In this video, Head Coach Paul Haynes addresses the media during the weekly Monday press conference.

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"It's annoying as hell. Half (probably more) of Ohio students are OSU fans, and if they'd take the kid blinders off and pay attention they'd realize OU has some killer ass history. Ohio had one of the first 10 players EVER taken in the NFL Draft, not OSU. Ohio had Mike Schmidt, not OSU. Ohio had Walter Locket, the top basketball recruit in the nation when he signed with Ohio.

The Cats have been great, and could be again, but in the age of the Internet and widespread broadcast deals, the Bobcats can't do it if half the student body would rather sit in their dorm and cheer on a school they didn't even want to go to. It's a frustrating life as an Ohio fan who grew up in the Buckeyes' city. But it makes my experience richer when we do what we did two years ago and go into The Schot with an almost entirely new basketball roster and take their ranked squad to the wire.

The scare is so bad they won't schedule us for another 20 years ,and they'll convince themselves it's because we're not good enough, but the facts are it's because with 1/5 the resources we can be just as good on any given day. They pretend there's this huge gap, but with a little bit more support Ohio could close that gap and give them a run for their money every year, if only OSU weren't too scared to play." - Bryan Vance

(click web address below for full article)



http://www.underdogdynasty.com/2015/10/17/9483059/confesssion-of-g5-groupies-in-a-power-five-world

Flashes defeat UMass Minutemen, 15-10. Nice conference win on the road. Another solid performance by the defense and the offense did just enough to secure the victory.

Go Flashes!!!

The Toledo Rockets are favored by 15.5 points. I realize that is a lot of points but Toledo is playing at home and the Rockets are currently ranked #24 in the AP poll.

http://www.vegasinsider.com/college-football/odds/las-vegas/

http://collegefootball.ap.org/poll

The Flashes are favored by 10.5 over Miami.

http://www.vegasinsider.com/college-football/odds/las-vegas/?s=712

In yesterday's double overtime loss to Marshall, there were a pair of controversial personal foul penalties that led to the ejections of two of Kent State's best defensive backs in the fourth quarter – safety Nate Holley, who recorded 15 tackles before exiting, and cornerback Najee Murray, who had three pass breakups. In the personal foul penalty involving Holley, Marshall's quarterback, Chase Linton, slid going for a first down.

Although Holley's helmet appeared to make contact with Linton's helmet, the hit was not flagrant. Nevertheless, Holley was flagged and ejected for targeting. Consequently, the infraction extended the drive, and Marshall scored a touchdown to give the Herd the lead 20-19.

On Murray's personal foul penalty, Marshall was attempting a two-point conversion when Murray broke up a pass to Yurachek with a hard tackle. Although the replay clearly showed that Murray did not hit Yurachek above the shoulder pads, he also was called for targeting and thrown out of the game. Given a second chance, Marshall again went for two, converted, and led by three at that point in the game.

If the correct call had been made, Marshall would had led by only one and not three points with 12:32 left in the game. But the difference proved significant because Kent kicked a 33-yard field goal with 4:55 to play that would have given the Flashes the lead and most likely the win considering how well Kent's defense was playing.

It's bad enough that Kent State loses a game it should have won but now the Flashes have to play their next game against Miami without two of their best defensive players for the first half due to the suspension rule.

Whether a player deserves an ejection on top of a penalty is subject to debate -- particularly when one half of a game without a top player (or two top players in Kent's case) can alter the outcome of the game and perhaps the entire course of a season given the significance of conference games.

In both cases, neither Holley nor Murray's hits were severe enough to warrant a suspension in my view. Even the TV announcer thought Murray's targeting penalty would be overruled when the officials looked at the replay but unfortunately it wasn't and that bad call was the deciding factor in who won the game.

"I think that there are some gray areas, but people do the very best they can to coach to avoid these situations and also to call it on the field," Michigan State coach Mark Dantonio said after Spartans linebacker Riley Bullough was ejected for a targeting call against an Air Force receiver on a pass play over the middle. "Some hits are not intentional," said Dantonio.

"I think it should be determined sometimes on the severity of the hit in my mind. I can tell you that a game suspension is very difficult when you only have 12 games to play guaranteed to you. That's difficult to comprehend for a player."

I agree with Dantonio. And anyone who saw the questionable plays by Holley and Murray knows neither one was severe enough to warrant suspensions. I understand the purpose of the ruling but some of these targeting calls are way off base and diminish the integrity of the game.

Perhaps Jack Lambert was right when he said, "Quarterbacks should wear dresses." That certainly seems the way football is played today.

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Looking forward to this matchup.

Oak Park, Mich. ATH Miles Daniel has announced a commitment to Kent State tonight.

