Live Blog: Kent State vs. Ohio University in the season opener

FOURTH QUARTER

0:00 ... Final from Dix Stadium ... Ohio 17, Kent State 14

A Josiah Yazdani 44-yard field goal as time expired ended this one.

The Flashes defense came up big forcing four consecutive fumbles on four Ohio possessions, but couldn't quite keep the Bobcats out of field goal range on the final drive.

A nice touch afterwards as both teams get together for a prayer at midfield following what has been a very tough week here at Kent State.

I hope the Flashes fans are proud of the effort even in a frustrating loss.

The KSU offense needs to find a way to run the football in the coming weeks. The final numbers have the Flashes at 31 rushing yards on 22 attempts.

Colin Reardon finished his night with 264 yards and two touchdowns on 30-for-41 passing. He spread the ball around, too, hitting Humphrey six times for 91 yards and a score. Ernest Calhoun caught 11 passes for 62 yards, and James Brooks averaged 22.5 yards per catch on his two grabs.

Anthony Meray was the only KSU player to average more than 1.3 yards per carry, running six times for 19 yards (3.2 avg.)

Nate Holley had a spectacular night defensively with 12 solo tackles and six assists for 18 total, he also forced two fumbles and recovered another as KSU's defense kept the Flashes in the game during the second half.


3:34 ... The fourth time was the charm. After the fourth consecutive Ohio fumble to end a drive, the Flashes have tied the score, 14-14.

Reardon-to-Humphrey reminiscent of Montana-to-Clark for a 23-yard touchdown – Reardon rolling to his right and finding Humphrey breaking open, sliding to the back corner and not across the middle the way Clark did back in the 1982 NFC Championship Game.

Reardon is now 30-for-41 for 264 yards and a pair of touchdowns.


5:18 ... Colin Reardon finally has the Flashes offense back on the move. The sophomore quarterback just hit Chris Humphrey for a 28-yard pickup and a first down at the Ohio 33 yard line.

Add a leap on a reverse to Calhoun for 5 yards and the Flashes are at the Bobcats 28 for a 2nd-and- play with exactly five minutes to go.

7:39 ... Four consecutive Ohio possessions now have ended with a fumble in Kent State territory.

This time Murray recovers another fumble forced by Holley at the KSU 22.

Time to finally take advantage of the Bobcats errors.

8:26 ... Same story for the last three quarters... Kent State offensive line continues to struggle, both opening holes in the running game and protecting the quarterback. It's been a tough situation

11:40 ... Kent State defense keeps coming up big.

With Ohio on the move again, the Flashes defense has forced another fumble. Cunningham forced it with another hit on Patterson, and Holley was on the spot for the recovery.

The officials talked about it for a while before giving the football to the Flashes. Now they are reviewing the call.

Replay confirms the call. It'll be 1st-and-10 Flashes at their own 25.

THIRD QUARTER

1:44 ... The running game is finally in positive numbers... 21 yards on 19 carries.

The Flashes defense needs to come up big again here with Ohio pinned a bit at their own 10 yard line following a pooch kick by Melchiori.

Reardon continues to play well, 23-of-30 for 213 yards so far. Vick is having an even bigger game, though, with 309 yards on 15-of-21 passing.

4:55 ... The Flashes offense is on the move again, thanks to another forced fumble, this time a hit by Nate Holley dislodged the football from Ohio's Daz' Patterson. Nate Terhune recovered.

A third-down throw from Reardon to Pierce moved the chains, and now a 7-yard run by Reardon has Kent State out near midfield.

11:46 ... The first turnover of the game is a fumble forced and recovered by Nate Vance on a hit of Ohio's Tim Edmond.

Unfortunately, even after Reardon passes of 16 yards to Brooks and 10 yards to Pierce for a first-and-goal, the Flashes came away with no points after Anthony Melchiori missed a 20-yard field goal.

Too many mistakes tonight, and yet the Flashes trail by just seven.

