Overview
- Kent State beat Akron 42-35 in OT at InfoCision Stadium, with DeShields finding Ardell Banks from 25 yards before Akron’s fourth-down pass fell incomplete at the 19.
- Akron erased an 18-point fourth-quarter deficit to tie it 35-35, fueled by two Ben Finley touchdown passes and a successful two-point conversion.
- DeShields went 17 of 25 for 317 yards and five TDs, including an 89-yard second-quarter touchdown to Da’Realyst Clark, as the Golden Flashes surged with a dominant third quarter.
- Finley completed 32 of 59 for 424 yards with three touchdowns and one interception; Marcel Williams had 14 catches for 206 yards and two scores, and Jordan Gant rushed for 96 yards and a TD.
- Pre-game consensus had Akron favored by 5.5 with models leaning to the Under at 46.5, but Kent State won outright and the teams combined for 77 points.