2026 MAC Football Week 9 Game Preview: Ohio Bobcats at Akron Zips

The Ohio Bobcats (6-2, 4-0 MAC) head up the road northeast this week on a two-and-a-half hour bus ride to tangle with former MAC East foe in the Akron Zips (1-7, 0-4 MAC). With the change in scheduling in recent years, the Zips and 'Cats did not play one another last year but renew things this week.

The teams also will have the honor of representing the MAC on a national stage as the first MAC schools squaring off in a proper weekday matchup on Tuesday night.

As both squads head toward the back half of the conference schedule, we examine some keys to the contest.

GAME NOTES

• Date and Time: Tuesday, November 3, 2026 at 7:00 p.m. Eastern time
• Location: Summa Field at InfoCision Stadium in Akron, Ohio
• TV options: The game will air nationally on ESPN2. A valid subscription is required.
• Streaming options: The game will be available via the ESPN App. A valid subscription is required for viewing. Other applicable cable/satellite streaming services are also available with a valid subscription. Other streaming carriers include Sling, DirecTV Stream, fuboTV, Hulu Live TV, or YouTube TV.
• Radio/online: Ohio call features Marty Banister (play-by-play) and Rob Cornelius (color) for flagship station WXTQ-105.5 FM (Athens) and the Varsity Network. Akron's call features Dave Skoczen (play-by-play) and Joe Dunn (color) for WHLO-AM 640
• All-Time Series: Ohio leads Akron by a margin of 27-13-1, with the Bobbies winning the last seven matchups in the series.

Ohio outlook

The Bobbies have been rolling along, winners of five games in a row and six overall while checking boxes for bowl eligibility and staying on schedule for a conference title bid.

In fact, if Ohio can best the Zips this week, they will be making noise they haven't made in quite some time, as they will be the first Ohio team to start 5-0 in conference play since 1997.

It hasn't been easy though, as half of the wins this year have been highly-contested, with Ohio setting themselves up through three quarters with enough success to seal the deal at the end of games. Two MAC wins have come down to the wire, with the 'Cats winning on the final play in regulation against both Eastern Michigan and Kent State. The Bobcats also defended their home turf against a tough Jacksonville State squad, outlasting the visitor in the fourth overtime to win 29-27.

Now battle-tested, the Bobcats return to action looking to re-establish the run on offense after Eastern Michigan made Ohio one-dimensional at times last week. In perspective, the Eagles were the first team in eight games who held Ohio's rushing game to under 100 total yards and the 'Cats were also averaging 230 yards rushing in MAC play to that point. The 'Cats probably feel they left some apple on the core, in not punishing the Eagles on a few key throws.

Still, the Bobcats threw for 266 yards behind quarterback Nick Poulos. The Granite Bay, California product has shown one of the stronger arms in the MAC and has taken care of the ball, leading the club with 781 yards passing and zero interceptions in 98 attempts. The 'Cats receiver room is deep, but when Poulos goes to the air, the bread-and-butter guy so far is Riley Neer, who leads the club in all receiving categories with 37 catches for just under 500 yards and five touchdowns. Keep an eye this week on wideout Dom Dorwart, who has shown he is a skilled deep threat and has four receiving touchdowns so far to his credit.

The club has no shortage of ball carriers, with four or five guys in the mix including Poulos. Standing out lately is a guy we were excited about in the preseason in running back Victor Rosa. Rosa and company have tallied some explosives lately and on the year he has 364 yards rushing and a club-leading five rushing scores.

On the other side of the ball, the 'Cats defense has been among the best in MAC play so far, leading the conference in points allowed per game at just 12.8 on average. In MAC play, the squad is also second in rushing yards allowed (101 per game) and fourth in passing yards allowed (177 per game). On the explosive side, the 'Cats are tied for third in league play with four interceptions and fourth in sacks with 13.

Overall, the hallmarks of good defense like multiple players swarming to the ball and more recently solid tackling appear with regularity and have resulted in a very sound unit.

