Toledo Takes 34-7 Lead and Cruises past Eastern Michigan
Toledo sacked Eastern Michigan 6 times, held it to 34 rushing yards on 28 carries, and won 34-14. The Rockets were up 34-7 by the middle of the third quarter, and everything after that was housekeeping.
John Alan Richter threw a 28-yard touchdown to Adjatay Dabbs with 7:50 left in the first quarter, and Reice Griffith added a 30-yard field goal to make it 10-0. CJ Miller ran in a 1-yarder early in the second quarter, and after Noah Kim hit Joshua Long from 30 yards to make it 17-7, Toledo scored twice more before the break: Autavius Ison's 13-yard run and a 3-yard Miller run with 1:36 left. That was 31-7 at halftime. Griffith kicked a 29-yard field goal early in the third for 34-7, and Eastern Michigan got a 12-yard Kim touchdown pass to Harold Mack with 3:57 left in that quarter. Nobody scored in the fourth.
Toledo outgained Eastern Michigan 482 yards to 276, with Richter going 24 of 30 for 288. Both teams lost fumbles, Toledo one and Eastern Michigan two, and neither threw an interception. Toledo is 5-2. Eastern Michigan is 4-4. Ison added 104 rushing yards on 18 carries, which is the sort of quiet line that helps you control a game without anyone noticing. Toledo scored all 34 of its points by the middle of the third quarter and then simply stopped, and it did not matter.
The fantasy lesson is a funny one: the top three scorers include a tight end from the losing team. Long caught 7 passes for 84 yards and a touchdown, the best game of his season, on a night when Eastern Michigan's offense gained 242 yards through the air and nearly nothing on the ground.