Miami Hosts Akron in Thursday Night Game
10/31/2011 12:00:00 AM | Football
Oct. 31, 2011
OXFORD, Ohio -- As the weeks dwindle down to a precious few, each football game for Coach Don Treadwell's Miami team becomes more important. On Thursday night (7:30 p.m.), the RedHawks host in-state rival Akron at Yager Stadium for what could be a share of first place in the Mid-American Conference East Division.
Miami RedHawks (3-5 overall, 2-2 MAC)
vs. Akron Zips (1-7 overall, 1-4 MAC)
THE COACHES
MIAMI HEAD COACH Don Treadwell (Miami, `82) is in his first season at the helm of the Miami program ... 3-5 overall record, 2-2 MAC record ... served as Michigan State's offensive coordinator the previous four seasons; Treadwell managed the Spartans for two games a year ago in Mark Dantonio's absence due to illness, directing MSU to wins over Northern Colorado and No. 11 Wisconsin ... Treadwell joins Ara Parseghian, John Pont, Bo Schembechler, Bill Mallory, Tom Reed and Randy Walker as Miami grads who have been head coaches at MU ... Treadwell was a four-year starter for Miami (1978-81) as a receiver.
AKRON HEAD COACH ROB IANELLO (Catholic, `87) is in his second season as head coach of the Zips. He has posted a 2-18 mark overall and a 1-11 record in the Mid-American Conference action. Ianello previously served as an assistant at Alabama, Wisconsin, Arizona and Notre Dame.
THREE QUICK HITS
1. A RedHawk victory over Akron and a loss by Temple at Ohio (Nov. 1) would place Miami in a tie for first place in the MAC East Division with just three games to play. The RedHawks won the East Division outright last year when Ohio lost at Kent State on the final day of the regular-season.
2. Zac Dysert ranks second on Miami's all-time passing yardage list, trailing only Ben Roethlisberger. His 7,166 total passing yards ranks 20th among all-time Mid-American Conference quarterbacks. Dysert was selected as the MAC East Division's Player of the Week for his performance vs. Buffalo.
3. Miami's last four regular-season games are being played within a span of just 20 days. The Akron contest is the second in six days, then Miami faces another short week, travelling to Temple for a Wednesday night tilt. RedHawks
On The Airwaves
MIAMI IMG SPORTS NETWORK
Entering its fifth year of its partnership with IMG College, the Miami 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 game-day affiliates:
WMOH-AM 1450 (Hamilton, OH)
WFMG-FM 101.3 (Richmond, IN)
WDBZ-AM 1230 (Cincinnati, OH)
WONE-AM 980 (Dayton, OH)
WKVB-AM 1490 (Richmond, IN)
Beyond southwestern Ohio, Miami's audio broadcast also is available through Miami All-Access at www.MURedHawks.com. IMG's pregame show on Thursday, Nov. 3, begins at 6:30 p.m. ET.
TELEVISION COVERAGE: Miami's game vs. Akron will be televised by ESPNU. Anish Schroff and analyst: Jay Walker serve as the talent.
This Week's Probable RedHawk Starters
OFFENSE
WR #17 - Chris Givens--Snagged 2 TD catches vs. Buffalo last week ... scored game's only TD two weeks ago at KSU, a 16-yd catch ... missed games 4 and 5 with a concussion ... with 28 catches for 321 yds in 2011, he now has 124 career recs (7th on career list) for 1,747 yds (8th) ... has 7 punt returns for 4.1 avg ... has 14 career TDs. LT
#72 - Brad Bednar--A starter in every game, 7 at left tackle, 1 at center ... he was team's starting center in 2009 and `10 ... he's played virtually every snap of collegiate career ... a start vs. Akron would be the 35th of his career ... he has a 3.4 GPA, majoring in engineering.
LG #75 - Marcus Matthews--Opened at left guard vs. Buffalo, the 5th start in his rookie season ... helped MU offense roll up 503 yds in total offense vs. Army ... one of 4 Virginians on Miami's roster ... grandfather played at West Virginia.
C #52 - JoJo Williams--Started for the 12th time in his career last week ... coaches rate him as team's 2nd-best offensive lineman ... 3.0+ student, majors in finance. RG
#56 - Brandon Brooks--At 343 pounds, he's Miami's heaviest starter ... a start vs. Akron would be the 40th of his career ... an NFL prospect, several scouts will be watching him in person this week ... has been a second-team All-MAC selection in each of last two seasons ... a psychology major.
RT #66 - Matt Kennedy--Started vs. Buffalo, his fourth of 2011 ... he has 24 career starts ... has helped Miami beat nine of its last 12 MAC opponents ... has a 3.0+ GPA as a marketing major.
WR #25 - Dawon Scott--True freshman from Columbia, S.C. has back-to-back games of 140 yds (at Toledo) and 141 yds (vs. Buffalo, including 71-yd TD) ... became fastest MU player ever to record two 100-yard receiving games, doing so in his 8th game ... averaging team-best 23.1 yards per catch ... prep teammate of David Frazier.
