The Miami University football team hits the road to face the Northern Illinois Huskies on Saturday, Oct. 4. Opening kick is slated for 3:30 p.m. in the conference opener for both teams.

About Miami
• Miami football ranks first all-time in the Mid-American Conference in wins (734), conference wins (324), MAC Championships (17) and bowl wins (9).  Historically, Miami's 734 career wins are third all-time among Group-of-Five programs, behind just Navy (752) and Army (740).
• Miami was 4-14 in Coach Martin's first 18 Mid-American Conference games. Since then, the RedHawks are 49-19 in their last 68 games versus schools from the MAC, the best in the conference during that span.
• Miami captured 20 combined wins during the 2023 and 2024 seasons, the fourth-best two-year span in Miami history. Only the 2003-04, 1973-74 and 1974-75 squads combined for more wins (21). 
• Miami has competed in five straight bowl games and has been bowl-eligible in eight of the past nine seasons. The RedHawks are coming off a 43-17 win over Colorado State in the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl last season.
• Since Oct. 15, 2016, Miami has lost back-to-back conference games just twice in that span (2017, 2022). Miami is 16-3 following a conference loss, dating back to midway through the 2016 campaign.

About Chuck Martin
• Chuck Martin was named Miami head coach on Dec. 3, 2013.
• He was named a 2023 Finalist for the Eddie Robinson Coach of the Year Award after an 11-3 season.
• 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 22 seasons.  
• Martin has an all-time head coaching record of 140-77.
• He is 66-70 all-time at Miami (51-33 in MAC play) and has won more games at Miami than any other coach. The previous high was held by Randy Walker (60 wins).
• Martin is the longest tenured active coach in the MAC.
• 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.

About NIU
NIU is 1-3 on the year and is coming off a 6-3 loss to San Diego State last Saturday. The Huskies average 10.3 points and 248.8 yards of offense per game. The offense is powered by a pair of running backs in Telly Johnson (63.0 rpg.) and Chavon Wright (60.3 rpg.). Defensively, Quinton Urwiler is tops on the team with 50 tackles.

Series History Versus NIU
The RedHawks lead the all-time series by a narrow 12-9 margin and have won the last four meetings, dating back to 2018. Three of the last four meetings have been one-score contests.

Last Meeting With Huskies
Miami scored on three straight possessions in the first half and went on to defeat Northern Illinois 20-9 back on Nov. 19, 2024. Reggie Virgil made four catches for 107 yards and a touchdown for the RedHawks, while Miami's defense held the Huskies to 242 yards of offense.

Mallory Cup
This will be the fifth time these two teams will compete for the Mallory Cup (began in 2018), honoring, Bill Mallory, one of the all-time great Mid-American Conference coaches. Mallory was 64-31 all-time as a head coach in the Mid-American Conference for both Miami and NIU. His 64 wins and .674 win percentage rank eighth in conference history. Mallory is the only football coach in history to win a championship with two different MAC schools. He also won MAC Coach of the Year in 1973 with Miami and 1983 with NIU.

Lindenwood Recap
Miami got help from all three phases of the game to capture a 38-0 win last Saturday over Lindenwood. Jermaine Agee took a Kam Perry blocked punt in for a touchdown to open the scoring. 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 a career-high 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.

Lights, 'Kam'era, Action
With four catches for 122 yards, Kam 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).

Tracy Does it Again
After rushing for a career-high 104 yards versus UNLV, Kenny Tracy posted 134 yards on the ground versus Lindenwood for the first two 100-yard games of his career. The fifth-year senior has 343 yards from scrimmage over the past two games. He has rushed 36 times  for 238 yards and has added 105 receiving yards to go along with eight catches.

Great Start, Great Finish
After Silas 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. Miami forced a turnover on the first defensive drive of the game for a second consecutive week. (In week three Corban Hondru intercepted UNLV to begin the game for the Miami defense).

Henry, Oh Henry
In just his second career start, fifth-year senior Henry Hesson posted career bests in competitions (13), attempts (21), yards (208), touchdowns (2) and a career-long pass (66).

The Book of Eli
Eli Blakey has a 203 tackles in his career, tops on the team. Last season he posted a career-high 89 tackles and currently leads the squad with 18 stops this season.

Finn To Win
While Dequan Finn has made just three career starts as a member of the RedHawks, the seventh-year quarterback does not lack experience.
• Throughout his career he has thrown for 7,855 yards and 68 touchdown passes in 51 career games.
• He has added 2,026 rushing yards and 28 scores on the ground. 
• Most of that damage came during his time at Toledo. In 45 career games with the Rockets, Finn threw for 7,074 yards and 63 scores, while adding 1,840 yards and 25 touchdowns on the ground. 
• He earned first-team All-MAC and was the MAC Player of the Year in 2023 and is the only player in Toledo football history to throw for over 2,000 yards and rush for 500 yards in multiple seasons (2021, 2022, 2023).
• Finn's 96 career total touchdowns (68 passing, 28 rushing) ranks first among active players in the NCAA. The next closest is Vanderbilt's Diego Pavia (95 total touchdowns).
• In his career he has combined for 9,877 yards in 1,429 total plays.

New-Look Offensive Line 
Miami's OL lost one player to the transfer portal, while four others graduated following the 2024 season. In all, those five players started a combined 166 career games for the RedHawks. Miami's 2025 offensive line will have a much different feel. Eric Smith, Kris Manu, Austin Uke and Greg Smith Jr. all made their first collegiate start in the season opener at Wisconsin, while Drew Terrill started his second career game. In all, Miami's offensive line has started a combined 21 games.

From Walk-on to Team Leader
Silas Walters came to Miami back in 2021 as a walk-on. Prior to the 2023 season, Walters earned a scholarship, and in 2024 he finished second on the team with 95 tackles and 12 pass breakups. He also represented Miami's defense at the 2025 MAC Football Media Day in Detroit.