Duncan Brune scored twice before halftime, and Nick Poulos found Preston Bowman for a 67-yard touchdown just after the break as Ohio beat Sacramento State 48-7 Saturday night at Hornet Stadium.
The Bobcats won their fourth straight game and improved to 5-2 overall and 3-0 in the Mid-American Conference. Sacramento State fell to 1-6 and 0-4 after a homecoming game that Ohio controlled from its opening possession.
Brune finished with 55 yards on 12 carries. Four different Bobcats scored rushing touchdowns, and Ohio gained 265 yards on the ground while keeping the ball out of Sacramento State's hands through long scoring drives.
Five possessions, five scores
Ohio opened with an 11-play, 82-yard march that took nearly six minutes. Brune finished it with a three-yard run. Will Hryszko added a career-long 50-yard field goal on the first play of the second quarter.
Victor Rosa's 16-yard touchdown run came next, after consecutive pass-interference penalties helped move the Bobcats into scoring position. Barry Dillon intercepted Jackson Sharman on Sacramento State's next snap, setting up Hryszko's 37-yard field goal.
Brune then scored from 14 yards to finish a 76-yard drive and make it 27-0. Ohio had scored on each of its first five possessions; its last snap before halftime was a short run as the remaining seconds expired.
Poulos finds the long finish
Poulos needed only four plays on Ohio's first possession after halftime to extend the lead. His 67-yard connection with Bowman made it 34-0 with 12:53 left in the third quarter.
Poulos completed 11 of 14 passes for 165 yards and added 48 rushing yards. Bowman finished with three catches for 94 yards. Ohio's official report called their long touchdown both Poulos' longest scoring pass and Bowman's longest reception.
Ohio's official account identified the Poulos-to-Bowman connection at No. 5 in the MAC's Week 7 top plays:
