A perfect day for football, but not a 100% perfect day of it by Eastern Michigan’s side.

But a win’s a win.

Eastern (2-3, 1-0 MAC) was favored by 26.5 points and acted like it. Though, thanks to a blocked point-after kick after EMU scored a touchdown on its first possession, the Lions of Lindenwood covered.

Still, a 26-point victory beats the heck out of having a repeat of last year’s Long Island game.

EMU had a near-perfect start, and kept scoring even when the team wasn’t playing at its best. Rudy Kessinger saw a PAT be blocked and one of his four field goal tries bounce off the goalpost, but he made three, including a career-best of 51 yards.

EMU’s rushing attack was strong as all three backs had over four yards per carry.

Noah Kim played fine, but not excellently. He was 23 of 38 passing for 257 yards, and 16 of those completions went to Benson Prosper (13 targets, 109 yards, 1 TD) and Harold Mack (10, 80, 1). A fair number of completions, but many of his throws were either slightly or very off-target, and his receivers had to work twice as hard to make some of those grabs.

No interceptions for Kim, but there was one very close call near the red zone.

After EMU’s three straight losses, even though it came against an inferior opponent from the Ohio Valley Conference, a win like this felt like it was much needed.

Eastern closes its non-conference schedule with a win, and now it’ll have to turn around and finish out its conference slate.

Here’s how Saturday’s action unfolded:

7-0, EMU (9:58, 1Q)

Eastern Michigan’s defense wiped Lindenwood’s offense off the field in the first three plays of the game, and EMU’s offense turned around and marched right on the field for six points of their own.

Six, not seven.

Kim spread the ball around and found connections with Joshua Long (16 yards), Prosper (23) and Mack (14) through the air to set up a short scoring run for Amareon Blue, his second of the year. Kessinger’s point-after kick attempt was blocked.

The very last play of the Wisconsin game was a field goal attempt, which was also blocked.

14-0, EMU (3:53, 1Q)

Braydon Bennett had a key run early on in the drive. EMU faced a 4th & 1 after a short pass was complete to Prosper, and EMU still had the ball on its side of the field. Bennett took the handoff to the right, and gained three yards to move the chain. Then a pass interference call against Lindenwood’s defense moved EMU ahead by another 15 yards on the drive.

From 19 yards out, Kim connected with Propser over the middle, who stretched across the goal line as he was hit from behind. It was Prosper’s first touchdown of the season.

16-0, EMU (10:54, 2Q)

After a missed pass to Prosper in the end zone was overthrown, Kessinger took the field to make his second field goal of the season, and the longest of his career: 51 yards.

His previous long was 50 yards, which was made last year in the Long Island game.

19-0, EMU (2Q, 0:51)

Another field goal for Kessinger, this time from 42 yards away.

Which, considering the sequence that led up to the three points here, the field goal almost feels like a blessing for EMU.

Kim’s pass on third down was close to being intercepted. His pass, to Joshua Long on a slant route, was off-target and in-reach of Lindenwood’s defender. The defender made the initial catch on the play, but was knocked from his grasp before he had full control of the football.

The initial ruling on the field was that the pass was intercepted, then fumbled and returned close to midfield, but that would be reviewed and overturned.

19-3, EMU (6:37, 3Q)

Lindenwood, with a change in quarterback, put together its longest drive of the game in the third quarter (44 yards in eight plays), and finally got on the board with a 44-yard field goal make.

22-3, EMU (1:23, 3Q)

A decent drive with a contested catch from Benson Prosper and tough running from all three of its running backs, but the offense got stuck in the red zone after an incomplete pass to Mack and a speed option play that was quickly sniffed out by Lindenwood’s defense.

Kessinger finished the drive with a 28-yard field goal. It’s his first hat trick of the season, and second of his career. Kessinger had three makes in last year’s 16-10 victory over Northern Illinois.

29-3, EMU (5:19, 4Q)

After EMU’s defense stopped Lindenwood for a turnover on downs that ended on EMU’s 33-yard line, the offense drove downfield with runs from Blue and Joey Mattord, and Dalin Wilkins had a 15-yard catch too. On third down, Kim moved around until he found Harold Mack open in the middle of the field, just a handful of yards away from the end zone. Mack caught the pass, turned and leaped away from Lion defenders and into six more points for EMU (well, seven after the PAT).

OFFENSE’S BEST START

In the first three games of the year, EMU’s offense struggled to move the ball early against the opponents of Sacramento State, San José State, and Michigan State. At Wisconsin, EMU got a touchdown on its first possession of the day, but failed to do much after that.

Against Lindenwood, EMU, which woke up Saturday as heavy favorites, moved the ball at will early and often. There wasn’t a drive in the first quarter that didn’t at least include a first-down gain.

DAVION WILLIAMS EJECTED FOR TARGETING

With safety Jason Marshall absent from the game due to injury, Davion Williams made his first start for the team, but it was a short day for him.

In the second quarter, Williams knocked Lindenwood quarterback Pops Battle for a loss, but got him a little too high. After the play, officials checked the tape and confirmed that Williams hit Battle in the head and was ejected from the game with a targeting call.

LUCKY THAT ONE WASN’T PICKED

Kim’s lucky an off-target throw to his tight end wasn’t another turnover.

Late in the second quarter, on third down in Lindenwood territory, Joshua Long was targeted on a slant route, but Kim’s pass wasn’t accurate. A Lindenwood defender nearly intercepted the pass until Long helped break up the pass.

The officials initially ruled the play an intercepted pass and Long fumbled the ball from Lindenwood’s control as another Lion scooped the ball up and returned it near midfield. But the officials took a second look at the play and found that Lindenwood never truly intercepted the pass, so no turnover for EMU there.

DOINK

On his third field goal attempt of the day, Kessinger’s 47-yard attempt was off-target and missed as the ball bounced off the left upright.

In response, Lindenwood drove downfield, but a late holding call stalled the Lion offense in EMU territory and settled for a field goal of its own.

INJURIES

In-game exits: CB Rayquan Adkins, LB Zach Mowchan

Ruled out, of note: WR Nick Devereaux, LB Barry Manning, DB Jaivian Norman, DB Jason Marshall, DB Caleb Coley, OL Guzzy Kayed, OL Cole Dellinger

Not on injury report, did not dress: OL Samuel Adjin

Questionable, played: OL Tyler Brumfield

Questionable, did not play: OL Joshua Anderson, OL Elijha Payne, WR Kozy Isaac

At wide receiver, Nick Devereaux missed his first game of the season after he suffered an upper-body injury last week at Wisconsin. Harold Mack, who was wiped after a hit in the Michigan State game and missed last game, was back in action against the Lions.

In place of Guzzy Kayed at the left guard position, Wayne State transfer Richardo Wourman made his first start as an Eagle.

On defense, linebacker Elgin McDuffey started his second straight game in place of Manning, and Williams made his first start with Jason Marshall out.

Now, five games into the year, Eastern Michigan can finally say it’s done with its non-conference slate and will focus on league games the rest of the season.

Up next, EMU will travel East to face UMass, which is off to its most impressive start since it made the FCS to FBS jump in 2012.

UMass began the season with a 3-0 record, which includes a Big Ten win (Rutgers) and two wins over FCS schools. Tonight, UMass plays its first league game at Sacramento State.