Meet Your Insider
Hello, Golden Flashes fans. Welcome to The Cover Window. I'm Ozzie Brannigan, your Kent State insider. I graduated from a campus with a famous fashion school, so I rate two things every week: uniforms and fourth-down decisions. I travel with this team and I live with this team. I'm a pessimist, and the annoying part is how often I'm right. When we lose, I say, "I expected this," and I mean it. When we win, there's a stunned silence, and then I say, "I expected this," which is not true at all. Every week you'll get the players, the coaches and the matchup, with realistic expectations. Very realistic. "I expected this. I always expect this."
The School in 60 Seconds
Kent State plays at Dix Stadium, listed at 25,319. This week is the Wagon Wheel game against Akron, a trophy that dates to 1946. Here is a rare happy fact: Kent State won the first nine Wagon Wheel games. And another one, which makes me nervous: we hold the Wheel right now after beating Akron 42-35 last season. We also won in 2020, 2021 and 2022, including a 69-35 game in 2020. Akron won in 2023 and 2024. Akron leads the all-time series, 26-19-1 per CollegeFootballDigest, or 37-29-2 per other references. Either way, I expected that.
The Coach and the Scheme
Mark Carney is Kent State's 24th head coach. He was interim coach starting in April 2025, and the school removed the interim tag on Oct. 30, 2025. This season has been a struggle. We score 12 points a game, 138th in FBS, and gain 273.1 yards a game (137th). The running game averages 2.93 yards a carry, with 5 rushing touchdowns and 4 passing. The defense allows 32 points (120th). The bright spot: the pass rush has 15 sacks. The other spot, less bright: 72.6 penalty yards a game, 120th in FBS, and a minus-4 turnover margin. I'm rating the uniforms higher than the turnover margin. The uniforms are lovely. On defense, the totals are mid-pack: 363.6 yards allowed a game (77th) and 141.4 rushing yards (69th). The pass defense allows 222.1 (89th). Not terrible. I'm not saying good. I'm saying not terrible.
Players to Know
QB Dru DeShields: 1,145 yards, 4 TD, 6 INT, 57.3% completions. At South Florida he went 17 of 30 for 165 yards with no interceptions. Progress. I'm suspicious of progress.
WR Wayne Harris: 30 catches, 384 yards, 1 TD. WR Brendyn Smith had four catches for 56 yards last week.
RB Mason King: 202 yards and 1 TD on 52 carries. RB Brandon White ran 10 times for 37 yards at South Florida and caught two passes.
LB Hayden Dawahare: 33 tackles and 2 sacks, including 9 tackles and a sack at South Florida.
The Conference Picture
We're 2-5 overall and 1-2 in the MAC, 2-1 at home and 0-4 on the road. The wins: Wofford 36-15 and Ball State 26-13, both at Dix. The losses included trips to South Carolina and Ohio State, plus a 13-10 loss to Ohio at home. Then came 38-7 at Western Michigan and 29-2 at South Florida. Two points last week. I expected this. But we're home again, and home is where the wins have been.
This Week: Akron (1-6) at Kent State (2-5)
Saturday, Oct. 24 · 1 p.m. ET · Dix Stadium · ESPN+. Forecast: 59 degrees and sunny. I'll bring an umbrella anyway.
Last week: we lost 29-2 at South Florida. Akron lost 34-14 at Miami (OH), with QB Brayden Roggow throwing four interceptions.
Our offense vs. their defense: Akron allows 200.4 rushing yards a game, 130th in FBS, and 6.05 yards a carry. If our run game is ever going to work, it's this week. I'm saying that out loud, which means it probably won't.
Their offense vs. our defense: RB Jordan Gant has 452 yards. Roggow has thrown 8 interceptions, and Akron has given up 19 sacks. Our 15 sacks could matter a lot. Akron's red-zone defense ranks 114th, so if we ever get inside the 20, we have to finish. Historically, I would not assume that.
Series: Akron leads (26-19-1 per CollegeFootballDigest), but we won last year 42-35.
Availability: I found no official availability report for either team as of Oct. 18, 2026.
What decides it: (1) Turnovers. Akron is minus-7, and we're minus-4. (2) Can our run game exploit Akron's run defense? (3) Penalties. Ours are a problem.
And to Zip Grubbs, Akron's insider: your tread is impressive. I fully expect it to be a close game. That's the scary part.
Local Flavor (unsponsored, not an ad)
In Kent? D.P. Dough on South Water Street for calzones, or Barrio on the same street for tacos.
My call: Kent State Golden Flashes 26, Akron Zips 22.