SECOND QUARTER

0:00 ... Kent State trails Ohio 14-7.

The Flashes have found some success in the passing game where Reardon is 14-of-17 for 118 yards and a touchdown.

The running game hasn't had any success with negative-4 yards so far on 14 rushing attempts. And that's even with Reardon picking up 9 yards on one carry. Anthony Meray leads the Flashes 10 yards on four attempts.

Ohio's Vick was 8-of-12 in the first half for 151 yards and two scores, both to Smith.

With 55 yards on 18 attempts, Ohio's running game has been just average, but it has at least provided some compliment to Vick.

The Flashes need Terrell Johnson to come back. He is a 5th-year senior with experience on an offensive line that is younger and already reworked after last week.


1:02 ... It is great to see former Kent State stars Dri Archer and Brian Winters on the Dix Stadium sidelines. The Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver and New York Jets offensive linemen were spotted by MAC Sports Twitter.

Right tackle Terrell Johnson was just helped off the field with an injury.

He has been replaced by freshman Brock Macaulay, who opened camp with the first unit at right tackle.

2:59 ... The war in the trenches is starting to take its toll on Kent State. While Ohio is winning on both sides of the football at the moment, the Bobcats defensive front is making life very tough for the Flashes offensive line. 

There hasn't been even a crack of room to run through so far as the Flashes have negative-8 yards on 11 attempts so far. That includes 4-yard sack of Reardon on Kent State's previous offensive play.

Miles Hibbler made his freshman debut at running back on the last Kent State possession.

Trayion Durham is in uniform, but is unlikely to play, and my guess that would include short-yardage situations.

6:53 ... It took Ohio three plays and 21 seconds to take advantage of Kent State's careless mistake.

Ohio takes the lead on a 5-yard touchdown pass from Vick to Smith – the second scoring connection by those two already tonight.

7:46 ... A major careless error by Kent State has extended an Ohio drive.

The Bobcats punting on fourth down, but Kent State had two players on the field wearing the same number.

Ohio takes advantage with a big 38-yard pass from Vick to Patterson to the KSU 8 yard line.

Frustrating moment for Flashes fans.

7:54 ... We have our first contender for tackle of the year.

Kent State freshman Jon Cunningham with a full body slam of Ohio wide receiver Papi White on a running play. 

As Kent State sports information director Aaron Chimenti said, the tackle would have been good for 5 points in freestyle wrestling.

11:37 ... Some quick numbers ... Colin Reardon is 10-of-12 for 98 yards. The running game has struggled a bit, though, with negative-1 yards on eight attempts.

The Kent State secondary is starting to find its form. Jordan Italiano just made a great play to bat down a Vick throw for wide receiver Jordan Reid that would have picked up a first down for the Bobcats in front of the KSU sideline.

FIRST QUARTER

5:58 ... A Colin Reardon-led 75-yard touchdown drive has tied the score at 7-7.

Great ball skills all drive long from the sophomore quarterback, who set up a key 19-yard throw to Casey Pierce with a beautiful play fake to Meray. 

Reardon also hit James Brooks on the drive for 29 yards before hitting Josh Boyle pickups of 9 and 8 yards – that last one a screen throw to a leaping Boyle, who sifted through Ohio defenders for the score.

10:01 ... Some errors in the Kent State secondary have helped Ohio to a 7-0 lead.

Two plays after Murray was beaten down the field for the big play, Ohio wide receiver Landon Smith found himself facing single coverage from Kent State linebacker Matt Dellinger. That's a tough matchup for the Flashes, and with safety Calvin Tiggle arriving late, Vick had little trouble finding Smith for an easy 23-yard touchdown pass.

11:00 ... Kent State's defense just gave up its first big play of the year – a 58-yard hookup from Vick to Brendan Cope, who had KSU corner Najee Murray turned around down the field in single coverage. Murray managed to haul down the Bobcats receiver at the Flashes 25.

