2023 Kent State Golden Flashes football team

2023 Kent State Golden Flashes football
2023 Kent State Golden Flashes football
Conference	Mid-American Conference
	East Division
Record	1–11 (0–8 MAC)
Head coach	Kenni Burns (1st season);
Offensive coordinator	Matt Johnson (1st season)
Co-offensive coordinator	Matt Limegrover (1st season)
Defensive coordinator	Dave Duggan (1st season)
Home stadium	Dix Stadium
	Seasons ← 2022 2024 →

2023 Mid-American Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
Miami (OH) xy$	7	–	1	11	–	3
Ohio	6	–	2	10	–	3
Bowling Green	5	–	3	7	–	6
Buffalo	3	–	5	3	–	9
Akron	1	–	7	2	–	10
Kent State	0	–	8	1	–	11
West Division
Toledo xy	8	–	0	11	–	3
Northern Illinois	5	–	3	7	–	6
Eastern Michigan	4	–	4	6	–	7
Central Michigan	3	–	5	5	–	7
Ball State	3	–	5	4	–	8
Western Michigan	3	–	5	4	–	8
Championship: Miami (OH) 23, Toledo 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant

The 2023 Kent State Golden Flashes football team represented Kent State University as a member of the Mid-American Conference in the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The Golden Flashes were led by former Minnesota assistant head coach Kenni Burns in his first year as Kent State's head coach.^[1] They played their home games at Dix Stadium in Kent, Ohio.^[2] They finished the season 1–11 and 0–8 in conference play^[3] to finish with the worst record in college football.

Preseason[edit]

Preseason polls[edit]

Coaches Poll[edit]

On July 20, the MAC announced the preseason coaches poll. Kent State was picked to finish last in the East.^[4]

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
East
1	Ohio	63 (9)
2	Miami	52 (2)
3	Buffalo	51 (1)
4	Bowling Green	35
5	Akron	26
6	Kent State	19

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
West
1	Toledo	66 (11)
2	Eastern Michigan	55 (1)
3	Northern Illinois	38
4	Central Michigan	37
5	Ball State	27
6	Western Michigan	23

Rank	Team	Votes
Coaches poll (MAC Championship)
1	Toledo	7
2	Ohio	4
3	Buffalo	1

Schedule[edit]

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 31	7:00 p.m.	at UCF*	FBC Mortgage Stadium Orlando, FL	FS1	L 6–56	44,088
September 9	4:00 p.m.	at Arkansas*	Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium Fayetteville, AR	SECN	L 6–28	73,173
September 16	12:00 p.m.	Central Connecticut*	Dix Stadium Kent, OH	ESPN+	W 38–10	10,731
September 23	10:30 p.m.	at Fresno State*	Valley Children's Stadium Fresno, CA	CBSSN	L 10–53	38,728
September 30	2:30 p.m.	Miami (OH)	Dix Stadium Kent, OH	ESPN+	L 3–23	13,598
October 7	3:30 p.m.	at Ohio	Peden Stadium Athens, OH	ESPN+	L 17–42	22,945
October 14	12:00 p.m.	at Eastern Michigan	Rynearson Stadium Ypsilanti, MI	CBSSN	L 14–28	18,443
October 21	3:30 p.m.	Buffalo	Dix Stadium Kent, OH	ESPN+	L 6–24	11,735
November 1	7:30 p.m.	at Akron	InfoCision Stadium–Summa Field Akron, OH (Wagon Wheel)	ESPNU	L 27–31	8,113
November 8	7:00 p.m.	Bowling Green	Dix Stadium Kent, OH	CBSSN	L 19–49	6,065
November 18	2:00 p.m.	at Ball State	Scheumann Stadium Muncie, IN	ESPN+	L 3–34	8,554
November 25	12:00 p.m.	Northern Illinois	Dix Stadium Kent, OH	ESPN+	L 27–37	5,427
*Non-conference game Homecoming All times are in Pacific time

^[5]^[6]

Game summaries[edit]

at UCF[edit]

Kent State Golden Flashes (0–0) at UCF Knights (0–0)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Flashes	3	0	3	0	6
Knights	14	14	14	14	56

at FBC Mortgage Stadium, Orlando, FL

Date: August 31, 2023
Game time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
Game attendance: 44,088
TV announcers (FS1): Eric Collins and Devin Gardner
Gamecast

Game information

First Quarter

UCF: Xavier Townsend 9-yard touchdown pass from John Rhys Plumlee (Colton Boomer Kick), 10:56
UCF: John Rhys Plumlee 17-yard touchdown run (Colton Boomer Kick), 6:07
Kent State: Andrew Glass 45-yard field gooal, 3:20

Second Quarter

UCF: Jordan McDonald 2-yard touchdown run (Colton Boomer Kick), 8:46
UCF: Alec Holler 18-yard touchdown pass from John Rhys Plumlee (Colton Boomer Kick), 0:42

