I'm not going to pretend like I have any idea as to what is going on in this one. The Zips lead UMass 7-6 at halftime, despite fumbling the ball on their first three possessions.
Jawon Chisholm fumbled twice, ending Akron's first two drives of the game. One of those fumbles led to a Minutemen field goal to give UMass an early 3-0 lead. He hasn't seen the field much since the second fumble. Kyle Pohl fumbled on the third drive, before responding with a 10-yard rushing touchdown to cap off a five play drive.
UMass has been hanging in with Akron, but has been unable to take full advantage of Akron's mistakes. The Minutemen tacked on another field goal in the second quarter to put the score where it currently sits at halftime.
The teams are about even on the stat sheet, with UMass holding a 187-to-185 total yardage advantage. But the real surprise has been UMass' success on the ground. The team racked up 116 yards on 22 carries in the first half, thanks in large part to a 45-yard run by Shaquille Harris. The Minutemen have nearly double the rushing yards of the Zips, which is unlikely to change if Chisholm doesn't return to the game.
Kyle Pohl, once again, is Akron's entire offense, and is playing fairly better (by just a smidgen) than AJ. Doyle. Pohl is 10-of-19 for 125 yards and no picks compared to Doyle's 12-of-20 for 71yards and a pick.
Akron is a seven-point favorite in this game, but could very well wind up losing to UMass two years in a row if Doyle can find some success moving the ball downfield and the team keeps pounding the ball up the middle.