11:45 ... Anthony Melchiori may be a little pumped up for the new season. His kickoff to open the game sailed 9-yards deep for a touchback. 

Then after a three-and-out on Kent State's first possession of the new season, Melchiori boomed his first punt 71 yards to the Ohio 13 yard line. And the punt had very little roll.

Ohio's offense also went three-and-out capped by the first of what should be many big hits on the season by Elcee Refuge from the star position. Refuge upended Ohio quarterback Derrius Vick after he tucked to run on a third down rollout.

PREGAME

6:06 p.m. ... The 2014 season is underway with Anthony Melchiori booming a kickoff 9 yards deep in the end zone. 

Kent State won the coin toss and chose to defer to the second half.

 4:33 p.m. ... We are less than an hour and a half to kickoff of the 2014 college football season here at Dix Stadium and the parking lots are already starting to fill up.  They will be parking cars on the grass behind the south scoreboard pretty soon.

With so many fans arriving early, that has meant the tailgate areas are popping. I visited with Matt French of AMETEK at the tailgate zone in front of Dix Stadium's west gate just a little while ago. That area is starting to jump. He also shared a photo from behind the north stands where American Fireworks from Hudson is setting up what should be a wild fireworks display for after the game. to the right you can see a picture of those fireworks all lined up in rows near the field hockey and soccer stadiums.

5:41 p.m. ... Kickoff is almost here.  I just returned to the press box after a short walk around Dix Stadium to get a feel for what is going on. Tailgating in the student section is also jam packed. If the atmosphere from behind the east stands carries into the stadium, Paul Haynes should get exactly the atmosphere he wants from Kent State's student body. He's asked them to "act a fool" for this one.

Players are now off the field following the pre-game. The helmets with Jason Bitsko's "54" on one side look very sharp. I love the tribute. It's classy, and it also offers a throwback look that I think Bitsko would have loved. His hard work on and off the field made him very much a throwback type of college football player.

Fans entering the stadium are also being handed stickers with the number 54 inside the state of Ohio. Stars on the image are for Kent and Bitsko's hometown of Huber Heights.


While the stadium is still far from packed at the moment, the grass lots behind the south scoreboard are starting to fill up. Fans are having so much fun outside the stadium that they just haven't made their way in yet.  Here's a look at what the stadium looked like during pre game just a few minutes ago.

Kent State vs. Ohio around the web

Here's a look at stories on the Kent State-Ohio University opener from around the internet.

I'll be blogging live tonight from Dix Stadium, so if you have any questions or comments tonight, you can post them here.

• If you follow all of the other teams in the Mid-American Conference, you know that Jason Arkley of the Athens Messenger is one of the league's top beat writers. For a look from the Bobcats point of view, Arkley's preview "Test in toughness awaits Ohio in opener" can be found here.
• Elton Alexander of the Plain Dealer has this story in today's Plain Dealer: "Kent State, Ohio open season with interesting conference matchup."
• George Thomas writes about how the "Golden Flashes face twofold challenge in opener against Bobcats" in today's Beacon Journa.
• The Columbus Dispatch previews the game with a focus on Ohio safety Thad Ingol, who is a Barberton native who hopes to "zip Kent State fans' lips."
• Sports-Illustrated has this brief preview. 
• The Hustle Belt's preview can be found here. They pick the Bobcats with a 24-10 victory.
• If you subscribe to the Record-Courier, here is the link to Allen Moff's preview of the Kent State-Ohio game.

Here are some of the links you'll need to watch or listen to tonight's game:

What are your expectations for tomorrow's Kent State-Ohio University season opener?

The “54” stickers are being applied to every Kent State football helmet as I write this.

I also just read the Kent State Football Blog by head coach Paul Haynes where he talks about his team’s attitude and working hard to move on through the heartache that was delivered last week. These players need a big, supportive crowd on Saturday more than ever. 

