Middle Tennessee State University Athletics
Saturday, August 31
Ann Arbor, MI
6:30 PM
Middle Tennessee
0-1
21
at
40
University of Michigan
1-0
1st
2nd
3rd
4th
F
Middle Tennessee
7
7
0
7
21
Michigan
10
17
6
7
40
Team Stats
MT
MICH
Total Yards
301
453
Pass Yards
234
220
Rushing Yards
67
233
Penalty Yards
54
55
1st Downs
16
26
3rd Downs
4
5
4th Downs
0
0
TOP
26:44
33:16
1st Quarter
MT 7, MICH 0
MT - O'HARA, Asher 18 yd run (HOLT, Crews kick), 4 plays, 42 yards, TOP 1:53
MT 7, MICH 3
MICH - Moody, Jake 34 yd field goal 12 plays, 57 yards, TOP 5:15
MT 7, MICH 10
MICH - Black, Tarik 36 yd pass from Patterson, Shea (Nordin, Quinn kick) 2 plays, 39 yards, TOP 0:41
2nd Quarter
MT 7, MICH 17
MICH - Collins, Nico 28 yd pass from Patterson, Shea (Nordin, Quinn kick) 4 plays, 67 yards, TOP 1:14
MT 7, MICH 24
MICH - McKeon, Sean 28 yd pass from Patterson, Shea (Nordin, Quinn kick) 2 plays, 28 yards, TOP 0:11
MT 14, MICH 24
MT - PIERCE, Jarrin 2 yd pass from O'HARA, Asher (HOLT, Crews kick) 8 plays, 33 yards, TOP 2:51
MT 14, MICH 27
MICH - Moody, Jake 27 yd field goal 12 plays, 52 yards, TOP 2:07
3rd Quarter
MT 14, MICH 33
MICH - McCaffrey, D. 6 yd run (Turner, C. rushfailed), 5 plays, 44 yards, TOP 2:47
4th Quarter
MT 14, MICH 40
MICH - VanSumeren, B. 1 yd run (Nordin, Quinn kick), 5 plays, 15 yards, TOP 2:11
MT 21, MICH 40
MT - MARSHALL, Jimmy 59 yd pass from O'HARA, Asher (HOLT, Crews kick) 3 plays, 80 yards, TOP 0:54
Game Leaders
CMP
22
TD
2
YDS
217
INT
1
CMP
4
TD
0
YDS
17
INT
0
Raiders fall at No. 7 Michigan
8/31/2019 10:51:00 PM | Football
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — The final score might not have been what they wanted, but Middle Tennessee put forth a valiant effort on the road Saturday against a top-10 ranked team.
The Blue Raiders (0-1) traveled to Michigan (1-0) to take on the No. 7 Wolverines, and though they lost 40-21, head coach Rick Stockstill saw plenty to draw some optimism out of the performance.
"I'm extremely proud of our team," the 14th-year head man said. "I thought we competed our tails off … and we didn't back down and didn't flinch.
"We didn't play well enough to beat the No. 7 team in the country, but we did enough that if we clean up some mistakes we made and get a little better at some things, I think we have a chance to be a pretty good football team."
Middle Tennessee started a new era at quarterback, with redshirt sophomore Asher O'Hara making his first career start behind an offensive line with five new starters.
The Rolling Hills, Illinois native had a quality game against a defense that ranked second in the nation in passing yards allowed in 2018, connecting on 22-of-32 passes for 217 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. He also led the team with 32 rushing yards, and scored the season's first touchdown with a diving effort from 18 yards in the first quarter.
"It was really like just playing the game of football; the stage didn't really affect me that much," O'Hara said. "There were some good things and some bad things. I'm ready to go home and try to fix those for next week."
O'Hara's first-quarter score came off a Michigan fumble on its second play of the game, putting the Blue Raiders on top 7-0.
The Wolverines got on the board with a field goal five minutes later, then added a touchdown right before the quarter ended to bring a 10-7 score at the end of the first frame.
Middle Tennessee added its second touchdown after another Michigan fumble with five minutes left in the second quarter, but a Wolverines' field goal as time expired in the half gave the home team a 27-14 advantage.
Despite the score, Stockstill was pleased with how his defense played in the first half — most notably, forcing two turnovers — and he grew even happier after the break.