QB #4 - Zac Dysert--Co-captain for the 2nd consecutive season ... threw for 313 yds & school-record-tying 5 TDs vs. Buffalo ... 20-for-25 effort raised his season completion percentage to .625 ... moved into 2nd on MU's career passing yardage list (7,166), behind only Ben Roethlisberger ... ranks 4th among active non-seniors behind Oklahoma's Landry Jones, Baylor's Robert Griffin III and USC's Matt Barkley ... career best 426 yds vs. Temple in 2009 ... 39 career TD passes rank 5th on Miami's career list.
TB #21 - Tyrone Jones--Senior walkon scored his first career TD last Saturday, rushing for career-best 58 net yards ... scheduled to graduate in December, earning a degree in exercise science.
WR #8 - Nick Harwell--Has 5 efforts over 100 receiving yds in 7 games ... during his career, his longest catches have gone for 81, 71 (at Toledo, 2011), 66 (at Minn., 2011) & 66 yds (vs. UT, 2011) ... 10 catches for 186 yds vs. Army was Miami's third-best all-time ... ranks 9th in NCAA stats with 111 ypg, 14th in catches per game (7.1) ... on Biletnikoff Watch List ... career totals are 114 recs for 1,649 yds and 8 TDs ... over span of his last 16 games, he's averaging 103 ypg.
WR #15 - Andy Cruse--Had 4 catches for 49 yds and a TD last week vs. UB, giving him 29 season grabs for 266 yds ... 72 career catches for 856 yds ... career's best game was vs. CMU in 2010 (8 for 179), including 71-yd game-winning TD.
PK #39 - Mason Krysinski--2-for-4 FGs (45 & 22), 19-for-22 PATs ... also handles kickoff duties ... has perfect 4.0 GPA thus far at Miami as a chemistry major.
DEFENSE
Buck #10 - C.J. Marck--Got his 5th start of 2011 (vs. UB), totaling 7 tackles and 2 TFLs ... 1 of his 2 TFLs vs. KSU resulted in a safety ... among his 36 season tackles are 8.5 TFLs ... has 16.5 career TFLs at Miami ... RedHawk senior is older brother of injured tight end Steve Marck.
Nose #94 - Mike Johns--Started his 6th straight game last week, his 17th career start ... 5.5 of his 16 season tackles are TFLS ... has a 3.0 GPA in integrated English language arts education.
T #90 - Austin Brown--one of Miami's most productive defenders is in his junior year, showing 2 QB sacks and 4 other TFLs among his 25 tackles ... 2nd team All-MAC performer in 2010 ... he has 21 career TFL at Miami.
End #93 - Jason Semmes--Seven tackles vs. UB gives him 31 for 2011 ... has 6.5 TFLs (3.5 QB sacks) and a fumble recovery ... the Iowa transfer is the older brother of running back Justin Semmes ... has a 3.0+ GPA in his major of public administration.
SLB #30 - Evan Harris--Got first starting assignment of 2011 last Saturday vs. UB, responding with 3 tackles ... 25 total stops this season gives him 180 for his career ... was Miami's defensive player of the year in 2010.
MLB #5 - Ryan Kennedy--Made his 7th straight start last week, recording 5 tackles and 1 TFL ... had season-best 10 stops at Toledo ... his 2011 stats include 39 tackles, 5 TFLs & an interception ... career-wise, he has 114 tackles and 15 TFLs ... a finance major at Miami (3.0+ GPA).
WLB #43 - Jerrell Wedge--Leads Miami with 61 tackles, including 4 TFLS ... recorded season-best 15 tackles at Toledo ... a hamstring injury 6 weeks ago sidelined him for 1st time in 26 games ... he's led Miami the last 2 seasons in tackles (101 in 2010, 114 in 2009) ... has 282 career tackles and 37 career TFLs ... needs only 1 more TFL to reach MU's all-time top 10 in career TFLs.
CB #14 - Demetrius Quarles--has 5 starts in 2011, totaling 17 tackles and 1 interception ... played in all 14 games in 2010 during Miami's championship season ... a business economics major.
SS #37 - Pat Hinkel--Had 4 tackles last week vs. UB and 11 stops at Toledo ... he ranks 3rd on team with 49 tackles thru 8 games ... 9 tackles at Missouri, 8 at Minnesota ... expected to make his 23rd straight start this week vs. Akron ... he has 133 career tackles ... a 3.0+ GPA in sport studies.
FS #18 - Anthony Kokal--Team's defensive co-captain had team-high 8 tackles last week and 10 stops at Toledo the week before ... recorded game-high 13 tackles vs. Minnesota ... punted 7 times vs. UC (32.3 ypp, 61 ydr) ... 202 career tackles and 22 career starts ... grad student in accountancy.
HB #3 - Dayonne Nunley--Had 6 tackles and an interception vs. UB in his 8th straight start of 2011 ... team's fifth-leading tackle in 2011 with 39 stops, including 30 solos ... 6 TFLS, 7 PBUs & 3 interceptions ... had a 72-yard kickoff return vs. BG, the longest play so far in 2011 ... has a KOR average of 23.3 yds this season on 15 returns.
P #45 - Zac Murphy--Punted 3 times vs UB, averaging nearly 44 yds per kick ... tied a Miami single-game record three weeks ago at KSU with 11 punts ... ... has had 2 punts blocked for TDs ... averaging 37.6 yards in 2011 ... third-team All-MAC honoree in 2010 ... originally a walk-on, he's now on scholarship ... 3.0 GPA in middle childhood education.
--www.MURedHawks.com--
