by Akron, Ohio – The Akron Zips opened their home schedule on Saturday night with a matchup against the Colgate Raiders. Colgate was able to get out to an early lead but could not hold on as the Zips came roaring back. Akron was led by QB Ben Finley who threw for 358 yards and 4 touchdowns while completing over 65% of his passes.
The Colgate Raiders had their offense rolling right out of gate on Saturday night. They quickly went 75 yards down the field in 6 plays to kick off the scoring. Quarterback Michael Brescia found wideout Treyvhon Saunders for a 33-yard touchdown pass.
After each team traded 3-and-outs, the Raiders were set to punt the ball away. During the punt, the Zips could not hold on and the ball was free. The Raiders special teams hopped on the ball at the Akron 3 yard line to set themselves up for another quick score. Michael Brescia would take it himself on the next play for a 3-yard touchdown run to extend the Raiders’ lead.
The Colgate defense once again forced an Akron 3-and-out that led to a botched punt that set the Raiders up at the Akron 38. The Raiders’ offense could not move the ball down the field for another touchdown. However, kicker Luke Vogeler was able to drill a 51-yard field goal that put Colgate up 17-0.
With Akron down big early, they desperately needed to put a scoring drive together to stay in the game. That is just what they did as a 9-play, 75-yard drive got them on the board. Quarterback Ben Finley found running back Charles Kellom for a 7-yard catch-and-run into the endzone. After the 1st quarter, Colgate held a 17-7 lead.
On the Zips’ next drive, they quickly scored on a 5-play, 69-yard drive. It was capped off by a 2-yard touchdown pass from Ben Finley to TE Jake Newell. Akron now had gained a lot of momentum.
During the following Colgate drive, DB Darrian Lewis toe-tapped the sideline to intercept a pass by Colgate QB Jake Stearney. This gave the Zips possession and the potential to take the lead. When asked about the play and if he knew he got his foot down he said, “As I saw the ball I just knew I had a chance to make a play and I had to make it… I think I might have got two in. It might have been good on Sundays.”
Just 4 plays later, Ben Finley found Bobby Golden over the middle for a 56-yard touchdown strike. After the PAT, the Zips suddenly had a 21-17 lead.
Akron was not done scoring yet in the first half. Following a defensive stop that forced Colgate to turn the ball over on downs, the Akron offense went on a methodical drive. An 11-play, 60-yard scoring drive was capped off by an 18-yard touchdown pass from Ben Finley to Adrian Norton. With just 30 seconds left in the half, the Zips would go into the break with a 28-17 lead.
The second half got off to a much slower start than the first. Neither team could get into much of a rhythm offensively. For Akron, two drives added up to just 24 yards of offense and two punts. Meanwhile for Colgate, they went 3-and-out on their opening drive of the half. However, on their 2nd drive, they went 42 yards down the field in 15 plays that set up a Luke Vogeler 45-yard field goal. After three quarters, Akron held a 28-20 lead.
The one possession game would not last, however. On the next Akron drive, they executed a 13-play, 60-yard drive that ended with a Garrison Smith 32-yard field goal. This would put the Zips up 31-20 which would prove to be the final score.
Late in the 4th with the Zips driving, Ben Finley hooked up on multiple deep passes to Adrian Norton. These plays pushed Norton over 100 receiving yards for the game, joining his teammate, Bobby Golden.
Coach Joe Moorhead explained the duo by saying, “They have a level of explosiveness that I think we’ve lacked the past two years on offense… One of our big areas of focus is our ability to create explosive plays in the run and pass game. Those two guys have done that well.”
Week 4
Next week the Zips (1-2) travel to South Carolina (2-1) to take on the Gamecocks Saturday, September 21st at 7:30PM EST.
Very well written recap and summary of the Akron Zips bs Colgate opener @Brandon Marvel ! I Wish I knew you were attending the game, next call or text me and you can attend your next game with me in The Kaulig Companies Club Loge Box Seats (Season Tickets) I have 4 tickets every Home game. Go Zips!
Hey Kev. Here was there as a writer. KOS has full MAC Credentials. Thank you!