Miami Drops Season Opener at Pitt

Saturday, September 5

Pittsburgh, Pa.

12:30 p.m.

Miami University

0-1 , 0-0

Pittsburgh

1-0 , 0-0

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Miami (OH)	0	14	0	0	14
Pitt	21	10	21	7	59

Photo by: Jeffrey Sabo

9/5/2026 4:04:00 PM | Football

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PITTSBURGH— The Miami University football team dropped its season opener at Pittsburgh by a score of 59-14 Saturday afternoon.

Freshman quarterback David McComb threw for 240 yards and two touchdowns in his collegiate debut for the RedHawks (0-1). Mason Heintschel completed seven touchdown passes for the Panthers (1-0).

"I know we're better than this. They're really good; Pitt imposed their will on us, so I'm giving 1,000 percent credit to Pitt," said head coach Chuck Martin. "But I know we're better than we played today...

"We've got a lot of work to do. We've got a long, long season...we've got to take a giant step in the right direction next week and then keep improving. Because we're a ways away, as we showed today."

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Panthers got off to a quick start, scoring on their first three possessions to take a 21-0 lead just before the end of the first quarter. 17-yard and five-yard scoring passes from Heintschel were sandwiched around a 50-yard Justin Cook touchdown run.
Miami got on the board with 10:29 left in the second quarter after a key fourth-down conversion on a pass from McComb to Lynel Billups-Williams. McComb then found Scoop Smith for a 30-yard gain to the one-yard line on the next snap and D'Shawntae Jones promptly punched it in from there to make it 21-7.
Pitt briefly extended the lead to 28-7 on a 45-yard reception by Ja'Kyrian Turner, but the RedHawks responded on their next offensive play. McComb hit Damarion Witten in stride for a huge gain through the air and Witten broke a tackle to finish off a 75-yard touchdown and pull the visitors within 28-14 with 4:34 left in the half. Pitt added a 58-yard field goal on the final play of the period to take a 31-14 advantage to the locker room.
The hosts began the second half like they did the first, breaking the game open with four consecutive touchdown drives. Heintschel ended all four drives with scoring passes for Pitt, and the Panthers went on to finish off a 59-14 victory.

'BEN' THERE, DONE THAT: Miami Hall of Famer and Pittsburgh Steelers legend Ben Roethlisberger was in attendance at the game. Roethlisberger, who broke every major passing record in Miami history during his time with the Red and White (2001-03), went on to lead the Steelers to two Super Bowl titles in his 18-year NFL career.

BIG-PLAY BRAYLON: Miami's first two third-down conversions both came on tough third-and-12 receptions by Braylon Isom in the second quarter. On the first grab, Isom took a tough hit and pinballed between four Panther defenders, keeping a drive alive that eventually resulted in Miami's first touchdown of the game. On the second catch, Isom jumped high in the air to make an incredibly athletic reception for a gain of 22.

SPREADING THE WEALTH: McComb's 16 pass completions went to seven different receivers, including a career-high four receptions for Billups-Williams to lead the RedHawks. In all, nine different Miami players caught at least one pass (two from backup quarterback Caleb Heavner in the fourth quarter).

"He was calm. He was competitive. He gave us a chance," Martin said of McComb. "Started off really slow as a team in the first quarter, and then he bounced back. That was the biggest thing for me at this stage. I know he has ability. I know he's smart. I know he's a good kid. [I've] just never seen him in a hostile environment. I thought he handled it --all day long-- well. Zero excuses...

"Overall, very pleased with his makeup and demeanor. And he showed he could make some plays."

Jeff Sabo Miami University

HOMETOWN HERO: Freshman speedster Scoop Smith made his collegiate debut in his hometown of Pittsburgh and was electric from the very first whistle. Smith ran the opening kickoff back 55 yards and finished the afternoon with 157 all-purpose yards.

"[That's] what we see from him every day [and] what we saw from him in high school," said Martin. "Don't judge somebody by their size...we're excited to have him!

"He would have scored on the last one; I don't know if he cramped up in the middle of the play. He went down; he was in the open...

"Our kick return unit was...by far the best unit we had all day."

UP NEXT:
The RedHawks will welcome Holy Cross to Yager Stadium next Saturday, Sept. 12 at 1 p.m. for the 2026 home opener. Tickets are available here.