University of Akron Athletics

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Akron fell 52-6 in the 2024 season opener to the No. 2 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes at Ohio Stadium on Saturday afternoon with 102,011 fans in attendance. 

Redshirt junior K Garrison Smith made a pair of field goals, scoring the Zips six points. Smith split the uprights with 48- and  49-yard kicks, marking the longest field goals since Robert Stein buried a 50-yarder in 2015.

Three quarterbacks saw action for the Zips in the season opener as redshirt junior Tahj Bullock paced both the passing (68 yards) and rushing (42 yards) categories. Redshirt junior Ben Finley earned the starting role and threw for 53 yards, while redshirt sophomore RB Charles Kellom added nine yards on the ground. In addition, redshirt sophomore TE Jake Newell reeled in two catches for 41 yards to lead receiving corps, while redhirt junior RB Jordon Simmons caught four passes for 25 yards.

Redshirt junior S Daymon David paced the Akron defense with six tackles while redshirt junior DL CJ Nunnally IV and senior LB Antavious Fish each had five tackles.

 

How It Happened

Akron grabbed a 3-0 lead over Ohio State after scoring the game’s first points with 8:44 remaining in the first quarter. Ohio State outpaced Akron to a 31-3 lead before the Zips put a field goal on the board to cut into the advantage and make it a 31-6 game. Akron didn’t score again in the game and Ohio State added 21 more points to finish off the scoring.

Game Notes

» Akron converted 4 of 16 third downs while Ohio State was successful on 9 of 14.

» Avery Book punted six times for the Zips with an average of 48.2 yards per punt while pinning the Buckeyes inside their own 20 two times.

» Akron went 2-for-3 on fourth down, converting on 66.7 percent of attempts.

» Bullock completed 69.2% of his passes on the day, going 9-for-13.

What’s Next?

Akron travels to face Rutgers for its next test on Saturday, September 7.