TOLEDO, Ohio - Toledo dominated in all three phases of the game in its 45-3 Homecoming victory over Akron at the Glass Bowl on Saturday.

The Rockets, who outgained the Zips in total offense, 545-145, wasted no time in setting the tone, scoring on its first play from scrimmage and then building a 28-0 lead early in the second quarter. The game was essentially over by halftime, punctuated by a 26-yard TD pass from Tucker Gleason to Eric Holley III with 23 seconds left that gave the Rockets a 35-3 lead heading into the locker room.

Toledo (3-2, 1-1 MAC) got a superlative performance from Gleason, who completed 16-of-19 passes for a career-best 84.2% completion percentage. Senior wide receiver Junior Vandeross III caught nine passes for 122 yards and two touchdowns. The Rockets averaged 11.1 yards from scrimmage in the first half.

Defensively, Toledo put together another dominating performance, holding the Zips (1-4, 0-1 MAC) to just 66 yards rushing on 35 attempts, and 2.4 yards per play overall. In the first half, Akron gained just 64 yards on 35 plays. The Rockets were led by senior cornerback Andre Fuller's seven tackles. Junior defensive end Malachi Davis was credited with 2.5 tackles for loss.

On special teams, Toledo opened the game with a 52-yard kickoff return by Bryson Hammer and ended the first half with a 90-yard kickoff for a touchback by Robert Hammond III.

Quoting Head Coach Jason Candle
"Proud of our team. That was a great response coming off last week's game (loss at WMU). We were sound in all three phases. Good team victory and the response we expected. We'll catch our breath on the bye week, get some of our banged up guys healthy and turn the page to what lies ahead."

"When you can really limit the other team's rushing attack that sets the table for everything else. To hold a Division I team to 66 yards rushing that's impressive. When you control the line of scrimmage and keep them behind the chains, it makes it hard for any quarterback to operate. We did a really good job on third-down defense. Our success on early downs set the table for the whole game."

First Quarter

• Toledo wasted no time, scoring a touchdown in the first 16 seconds of the game. Bryson Hammer returned the opening kickoff 52 yards to the Akron 28-yard line. Tucker Gleason then completed a shuffle pass to Junior Vandeross III who took it 28 yards down the sideline and into the end zone.
• After Akron went three-and-out, Toledo marched down the field 76 yards in seven plays to make it 14-0. Chip Trayanum capped the drive with an 11-yard TD run.

Second Quarter

• Toledo made it 21-0 on a quarterback keeper by Gleason from two yards out on its first possession of the second quarter.
• Gleason connected with Vandeross again, this time from 26 yards out, for a 28-0 edge with 10:27 to play in the half.
• Akron trimmed the lead to 28-3 on a 39-yard field goal with 1:56 left.
• Toledo answered with a 26-yard TD pass from Gleason to Eric Holley III to take a 35-3 lead.

Third Quarter

• Play was stopped for approximately 20 minutes at the 10:51 mark when backup quarterback John Alan Richter did not get up after being tackled on a scramble. Richter was immobilized and taken off the field by ambulance.
• Toledo made it 38-3 with a 40-yard field goal by Dylan Cunanan with 12 second left in the third quarter.

Fourth Quarter

• Reserve quarterback Kalieb Osborne made it 45-3 on a 21-yard TD run early in the quarter.

Up Next
The Rockets are off next week and return to action on Oct. 11 at Bowling Green in the annual Battle of I-75. Kickoff time and network will be determined on Monday.

Post Game Notes

• Toledo is now 67-28 in Homecoming games.
• Toledo won its fourth consecutive MAC home opener and is 9-1 in league openers at the Glass Bowl under Head Coach Jason Candle.
• Toledo is now 14-10 all-time vs. Akron.
• The Rockets held Akron to just 145 yards of total offense, their third consecutive game holding their opponent to under 300 yards.
• Toledo's defense has allowed 17 points in its last three games, an average of 5.7 per contest. The 17 points allowed in three games is Toledo's fewest since allowing 14 in three games from Sept. 30-Oct. 14, 2000.
• Senior wide receiver Junior Vandeross III caught nine passes for 122 yards. He now has 2,019 career receiving yards, becoming the 15^th Rocket to surpass the 2,000-yard mark. It was the seventh game in his career over the 100-yard mark.
• Vandeross caught two TD passes and now has six this season and 15 for his career.
• Tucker Gleason completed 16-of-19 passes for 237 yards and three touchdowns. Gleason, who completed 15-of-16 passes in the first half, set his career completion percentage record of 84.2. 
• Senior Eric Holley III caught his first career TD reception.
• Senior running back Chip Trayanum scored a touchdown for the fourth consecutive game.
• Robert Hammond III had what is believed to be the longest kickoff in school history with a 90-yard kickoff with 23 seconds left in the first half. Hammond kicked off from the UT 10-yard line due to a penalty following a Toledo touchdown, and his kick went 82 yards in the air, bouncing at the eight-yard line and rolling into the end zone for a touchback.
• Toledo scored its most points (105) and reached 100 points in consecutive home games for the first time since Sept. 22 and Oct. 6, 2018 when the Rockets combined for 115 home points against Nevada and Bowling Green.
• The Rockets' 42-point triumph earned their largest margin of victory in a MAC game since Oct. 17, 2015 against Eastern Michigan in a 63-20 romp.