OXFORD, Ohio— The Miami University football team was looking for solid performances in all three phases of the game for today's Homecoming contest against Lindenwood.
 
The RedHawks delivered on all accounts, setting the tone early and cruising to a comfortable 38-0 shutout win over the Lions. 
 
Special teams struck first, as Miami (1-3, 0-0 MAC) took a 7-0 lead midway through the opening quarter when Kam Perry blocked a Lindenwood punt and Jermaine Agee ran it back eight yards for a touchdown.
 
Offensively, Henry Hesson capitalized on his first home start to throw for 208 yards, including a pair of touchdown tosses to Perry (31 and 66 yards). Kenny Tracy added 134 rushing yards and a touchdown on 20 carries to provide the Red and White with a balanced attack both through the air and on the ground.
 
Miami's defense was stout throughout, beginning with Silas Walters' interception on the first Lion offensive snap. The RedHawks recorded their first shutout since 2023, held the visitors to 146 total yards, forced 11 punts (one shy of a Yager Stadium record) and got off the field on 12 of 13 third downs to drop Lindenwood to 2-3, 1-0 OVC-Big South.
 
"Defensively, dominated start to finish," head coach Chuck Martin said after the game. "Really nice bounce-back for them after last week: Didn't really give them anything in the run, didn't really give them anything in the pass. That was key to the game."
 
Miami scored at least one touchdown in all four quarters, breaking the game open on Perry's 31-yard reception with 7:32 remaining in the second to make it 17-0. After a 12-yard pass to Braylon Isom and a 16-yard Tracy run, Perry adjusted to the football and went up in the air to pull in a score with two defenders in the vicinity and give the RedHawks some first-half breathing room.
 
"He's fast, he's shifty, no one can cover him: We've seen that the whole season so far," Hesson said of the redshirt junior wideout. "It's awesome to have a guy out there that you can rely on and he's going to be open when you need him."
 
Tracy made it 24-0 on the first RedHawk possession of the third quarter, carrying the ball on six of the 10 plays in Miami's scoring drive. He found the end zone on the last snap, going untouched on a 20-yard run up the middle.
 
Miami put the finishing touches on a well-rounded performance late in the third period, as Perry got open behind the Lions' defense for a 66-yard touchdown pass to make it 31-0. The RedHawks then concluded the scoring with a 13-play, 53-yard drive that ate up nearly nine minutes of the fourth quarter, capping the possession with a one-yard Jordan Brunson touchdown.
 
The defense did the rest, pitching a shutout and keeping Lindenwood out of the red zone all afternoon. The Lions' quarterback hit on just 36% of his passes (9-of-25), and LU finished the game with an average of just 2.7 yards per play.
 
"Overall, a great day for us; much needed," Martin said. "Today was a good step, and we got a victory. Got to sing the fight song. Everybody feels a little better about themselves, which is important. Now we've got to keep going, have a great week, keep getting better, and try to find a way to get a huge road win next week."
 
 
SPREADING THE WEALTH: Hesson's 12th all-time appearance for Miami was his second career start (2023 Cure Bowl) and first in Oxford. He set new career highs in passing yards, completions, attempts and touchdowns while connecting with eight different receivers (including seven in the first half alone).
 
"All our guys are good," Hesson said. "I can't imagine scouting our offense and having all these guys that can do the job."
 
"We love Hank," Martin said in praising his redshirt senior signal-caller. "Hank's like a coach, Hank's like a player, Hank's like everything…
 
"In a day and age when everybody leaves, he could have left [during the offseason]. He knew he was going to be the backup again, but he loves this place and he loves this team.
 
"He just kept saying, 'My heart's here, Coach."
 
 
LIGHTS, 'KAM'ERA, ACTION: With three catches for 122 yards, Perry topped the 100-yard receiving mark for a third consecutive game and scored his first two career touchdowns in the process. Perry is the first RedHawk wideout to post three straight 100-yard games since Jack Sorenson in 2021 (six in a row from Oct. 9 - Nov. 16)
 
 
BLOCK PARTY: Miami blocked a punt and returned it for a touchdown for the first time since Lonnie Phelps went 32 yards at Ball State in 2019.
 
"Obviously a huge early block by Kam, and really good by Coach Aylward getting it schemed up," Martin said. "Kam's come a long way in the last 12 months…there's a lot of great receivers that, 'Hey, you're a talented athlete – is there other ways we can use you?' Kam's been begging since spring: 'I'll block a punt.'…
 
"He got there in a hurry and he smothered it. One of the easier punt blocks you'll see, based on speed…
 
"Great to see a receiver contribute like that…and a huge play in the game to get seven right off the bat."
 
 
CENTURY CLUB: Tracy went over 100 yards on the ground for the second consecutive game, a feat last accomplished by Keyon Mozee in November 2024 (at Ball State and vs. Kent State).
 
 
GREAT START, GREAT FINISH: After Walters set the tone on Lindenwood's first offensive play with his second career interception, Eli Coppess grabbed his first career pick in the final quarter, running it back 40 yards into Lindenwood territory.
 
 
NOTES: Eli Blakey surpassed 200 total tackles for his career, making six stops…Freshman quarterback Thomas Gotkowski came on in the fourth quarter to make his Miami debut…Kellan McLaughlin recorded touchbacks on all seven of his kickoffs…Miami improved to 66-37-4 all-time in Homecoming games.


UP NEXT:
The RedHawks travel to Northern Illinois next Saturday, Oct. 4 to open Mid-American Conference play. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET in DeKalb, Ill.