Flashes Welcome Army for Homecoming
10/14/2014 12:05:00 PM | Football
Game Notes ESPN3 Golden Flashes Radio Tickets
A homecoming crowd and a half season's worth of experience for a number of young players hopes to be the right combination for Kent State, as it hosts Army Saturday at Dix Stadium. The Golden Flashes' defense will switch its focus from a strong UMass passing offense to Army's running attack, which is one of the nation's best. The Black Knights are 2-0 against MAC opponents this season, but are in search of their first road win.
Facts In A Flash
• For the second straight week the Flashes had season-highs in both rushing (150 yds) and total offense (341 yds) against UMass.
• Despite 41 passing attempts, the Flashes' offense did not allow a sack.
• Fourteen different Kent State players have gotten their first career start this season.
• Senior Casey Pierce was one of 33 tight ends named to the John Mackey Award Midseason Watch List Monday.
• Sophomore QB Colin Reardon moved into a tie for sixth place in career completions (304) and ranks eighth in both career passing yards (3,184) and career TD passes (18) at Kent State.
• Sophomore safety Nate Holley ranks third in the
nation in total tackles per game (13.5) and second in solo tackles (8.3). He has earned two MAC Defensive Player of the Week honors.
• Senior receiver Chris Humphrey moved into a tie for ninth place in career receptions with 101.
• Junior Anthony Melchiori ranks 20th in the nation with a 44.6 punting average.
• Junior Jordan Italiano made a game-high 10 tackles against UMass (7 solo) one week after having a hand in a turnover in three straight games.
• Sophomore Nick Holley is averaging 67.4 yards of offense over his last five games.
• The Golden Flashes are wearing number 54 on one side of their helmets throughout the year, paying tribute to Jason Bitsko.
The All-time Series
Army leads the all-time series with Kent State 2-1. The Golden Flashes won the most recent meeting in 2012, a 31-17 victory in West Point. The Black Knights had 27 first downs to Kent State's 12, but three big KSU scoring plays made the difference. Army won the lone game at Dix Stadium 45-28 in 2010. The Flashes are 2-8 all time against the service academies.
TV/Video/Radio
Saturday's game can be seen on ESPN3. Michael Reghi is on play-by-play with Je'Rod Cherry as the color analyst.
All Kent State games can be heard live on 640 WHLO and Golden Flashes Radio on iHeartRadio. Ty Linder will handle the play-by-play duties and is joined in the booth for the fifth year in a row by color analyst Rob Polinsky. Matt Miller is the sideline reporter. The iHeartRadio channel works on a PC, smart phone or tablet.
WebSite, Twitter & Youtube
For Kent State football stories, statistics, photos, video and more, visit KentStateSports.com. For daily football updates follow @kentstathletics and @kentstfootball on Twitter and Kent State Golden Flashes Football on Facebook. For an extensive video library visit GoldenFlashesTV on YouTube.
The Coaches
• Last year, Paul Haynes became the first Kent State head coach to win his debut since 1988, the first to win his MAC road opener since 1986 and is one of only two KSU coaches (Glen Mason) to defeat both Miami and Ohio in his first year. He was a two-time all-conference defensive back at Kent State from 1987-91, despite joining as a walk-on. He returned to his alma mater as an assistant in 1999 and was promoted to assistant head coach in 2000. After seven seasons on an Ohio State staff that won six Big Ten titles (2005-11), Haynes spent the 2012 season as defensive coordinator at Arkansas.
• Jeff Monken (Millikin '89) is in his first season at Army, following a successful four-year stint as head coach at Georgia Southern. Monken led Georgia Southern to a 38-16 mark as it transitioned to the FBS level and the Sun Belt Conference. The Eagles' most notable victory in that time came last season at Florida (26-20). In 2012, he was a finalist for the Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year award. Monken was also an assistant at Georgia Tech and Navy. The Midshipmen made five straight bowl appearances during his time at Navy, before helping the Yellow Jackets to an ACC Championship.
Previewing Army
• The Black Knights rank third in the nation in rushing, averaging 323.5 yards per game. Seven different players have 12 or more carries, all averaging 4.9 yards or better per carry.
• Army is plus-five in interception margin this season. The Knights are 25th in the nation in net punting.
• The Black Knights are averaging 18.7 first downs per game.
• Army has won its last three games against MAC opponents, all of which have come at home. The Knights are 0-3 on the road this season and dropped their last five away games in 2013.
• The Black Knights are averaging 4:50 more than opponents in time of possession.
Key Players To Watch
• Senior running back Larry Dixon ran for 188 yards against Ball State. He is averaging 102.0 yards per game with five touchdowns.
• Senior quarterback Angel Santiago ran for 106 yards and a touchdown and threw for one touchdown at Rice. He has six rushing TDs on the year and is averaging 5.4 yards per carry.
• Junior quarterback A.J. Schurr ran for 135 yards and a touchdown at Yale. He is averaging 7.5 yards per carry with three touchdowns.
• Sophomore receiver Edgar Poe is averaging 24.0 yards per catch.
• Sophomore defensive back Josh Jenkins intercepted two passes in the season opening game at Buffalo.
• Senior linebacker Stephen Ricciardi made 10 tackles (9 solo) at Rice with 3.0 tackles for loss and a pass breakup.
• Sophomore linebacker Jeremy Timpf leads the Knights with three interceptions and 7.5 tackles for loss. He has also forced and recovered a fumble.
Return Game Improving
Sophomore Ernest Calhoun had kick returns of 41 and 33 yards against UMass. Prior to UMass, Kent State's longest kick return of the year was 25 yards.
• Sophomore James Brooks had a 17-yard punt return against UMass. It was the Flashes' longest punt return since the 2011 season. The previous season-high was 10 yards.
Strides in Running Game
Prior to UMass, Kent State's highest rushing total of the season was 83 yards and its best individual performance was 48 yards. That all changed when the Flashes ran for 150 yards with three individuals topping that 48-yard mark in the same game. Colin Reardon rushed for 53 yards, followed by Anthony Meray's 51 yards and Nick Holley's 49 yards.
• Reardon's rushing performance came after an ankle injury that had him on crutches just four days earlier.
• Meray had a career-long 43-yard touchdown run. It was Kent State's longest rush of the season and the first TD run by a Kent State running back this season.
• Holley got his first career action at quarterback in a Wildcat offense, leading the Flashes to three first downs on the drive.
