Craig Bohl is gearing up for one last game as the head coach for the Pokes, adding excitement to the Cowboy’s already thrilling bowl matchup against Toledo this Saturday.
After arriving in Tucson a few days ahead of the game, the Cowboys have enjoyed the warm weather and fun activities in the area. This hasn’t distracted them from their main objective however: an Arizona Bowl victory. Only one year after a heartbreaking overtime loss to the Ohio Bobcats in the same contest, the Cowboys are returning to Tucson with redemption on their minds.
This time however, they are faced with a new opponent and challenging athletes on the other side of the ball. The Toledo Rockets head into Arizona with an impressive 11-2 record after an eight game win streak put them into the MAC Championship this season. While they ultimately lost that game to the Miami (OH) Redhawks, the Rockets boasted incredible offensive stats throughout the season.
Most notably, QB Dequan Finn and RB Peny Boone led the entire MAC in passing and rushing yards respectively. They ended up posting over 425 yards per game as an offensive unit. Comparatively, the Pokes wrapped up the regular season with only 325 yards a game in the same category.
Unfortunately for Toledo however, the star of the show, Dequan Finn, will not be playing for the Rockets this Saturday. After the MAC Championship ended, Finn entered the transfer portal and is already set to play for Baylor in 2024. Additionally, Peny Boone also turned the Rockets’ offensive plans upside down when he announced his entry into the portal on December 26th, and all signs point to him not suiting up either. With both playmakers gone, Toledo head coach Jason Candle is preaching a “next man up mentality”.
While the challenge of facing two of the Rockets’ top athletes may be gone, it may have been tricky for the Pokes to prepare for the new faces and potentially hidden talents of the Toledo second string. For the defense however, they feel as though they have enough film on the next guys up to be prepared.
Sophomore QB Tucker Gleason will step out of the shadow of Finn, although he’s not an athlete that should be overlooked. In his third season in Toledo, he is more than familiar with the schemes of the Rockets and how the offense operates. Originally transferring from Georgia Tech after only one season, Gleason has picked up over 1100 yards passing and 12 touchdowns during his stint in Toledo, and has been able to flash his potential. For the Pokes, that means they can know a little of what to expect.
In the wake of Peny Boone’s transfer, the Rockets will turn to Jacquez Stuart, the Rockets’ third place rusher, behind Boone and Finn, with 475 yards this season.
Defensively for Toledo, they will retain all of their top players, including the linebacker duo of Dallas Gant and Daniel Bolden who have accumulated 193 tackles between the two of them. Additionally, All-MAC First team defensive lineman Judge Culpepper anchors the defensive line.
Toledo will field 7 MAC first team players, not including Finn and Boone. So, despite the buzz around the missing pieces of the dynamic squad, the Rockets can prove that they have depth and give a preview of what the team could look like in 2024.
For the Pokes, almost the entire team is suiting up, with only CB Kolbey Taylor opting out after his transfer to Vanderbilt. On the coaching side, Jay Sawvel will call the defense, but OC Tim Polasek will be absent following his appointment as head coach of North Dakota State. It’s unclear who will be calling the offense in his stead, but one thing is very clear: Craig Bohl will coach his final game for the Pokes. The Cowboys will rally behind their leader one last time and look to send him off with an Arizona Bowl victory.
The game will begin at 2:30 MT on December 30th, 2023 in Tucson, Arizona, and will be broadcast on The CW and barstoolsports.com.
