Saturday’s mid-American Conference football games

Kent State 41, Western Michigan 24

KENT

Kent State scored 17 unanswered fourth-quarter points, including Luke Batton’s 83-yard fumble return for a touchdown. Kent State (6-1, 4-0), off to its best start since 1973, went ahead 31-24 on its first possession of the fourth quarter, getting a 33-yard Spencer Keith pass to Dri Archer and a 33-yard run by Trayion Durham before Archer scored on a 10-yard run. Dana Brown intercepted Tyler Van Tubbergen’s pass on the Broncos’ next play, setting up Freddie Cortez’s 43-yard field goal. Western Michigan (3-5, 1-3) then drove from its 31 to the Kent State 11 before C.J. Malauulu forced a Brian Fields fumble that Batton returned all the way. Durham carried 19 times for 124 yards for Kent State. Western Michigan’s Van Tubbergen completed 30 of 57 passes for 333 yards, including an 81-yard touchdown to Josh Schaffer.

Northern Illinois 37, Akron 7

AKRON

Jordan Lynch threw two touchdowns and rushed for two more for Northern Illinois. Lynch finished with 223 yards on 20 of 33 passing and threw touchdown passes of nine and four yards. Northern Illinois (7-1, 4-1) held a 13-7 lead before Lynch’s 15-yard touchdown run gave the Huskies a 20-7 advantage at halftime. Akron (1-7, 0-4) struggled to move the ball, gaining just 194 yards on 65 plays from scrimmage. Northern Illinois has won 16 of its last 17 games. Its last lost was by one point to Iowa in the 2012 season opener.

Pittsburgh 20, Buffalo 6

BUFFALO, N.Y.

Ray Graham and Rushel Shell each scored a touchdown rushing to help the Pittsburgh Panthers snap a two-game skid. Graham had 74 yards rushing, while Shell had 35 yards rushing and a 41-yard catch as the Panthers’ run attack regained its stride. Pitt (3-4) finished with 126 yards rushing, after combining for just 120 in its previous two games.

The Panthers, in their final season in the Big East Conference, avoided their first 2-5 start since 2001 and improved to 4-0 all-time against Buffalo, and 29-3 against Mid-American Conference opponents. Devin Campbell had 104 yards rushing for Buffalo (1-6), which lost its fifth in a row.

Bowling Green 24, Massachusetts 0

FOXBOROUGH, MASS.

Dwayne Woods returned an interception 48 yards for a Bowling Green touchdown, one of four Falcons interceptions. Woods’ pickoff came on Massachusetts’ second play after the Falcons (5-3, 3-1) had taken a 14-0 third-quarter lead on Matt Schilz’s 2-yard pass to Alex Bayer at the end of a 74-yard drive. Trailing 21-0, the Minutemen (0-7, 0-4) replaced quarterback Mike Wegzyn with A.J. Doyle, but he was intercepted by BooBoo Gates. Gates’ 38-yard return led to Tyler Tate’s 42-yard field goal and a 24-0 Bowling Green lead early in the fourth quarter.

E. Michigan 48, Army 38

YPSILANTI, MICH.

Tyler Benz threw a career-high five touchdown passes. Benz, who had four scoring passes this season before Saturday, matched that total before intermission. He finished with a career-high 369 yards on 19-for-31 passing. Tailback Bronson Hill, a week removed from a 283-yard effort against Toledo, rushed for 185 yards and a touchdown on 26 carries as the Eagles rolled up nearly 600 yards of offense.

Ball State 41, Central Michigan 30

MOUNT PLEASANT, MICH.

Keith Wenning threw three touchdown passes and ran for a score.

Staff report