Sean Lewis was an FBS assistant at 27 years old, Power Five coordinator at 29 years old, and FBS head coach at 31 years old. No one knew how long it'd take Lewis to lead Kent State from MAC irrelevance to bowl eligibility but it makes sense the wunderkin coach accomplished the feat quicker than expected.
Just two years after Paul Haynes was dismissed for imploding an 11-win program, Lewis led the Golden Flashes to their first bowl game and seven-win season since 2012. And he did so with dramatically improved balance and consistency on offense.
In 2017, Haynes' final season, Kent State ranked dead last nationally in points per play (0.158). Last year, Kent State ranked 57th (0.402).Yards per play went from 4.0 (129th nationally) to 5.6 (60th). Red-zone scoring: 63 percent (130th) to 87 percent (43rd). Third-down conversions: 26 percent (129th) to 44 percent (20th). Yards per carry: 3.3 (119th) to 4.5 (54th). The defense isn't improving as rapidly but with a more controlling offense, Tom Kaufman's unit at least has time to catch its breath and develop some younger talent.
(adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});
The potential swing game: vs. Western Michigan on Oct. 24. In my predictions, if Kent State, ranked 103rd in the HERO Sports Preseason College Football Rankings, wins that game, they're bowl eligible for a second straight season and will have an opportunity win seven games in back-to-back years for the first time since 1973-74. If they lose, Kent State will still have 12 wins in two seasons for just the third time since the 1980s.
| Date | Opponent | Prediction |
|---|---|---|
| Sept. 5 | at Penn State | Loss (0-1) |
| Sept. 12 | vs. Kennesaw State | Win (1-1) |
| Sept. 19 | at Kentucky | Loss (1-2) |
| Sept. 26 | at Alabama | Loss (1-3) |
| Oct. 3 | at Northern Illinois | Loss (1-4) |
| Oct. 10 | vs. Akron | Win (2-4) |
| Oct. 17 | at Buffalo | Loss (2-5) |
| Oct. 24 | vs. Western Michigan | Loss (2-6) |
| Nov. 4 | at Bowling Green | Win (3-6) |
| Nov. 11 | vs. Ohio | Win (4-6) |
| Nov. 17 | at Miami (OH) | Loss (4-7) |
| Nov. 24 | vs. Central Michigan | Win (5-7) |
