What to know about Akron at Central Michigan college football game

The University of Akron football team visits Mount Pleasant on Saturday, Oct. 3, to meet Central Michigan in a Mid-American Conference game at 3:30 p.m.

Akron (1-3) lost 38-10 to the University of Nevada, Las Vegas in nonleague game on Sept. 26. The Zips opened the season with a 38-16 loss at Wake Forest on Sept. 3, won their home opener 45-10 over Robert Morris on Sept. 12 and lost 41-7 at Minnesota on Sept. 19.

Central Michigan (2-2) is playing its fifth Saturday game in a row after losing at No. 4 Miami (Florida) 52-3 last week. The Chippewas opened the season with a 38-7 loss at New Mexico and then earned wins at home over Colgate (13-10) and Wyoming (24-10).

Here is a breakdown of what to know about the game.

Brayden Roggow likely to start at quarterback for Akron

Brayden Roggow is likely going to start at quarterback for Akron for the second week in a row after Cibastian Broughton was sidelined in the first half of the game at Minnesota with what coach Joe Moorhead described as a "lower body" injury.

Roggow completed 14 of 25 passes for 194 yards with two interceptions against UNLV. Cam Santee recorded the first interception, and Mumu Bin-Wahad returned the second pick 35 yards for a touchdown as UNLV outscored Akron 24-0 in the second half.

Roggow has played in all four of Akron’s games this season. He has completed 38 of 63 passes for 425 passes, two touchdowns and two interceptions, and has one rushing TD.

Akron moves on from football loss to UNLV

Akron moves forward after UNLV’s Jackson Arnold, Jai’Den Thomas and Taz Reddicks were impressive last week.

“Come off the field [down] 14-10 and headed into the second half," Moorhead said. "And we talked about, 'Hey, we got to kick off to them, get a three-and-out, get the ball, go down and score.' And the opposite of that happened. They got the ball, marched down, scored, and then we had a three-and-out.”

Arnold completed 17 of 29 passes for 290 yards and three touchdowns. Thomas ran for 113 yards and a TD on 15 carries, and had three catches for 54 yards and two TDs. Reddicks contributed four catches for 116 yards and a TD.

“To get a firsthand look at a Group of Six program that has made a significant financial investment in their team," Moorhead said. "I looked it up the other day, I think their operating budget was like $23 million, and I don't know if that includes revenue share or not, but on top of their resources, they're incredibly well coached and they're talented. Credit goes to UNLV. That's an impressive team. I think there's a reason they have won 10 games or more the past three years, and that's because they're working to do it the right way.

“So, didn't coach well enough in any three phases and certainly execute from a player standpoint. Continue to talk about explosive plays, getting the ball thrown over our head, and that showed up again. You can't turn the ball over three times.”

When asked what the difference is between Akron and UNLV’s investment and financial commitment into football, Moorhead said: “I know the investment in their program is significant.”

Akron's Jordan Gant ran for 80 yards and a TD on 19 carries, and threw an interception. Sean Patrick added 48 yards on eight carries. Marcel Williams had six catches for 83 yards and Kyan Mason had three catches for 73 yards.

Akron's Tairan Davis and Dwight Nunoo each recorded eight tackles, Donelius Johnson had seven tackles and Rodrick Hunter added six tackles. Davis, who had seven solo tackles against UNLV, is in his second year at Akron after graduating from Youngstown Ursuline High School.

"Donelius is a guy that was in the [transfer] portal," Moorhead said. "Did not play last year [at Kennesaw State]. So, got him healthy. He really didn't practice up until the first week of the season. Missed just about all of camp. So, I think he's got his best ball in front of him. Dwight is a guy that missed almost all of last season at Florida International and didn't play. So, two guys that really didn't have a 2025 season and to come in, much like a lot of our guys, it's a place where they have an opportunity to play FBS football and get on the field and we got to coach the heck out of them."

Akron football coach Joe Moorhead gives insight on Central Michigan

Central Michigan relies on its rushing attack with QB Angel Flores and RBs Jayden Clerveaux and Vaughn Blue being the primary ball carriers. The Chippewas have scored six touchdowns, and all of them are rushing.

Flores has 63 carries for 320 yards and three TDs, and is 19-of-33 passing with two interceptions.

"Coach [Matt] Drinkall came from Army and has a very distinguished career as an assistant and a head coach," Moorhead said. "I think he has 56 career wins so, obviously, you can see part of the West Point and Army DNA and overall philosophy in Central Michigan's play. They are not triple-option, but they have a lot of triple-option concepts. They are a run first and run often team where they want to utilize their numbers and their quarterback in the run game. They are certainly capable of passing the ball. ... The whole offense runs through the offensive line and tight ends."

Xavier White, Mayson Hitchens, Darrell Bryant Jr. and Brett McCalla are CMU's leading tacklers.

"No. 92, the interior defensive line [Jaxon Cherry], is really active and twitchy," Moorhead said. "He is a former high school wrestler and track guy. I think he runs a sub-11 [seconds] in the 100 [meters]. There is a clip of him running down [QB Darian] Mensah on a bootleg in the Miami game. ... No. 11, the linebacker [Xavier White], has some NFL bloodlines and is a really good player. They use him a lot downhill and can certainly be a cover guy. I think the best player on the defense is the nickel, No. 4 [Jaion] Jackson, who played corner last year."

Akron Beacon Journal sports writer Michael Beaven can be reached by email at mbeaven@thebeaconjournal and is on Twitter at @MBeavenABJ.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: What to know about Akron at Central Michigan college football game