The game with Ohio University is an interesting matchup. It will be fun simply for the fact that it is a rare opener with a MAC East rival that doesn’t come around very often. I’ll never forget the atmosphere on opening night in Akron on Aug. 28, 2003 when the Joshua Cribbs-led Flashes escaped with a 41-38 win after a great punt return by Jon Drager led to a Travis Mayle field goal in the closing seconds.

Anything close to that environment tomorrow night will mean an electric setting in Dix Stadium. 

I’ll be blogging live from the press box during the game, and I’ll be fielding your questions and comments right here on the blog. 

In the meantime, what do you expect tomorrow night? 

I want to hear your predictions. 

Who is going to win, and how will it all go down?

What we learned today during The Paul Haynes Show

We talked head football coach Paul Haynes for quite a bit about the Golden Flashes’ running game during today’s radio show at the Kent State Student Center. 

He said the status of running back Trayion Durham is still unclear, and it appears that the Flashes will go with a running back by committee starting with senior Anthony Meray first, then sophomore Nick Holley and freshman Miles Hibbler. Haynes is very pleased with what all three have shown in camp and does not appear to be overly concerned with the fact that Hibbler will be making his college debut while Holley is getting used to playing running back after making the move from wide receiver.

The one thing missing from the threesome is the change-of-pace factor that the 250-pound Durham offered with a speedster like Archer. According to Haynes, Meray, Holley and Hibbler bring similar skillsets, with Hibbler possibly having the most breakaway speed of the three. Haynes also likes the fact that all three also have the ability to make plays catching the ball out of the backfield.

While Durham may not be available, it will be nice to see the other Kent State player who wears the uniform No. 34 be back in action. Haynes has raved about fifth-year senior Richard Gray, both for his play on the field this spring and his attitude off of it. If Gray can put it all together in his final year after missing last season to ineligibility, he could set himself up for a very real chance to play on Sundays. This is a special talent with superior athleticism at 6-foot-2 and 250 pounds. Ohio University will remember that from his superhuman punt block two years ago in Athens that saw him leap over a blocker to get to the kick. An NFL team playing a 3-4 and ready to convert Gray from defensive line to a standup position at linebacker could have a real find.

We’ll be back to record The Paul Haynes Show in the Kent State Student Center every Thursday at noon during the football season, and it is a great opportunity for fans to come down and meet Haynes, his coaches and players who will come on as guests. 

Today’s guest was tight end Casey Pierce, another player on the Kent State roster with NFL potential. He is an impressive guy, and he had quite a few positive things to say about the development of some of his younger teammates. Pierce specifically talked about the development of sophomore wide receivers James Brooks and Ernest Calhoun. Combine those two with senior Chris Humphrey and Pierce believes there is enough talent and playmaking on the perimeter to really open up opportunities for him in the middle of the football field.

Pierce caught 33 passes for 364 yards – the most by a tight end at Kent State since Jason Gavazda in 1999. He should up those numbers and as a prototype of what NFL teams are looking for at the tight end position, don’t be surprised to see him follow past Flashes tight ends like Gavazda and O.J. Santiago in a chance to play at the next level.

Ask us your questions for Thursday's Paul Haynes Show at the KSU Student Center

The first Paul Haynes Show of 2014 will be recorded Thursday at noon in its new home in the Kent State University Student Center.

Ty Linder will host the show with me as co-host. Our guests will include, of course, head football coach Paul Haynes and senior tight end Casey Pierce. 

We hope you will come out to join us for lunch in the student center.

I have several topics I want to touch on with coach Haynes, including how the Flashes will handle the running game if Trayion Durham is not available. With Durham’s absence from the depth chart, there’s a chance that we will see a running back by committee. There is also quite a bit of work still ahead to get a reworked offensive line ready to open holes for that running game and to protect quarterback Colin Reardon.

The depth chart released this week also has several young players listed as backups at key positions. I was impressed by what I saw by several newcomers in my time watching camp, but I’ll be interested in hearing who the coaching staff feels the most comfortable with providing depth this season. In the Kent State Football Blog, defensive coordinator Brian George already talked about some of those youngsters and how he plans to use them in the early part of 2014.

