Miami vs. UConn on Homecoming Weekend

Saturday, September 26

Oxford, Ohio

3:30 p.m.

Miami University

Connecticut

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Jeff Sabo Miami University
Football vs UC

Photo by: Jeffrey Sabo

9/22/2026 7:32:00 AM | Football

Game Notes

The Miami University football team plays host to the UConn Huskies on Saturday, Sept. 26 for Homecoming. Opening kick is scheduled for 3:30 p.m. on ESPN+.

About Miami
• Miami football ranks first all-time in the Mid-American Conference in wins (741), conference wins (330), MAC Championships (17) and bowl wins (9). Historically, Miami's 741 career wins are third all-time among Group-of-Five programs, behind just Navy (758) and Army (746).

• Miami was 4-14 in Coach Martin's first 18 Mid-American Conference games. Since then, the RedHawks are 55-22 in their last 77 games versus schools from the MAC, the best in the conference during that span. Miami is 22-5 over their last 27 MAC games, which includes three-straight trips to the MAC Title Game.

• The RedHawks have competed in five straight bowl games and have been bowl-eligible in nine of the past 10 seasons.

• Since Oct. 15, 2016, Miami has lost back-to-back conference games just three times in that span (2017, 2022, 2025). Miami is 17-4 following a conference loss, dating back to midway through the 2016 campaign.

• Of the 119 players on the 2026 roster, 55 (27 transfers, 28 freshmen) are new this season. Another 16 players are red-shirt freshmen and eight transferred in for the 2025 campaign. In all, 46.2% of the roster is new this season and 66.4% of the team has been with the RedHawks for one season or less.

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 23 seasons.
• Martin has an all-time head coaching record of 147-83.
• He is 73-76 all-time at Miami (57-34 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.

All In The Family
Nearly every member of the RedHawks' staff either played at Miami, played for Chuck Martin previously or worked for him before getting hired on as assistant coaches. In some cases, such as running backs coach Chris Hudson and safeties coach Zane Ries, they did all three. (In fact, the only exception who doesn't check at least one of those boxes is Mitchell White...but White's twin brother worked for Martin!)

Miami Drops Heartbreaker to Cincinnati
Quarterback David McComb set a new career high with 334 yards through the air and produced two total touchdowns (one passing, one rushing) as the RedHawks raced out to a 28-7 halftime lead before UC rallied from behind for a 35-31 victory.

Scoop's Sensational Start
Smith's 98-yard return was the first Miami kickoff return for a touchdown since Keith Reynolds did it almost exactly a year ago (Sept. 20, 2025 vs. UNLV). The Smith score was Miami's first return touchdown on an opening kickoff since Maurice Thomas in 2018 vs. Western Michigan. Smith, the shortest player in D1 football (listed at 5-5), had a 55-yard kickoff return at Pitt and blocked a punt versus Holy Cross.

Huggins' Heroics
Maleek Huggins scored a touchdown for the first time since Nov. 22, 2025 with Bethune-Cookman and pulled in a season-high 128 receiving yards, including the highlight-reel one-handed grab in the second quarter where he was staring into the sun and somehow still came up with the football. Huggins went over the 100-yard receiving mark for the sixth time in his collegiate career and the first time as a RedHawk.

Lyons' Roar
Grant Lyons finished with a career-high two sacks, including a forced fumble in the fourth quarter that Roosevelt Andrews III recovered to give Miami the ball in Bearcat territory. Lyons has nine tackles and a team-high three TFLs and two sacks this season.

About UConn
Connecticut is 2-1 on the season with wins over Lafayette (56-7) and Southern Miss (48-20). They dropped a week two contest to Maryland (38-14). Quarterback Kalieb Osborne has thrown for 636 yards and six touchdowns this season and has added a team-high 152 rushing yards and four scores on the ground.

Gotkowski to Miss Season
Thomas Gotkowski, who led Miami to an appearance in the MAC Championship Game last season, is expected to miss the entire 2026 campaign with an injury. Gotkowski saw major game action in the final four games of the season, including starts in the MAC Title Game and the Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl.

McComb Finds a New Home
David McComb, a transfer from Kansas, opened his Miami career with 62 straight pass attempts before throwing an interception last week at Cincinnati. Through three games (the first three starts of his collegiate career), he has thrown for 809 yards and five touchdowns. He has also scored a rushing touchdown in each of the past two games.

In The Trenches
While there are many new players on the Miami roster, the RedHawks do return four starters along their offensive line: Kris Manu (17), Jacob Schorsch (10), Eric Smith (16) and Greg Smith Jr. (17) have started a combined 60 games throughout their Miami careers. Evan Malcore, who started 32 games at NIU over the past three years, has started three games for the Red and White this season.

Linebacker Overload
Miami's linebacker group is arguably the deepest on the team. Malcolm McCain returns for his fourth year with the team and is Miami's top returning tackler with 73 stops in 2025. He is joined by Blayne Myrick, a transfer from South Alabama, who earned first-team all-conference a year ago (second-team in 2024) and CJ Young, who was named second-team All-MAC at Kent State in 2025. On top of that, Brock Uihlein had 11 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss in the MAC Championship Game a year ago.

Kicker University
Miami football is making a habit of producing incredible kickers. Dom Dzioban earned first team All-MAC in 2024 and 2025, Graham Nicholson won the Lou Grosa Award in 2023 and Sam Sloman kicked for the RedHawks from 2016-19, eventually being drafted by the LA Rams in 2020. Up next for Miami is Kellan McLaughlin. The junior has served as the team's kickoff specialist for the past two years, but has attempted just five field goals in his Miami career.