Josh Abrams thought he could block at least one punt in Ohio’s season opener against Gardner-Webb Saturday. So his prediction seemed accurate when he came off the right side of the Bobcats’ defensive formation and smothered the ball to the ground in the second quarter. But when the Runnin’ Bulldogs continued to give him a clear path toward their kicker, Abrams did something he couldn’t imagine, blocking three punts in a game, just one short of the NCAA single-game record.
The trio of blocked punts not only matched his 2006 season total, but two of them also set up scores for the Bobcats in their 36-14 win over the Runnin’ Bulldogs, of the NCAA’s Football Championship Subdivision.
“I’ve never ever seen it done,” coach Frank Solich said, adding that with six career blocks, Abrams is four shy of the NCAA record. “Never had it done by any team I’ve been associated with. I haven’t seen it in games I’ve watched.”
In addition to his first blocked punt of the game, Abrams scored his first career touchdown in the second quarter off a 1-yard run, giving Ohio a 14-0 lead. When Abrams came in to the short-yardage situation, the senior told the offensive line it could be a special occasion.
“Mitch (Morsillo) looked at me like ‘Really?’ And everybody gave me a little extra strength,” said Abrams, who said he might prefer blocking kicks to scoring touchdowns just because he has more experience there.
“I felt good for Josh,” Solich said. “I think everybody on the team did because he had a very, very good year last year as a special teams player, and to see him get off to such a great start, I pay a lot of tribute to him.”
As a running back, “he hasn’t gotten the kind of carries you would normally get if you’re not behind a guy like (tailback) Kalvin (McRae) so it’s good to see him have the success he’s having on special teams.”
After Gardner-Webb’s opening drive of the second half, Abrams was on the toe of Runnin’ Bulldogs kicker Michael Hanna again, knocking down the punt and handing the Bobcats starting field position at their own 47-yard line.
Five plays later, quarterback Brad Bower completed a 34-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Chido Nwokocha, increasing Ohio’s lead to 21-0. The throw was Bower’s lone touchdown in his 15-for-25, 180-yard outing, which Solich deemed successful.
Gardner-Webb did get on the board, but would come no closer than 10 points as McRae, who ran for 142 yards averaging 5.9 yards per carry, scored his second touchdown to put the game out of reach at 34-14 in the fourth quarter. And with less than three minutes remaining, Abrams found himself in front of a punt one last time.
Abrams batted the ball in to the end zone, where his teammates dove on top of it for a safety and the game’s final tally.
Caught in the moment of his third block, Abrams took off his helmet and received a 15-yard personal foul for excessive celebration.
“I just got really excited,” said Abrams, who earned the Mid-American Conference Special Teams Player of the Week Award for his efforts. “That’s something I never even thought about doing in the game. I’m like I’ll block one hopefully. Blocking three was just overwhelming emotionally.”
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