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Despite criticism of Marshall from MAC fans, I am willing to give the former MAC member credit for setting off a mini-version of the athletic arms race that has engulfed college football over the last 25 years. Marshall came into the MAC spending a million dollars a year more than any other school in the conference and had a commitment to upgrading facilities that took most of the MAC several years to match (and in many cases surpass). But the history of Marshall also includes engaging in what apparently was wholesale academic fraud, turning a blind eye to paying players, and taking on a series of head cases that didn't belong in any college -- even one with Marshall's admissions standards -- in a go for broke quest to establish a national name for the university on the backs of its football players.

When Marshall was in the MAC, the Herd led the league in player arrests every year it was in the conference. As a Conference USA member, the Herd won the infamous Fulmer Cup in 2006 and continues to lead the conference in the number of arrests.

No one will deny that Marshall is competitive in football but it is hardly ever competitive in basketball or any of the other sports. This is precisely why the Marshall model for athletics was incompatible with the Mid-American Conference and is not a model that any self-respecting university should ever want to follow.

Head Coach Paul Haynes addresses the media during the weekly Monday press conference.

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Kent State leads the series versus Marshall: 18-17-0 (35 Games)

Marshall leads Conference Games versus Kent State: 13-10-0 (23 Games)

Marshall record at home vs Kent State: 10-7-0 (17 Games)

Marshall Conference record at home vs Kent State: 7-4-0 (11 Games)

Kent State record at home vs Marshall: 11-7-0 (18 Games)

Kent State Conference record at home vs Marshall: 6-6-0 (12 Games)

Marshall has not faced Kent State at a Neutral Location... YET!

Marshall has not faced Kent State at a Neutral Conference Game Location... YET!

Kent State leads Shutout games versus Marshall: 2-0-0 (2 Games)

Marshall's largest victory against Kent State: on 1998-10-17: Final Score: 42 - 7 (35 Points)

Kent State's largest victory against Marshall: on 1959-10-17: Final Score: 46 - 7 (39 Points)

Highest Scoring Game: on 2003-10-11. Total points: 82 (Marshall won)

Kent State leads Shutout games versus Marshall: 2-0-0 (2 Games)

The opening line on the game favors Marshall by 9.

http://www.gridironhistory.com/versus/Marshall/Kent State.html

http://www.vegasinsider.com/college-football/odds/las-vegas/?s=762

Looking at the ESPN FPI projections for the remaining schedule, it appears that the Flashes' best chances of winning are against Miami, Akron, Buffalo, and Central Michigan respectively. But given the Flashes' near win against Minnesota, I would like to believe KSU's chances of winning are better than ESPN's projections (click link below). If the offense can get untracked, the Flashes should be competitive in everyone of their remaining games.

http://espn.go.com/college-football/team/fpi/_/id/2309/kent-state-golden-flashes

Coach Haynes is joined with cornerback Demetrius Monday.

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22 year old April Gross, kicker for Kent State University, made NCAA history when she scored an extra point winning kick during a football game against Delaware State University. She joins Alex Witt on NewsNation (click web address below).

http://www.msnbc.com/newsnation/watch/kent-state-kicker-makes-history-526581315637?cid=sm_tw_msnbc

You can be certain Urban Meyer will warn his Ohio State players about the attack of the MAC when they host Northern Illinois on Saturday and Western Michigan next week.

The Mid-American Conference has won at least one game a season, and 21 in all, against the Big Ten over the last 10 years.

Maryland was the latest to lose, falling 48-27 to Bowling Green last week, and there are seven more Big Ten-MAC matchups this season.

Meyer's top-ranked Buckeyes are five-touchdown favorites over the Huskies this week, but his first head coaching job was in the MAC, and he understands how its teams relish opportunities against the big boys.

The MAC's wins are more than just a feel-good story for the 13-team league that shares the same geographic footprint as the Big Ten. They help enhance the MAC's image and potentially its bottom line.

"Where we are in the food chain, all our nonconference games are important," said MAC Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher, who also celebrated Toledo's 16-12 stunner over Arkansas of the Southeastern Conference last Saturday. "We have to do well from the start of the season to the end of the season if we want to gain national notoriety. When you step up and play the real high-profile programs and teams, that goes a long way if you have success in those games."

The end game for the MAC is to have the College Football Playoff committee deem its champion the best among the Group of Five conference winners. The highest-ranked champion is guaranteed a New Year's Six bowl berth and the considerable sum of money that goes with it.

Boise State's appearance in the Fiesta Bowl last season netted the Mountain West an additional $6 million in bowl revenue, to $23.5 million. The MAC had five teams go to bowls and divided $14.1 million among its members.

The league's high point in football came in 2012 when Northern Illinois made it to the Orange Bowl under the old BCS system.