Third Quarter

UCF: R.J. Harvey 50-yard touchdown pass from John Rhys Plumlee (Colton Boomer Kick), 10:37
UCF: R.J. Harvey 48-yard touchdown run (Colton Boomer Kick), 4:07
Kent State: Andrew Glass 43-yard field goal, 0:49

Fourth Quarter

UCF: Mark-Antony Richards 7-yard touchdown run (Colton Boomer Kick), 7:26
UCF: Demarkcus Bowman 5-yard touchdown (Colton Boomer Kick), 0:54

Win Probability

UCF 90.4%

Line

UCF -35.0

Over/Under

54

Statistics	KENT	UCF
First downs	15	32
Total yards	240	723
Rushing yards	95	389
Passing yards	145	334
Turnovers	1	3
Time of possession	28:34	31:26

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kent State	Passing	Michael Alaimo	12–31, 145 yards, 0 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Gavin Garcia	18 carries, 45 yards
	Receiving	Chrishon McCray	3 receptions, 61 yards
UCF	Passing	John Rhys Plumlee	22–30, 281 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Johnny Richardson	12 carries, 100 yards
	Receiving	Xavier Townsend	5 receptions, 81 yards, 1 TD

at Arkansas[edit]

Kent State Golden Flashes (0–1) at Arkansas Razorbacks (1–0)

Period	1	2	3	4	Total
Golden Flashes	3	3	0	0	6
Razorbacks	7	7	7	7	28

at Donald W. Reynolds Razorback Stadium • Fayetteville, Arkansas

Date: Saturday, September 9, 2023
Game time: 3:00 p.m. CST
Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 83 °F (28 °C) • Wind: northeast 8 mph (13 km/h)
Game attendance: 73,173
Referee: Scott Walker
TV: SEC Network
Pregame line: Arkansas by 38.5 • Odds to win: Arkansas 94.8% • Game summary: ESPN

Game information

First quarter

(3:24) Kent State – Andrew Glass 48-yard field goal (Drive: 11 plays, 51 yards, 6:52; Kent State 3–0)
(1:12) Arkansas – Antonio Grier 25-yard interception return (Arkansas 7–3)

Second quarter

(6:29) Kent State – Andrew Glass 38-yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 52 yards, 5:48; Arkansas 7–6)
(2:20) Arkansas – Andrew Armstrong 5-yard pass from KJ Jefferson, Cam Little kick (Drive: 8 plays, 75 yards, 4:09; Arkansas 14–6)

Third quarter

(5:50) Arkansas – Rashod Dubinion 1-yard rush, Cam Little kick (Drive: 12 plays, 91 yards, 6:28; Arkansas 21–6)

Fourth quarter

(10:16) Arkansas – Andrew Armstrong 9-yard pass from KJ Jefferson, Cam Little kick (Drive: 15 plays, 73 yards, 7:54; Arkansas 28–6)

Statistics	KENT	ARK
First downs	14	19
Plays–yards	53–200	64–308
Rushes–yards	36–26	45–172
Passing yards	174	136
Passing: comp–att–int	11–17–1	13–19–0
Time of possession	27:44	32:16

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Kent State	Passing	Michael Alaimo	11–17, 174 yards, INT
	Rushing	Gavin Garcia	18 carries, 68 yards
	Receiving	Trell Harris	4 receptions, 78 yards
Arkansas	Passing	KJ Jefferson	13–19, 136 yards, 2 TD
	Rushing	AJ Green	15 carries, 82 yards
	Receiving	Isaac TeSlaa	3 receptions, 51 yards

References[edit]

^ "Kent State hires Kenni Burns to be new head football coach". ESPN.
^ "Dix Stadium". Kent State Athletics.
^ "MAC College Football Standings - 2023". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved December 8, 2023.
^ "MAC football preseason poll: Toledo picked to win conference championship; BGSU tabbed to finish fourth in MAC East". wtol.com. WTOL 11. July 20, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2023.
^ "2023 Kent State Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
^ "2023 Kent State Football Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved February 25, 2023.

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[1] "Kent State hires Kenni Burns to be new head football coach". ESPN.

[2] "Dix Stadium". Kent State Athletics.

[3] "MAC College Football Standings - 2023". espn.com. ESPN. Retrieved December 8, 2023.

[4] "MAC football preseason poll: Toledo picked to win conference championship; BGSU tabbed to finish fourth in MAC East". wtol.com. WTOL 11. July 20, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2023.

[5] "2023 Kent State Football Schedule". FB Schedules. Retrieved January 17, 2023.

[6] "2023 Kent State Football Schedule". ESPN. Retrieved February 25, 2023.

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v t e Kent State Golden Flashes
Venues	Rockwell Field (1920–1940) Memorial Stadium (1941–1968) Dix Stadium (1969–present)
Bowls & rivalries	Bowl games Akron: Wagon Wheel Bowling Green: Anniversary Award
Culture & lore	The Marching Golden Flashes
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders NFL draftees
Seasons	1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943–1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963 1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024