Novosad's first start, Bradley's five sacks propel Bowling Green past Kent State, 33-28

Bowling Green had been no stranger to one-score finishes this season.

With the Tuesday night lights shining at Doyt L. Perry Stadium and a rivalry trophy on the line, the Falcons knew they'd need a full 60-minute effort to get past Kent State.

Bowling Green delivered in another back-and-forth affair, outlasting the Golden Flashes 33-28 to claim the Anniversary Award and snap a three-game losing streak.

The Falcons received an offensive spark from quarterback Austin Novosad, who made his first collegiate start. Novosad spent three seasons as a backup at Oregon, sitting behind Bo Nix, Dillon Gabriel and Dante Moore before transferring to Bowling Green during the offseason. Despite this being his fourth season, his on-field experience remained limited, entering Tuesday night with just 22 career pass attempts.

But against Kent State, the junior from Dripping Springs, TX, showed little hesitation. Novosad completed 15-of-25 passes for 229 yards and three touchdowns without an interception, guiding the Falcons to a long-awaited victory. His most impressive touchdown pass helped Bowling Green establish a 24-14 advantage in the third quarter, threading the ball into a tight window to tight end Blane Cleaver in the back left corner of the end zone.

While Bowling Green's offense enjoyed a breakout performance from a new source, its defense received another dominant showing from a familiar star. Defensive end Myles Bradley feasted in the Kent State backfield all night, recording a career-high 5.0 sacks — the second-most in a game by any FBS player all season. Bradley has now produced a share of a sack in seven of nine games and exceeded four sacks twice this season. After Tuesday's performance, he became the new national leader with 14.0 sacks, creating a 3.5-sack cushion over Texas' Colin Simmons and UAB's Marlin Dean.

Bowling Green held a 27-14 with seven minutes remaining, but the Falcons had reason to remain cautious. Last season, they squandered a 21-3 lead in a loss to the Golden Flashes, a reminder that no advantage was safe against their in-state rival. With quarterback Dru DeShields and wide receivers Wayne Harris and Da'Realyst Clark leading the charge, Kent State once again mounted a late rally, storming back from the 13-point deficit.

DeShields threw for 332 yards and two touchdowns while adding two more scores on the ground. Harris corralled eight receptions for 143 yards and two touchdowns, while Clark added another 107 receiving yards. A DeShields to Harris connection trimmed Kent State's deficit to 27-21 with 6:37 remaining. Then, with exactly two minutes remaining, DeShields sprinted 25 yards to the end zone on a designed QB draw, propelling the Golden Flashes ahead, 28-27.

The next nine seconds proved the most pivotal.

On the second snap following DeShields' go-ahead touchdown, Bowling Green responded emphatically. Running back Nakai Amachree, making the start in place of the injured Austyn Dendy, flew down the left sideline 48 yards to snatch Bowling Green's lead back at 33-28.

The rapid response left Kent State ample time to answer. DeShields guided the Golden Flashes as far as the Bowling Green 35-yard line, but Bradley and the Falcon defense took over from there. Bradley and Eriq George combined for a second down sack. Then on 3rd-and-13, George pressured DeShields into an ill-advised heave toward the end zone, where cornerback Nick Sawyer made an uncontested over-the-shoulder interception to seal the Falcon victory.

Kent State (3-7, 2-4 MAC) was officially eliminated from bowl eligibility, extending its postseason drought to five consecutive seasons. The Golden Flashes also remained winless on the road, falling to 0-6 away from home. Still, their 28-point performance against Bowling Green surpassed their combined scoring output from their previous five road games. Kent State now turns its attention to a Nov. 17 senior night matchup against Miami (Ohio), hoping to secure its second victory since the beginning of October.

Bowling Green (3-7, 3-3 MAC), meanwhile, extended its commanding lead in the Anniversary Award series to 63-25-6. The Falcons evened their conference record to .500 and now turn their attention to the game that defines every season: the Battle of I-75 against archrival Toledo. With a rare Friday night installment in the rivalry, Bowling Green will look to win three consecutive meetings in the series for the first time since 2007-09.