BGSU Football will host Kent State on Tuesday, Nov. 10, at 7:00 p.m. in its lone midweek MACtion game of the season, a date on the schedule that now carries more weight because both teams enter at 2-3 in MAC play. Bowling Green is 2-7 overall, while Kent State comes in at 3-6.
That is the reason this matchup is drawing attention now: it is a conference game with immediate standings value, and it is the only Tuesday night spot BGSU gets this season. For a team trying to steady itself after three straight conference losses to Ball State, Buffalo and Western Michigan, the setting gives the game a different feel than a standard Saturday league date.
The numbers tell the rest of the story. BGSU is 11th in the MAC in total touchdowns with 19, 12th in total points with 160 and 11th in passing yards per game at 176.3. Kent State is last in the league in touchdowns with 16 and total points with 129, even though it sits eighth in passing yards per game at 188.6. Jay Kastantin, who went 20-for-31 for 149 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions against Western Michigan, has topped 200 passing yards in three of BGSU's five conference games, giving the offense a lift that has not always lasted four quarters.
That inconsistency is part of what makes this one hard to read. Bowling Green showed solid offense in its first two straight conference losses, then stalled against Western Michigan with three turnovers and seven punts. Kent State has had its own problems, losing four of its last five and coming off a 31-10 loss against Sacramento State in which it gave up five turnovers. The Golden Flashes are also 0-2 in MAC road games, which makes this trip another test of whether they can travel well against a league opponent that has been just as uneven.
There is individual production on both sides to watch. Dorian Pringle leads BGSU with 87 tackles and is third on the team with 7.5 TFLs, while Wayne Harris leads Kent State with 43 catches, 643 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns and has topped 100 receiving yards in three of its last four games. On defense, Hayden Dawahare leads Kent State with 51 tackles and seven TFLs and is second with four sacks. Ben Corak and Holden Ruck will have the call for Tuesday night, and by the time the lights go on, the bigger question will be simple: which offense can turn one good stretch into four full quarters.