If any of you have questions you would like us to ask our guests, post them below and we’ll work in as many as we can during the show. 

If you can’t come out to the student center, the show will air live on the Golden Flashes iHeartRadio Channel. It will be rebroadcast later in the day and again on WHLO 640 AM prior to Saturday’s Kent State vs. Ohio season opener.

The Kent State depth chart at a glance

Click to enlarge the first
Kent State depth chart of 2014

Kent State’s coaching staff has released the first official depth chart of 2014 as the Golden Flashes get ready to return to work in preparation for Saturday’s season opener with Ohio University.

While the Flashes continue to deal with the tragic death of center Jason Bitsko as a football family, there are also practical on-the-field issues that need to be dealt with before the the team is ready to take the field. In the next few days, the Flashes will try to prepare for some dramatic changes along the offensive line that were revealed in the new two-deep.

Sophomore Alex Nielsen will move from right guard back to center, which was his position during the spring. Wayne Scott will move from left guard to right guard, and junior Jim Katusha, who began his college career at Ohio University before transferring to Butte College, will make his Kent State debut against his former team as the starter at left guard.

Reno Reda remains in the left tackle spot while Terrell Johnson starts at right tackle. Johnson had split some time early in camp with Brock Macaulay at right tackle, but the redshirt freshman is now listed as a backup to Katusha at left guard. 

Tad France is listed No. 2 at center, Jake Witucky is the backup at left tackle, Nathan Puthoff is the backup at right guard and Stefano Millin is listed No. 2 at right tackle.

The two-deep also officially lists Anthony Meray as the starter at running back with Trayion Durham still battling back from injury. The backup at tailback is Nick Holley with true freshman Miles Hibbler listed No. 3 on the depth chart. 

Most of the rest of the depth chart is as expected with Chris Humphrey, James Brooks and Ernest Calhoun listed as the starting receivers, and Kris White, Josh Boyle and Charles Chandler as their primary backups. Promising freshman Eldin Anu, who was recruited as a cornerback, is also listed on the depth chart as a receiver, No. 3 at the X. The first time Anu flashed as a receiver was during the scrimmage two weeks ago when he made a difficult catch tiptoeing the right sideline.

Calhoun and Nick Holley are listed as the top two kick returners with Brooks No. 1 at punt return.

Anthony Melchiori also appears to be ready to handle both the placekicking and punting duties for a second consecutive season. 

There are also few surprises on the defense. It’s nice to see Richard Gray’s name listed at left end, as his size and athleticism can make him a difference maker the Flashes need as they try to replace Roosevelt Nix. Depth up front will do that with Jontey Byrd backing up promising freshman Jon Cunningham at the nose tackle. Byrd wowed early in camp, and Cunningham impressed throughout. 

There is lots of youth throughout. Two true freshmen and a redshirt freshman are listed among the five players on the two-deep at linebacker. A true freshman starts at nose tackle. True freshman are listed as backups at the star and cornerback spots with a redshirt freshman backing up Nate Holley at free safety.

The offensive two deep includes just four seniors, three juniors, 11 sophomores, and seven freshmen.

Fans attending the game can earn points on FlashFan Rewards by uploading photos from their tailgate parties taken prior to Saturday's game at Dix Stadium.

To join FlashFan Rewards, click the image below:

We are mourning the loss of Jason Bitsko

http://www.kentstatesports.com/news/2014/8/20/FB_0820144312.aspx

Tuesday highlights, more on the depth chart, and NFL scouts continue to visit camp

The coaches continue to meet daily to set the final depth chart. I talked with coach Haynes about that today after practice. He also wrote a blog on how the coaches set the depth chart and the healthy arguments that take place. You can find his blog by clicking HERE.

Sometimes the opening-game depth chart is set after a scrimmage like the one that took place here at Dix Stadium on Saturday. But according to Haynes it is still a work in progress. The final two-deep for the game with Ohio University will likely be ready on Monday as the Flashes begin their week of prep for the Aug. 30 opener against the Bobcats.

