Toledo's Jason Candle is On3 Group of Five head coach of the week

Each week, On3 selects national head coaches of the week.

Our Group of Five head coach of the week for Week 8 is Toledo’s Jason Candle.

Behind Candle, the Rockets improved to 7-1 with a 21-17 road win over previously 6-1 Miami (Ohio), whose only previous loss was to Mario Cristobal and Miami in Week 1.

Toledo jumped out to a 21-3 halftime lead and then held on for the win by holding Miami (Ohio) scoreless on each of its final four drives.

“We had some big defensive stops in the second half and we were very efficient on offense in the first half,” Candle said after the game. “Credit Miami with some really good defensive stops on third down. Our third-down percentage was uncharacteristically low and a lot of that had to do with them giving us problems, stacking the box at the line of scrimmage. Winning games on the road in this conference is difficult to do. That’s a good football team we just played. I’m really happy for our guys to come out with a win. I’m really proud of the defensive effort, especially in the second half.”

The Rockets’ only loss was to a Power Five opponent (Illinois) in Week 1 in a game that Toledo lost on a game-winning field goal with five seconds remaining.

Honorable mentions

Jacksonville State’s Rich Rodriguez: Rodriguez led Jacksonville State to a 20-17 win over Western Kentucky that improved the Gamecocks to 6-2. Jacksonville State won on a game-winning field goal as time expired.

Georgia State’s Shawn Elliott: Georgia State improved to 6-1 with a 20-17 road victory over Louisiana, which was 4-2 and entered as a 3.5-point favorite.