Kent State gets back on the field Saturday against Western Michigan with Sean Leonard trying to move on from a night that turned painful in the final minutes. The kicker missed a game-tying kick near the end of regulation against Ohio after an earlier fourth-quarter attempt was blocked, and Kent State now has to answer quickly against a conference favorite and defending champion.
Leonard’s place on the depth chart is not really the issue. He was named the MAC specialist of the week after his performance against Ball State, and Carney said Leonard knows who he is. That matters because this is the sort of week that can shake confidence if a specialist starts chasing the last kick instead of the next one.
What makes Kent State’s trip into Kent State vs WMU matter is the way the two teams arrive at it. Kent State lost to the Ohio Bobcats by 13-10 last week, but its defense has still allowed only 13 points a game over its first two conference games. That unit kept the game close even as the offense turned the ball over twice and did not finish when it had a chance to seize control.
Carney said the offense did some things well against Ohio, adding that the team took advantage of the light boxes Ohio had. The problem was consistency. Kent State moved the ball, then stalled at the wrong times, and that left Leonard with the burden of trying to rescue a game that had already slipped into the thin space between a win and a loss.
There is also no clean answer yet if Tarik Mulder cannot go. He is day-to-day with a lower body injury, and that pushes Wayne Harris and Da’Realyst Clark toward bigger roles as receiving options. Carney also pointed to Jarvarius Sims as the best comer in the league from a covering standpoint, which gives Kent State a chance to lean on matchups and timing if the passing game has to adjust on the fly.
Western Michigan brings the opposite kind of problem. Broc Lowry ran for a touchdown in the Broncos’ win over Buffalo last week, and Jalen Buckley has rushed for 287 yards and five touchdowns. Carney called Western Michigan physical, well recruited and extremely disciplined, and said the Broncos play true 11-on-11 football with a quarterback who does an outstanding job as both a passer and a runner.
That is the test in front of Kent State now. The defense has held up against tough competition that included Ohio State and South Carolina, but the offense has to do more than survive another close game. If the line gives the backs room, if the receivers stay available, and if Leonard gets another chance, Saturday becomes a chance to show Kent State can do more than hang around with the top of the MAC.
The next step is simple and unforgiving: Kent State has to turn a promising defensive start into a full game against Western Michigan, because another late miss or another stalled drive will not be enough against the conference favorite.