The offense didn’t have much energy during practice on Monday, but they picked up the pace this morning, much to the pleasure of offensive coordinator Brian Rock. Quarterback Colin Reardon is getting sharper every day. He was extremely accurate this morning in 11-on-11 work, lofting a 40-yard pass to Chris Humphrey on a corner route that dropped in right over the receivers shoulder for an easy touchdown. 

On the very next throw, Reardon found tight end Casey Pierce on a similar throw, this time to the other corner for a pickup of 25-to-30 yards.

During “team” late in practice, Reardon noticed Demetrius Monday as the cornerback took a misstep and nearly fell. He took advantage with a big gainer to Kris White.

Depth at quarterback continues to look good as Nathan Strock has also been sharp. He set up a screen perfectly during 11-on-11 work and found freshman back Miles Hibbler for a gain of around 20 yards.

Anthony Meray is back and practicing with the first team at running back after sitting out Saturday’s scrimmage as a precautionary measure.

The defense also had some nice moments on Tuesday as a perfectly timed blitz by linebacker Darius Redmond led to a hurried throw that defensive lineman Nate Terhune batted down at the line.

I keep seeing more and more NFL scouts at practice. There have been at least 10 out to watch the Flashes during these first three weeks. Pierce, Humphrey, Trayion Durham and Richard Gray are among the players who are drawing interest. 

A look at the linebackers as preseason camp begins its final week

It wasn’t too long ago when depth at linebacker was a very real issue for the Golden Flashes.

During spring practice in 2013, five linebackers were on the depth chart. Only two of those players were with the team in the fall.

This year, the Flashes had six linebackers in the spring and they’ve added several more who could be a factor in 2014. I talked with defensive coordinator Brian George as preseason camp entered its final week, and he talked about the current depth at the position as “being a real plus because we have some great competition and some really good young players.”

The returnees from last season are continuing to get better based on their work in the spring, the offseason and now during the first few weeks of August. Matt Dellinger headlines that list. The junior from Clarkston, Mich. may not have the most athleticism in the linebacking corps, but he has a high football IQ that makes him a key to George’s defense. He directs traffic, sees things well, and understands the big picture behind what the defense is running.

Darius Redmond played quite a bit as a freshman last year, and that early action is paying off. Redmond is extremely athletic. He makes plays in space. He is also an excellent pass rusher. He’ll do an even better job of understand opposing offenses and see the things that are happening in front of him in year two.

DeVante’ Strickland is the most experienced linebacker on the squad. The senior has been a bit dinged up in camp, but when he gets back he will be a major asset. George said Strickland has been one of the most dedicated players to the offseason training program, and “came out in fall camp looking like a different guy, physically.”

A couple of freshman have jumped off of the radar during camp, including Marques Moore from Springfield, Ohio and Matthew Sommers from Roosevelt High School right here in Kent. George said those two in particular have been working very hard to get up to speed for the chance to play in their first year. Both have a chance to be very good football players. Marques is athletic and hard to block because of the way he runs around and gets off of blocks. Sommers had a reputation as being big and smart, but he has surprised the coaches with his athleticism. George said Sommers is “much more athletic than people thought.”

With Elcee Refuge taking over the “star” position, that spot could be a bit more like having an extra linebacker on the field than it was last year. The position is a hybrid linebacker-safety position, and with Jordan Italiano moving to safety full time, Refuge brings a bit more size to the role. He is almost 25 pounds heavier than Italiano, and he packs a wallop.

Afternoon practice took place on the grass fields just north of Dix Stadium, as seen above in a tweet by director of football operations Zack Tilves.

Young running backs and pass catchers impress in Saturday scrimmage

I saw some very encouraging things during today’s scrimmage at Dix Stadium.

