The College Football Blog: 2012 MAC Game of the Year

MAC Game of the Year

MAC Championship Game: Northern Illinois vs. Kent State (44-37, OT-II)

Highlights: Both teams entered the game at 11-1. #17 Kent State was a 7-point underdog but if they won the game they were basically a lock for a BCS bowl game. #21 Northern Illinois would be playing in their 3^rd straight MAC title game and looking to win back-to-back titles. The Huskies also had a chance at a BCS bowl if they won but it was not as certain as Kent State’s chances. The Golden Flashes were playing in the MAC Championship Game for the first time. 

The MAC title game is always crazy and the inferior team seems to win as often as not. There were many times during this year’s edition when it looked like that would again be the case. NIU dominated the game, but Kent State had a couple of surges and refused to go away quietly. The Huskies had a 25-17 edge in 1^st downs and outgained Kent State 524-260, more than doubling up on the Golden Flashes. However, NIU turned it over 3 times compared with 2 turnovers for the Golden Flashes, and while the Huskies were hit with 8 penalties for 62 yards, Kent State didn’t take a single penalty. 

The two teams traded punts on their first two possessions, but Kent State’s second punt was fumbled by NIU and the Golden Flashes recovered at the Huskies 22 for the first big break of the game. 3 plays later Dri Archer ran 15 yards for a score to give Kent State a 7-0 lead. 

After a 3^rd consecutive hideous possession, NIU got off a punt for a net of just 18 yards, giving the Golden Flashes the ball at the Northern Illinois 36. Kent State got a FG out of their second gift to go up 10-0. NIU finally got rolling on their next possession and managed to get on the board with a FG as the 1^st quarter ended. Kent State went 3-and-out on their next drive, and NIU marched 59 yards for a TD on their ensuing possession to tie the game at 10-10. 

On Kent State’s next drive, Spencer Keith was picked off at the NIU 42. The Huskies then went 58 yards for a score to go on top for the first time in the game, 17-10. Kent State went 3-and-out on the ensuing possession and NIU moved back into Kent State territory. On 2^nd and 7 from the Kent State 29, Jordan Lynch was picked off at the 2 with 2:13 on the clock. The Golden Flashes were able to run out the clock and send it to halftime with NIU up 17-10. 

Kent State got the ball to open the 2^nd half and produced a FG to cut the deficit to 17-13. NIU went 75 yards on 10 plays on their first 2^nd half drive. On the key play, Lynch carried the ball on 4^th and 1 from the Kent State 48 and went 44 yards. He later scored from 1 yard out to make it 24-13. The Golden Flashes went 3-and-out and NIU added another FG to make it 27-13, but Kent State was driving as the game moved into the 4^th. 

On the second play of the 4^th quarter, Kent State went for it on 4^th and 7 from the 11. Keith got the ball to Archer but he was stopped short at the 6. NIU now looked to put the game away, marching steadily from their own 6 into Kent State territory. The drive stalled at the 33 but Northern Illinois pinned Kent State with a punt at the 4. 

That’s where the Golden Flashes took over, down 14, with only 7:46 remaining. Kent State faced 3^rd and 5 from the 9. They converted for a 1^st down and then Keith got the ball to Archer for 60 yards down to the NIU 22. They moved 96 yards on just 8 plays in less than 3 minutes, with Keith scoring on a 5-yard TD to make it a 1-score game with 5 minutes to play. 

On the first play of the ensuing NIU drive, Lynch fumbled and Zack Hitchens returned it 22 yards for a TD to tie the game. The MAC Madness had arrived. 

The problem for Kent State was that they now had to kick it back to NIU with plenty of time. Northern Illinois moved 75 yards on just 4 plays to retake the lead, 34-27. However, a short kickoff gave Kent State the ball in good field position at their own 42. The Golden Flashes marched 58 yards in 11 plays, with Keith hitting Tim Erjavec on a 19-yard TD completion to tie the score at 34 with only 44 seconds left. 

In the 1^st overtime session, Kent State had a 3^rd and 1 from the 5 but they chose to run a reverse and it backfired. Erjavec botched the reverse handoff and the ball was on the turf. By the time Keith recovered it for Kent State they had lost 11 yards to the 16. Freddy Cortez hit a FG to make it 37-34 Kent State. NIU matched that score with a 40-yarder by Mathew Sims to extend the game to a 2^nd overtime. 

The Huskies scored on just 2 plays in the 2^nd OT session, with Akeem Daniels running 23 yards to the 2 on the first play, and Lynch scoring from 2 yards out on the second play. Now Kent State needed a TD to extend the game. On 4^th and 8 from the 9, Keith was picked off at the goal line by Demetrius Stone, sealing the win for NIU.