Kent State Golden Flashes Preview 2022: Season Prediction, Breakdown, Key Games, Players

Kent State College Football Preview 2022: Team breakdown, season prediction, keys to the campaign, and what you need to know

Kent State Golden Flashes: Keys To The Season, Top Game, Top Transfer, Fun Stats

Kent State Golden Flashes: Key To The 2022 Offense

Run, run, run.

The FlashFast style of offense is balanced, efficient, and it doesn’t turn the ball over when everything is working right. The whole idea is to keep defenses on their heels, and all of that goes a lot better when the ground game is rolling.

The offense has the running backs, QB Collin Schlee will take off, and there will be times when the attack gouges defenses that can’t handle the pace.

Run for 200 yards, and it’s over. Kent State was 7-2 last year when it got the mark – and 13-3 over the last 16 games – and 0-5 when it didn’t. The team is 1-9 in its last ten games when it didn’t hit 200.

Kent State Golden Flashes: Key To The 2022 Defense

Stop giving up so many first downs.

The pass rush was mediocre, the run defense was bad, and the experienced defense that should’ve been a whole lot better got ripped to shreds way too easily. The biggest overall issue?

First downs.

As is with the team’s style of offense, the time of possession factor is always going to be heavily tilted the other way. It doesn’t help when the D gives up more first downs than anyone in America.

Kent State was the worst team in college football in first downs allowed by more than one per game – allowing teams to come up with 26 every time out – and gave up 33 more than the defense that allowed the second most, WKU.

It was a bigger deal when teams ran for the first. Kent State was 1-6 when teams ran for double-digit first downs.

Kent State Golden Flashes: Key Player To The 2022 Season

QB Collin Schlee, Jr.
The defense needs a whole slew of parts to rise up, and the offensive line could use as many good new starting blockers as possible, but there’s nothing happening this year unless Schlee – or one of the other options – can rise up and rock in place of Dustin Crum.

All Crum did was throw for over 7,400 yards and 55 scores, run for over 2,000 with 24 touchdowns, and do it all while not turning the ball over enough to matter.

Kent State Golden Flashes: Key Transfer

DE AJ Campbell, RFr.
A few transfers from the offensive line should matter, and the secondary is getting some help, but the Golden Flashes need a pass rusher.

The 6-4, 245-pound Campbell started his career at UCLA, didn’t play, and now he’s coming to Kent State where he needs to grow into a desperately needed disruptive force

Kent State Key Game To The 2022 Season

at Miami University, Oct. 8
The Golden Flashes beat the RedHawks in a wild 48-47 game last year for the first victory in the series since 2017. This time around, it’ll probably be for the MAC East title.

If Kent State can beat Ohio to open the MAC season and then get by MU, it’ll likely be a two-game season – at Toledo, at Buffalo – to get back to the conference title game.

Kent State Golden Flashes: 2021 Fun Stats

– Time of Possession: Opponents 33:15 – Kent State 26:41
– Sacks: Opponents 40 for 230 yards – Kent State 23 for 156 yards
– Rushing TDs: Opponents 40 – Kent State 36

O, D Breakdown | Season Prediction, What Will Happen
Kent State Top 10 Players | Kent State Schedule

Kent State Golden Flashes Season Prediction, What Will Happen NEXT