UB 2022 Opponent Overview: Kent State

Flash-Fast is not a typical corny name that a team takes on to try and spark some interest. It’s literally what Kent State has become.

The Golden Flashes got close to 500 yards a game last season, finishing fourth in the country. Behind that Kent State has enjoyed their first three-season winning streak since the Nixon Administration (72-74) and their first ever Bowl win.

This season they will compete for the Division with that offense, and Collin Schlee is where it all starts. He is replacing Dustin Crum. Can he match the production of Crum who last year threw for close to 3,200 yards with 20 touchdowns and ran for over 700 yards with 12 trips to the end zone.

He’s got the receiving corps to produce and Marques Cooper and Xavier Williams both return to run the ball again.

But nearly their entire offensive line is gone. They had some depth they are calling up and have hit the portal pretty hard but at this point the o-line is Kent’s biggest question mark.

The Kent defense has nowhere to go but up. The Flashes offense was needed to make up for the worst in the MAC. As a unit, they gave up more first downs than anyone in the country.

They are returning a ton of talent but it’s too soon to now if that’s a blessing or a curse given what happened to Kent last season.

Dean Clark and Safety and CJ West on the line are going to have to lead the unit to better results this year given that the offensive line and new QB might mean Kent’s not going to be as proficient on offense this season.

They picked up AJ Campbel from UCLA to help with the pass rush, and have the bones of a solid secondary so the unit might be up to the task.

Kent’s kind of a wildcard this year. If the offensive line steps up they can contend for the MAC, if not they could suffer their first losing season since 2018. Either way Buffalo is going to struggle with this team, last year UB was outcoached and didn’t seem to be able to keep up with the pace set by Kents offense (outside of one quarter).