KALAMAZOO — Toledo was 21 seconds away from an 8-3 record and, more importantly, a morale-boosting victory.
Nine days later, the Rockets are 7-5 and limping into the Mid-American Conference championship game — literally and figuratively.
Friday’s listless performance at Western Michigan did not inspire confidence as Ohio University looms in what could be a lopsided MAC title game. The Bobcats beat Western Michigan, Bowling Green, and Buffalo — UT’s three conference losses — by a combined score of 116-52. (Toledo beat Kent State 52-31. The Golden Flashes beat Ohio 31-24.)
“We’ve got to practice harder,” Toledo quarterback Tucker Gleason said. “We have to come to work tomorrow, lift, and get in this film. We have to see what went wrong and what we can do better. If we want to go into Detroit and win this thing, we have to learn how to practice harder in the next week.”
In a 20-14 loss at Western on Friday, the Rockets (at least offensively) were flat, dull, and sluggish. Pick the adjective.
The Broncos had a school-record 14 punts — and won. The outcome was on the shoulders of a Toledo offense that couldn’t protect its quarterback. Seventeen of UT’s 82 offensive plays resulted in a sack or quarterback hurry.
Toledo’s defense, likewise, had 12 tackles for loss, including six sacks.
“Obviously, [when] you’re 4 of 18 on third down, didn’t make enough tough plays when we needed to make them extend drives,” UT coach Jason Candle said. “I thought the defense played their tail off. It was one of those games in nip and tuck moments where we didn’t make enough plays.”
Remember Gleason’s clutch fourth-down completion to Devin Maddox at Eastern Michigan and game-winning touchdown pass to Jamal Turner? Without those plays, the Eagles would have represented the MAC West in the championship game. Eastern’s win over Central Michigan on Friday clinched a share with Toledo.
It’s fair to wonder what the Rockets’ psyche will be at Ford Field next Saturday. Yes, they’re playing for a championship. But they’re completely devoid of confidence after losing as a two-touchdown favorite to archrival Bowling Green and laying a turkey egg against the Broncos.
“No one really cares about our mindset,” Candle said. “No one is going to feel sorry for us. When the game kicks off, it kicks off. There are 60 minutes of football that stare us in the face. You’ve got to have a great week of preparation for a really good football team.”
Nate Givhan made a similar comment about the Rockets needing to go harder in practice and rallying around each other. It’s enough to wonder — especially when paired with two losses — if clinching the division early was a curse on UT’s mostly season-long momentum.
The first quarter of the Bowling Green game — and those pesky final 21 seconds — and large portions of Friday were disjointed and lacking the urgency of September and October.
Might everything being on the line at Ford Field serve as a cure-all?
“Honestly, we’ve already turned the page. This loss is behind us,” Givhan said. “There’s nothing we can change. All we can do is get in the film room, get on the practice field, and go hard and fix the mistakes.”
First Published November 25, 2022, 11:21 p.m.
