2018 Ohio Bobcats football team

2018 Ohio Bobcats football
Frisco Bowl champion
Frisco Bowl, W 27–0 vs. San Diego State
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Division	East Division
Record	9–4 (6–2 MAC)
Head coach	Frank Solich (14th season)
Offensive coordinator	Tim Albin (14th season)
Offensive scheme	Spread option
Co-defensive coordinator	Jim Burrow (14th season)
Co-defensive coordinator	Ron Collins (2nd season)
Base defense	4-3
Home stadium	Peden Stadium
Seasons ←  2017 2019  →

2018 Mid-American Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
Buffalo x		7	–	1					10	–	4
Miami (OH)		6	–	2					6	–	6
Ohio		6	–	2					9	–	4
Akron		2	–	6					4	–	8
Bowling Green		2	–	6					3	–	9
Kent State		1	–	7					2	–	10
West Division
Northern Illinois x$		6	–	2					8	–	6
Western Michigan		5	–	3					7	–	6
Eastern Michigan		5	–	3					7	–	6
Toledo		5	–	3					7	–	6
Ball State		3	–	5					4	–	8
Central Michigan		0	–	8					1	–	11
Championship: Northern Illinois 30, Buffalo 29
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions

The 2018 Ohio Bobcats football team represented Ohio University in the 2018 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by 14th-year head coach Frank Solich and played their home games at Peden Stadium in Athens, Ohio as members of the East Division of the Mid-American Conference. ^{[1] [2]} They finished the season 9–4, 6–2 in MAC play to finish in a tie for second place in the East division. They were invited to the Frisco Bowl where they defeated San Diego State.

Preseason

Award watch lists

Listed in the order that they were released

Award	Player	Position	Year
Maxwell Award [3]	Nathan Rourke	QB	JR
Jim Thorpe Award [4]	Javon Hagan	S	JR
Outland Trophy [5]	Joe Lowery	OL	SR
Lou Groza Award [6]	Louis Zervos	K	JR
Manning Award [7]	Nathan Rourke	QB	JR

Preseason media poll

The MAC released their preseason media poll on July 24, 2018, with the Bobcats predicted to finish as champions of the East Division. ^[8]

East Division
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Ohio	140 (21)
2	Buffalo	112 (1)
3	Miami	95 (2)
4	Akron	74
5	Bowling Green	58
6	Kent State	25

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	2:00 p.m.	Howard *	Peden Stadium Athens, OH	ESPN+	W 38–32	18,275
September 15	4:15 p.m.	vs. Virginia *	Vanderbilt Stadium Nashville, TN [a]	ESPN2	L 31–45	5,438
September 22	12:00 p.m.	at Cincinnati *	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH	ESPNU	L 30–34	35,220
September 29	2:00 p.m.	UMass *	Peden Stadium Athens, OH	ESPN3	W 58–42	19,056
October 6	3:30 p.m.	at Kent State	Dix Stadium Kent, OH	ESPN+	W 27–26	20,026
October 13	3:30 p.m.	at Northern Illinois	Huskie Stadium DeKalb, IL	ESPN+	L 21–24	12,138
October 20	2:00 p.m.	Bowling Green	Peden Stadium Athens, OH	ESPN3	W 49–14	19,492
October 25	7:00 p.m.	Ball State	Peden Stadium Athens, OH	CBSSN	W 52–14	13,774
November 1	7:00 p.m.	at Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium Kalamazoo, MI	ESPNU	W 59–14	11,935
November 7	7:00 p.m.	at Miami (OH)	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH (Battle of the Bricks)	ESPNU	L 28–30	15,975
November 14	7:00 p.m.	Buffalo	Peden Stadium Athens, OH	ESPN2	W 52–17	13,839
November 23	12:00 p.m.	Akron	Peden Stadium Athens, OH	CBSSN	W 49–28	12,938
December 19	8:00 p.m.	vs. San Diego State *	Toyota Stadium Frisco, TX (Frisco Bowl)	ESPN	W 27–0	11,029
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

1. Moved from Scott Stadium in anticipation of Hurricane Florence.

Source: ^[9]

Game summaries

Howard

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bison	10	12	7	3	32
Bobcats	3	14	14	7	38

See also: 2018 Howard Bison football team

vs Virginia

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	7	14	7	3	31
Cavaliers	21	17	0	7	45

See also: 2018 Virginia Cavaliers football team

At Cincinnati

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	14	10	3	3	30
Bearcats	0	7	14	13	34

See also: 2018 Cincinnati Bearcats football team

UMass

	1	2	3	4	Total
Minutemen	21	7	7	7	42
Bobcats	14	21	17	6	58

See also: 2018 UMass Minutemen football team

At Kent State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	7	0	7	13	27
Golden Flashes	14	3	6	3	26

See also: 2018 Kent State Golden Flashes football team

At Northern Illinois

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	0	7	14	0	21
Huskies	3	6	0	15	24

See also: 2018 Northern Illinois Huskies football team

Bowling Green

	1	2	3	4	Total
Falcons	7	7	0	0	14
Bobcats	14	21	7	7	49

See also: 2018 Bowling Green Falcons football team

Ball State

	1	2	3	4	Total
Cardinals	7	0	0	7	14
Bobcats	0	31	21	0	52

See also: 2018 Ball State Cardinals football team

At Western Michigan

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	21	24	7	7	59
Broncos	0	0	7	7	14

See also: 2018 Western Michigan Broncos football team

At Miami (OH)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bobcats	7	0	7	14	28
RedHawks	7	21	0	2	30

See also: 2018 Miami RedHawks football team and Battle of the Bricks

Buffalo

	1	2	3	4	Total
Bulls	7	3	0	7	17
Bobcats	14	17	14	7	52

See also: 2018 Buffalo Bulls football team

Akron

	1	2	3	4	Total
Zips	0	7	7	14	28
Bobcats	21	7	7	14	49

See also: 2018 Akron Zips football team

Vs. San Diego State (Frisco Bowl)

	1	2	3	4	Total
Aztecs	0	0	0	0	0
Bobcats	3	14	3	7	27

See also: 2018 San Diego State Aztecs football team and 2018 Frisco Bowl

References

1. "Peden Stadium". Ohio University Athletics. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
2. "Frank Solich". Sports Reference.
3. "2018 Maxwell Award Watch List". July 16, 2018. Archived from the original on July 16, 2018. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
4. "Paycom Jim Thorpe Award Names 2018 Preseason Watchlist". July 23, 2018. Retrieved July 23, 2018.
5. "22018 OUTLAND TROPHY WATCH LIST UNVEILED". July 24, 2018. Retrieved July 24, 2018.
6. "Lou Groza Collegiate Place-Kicker Award Announces 2018 Preseason Watch List". July 25, 2018. Archived from the original on August 17, 2009. Retrieved July 25, 2018.
7. "Manning Award: See which quarterbacks made the preseason watch list for 2018". August 16, 2018. Retrieved August 17, 2018.
8. "NIU & Ohio Picked as Divisional Winners in 2018 MAC Football Media Preseason Poll".
9. "2018 Ohio Bobcats Football Schedule | Bobcats | FBSchedules.com". FBSchedules.com. Retrieved April 9, 2018.