CMU unable to overcome turnovers, falls to Kent State
Following Saturday's last-second loss on a field goal as time expired, Central Michigan head football coach John Bonamego said his team didn't do anything well enough to win.
"I didn't think we played very well at all on either side of the ball," Bonamego said. "That responsibility falls on my shoulders. I will accept responsibility for the loss. I didn't have our guys ready to play."
CMU's offense had four turnovers and its defense was unable to contain Kent State quarterback Nick Holley as the Chippewas fell 27-24 at Kelly/Shorts Stadium.
Holley completed 10-of-18 passes for 102 yards and a touchdown to go with 144 yards rushing and one touchdown.
The loss drops CMU's record to 5-4 overall and 2-3 in Mid-American Conference play. The Chippewas are well out of contention for the MAC West Division title and are battling to become bowl eligible.
"Obviously, we were upset (after the loss)," said senior defensive lineman Jabari Dean. "We just have to focus in on moving on to next week and looking in to see what we're really made of."
Kent State's game-winning kick came after a CMU drive that stalled around midfield. Rather than going for it on fourth-and-one near midfield, the coaching staff decided to punt the ball back to Kent State with less than two minutes remaining.
The Golden Flashes proceeded to drive 68 yards to set up the 35-yard field goal attempt.
"We felt like our defense was playing reasonably well and I thought to give them the ball at midfield only needing a field goal with that much time left was the lesser of two evils," Bonamego said.
The coaching staff expected to get the ball back following the punt with time remaining to pull off a last-second win of their own. Kent State's offense had other plans.
CMU's offense struggled throughout most of the first half, which included three turnovers and just 162 yards of total offense, 70 of which came on the final drive of the half that resulted in CMU's first touchdown.
The Chippewas seemed to gain momentum in the second half, scoring a touchdown on their opening drive on a 40-yard passing connection from senior quarterback Cooper Rush to junior wide receiver Mark Chapman.
Senior safety Tony Annese returned an interception for a touchdown on Kent State's following drive, giving CMU a 24-10 lead.
CMU was only able to accumulate 87 yards of offense following the touchdown and turned the ball over on Rush's third interception of the game.
"It was just sloppy play," Bonamego said. "We have to do a better job taking care of the football. I don't question the effort as much I question the execution. When you don't have that razor's edge, that's when you give up big plays, drop balls and put the ball on the ground."
With four games remaining on the schedule, CMU will be playing for bowl eligibility and working to "learn how not to lose," Bonamego said.
"I don't know if I can answer (where the team's confidence is at)," he said. "You have to figure out what's important to you and learn how to not do (things that make you lose) first."