Yes, Dri Archer is gone, and even with Trayion Durham still out as he works his way back from injury and backup running backs Anthony Meray and Nick Holley sitting out, there were plenty of playmakers on the field on Saturday.

Sophomore wide receiver James Brooks was especially impressive with the first-team offense. He made some nice catches over the middle and picked up some yards after the catch while showing off the ability to evade tacklers in the open field. One particular grab on a third-and-eight situation stood out.

I was also impressed with the work of freshmen running backs Miles Hibbler and Raekwon James. Both got extended work with Durham, Meray and Nick Holley all watching from the sideline. I talked with head coach Paul Haynes after the scrimmage, and he said Meray and Holley were held out just as a precaution. 

Hibbler has a nice combination of strength and speed. He is also quick to the hole, as he demonstrated with an 18-yard touchdown run right through the middle of the second-team defense on the very first play of red-zone work.

James showed off his elusiveness on a 40-yard run that would have been the day’s first touchdown on a third-and-four situational if not for a holding penalty. He also put a move on sophomore safety Nick Cuthbert on the edge during a sweep to the right that got him to the second level for a long run late in the day.

Colin Reardon was sharp running the first team offense, and while he technically wasn’t live, he did some physically impressive things, getting to the second level to deliver a block on a running play and outrunning defenders while breaking away for some extra yards on keepers.

Reardon also nearly hit tight end Brice Fackler for an early touchdown, but redshirt freshman corner Eric Church made a nice play on the football to knock it away at the goal line. William Woods did catch a touchdown pass from Reardon later in the day, taking a throw in the flat and fighting his way into the end zone on a third-and-four play during red-zone work.

The most impressive catch of the day may have been turned in by tight end Ryan Malone, though. The redshirt freshman adjusted in mid air to catch an 18-yard throw for the end zone from Nathan Strock that was slightly high and behind Malone.

Elcee Refuge continues to play well at the star position. I was standing on the sideline with the offense when Refuge put put a hit on a running back as the No. 1 defense worked against the No. 2 offense. “Man, that kid can hit,” a voice said in the middle of the crowded sideline.

After practice, Paul Haynes spent about a half hour talking with fans during Season Ticket Holder Appreciation Day at Dix Stadium. It’s a nice event that gives fans a chance to get a little more of an inside look at the team, and it’s just another benefit of becoming a season ticket holder. 

Next week is the last of preseason camp and then the Flashes will start full scale preparation for the opener against Ohio University on Aug. 30.

Battles ongoing for jobs on special teams

There is only a little more than a week to go before preseason football camp ends and the Golden Flashes start their preparation to face Ohio University on Aug. 30. That means the battles for positions on the depth chart leading into week one are in the home stretch.

The one thing Paul Haynes and his coaching staff have repeated to their players since day one is the idea that if you are not on a special team, “don’t even talk about a position.”

That mantra is designed to impress upon every player the importance of special teams. Based on the fact that Haynes keeps hearing players repeat it themselves, he believes they are buying in.

There are still several jobs on those special teams units to be determined due to the fact that the Flashes have had very little live work. Some spots could become a little more settled after Saturday when the Flashes hold a situational scrimmage at Dix Stadium. 

Until now, they’ve broken up groups like their “Recon” unit for drills, and while players look like they understand concepts and are working hard, the coaches won’t have a true evaluation until they get some full-go looks.

Two of the jobs that are set belong to Anthony Melchiori, who will handle the punting and kickoff duties. Melchiori is a weapon as a punter with his ability to change the field. He also has a big leg on field goals, but as of Friday Haynes was not yet sure if he will add placekicking to Melchiori’s duties for a second consecutive year. Sophomore Brad Miller and freshman Shane Hynes, who missed a few days early in camp to injury, are also in the mix for the job, “if they can keep coming on,” Haynes said.

The coaching staff likes the potential of young players in the coverage units. Sophomore brothers Nate and Nick Holley are both good coverage men. The Flashes also love the athleticism of freshman linebacker Marques Moore, and kick coverage will give him one more way to get him on the field in his first year. 

