TOLEDO, Ohio – Junior Shakif Seymour rushed for a career-high 175 yards and two touchdowns to lead Toledo to a hard-fought 35-33 triumph over Kent State in the Glass Bowl Tuesday night.

      Seymour, taking over as the Rockets' main running option due to a first-half injury to sophomore Bryant Koback, gained 40 yards and two first downs in Toledo's final possession as the Rockets ran out the clock and held on to the victory.

      With the win, Toledo (6-3, 3-2 MAC) gained bowl eligibility but more importantly stayed in the hunt in the MAC West Division. The Rockets are a half-game behind Western Michigan and Central Michigan (4-2) and tied with Ball State (3-2).

      "Conference wins are tough to get in November," said Head Coach Jason Candle. "Everybody wants to be playing meaningful games in November and that's where we're at. We played a much-improved team tonight and it was a gritty performance from our guys. I'm really proud of their effort.

     "We have a very young football team, and it can be really hard to predict what's going to happen. I trust the leadership and makeup of our players, we recruit guys who are winners. Pride is a tough thing, it can be a slippery slope. It can bite you or it can propel you to some great things. Our guys have responded the last couple weeks and they've gotten a couple tough wins."

      Toledo held a 28-17 halftime lead but saw the lead go down to one, 28-27, when the Golden Flashes scored late in the third quarter. Seymour scored his second touchdown of the game to put Toledo up, 35-27, with 11:49 left. But Kent State responded with a 15-play, 70-yard drive that culminated with a five-yard TD pass from QB Dustin Crum to Keenan Orr on fourth down. Trailing by two, 35-33, the Flashes went for two and Crum came up inches short on the rushing attempt. Toledo never let KSU have another chance to score by controlling the ball for the remainder of the game.

      Toledo's offense racked up 483 yards of total offense, including 289 yards on the ground. Junior Eli Peters led the passing game, completing 15-of-25 passes for 194 yards and one score. The defense was led by senior linebacker Jordan Fisher (11 tackles, 1.5 TFL) and sophomore defensive end Jamal Hines (six tackles, 2.5 TFL).

First Quarter

      The Rockets got off to a fast start, stopping Kent State on a three-and-out on its first drive before marching down the field on a nine-play, 77-yard drive. Koback finished it off with a 14-yard run on a sweep right to make it 7-0 Rockets. Toledo then capitalized a fumble recovery, moving 59 yards in seven plays to make it 14-0 with 6:05 left in the quarter. The drive was capped by a 19-yard TD pass over the middle from Peters to Desmond Phillips. Kent State got on the board thanks to a 26-yard field goal by Matthew Trickett to trim the lead to 14-3. Moments later, the Golden Flashes struck with a 70-yard TD pass from Dustin Crum to Mike Carrigan.

Second Quarter

      Toledo extended the lead with another long drive to open the quarter, this one going 81 yards on 11 plays. Koback scored his second TD of the game, this time from two yards out to make it 21-10 with 10:12 left in the half. KSU wasted no time in answering, as Crum hit Xavier Williams for a 28-yard TD on a five-play drive to make it 21-17. Toledo punched back, moving 85 yards in 12 plays to score its fourth touchdown of the half, this one a one-yard plunge by Seymour to make it 28-17. The Flashes missed a golden opportunity to trim the lead when they recovered a fumble on the UT 30-yard line with 1:48 left. But the Rockets trapped Kavious Price for a 16-yard loss, with Jamal Hines pulling him down on the 42-yard line and out of field-goal range.

Third Quarter

Kent State opened the half with a 47-yard field goal to cut the lead to 28-20, on a drive that was set up by an interception. Late in the quarter, Crum ran it in from 11 yards on third-and-goal to make it a one-point game, 28-27.

Fourth Quarter

      Toledo gained some breathing room, 35-27, with a five-yard TD run up the middle by Seymour. Kent State responded with a 15-play, 70-yard drive that culminated with a five-yard TD pass from Crum to Keenan Orr on fourth down. Trailing by two, 35-33, the Flashes went for two and Crum came up inches short on the rushing attempt. With 5:22 remaining, Toledo was able to run out the clock with Seymour securing a pair of first downs, the last one a 10-yard gain on fourth-and-one from the KSU 40-yard line.

Up Next

      The Rockets host Northern Illinois on Senior Night on Wednesday, Nov. 13.


Highlights from Toledo's win over Kent State.

Kent State post-game with Head Coach Jason Candle. 


Kent State post-game with junior Shakif Seymour. 


Kent State post-game with sophomore Jamal Hines.