Individually, some players who have stood out in recent weeks with key plays are JACK defense end Tyler Gillison, who has contributed three passes defensed, a sack, and a key fourth-down stop. Linebackers Michael Molnar and captain Jack Fries continue to shine behind a sound defensive line, with a combined 118 tackles, 7.5 sacks, five passes defensed, two forced fumbles, a blocked field goal, and an interception.

Led by safety DJ Walker, the back end has really progressed as a unit throughout the season. Players like cornerback Kendall Bannister continues to provide solid coverage for the Green and White and is tied for fifth in the MAC this year with seven passes defensed.

Moving to special teams, the Bobcats have as many wins as they do owing to some great performances from these units. Kickoff return led by safety Darren James-Hamilton has two touchdowns this year, coming at critical times in close wins over Eastern Michigan and Jacksonville State. Kicker Will Hryszko converted 77 percent of his field goal attempts this season (10-of-13), including some clutch kicks in a three-point win over Kent State.

Akron outlook

After tough back-to-back road games, the Zips look forward to some home cooking and a shot to knock off the visitors this week for Akron's first MAC win of 2026. Watching the Zips the last three weeks, even though losses, there are several positives to build on. Akron almost beat Eastern Michigan a few weeks ago but missed a few opportunities and ultimately came up short by two points after missing a game winning field goal as time expired. The Zips also did a lot of things in the first three quarters against rival Kent State last week and were down by just four at the end of the third quarter– but the wheel fell off the wagon so to speak in the fourth quarter on a few key plays in the loss.

What stood out last week began on offense with a running game that looked darn good at times. One of the best players on the field for either team in any MAC game this year, the Zips feature running back Jordan Gant, who returned for 2026 having rushed for over 1,000 yards last year. The senior runner went off last week for 162 yards– his third 100+ yard game in four weeks– to bring his season totals to 618 yards on the ground and six touchdowns.

While the ground game should look familiar this week, the aerial attack may have a new pilot. Freshman Cibastian Broughton was the starter until injured earlier this season in Minnesota and missed several games. Broughton has been diligently rehabbing and may be available to return as QB1 as early as this week. Quarterback Brayden Roggow has stepped in for Broughton in the meantime. Roggow has had his moments, completing 112 passes so far for 1,394 yards with seven touchdowns– but his struggles, especially late game, have also doomed Akron more often than not, with a MAC-leading nine interceptions.

A few potential differences Broughton brings is he is more of a running threat while Roggow, who can move, is more of a pocket passer to this point and Broughton has not thrown an interception. So far on the year in 2+ games, Broughton has completed 80 percent of his 66 passes for 380 yards and added 170 yards rushing.

Be it Broughton or Raggow, the Zips have some talented sophomores wideouts leading the way this season in Marcel Williams and Kyan Mason. Williams leads the club in major stats with 34 catches, 375 yards, and three touchdowns while Mason had a breakout game last week with single-game career highs in catches (seven) and yards (129). When the Zips get in the near the redzone this week, keep an eye out for tight end Elijah Alexander, who had been a factor around the endzone earlier this year and has three receiving touchdowns.

Ohio likes to run the ball and typically control the action when they can do so with regularity. The challenge for the Zips defense then is committing enough resources to slow Ohio's league-leading rushing attack while holding up on the back end sufficiently to minimize explosive plays. Last week, the Golden Flashes had some key explosives in the passing game with three passes for over 40 yards each.

Akron's linebackers Dwight Nunno and Donelius Johnson have been coming on throughout the season and will be key to the run defense. So far, the duo has combined for 121 stops this year with two passes defense and a forced fumble. Sophomore defensive backs Tairan Davis Jr. and Rodrick Hunter lead the secondary with an interception each, while Davis Jr. has 36 tackles and three passes defensed so far.

Game outlook

With the parity that is the MAC, Akron is capable of winning– even despite the disparity of the records– if they put it all together this week.

Unless Ohio lays an egg, which is unlikely given six wins in eight games, the Zips will need their most complete game of the year to send the crowd home happy. Where Ohio has a significant overall advantage is a bigger margin of error. If both teams generally play well, Ohio will more easily be able to overcome self-inflicted wounds while the Zips need to win the turnover battle and minimize the mistakes like penalties at key moments in both redzones to make hay while the sun is shining.