AMHERST, Mass. – Brett Gabbert threw for 302 yards and Gage Larvadain finished with eight catches for 273 yards and three touchdowns as the Miami University football team downed the University of Massachusetts 41-28 on Saturday (and Sunday) in a contest that last nearly nine hours. Miami improves to 1-1 overall while the Minutemen fall to 1-2 on the year.
 
How it Happened:

• Miami opened the game with a four-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. After a Gabbert five-yard rush, he connected on three-straight passes to Larvadain, including a 26-yard touchdown pass for the early 7-0 advantage.
• Late in the opening stanza, UMass faced a third-and goal from inside Miami's 1-yard line, but were stonewalled on back-to-back plays. Two plays later, Gabbert found Larvadain for a 99-yard touchdown with 1:40 to play in the first.
• On the ensuing Minutemen offensive snap, Caiden Woullard's strip-sack set up a Kobe Hilton fumble recovery in the endzone for a 21-0 Miami lead late in the opening quarter.
• UMass got on the board early in the second quarter with a 53-yard pick-six that deflected off of a Miami wide receiver.
• Miami's run game found some success in the second quarter. Rashad Amos and Keyon Mozee combined for 36 yards on four carries before Gabbert found Larvadain for a 13-yard touchdown, his third of the game. Miami led 28-7 with 2:39 left in the half and took that same advantage into the locker room.
• UMass scored on their second drive of the second half, highlighted by a 37-yard completion to cut the score to 28-14 with 10:20 left in the third quarter. The Minutemen made it 28-21, converting a third-and-20 with a 50-yard touchdown pass with less than three minutes left in the third quarter.
• Graham Nicholson drilled a 33-yard field goal with 12 second left in the third to push Miami's advantage to 31-21.
• After a RedHawks' fumble, UMass took over at the Miami 1-yard line and scored two plays later to make it 31-28 with 11:16 left in the contest. Miami answered 19 second later when Gabbert hit Larvadain for 69 yards down the middle of the field. Larvadain fumbled at the UMass 5-yard line, but Cade McDonald pounced on the fumble for his first career touchdown.
• Nicholson's 44-yard field made it 41-28 with 3:32 to play.

 
Game Notes:

• Saturday's game was scheduled to begin at 3:32 p.m. and did not end until 12:28 a.m. In all, the game was delayed for 5:35, due to a pair of long weather delays.
• Amos Raion Strader and Javon Tracy made their first career starts for the RedHawks. Amos finished the game with 115 yards rushing, the first 100-yard game of his career.
• Larvadain's 99-yard grab from Gabbert is the longest pass in school history. Mike Bath found Sly Johnson for a 94-yard touchdown against Eastern Michigan back in 1999, a record that stood for 24 years.
• Larvadain's 273 yards receiving is the second-most in program history, behind only Jack Sorenson's 283 yards at Ohio in 2021.
• Gabbert surpassed 300 yards passing for the first time since Nov. 27, 2021 at Kent State (405 yards). He moved past Mike Bath into fourth all-time in career passing yards (6,688). Up next on the list is Josh Betts (7,029).
• Hilton's fumble recovery for a touchdown, was Miami's first "scoop and score" since Chris Wade did so back in 2013 at Kentucky.
• Joe Wilkins Jr. had his first career catch.
• Michael Dowell had his second interception in as many games in 2023.

Up Next:
Miami returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 16 for a 7 p.m. tilt at Cincinnati.