This Week's Matchup
Miami University and the University of Cincinnati will square-off on Saturday, Sept. 8 at  8 p.m. at Paul Brown Stadium in the annual "Battle for the Victory Bell."

Television
The matchup with the Bearcats will be carried live on Raycom/ESPN3. Tim Bray will handle play-by-play duties and Greg Frey will serve as color analyst. 

Radio
In its 12th 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 Terry Bridge will provide color commentary. Randy Hollowell will be the network's sideline reporter. Tune-in to one of Miami's gameday affiliates:

WMOH-AM 1450 (Hamilton, Ohio)
WFMG-FM 101.3 (Richmond, Ind.)
WDBZ-AM 1230 (Cincinnati, Ohio)
WONE-AM 980 (Dayton, Ohio)
WKBV-AM 1490 and 100.9 FM (Richmond, Ind.)

Live Stats
Live stats for the contest can be found at www.miamiredhawks.com

About Chuck Martin
• Head coach Chuck Martin, who earned that title on Dec. 3, 2013, brings an impressive resume to Oxford, Ohio.
• Earlier this year Martin signed a contract extension that will run until 2020. 
• Not only was he 74-7 in six years at Grand Valley State (2004-09), he has coached in seven national championship games in the past 16 seasons.  Martin has an all-time head coaching record of 90-41.
• He has twice been named the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) National Coach of the Year and has been a coordinator on both sides of the ball.
• Martin was inducted into the Hall of Fame at Grand Valley State University on Oct. 23, 2015.

Marshall Recap
Gus Ragland tossed three touchdown passes and amassed 357 yards through the air to spur a valiant comeback bid, but the Miami football team fell just short in a 35-28 setback to Marshall at Yager Stadium. Jack Sorenson amassed 106 yards through the air and Kenny Young hauled in a team-high six passes. Final yardage had Miami with 444 yards to Marshall's 443 and neither team turned the ball over for the evening.

At Paul Brown Stadium
Saturday's contest will be the third time Miami has played a game inside Paul Brown Stadium. The first came in a 42-0 loss to Kentucky in 2009 and the Bearcats hosted the RedHawks at PBS in 2014, a contest UC won 31-24. Miami will serve as the host institution for this Saturday's game.

About Cincinnati
Cincinnati scored nine points in the fourth quarter to down the UCLA Bruins (26-17) last Saturday. Quarterback Desmond Ridder threw for 100 yards, while Michael Warren II rushed for 142 yards and three touchdowns in the win.

Series vs. Cincinnati
• The "Battle for the Victory Bell" between Miami and Cincinnati is the longest-lasting collegiate football rivalry west of the Allegheny Mountains, first being played in 1888. It is also the fifth-most played rivalry in Division I (FBS only) with 122 all-time meetings and is the oldest non-conference rivalry in the nation.
• The first Miami/Cincinnati game was played in Oxford on Dec. 8, 1888 as the teams played to a scoreless tie. The game was the first college football game played in the state of Ohio.
• Miami controls the all-time series 59-56-7, but the Bearcats have won the last 12 meetings. Miami's last win versus UC was back on Sept. 28, 2005 in a 44-16 win in Oxford. 
• The two teams have played every year since 1945, not playing in 1943 or 1944, but Miami and UC also played every year from 1909 through 1942. Of the 122 meetings, 54 have been decided by seven points or less, including the seven ties in series history.
• The two schools announced last year that the series would be extended through 2029.

Last Season vs. Cincinnati
Last season versus Cincinnati is a game most would rather forget. The RedHawks led 17-6 with under three minutes to go, but the Bearcats scored the final 15 points of the game to walk out of Yager Stadium with the win. UC recorded a pick-6 with 1:07 remaining to steal the win.

Instant Impact
With all of the attention Gardner receives on the field from opposing defenses, Miami needed other playmakers to make an impact and that is exactly what Jack Sorenson and Andrew Homer accomplished. Both Sorenson and Homer recorded their first career catches and first career touchdowns last week versus Marshall. Sorenson led Miami with three catches for 106 yards, while Homer added two catches for 28 yards.

In Gus We Trust
After beginning the 2016 season 0-6, head coach Chuck Martin turned to quarterback Gus Ragland. Ragland led Miami to six straight wins over Kent State, Bowling Green, Eastern Michigan, Central Michigan, Buffalo and Ball State. The now senior quarterback is 10-7 all-time as a starter for the RedHawks.

Nice Way to Start a Career
Ragland began his career by throwing 203 consecutive passes before throwing an interception late in the contest versus Mississippi State in the 2016 St. Petersburg Bowl. In all, the Cincinnati, Ohio native has thrown just eight interceptions in 525 career pass attempts (1 INT every 65.6 pass attempts). In fact, Miami is 9-1 (loss was last week versus Marshall) in games in which Ragland does not throw and interception and 1-6 when he throws it to the other team. 

The Land of Ragland
Gus Ragland has owned the red zone since joining Miami in 2015. In his career, he has completed 38-of-70 passes from inside the 20-yard line for 28 touchdowns, while throwing just one interception. He has added seven rushing scores in his career from inside the red zone, for a 35:1 touchdown to interception ratio.

 Offensive Line A Strength
Miami returns all five starters from a unit that allowed just 21 sacks in 2017 and helped Miami rush for a season average of 146.9 yards per game, the highest under Coach Martin. Overall, Miami has 116 career starts among its offensive line members, led by senior Sam McCollum (36). He is joined by senior Jordan Rigg (25), senior Mitch Palmer (20), sophomore Danny Godlevske (12), junior Matt Skibinski (9), junior Jarrett LaRubbio (9) and sophomore Tommy Doyle (5).

Small But Carries a Big Stick
Kenny Young may be listed at just 5-foot-7, but he was a load to bring down over the past year. The dual-threat running back has been doing it not just on the ground, but through the air as well. Last week versus Marshall, Young combined for 81 yards and over his last 10 games, the senior has averaged 102.7 combined yards per game.

Dynamic Duo
Alonzo Smith and Kenny Young have played a lot of football for the Red and White. Combined, the duo have rushed for 3,546 yards. Smith's 1,899 rushing yards are 101 shy of 2,000 career yards. Just 13 Miami players have surpassed 2,000 yards rushing in their career. Young is not far behind with 1,647 in his career.

Last Chance U
The hit documentary show on Netflix, Last Chance U, featured Independence Community College. Junior defensive back Zedrick Raymond, now a member of the Miami University football team, was part of that show. During that season he led the team with four interceptions.