SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 27, 2012
Kent State 35, No. 15 Rutgers 23: Defensive end Mark Fackler returned one of his two interceptions for a touchdown and the visiting Golden Flashes forced seven turnovers to knock the Scarlet Knights from the unbeaten ranks.
Kent State, which won its sixth straight game, intercepted Rutgers quarterback Gary Nova six times and recovered one fumble. Spencer Keith threw two touchdown passes for the Golden Flashes, who beat a ranked team for the first time in 23 attempts. Both teams are 7-1.
Trayion Durham registered 131 yards rushing and a touchdown for Kent State, which got an interception and a fumble recovery from Sidney Saulter.
Fackler grabbed Nova’s swing pass and rumbled 25 yards for a score 1:39 into the second quarter to give Kent State a 14-3 lead. After another interception by Leon Green, Dri Archer extended the lead to 21-3 with a 7-yard run with 5:54 left in the second quarter.
Nova, who had only three interceptions in the first seven games, connected with Tim Wright for a 19-yard score with 4 seconds left in the half to pull the Scarlet Knights within 21-10. Nova also threw a 24-yard touchdown pass to Brandon Coleman with 4:11 left in the third quarter to pull Rutgers within 28-17, but that was as close as the Knights would get.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Archer had his No. 1 jersey ripped in the first quarter and switched to No. 26. … Keith moved past Josh Cribbs to take over the top spot on Kent State’s all-time list for passing yards with 7,204. … Rutgers running back Jawan Jamison rushed for 84 yards, held to less than 100 yards for only the second time this season. … Rutgers won the only other two meetings in 1994 and 2004.