The Kent State Golden Flashes (7-5, 6-2 MAC) were preseason favorites to win the East, and they’ve performed up to that expectation in 2021, having made it all the way to the MAC Championship Game set to be played on Saturday, Dec. 5 at noon Eastern time. The 2021 Flashes, much like the last KSU team to make it to the precipice of the MAC, has relied upon a dominant offense, especially in the ground game, to make it to the Motor City, scoring an average of 32.8 points per game (41st in the country) to run over opponents.
Kent State secured their first outright MAC East title since 2012 with a heart-pounding, instant classic game last Saturday afternoon with the Miami RedHawks, getting a vital pass break-up in the first overtime on a two-point conversion attempt to secure the title in a do-or-die final game.
The Kent State team which departs for Detroit this week isn’t quite up to the standard of their 2012 forefathers, but looking back at the statistics shows there are very few teams in college football history who could have held up to those Golden Flashes.
The two major names who defined this era of Kent State football were Trayvion Durham and the incomparable Dri Archer. A classic “thunder and lightning” running back combo, Durham and Archer both rushed for over 1,000-plus yards in the 2012 season, with Durham as the workhorse back with 1,316 yards and 14 touchdowns on 216 carries, while Archer was a change-of-pace back with 4.2 40-yard speed, collecting 1,419 yards and 16 touchdowns on the ground on just 159 carries.
The receiving corps was also led by Archer and his 39 receptions for 561 yards and four touchdowns, running routes both out wide and from the backfield to guide the Flashes success. Josh Boyle (28 rec., 338 yards, three touchdowns), Matthew Hurdle (35 rec., 333 yards, one touchdown) and Chris Humphrey (26 rec., 319 yards) were the other top receivers on the roster. Punt return specialist Eric Adeyani was second-best on the roster with three touchdowns on 18 receptions for 242 yards as a deep threat option.
Spencer Keith directed the passing effort, finishing 183-of-333 for 2,021 yards, 12 touchdowns and 10 interceptions through the air, while also contributing to KSU’s ferocious running attack with 166 yards and five touchdowns on 72 carries.
The defense was one of the best in the MAC at causing turnovers and scoring points, with a whopping 25 interceptions, five forced fumbles and five defensive scores on two interceptions returns and three fumble returns.
Linebackers Luke Batton and CJ Maluulu were first and fourth on the tackle charts, respectively, with Batton’s 143 tackles, eight-tackles-for-loss, three sacks, two interceptions and one fumble recovery touchdown leading the KSU defensive effort. Maluulu was pretty good himself, with 72 tackles and an interception return touchdown.
The secondary was a true ballhawking unit, with Luke Wollett (119 tackles, six tackles-for-loss, one sack, four interceptions), Sidney Saultier (82 tackles, four tackles-for-loss, one interception), Darius Polk (58 tackles, three tackles-for-loss, three sacks, one interception) and Leon Greene (39 tackles, three interceptions) combining for nine interceptions throughout the season.
The defensive line was led by future NFL prospect Roosevelt Nix, a five-foot-eleven, 260 lb. defensive tackle who led one of the best individual campaigns in recent memory despite being undersized at the defensive tackle spot. Nix finished his junior campaign fifth-best on the tackle charts with 59 tackles, leading the team with 16 tackles-for-loss and six sacks, while also forcing three …….