 22-of-28 passing for 344 yards and two touchdowns, Davis caught nine passes for 212 yards and two touchdowns and Franklin ran 35 times for 156 yards and three scores.

Franklin ran in from 4 yards out to tie the game at 7 with 3:05 remaining, and the Broncos (5-3, 3-1 MAC) went ahead on a 1-yard Franklin run early in the second quarter. Terrell then hooked up with Davis for a 72-yard touchdown pass with 8:23 to go before the half.

Vick had a rough entry into the game. Getting hit as he threw out of the end zone on a third-down play, he was intercepted by Trevor Ishmael, who had a short return for a score that made it 28-7.

Finally, early in the fourth quarter, Vick connected deep with Chase Cochran for a 66-yard touchdown pass that got Ohio to within two scores. If not for two missed Jeremiah Yazdani field goals before that – a 36-yarder that was blocked at the end of the first half and a 42-yarder that was wide in the third quarter – the Bobcats would have been right back in the game.

Instead, Davis got free again for a 56-yard touchdown pass less than two minutes after Cochran’s score and Western Michigan was right back in command. The Broncos added another Franklin touchdown, a 1-yarder, after Patterson fumbled a punt return.

Ohio’s final score came with four seconds remaining on a long drive that was capped by a Dorian Brown 2-yard run.

While Vick returned from injury at quarterback, starting freshman running back A.J. Ouellette sat out for the second time this year. Patterson ran for 56 yards on 12 carries, while Vick had 32 yards on 15 attempts despite being sacked six times.

The Bobcats played with few options at safety after Thad Ingol was ejected for a targeting penalty and Josh Kristoff injured early, and Aaron Macer finished with eight tackles, including one for loss. Linebacker Jovon Johnson matched him with eight tackles and had a sack and an interception. Brandon Purdum also recovered a fumble forced by Toran Davis, as Ohio forced three turnovers and committed two.

"I think they do have pride,” Ohio coach Frank Solich said. “I think they do have courage. And I think that the want and the will is there. I think they'll play very, very hard to get this thing turned around."

Ohio will have a week and a half off before hosting Buffalo at 8 p.m. Nov. 5 at Peden Stadium.








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