"For the first game, I thought we tackled well defensively," he said. "We gave up some big plays in the first half … but I thought we were relentless."
The Blue Raiders' defensive intensity amplified after halftime.
They limited UM to just 75 yards in the third quarter, none coming through the air, and gave up only 13 points in the second half.
"I'm really happy about how we fought," junior linebacker DQ Thomas said. "Nobody threw in the towel … I know there are some good things coming out of this team."
Thomas led the defense with 10 total tackles, and Desmond Anderson, Tyshun Render and Reed Blankenship each added seven. Redshirt freshman Jordan Branch had the first sack of his career, and seniors Trae Philpots and Khalil Brooks added half a sack apiece. Gregory Grate Jr. and Render both forced fumbles.
Offensively, senior Ty Lee caught four passes for 52 yards, moving two games away from tying Kendall Newson's program record of 43 straight games with a reception. Jimmy Marshall only caught one ball, but it went for a 59-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
The Blue Raiders will host old rival Tennessee State in Week 2 for their home opener at Floyd Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.
"There are a lot of positives I'll take out of this game with how we played," Stockstill said. "We've got the intangibles — we've got the toughness, the competitiveness, the effort. Now, if we can get a little better offensively, defensively and in the kicking game, we have a chance."
The Blue Raiders (0-1) traveled to Michigan (1-0) to take on the No. 7 Wolverines, and though they lost 40-21, head coach Rick Stockstill saw plenty to draw some optimism out of the performance.
"I'm extremely proud of our team," the 14th-year head man said. "I thought we competed our tails off … and we didn't back down and didn't flinch.
"We didn't play well enough to beat the No. 7 team in the country, but we did enough that if we clean up some mistakes we made and get a little better at some things, I think we have a chance to be a pretty good football team."
Middle Tennessee started a new era at quarterback, with redshirt sophomore Asher O'Hara making his first career start behind an offensive line with five new starters.
The Rolling Hills, Illinois native had a quality game against a defense that ranked second in the nation in passing yards allowed in 2018, connecting on 22-of-32 passes for 217 yards, two touchdowns and an interception. He also led the team with 32 rushing yards, and scored the season's first touchdown with a diving effort from 18 yards in the first quarter.
"It was really like just playing the game of football; the stage didn't really affect me that much," O'Hara said. "There were some good things and some bad things. I'm ready to go home and try to fix those for next week."
O'Hara's first-quarter score came off a Michigan fumble on its second play of the game, putting the Blue Raiders on top 7-0.
The Wolverines got on the board with a field goal five minutes later, then added a touchdown right before the quarter ended to bring a 10-7 score at the end of the first frame.
Middle Tennessee added its second touchdown after another Michigan fumble with five minutes left in the second quarter, but a Wolverines' field goal as time expired in the half gave the home team a 27-14 advantage.
Despite the score, Stockstill was pleased with how his defense played in the first half — most notably, forcing two turnovers — and he grew even happier after the break.
"For the first game, I thought we tackled well defensively," he said. "We gave up some big plays in the first half … but I thought we were relentless."
The Blue Raiders' defensive intensity amplified after halftime.
They limited UM to just 75 yards in the third quarter, none coming through the air, and gave up only 13 points in the second half.
"I'm really happy about how we fought," junior linebacker DQ Thomas said. "Nobody threw in the towel … I know there are some good things coming out of this team."
Thomas led the defense with 10 total tackles, and Desmond Anderson, Tyshun Render and Reed Blankenship each added seven. Redshirt freshman Jordan Branch had the first sack of his career, and seniors Trae Philpots and Khalil Brooks added half a sack apiece. Gregory Grate Jr. and Render both forced fumbles.
Offensively, senior Ty Lee caught four passes for 52 yards, moving two games away from tying Kendall Newson's program record of 43 straight games with a reception. Jimmy Marshall only caught one ball, but it went for a 59-yard touchdown late in the fourth quarter.
The Blue Raiders will host old rival Tennessee State in Week 2 for their home opener at Floyd Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT.
"There are a lot of positives I'll take out of this game with how we played," Stockstill said. "We've got the intangibles — we've got the toughness, the competitiveness, the effort. Now, if we can get a little better offensively, defensively and in the kicking game, we have a chance."
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