"This is a league that has high expectations," Steinbrecher said. "We believe the teams at the top end of our league can compete with most folks in the country."

No two conferences have played more games against each other than the Big Ten and MAC. The Big Ten's all-time record in the matchups is 261-47-2, according to the sports website mcubed.net. The MAC beat the Big Ten three times last season.

Bowling Green's Matt Johnson was the pride of the MAC this week after throwing for 491 yards and six touchdowns against Maryland. His only scholarship offers coming out of high school in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, were from Falcons, Miami (Ohio) and Temple.

Johnson ranks among the top high school passers in his state's history, but he stands only 6-feet — too short for the big time, he was often told. Penn State, 85 miles from his hometown, had no recruiting contact with him other than through form letters.

Johnson said he doesn't dwell on being snubbed by bigger schools, but winning does send a message.

"You naturally get that feeling that, yeah, we weren't recruited by you guys, but that doesn't mean we can't play with you guys," Johnson said. "You just get that re-assurance after a win. It's big for not only your program but for the MAC as a whole to show that we can play up with these Power Five schools."

Meyer said he enjoyed mining for players when he was head coach at Bowling Green in 2001-02. He challenged himself to find under-recruited players who showed great potential. He said he suspects that's the same strategy used by Northern Illinois, his opponent this week.

"I would imagine they probably redshirt most of their linemen and let them develop because they're a really big, physical team," Meyer said. "That's kind of what we did at Bowling Green. You redshirt your linemen. You go places and try to find kids an inch too short but have great speed."

Minnesota defensive coordinator Tracy Claeys said the Gophers will be lectured about not taking Kent State lightly this week. Claeys and the other Minnesota assistants were with Gophers head coach Jerry Kill at Northern Illinois from 2008-10.

"You had every kid in that conference told he ain't good enough to be in the Big Ten," he said. "And so they play with a chip on their shoulders and you've got to be ready to play or you'll be in for a long day. You'll see their best when you play a MAC school and you're in the Big Ten."

http://collegefootball.ap.org/article/mac-sees-chance-glory-dollars-when-it-takes-big-ten

Head Coach Paul Haynes is joined by junior safety Nate Holley for the weekly Monday press conference.

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Each passing day, I'm more convinced that Paul Haynes is the right person to lead the Kent State football program. Ever since he was hired, I have always liked Coach Haynes but now more than ever have come to appreciate him for what he is doing for our young players. Christian, husband, father, mentor, building men, and head football coach is the order of priorities on his Twitter account. And as a Christian with biblical wisdom, Haynes has more than secular, intellectual insight; he has a spiritual perspective that far exceeds the secular outlook.

During last week's post-game press conference, Haynes talked about giving April Goss the opportunity to play in a game after a reporter asked him about her getting a chance to play.

"Before this year's out, she'll get out there. I promise you that," Haynes said following his team's loss at Illinois.

"She works her tail off. She's the first one out there in practice and the last one off the field," he said. "Every time someone gets up and talks, one of our players gets up and talks, they always talk about they've got brothers, and a sister."

Recognizing Goss as "a 4-point student" and a "great woman of faith," Haynes understands the role that she has on the team and the importance of rewarding her for all her hard work.

And last night against Delaware State, Haynes gave Goss her “Rudy” moment when after four years on the team, she finally got the chance to kick an extra point.

By making the kick, Goss became just the second woman to score in a major college football game. Katie Hnida, of the University of New Mexico, was the the first woman in the record books when she converted two extra points in 2003. And just like in the movie, Rudy, Goss' teammates celebrated by carrying her off the field.

I respect Coach Haynes for giving Goss the opportunity to kick an extra point in last night's game. Of course not everyone agrees with me. One person commenting on the Cleveland.com article, "Kent State's April Goss kicks extra point in historic feat for female player," said, "She is there NOT because she is good, which she isn't, but b/c it is now very PC to let her play." This person clearly misses the point. Haynes didn't give Goss the chance to kick to be politically correct but he did it to reward her with a brief moment of glory for her years of effort.

I'm just glad that Coach Haynes "gets it" when apparently others don't. As a former walk on himself, he understands the amount of time and dedication it takes for most walk-ons just to be on the team, let alone put themselves in a position to contribute. Giving Goss that chance last night shows his ability to relate to every player on the team and that understanding is precisely why he will ultimately succeed at Kent State.

Delaware State, the Flashes' next opponent, lost to Liberty last Saturday 32-13. The loss spoiled the debut of coach Kenny Carter, previously an assistant at Florida, Louisville and Youngstown State. Liberty is coached by Turner Gill, who won a MAC championship at the University of Buffalo in 2008, giving the school its first MAC championship.

http://www.dsuhornets.com/SportSelect.dbml?SPID=5798