The Ohio Bobcats survived a fourth-quarter comeback by the Akron Zips, winning 34-28 to improve to 7-0 for the first time since 1968.
Ohio entered the fourth quarter with a 34-14 lead, but Akron quarterbackDalton Williams led the team to two touchdowns, finding Jerrod Dillard on a 6-yard touchdown with 9:15 left and then on a 5-yard touchdown with 1:59 left. Ohio got the ball back and the Zips (1-6, 0-3 MAC) couldn't stop the clock with no timeouts left, so the Bobcats ran it out.
Williams finished 32-for-53 for 298 yards and four touchdowns with two interceptions. He also threw touchdown passes to L.T. Smith and Tyler Williams. Jawon Chisholm had 28 carries for 177 yards for Akron.
Ohio, which improved to 3-0 in the MAC, built a 20-0 lead early. On a trick play, quarterback Tyler Tettleton caught a 39-yard touchdown pass from Landon Smith in the first quarter. Tettleton connected with Donte Foster for a 13-yard touchdown later in the quarter and then threw a touchdown pass to Troy Hill in the third quarter. Ryan Boykin had the other Ohio touchdown and carried the ball 19 times for 96 yards.
Box Score Hero: Ohio quarterback Tyler Tettleton only completed 13-for-27 passes for 150 yards, but he threw two touchdown passes and had a 39-yard touchdown reception on a trick play in the first quarter. He set Ohio's touchdown-pass record in the process.
Rankings Ramifications: The Bobcats aren't going to impress anyone enough to get into the rankings simply because of a win over a 1-6 team, but the team is now 7-0 and will certainly merit consideration with so many teams underperforming in the bottom half of the rankings this season.
But Did They Cover? Ohio entered as 21-point favorites, so they did not cover.
For More On This Game: For more on Akron and Ohio football, visit MAC blog Hustle Belt and SB Nation Cleveland.
Next Week's Schedule: Ohio has a bye next week and plays at Miami (Ohio) at 3:30 p.m. Oct. 27. Akron hosts Northern Illinois at noon Oct. 20.
This story was originally published by SBNation.com