Miami, Ohio Renew Battle of the Bricks
10/18/2010 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 18, 2010
Miami RedHawks (4-3; 3-0 MAC)
vs.
Ohio Bobcats (4-3; 3-1 MAC)
OXFORD, Ohio -- It's a clash of long-time Mid-American Conference rivals this week when the Miami RedHawks host the Ohio Bobcats. The game has huge implications in the MAC East standing as both teams come in with three wins in league play.
Miami improved to 4-3 on the season, 3-0 in the MAC, last week with a thrilling 27-20 victory at Central Michigan. Zac Dysert found Andy Cruse wide open for a 71-yard catch-and-run touchdown for the tie-breaking points with just 19 seconds remaining. Dysert finished the day with 399 yards through the air, seventh-best in Miami history, while Cruse caught a career-high eight passes for 179 yards, sixth-best all-time among Miami receivers.
Ohio (4-3, 3-1) manhandled Akron 38-10 in its Homecoming game last week. The Bobcats had an impressive day on offense, accumulating 496 yards (258 passing, 238 rushing). The season stats indicate a near 50-50 offensive mix as well with averages of 170.7 through the air and 157.1 on the ground. Quarterback Boo Jackson has completed 61.9 percent of his attempts for 917 yards and nine touchdowns.
THE COACHES
MIAMI HEAD COACH Michael Haywood (Notre Dame, `86) is in his second season at the helm of the Miami program ... 5-14 overall record, 4-7 MAC record ... served as Fighting Irish offensive coordinator the previous four seasons ... named NCAA Division I-A Assistant Coach of the Year in 2005 by the American Football Coaches Association.
OHIO HEAD COACH FRANK SOLICH (Nebraska, `66) is in his sixth season guiding the Bobcats and owns a 36-34 overall record at the helm of the program, including 27-17 in the MAC. His overall mark is 94-53, including 4-1 vs. Miami.
QUICK HITS
1. Coach Michael Haywood's RedHawks look to improve their Mid-American Conference record to 4-0 this Saturday. That is something that hasn't happened at Miami since 2004 when the RedHawks posted wins in their first seven MAC games.
2. Yager Stadium's Cradle of Coaches Plaza will be the site of the unveilings of three statues this Saturday, including legends Paul Dietzel, Carm Cozza and Weeb Ewbank. Dietzel and Cozza will return to campus for the 12 p.m. ceremony , while Ewbank will be represented by his 104-year-old widow, Lucy.
Miami is the nation's most improved team in 2010. Following a 1-11 season in 2009, the RedHawks have an overall record of 4-3 in 2010. That's a three-victory improvement, better than the one-win progress by Michigan State (6-7 final record in 2009 to 7-0 this year), UTEP (4-8 to 5-2), Baylor (4-8 to 5-2) and Eastern Michigan (0-12 to 1-6).
RedHawks On The Radio
Entering its fourth year of its partnership with ISP Sports Marketing, the Miami ISP Sports Network continues its coverage of Miami Football with a group of affiliates blanketing most of Southwest Ohio and Southeast Indiana. "The Voice of the RedHawks" Steve Baker will deliver the play-by-play coverage, while Tim Bray will provide color commentary. Terry Bridge will be the network's sideline reporter. Tune-in to one of Miami's gameday affiliates:
WMOH-AM 1450 (Hamilton, OH)
WFMG-FM 101.3 (Richmond, IN)
WPFB-FM 105.9 (Middletown, OH)
WPFB-AM 910 (Middletown, OH)
WONE-AM 980 (Dayton, OH)
WKVB-AM 1490 (Richmond, IN)
The pregame show on Saturday, Oct. 23, begins at 12 noon ET.
--www.MURedHawks.com--
