Brayden Roggow is likely going to start at quarterback for the University of Akron this Saturday, and if you’ve been following the Zips, you know that’s a huge shift right when they need some stability. His probable start comes after Cibastian Broughton went down with an apparent right knee injury in the first half of their game last week against Minnesota.
Akron’s Rough Start and the QB Shuffle
Man, talk about a tough break for Akron. Their season hasn’t exactly been smooth sailing, kicking off with a 38-16 loss at Wake Forest on September 3. They bounced back with a dominant 45-10 home opener win against Robert Morris on September 12, but then got absolutely walloped 41-7 by Minnesota on September 19. Now, facing UNLV this weekend, both teams are sitting at a shaky 1-2 record, so this game is massive.
Broughton was balling out before his injury against Minnesota, completing 9 of 13 passes for 42 yards and adding 17 yards on three carries. For the season, he’s been efficient, hitting 53 of 66 passes for 380 yards with four touchdowns and zero interceptions, plus 170 rushing yards on 30 carries over three games. Roggow stepped in and completed 12 of 25 passes for 131 yards against Minnesota. He’s got 24 completions on 38 attempts for 231 yards and two touchdowns, also with no interceptions, in three games this season. It’s a different look for the offense, no doubt.
Coach Joe Moorhead wasn’t shy about the impact, saying on September 21, “Offensively, obviously, losing ‘Worm’ [Broughton] hurt.” He pointed out how the team was “absolutely crippled by a fumble, multiple, multiple drops,” and then two personal foul penalties pushed them out of scoring range against Minnesota. On defense, Omari Abor grabbed an interception in the first quarter against Minnesota, and Marquese Williams got into the end zone with a 10-yard TD run in the fourth. Donelius Johnson had a huge game with 12 tackles, and Cyrus Durham notched a sack. But special teams? Moorhead called it “not a good performance for us with the muffed punt and the long punt return.” He knows they need to limit explosive plays on both sides of the ball this week.
UNLV’s Road Grind Meets Akron’s Coaching Duel
Speaking of tough, UNLV is rolling into InfoCision Stadium for their third consecutive road game. Their season started with a 27-21 home loss to Memphis on August 29, followed by a 21-6 win at Hawai’i on September 5, and then a 44-6 loss at North Texas on September 12. They’re definitely looking for a win to break this road trip slump.
The Rebels are led by head coach Dan Mullen, who went 10-4 in his first season with them in 2025. This guy has a serious coaching pedigree, having led Mississippi State from 2009-2017 (69-46 record) and Florida from 2018-2021 (34-15 record) before a stint as an ESPN analyst. Fun fact: Joe Moorhead actually took over at Mississippi State after Mullen left, coaching there in 2018 and 2019. Talk about a coaching reunion on the sidelines! This game is at noon on Saturday, September 26, and it’s a chance for one of these 1-2 teams to finally start building some momentum. Who’s gonna step up and get that crucial second win of the season?
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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