According to Haynes, the return game is still pretty much wide open with three sophomores in wide receivers James Brooks, Ernest Calhoun and RB-WR Nick Holley battling a group of freshmen that includes running back Miles Hibbler, Zaquon Tyson and cornerback Eldin Anu. Everyone in that group is in the mix for both punt and kick returns. 

The snapping duties are also in good shape with Chad Bushley back for his third season. 

It's not too early to start thinking about bowl season

It’s only August, but Kent State is already thinking about bowl season.

The Flashes and every other team in the Mid-American Conference and C-USA have to plan ahead because of the possibility of winning a bid to make a Christmas Eve trip to play in the Bahamas Bowl in Nassau.

Travel to the Bahamas requires a valid passport. For Kent State, that means every player on the roster, every coach and every member of the team’s support staff needs to have passport. 

Just getting passports for over 100 student athletes is a logistical challenge. Fortunately, the Flashes learned a little bit about dealing with that problem from 2007-10 during the MAC’s affiliation with the International Bowl in Toronto.

I talked with Casey Wolf, Kent State’s director of football operations during that time and the current athletic director for Amherst High School, about how big a job it was to get passports for the Flashes entire roster. 

In 2007, Wolf and his staff set up times during the summer to meet with groups of between 10 and 30 football players at CVS to have their passport photos taken. Then he waited for each player or parent to send in original birth certificates and all other forms. Representatives of the City of Kent helped out by coming to Dix Stadium to complete the application process. 

“It took the whole summer,” Wolf said.

It is a little easier this year, again thanks to the City of Kent. Representatives will be coming back to Dix Stadium to help as each student athlete fills out the applications. Every player is responsible for bringing his or her original birth certificate, a drivers licenses copy, a Kent State ID, an expired passport if they have one, and a social security card. Players will also be responsible for having their own 2x2 passport photo taken.

The City of Kent will then take all of the completed applications. 

As long as the MAC continues its affiliation with the Bahamas Bowl, every new football player coming into the program will have to go through the same process during future camps. 

Who pays for the new passports? The players’ passports The NCAA through its Student Assistance Fund. But that means the passports are held by the university. If a player needs a passport for a family vacation, they can be signed out.

Fortunately, I already have my passport, and I’m hoping to be able to use it in December for a trip to the Bahamas. I’ll be just as happy going to Mobile, Boca Raton, Montgomery or Boise, though. I just want to see the Flashes play in another bowl game.

The trip to Mobile for the GoDaddy.com Bowl two years ago was fantastic. The city rolled out the red carpet. And while Boise may not sound as sexy as some of the other homes of bowl games, I’ve heard nothing but great things about the way the city treats its guests for the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl. Playing in the first Camellia Bowl or Boca Raton Bowl would probably be a whole lot of fun, too.

If the Flashes are bowl eligible come November, would you make the trip? Where would you like to go? And do you have your passport ready if it’s the Bahamas?

Photo Blog by David Dermer

I'm out of town today, so for today's blog our photographer David Dermer has sent in a group of recent shots taken at preseason camp.

On another note, the 28th annual Rango Invitational will be held all day tomorrow at Windmill Lakes Golf Club in Ravenna. It's a great event benefitting Kent State's men's and women's golf teams. I'll be playing in the morning and then hanging out to talk with Golden Flashes fans.

I'm preparing a blog about the 2014 bowl season and what it will mean to the Flashes and their fans. We are already getting some work done at the M.A.C. Center to get ahead of one potential bowl trip.

As crazy as it sounds, the bowl season isn't all that far away, so I'll be curious to find out where you'd like to visit to watch the Flashes should they qualify for their second bowl appearance in three years.

Here are the photos by Kent State alum David Dermer, who by the way won third place in the Pro Football Hall of Fame's annual photo contest this year for a great shot he took at a Cleveland Browns game last season. To see that photo and hear David talk about how he got the great shot, click on THIS LINK.