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Oct. 15, 2007
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IF MIAMI WINS ...: It would improve Miami's 2007 season record to 5-3, extending its winning streak to four ... it would improve MU's overall Mid-American Conference record to 4-0 and its MAC Divisional record to 3-0 ... it would be the RedHawks' second consecutive win at Lincoln Financial Field.
SECOND MEETING BETWEEN REDHAWKS AND OWLS: Saturday's game marks only the second time that Miami and Temple have met on a football field. On October 29, 2005, at Philadelphia's Lincoln Financial Field, the RedHawks topped the Owls by a score of 41-14.
THE SERIES:
• Miami and Temple are meeting for just the second time in the series history.
• The RedHawks have a 1-0 record against the Owls.
• In the only other meeting between the teams, Miami recorded a 41-14 win against Temple. Martin Nance had 91 receiving yards, becoming Miami's then all-time leader in career receiving yards (Ryne Robinson broke Nance's record in 2006).
• Saturday marks Miami's second visit to Philadelphia to face Temple. The RedHawks also battled the Owls at Lincoln Financial Field on Oct. 29, 2005.
• Earlier this season, Miami faced Minnesota for just the second time in series history. That game also took place for the second time on the opponent's home field. The RedHawks lost in triple-overtime to the Golden Gophers on Sept. 8, 41-35.
BEST MIAMI PERFORMANCES VS. TEMPLE: In Miami's previous game against Temple, here are the RedHawks' top individual efforts:
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INDIVIDUAL RUSHING: Brandon Murphy, 61 yards (18-61, 2 TD) ... 10/29/05 INDIVIDUAL PASSING: Josh Betts, 379 yards (28-40-0-379, 3 TD) ... 10/29/05 INDIVIDUAL RECEIVING: Ryne Robinson, 148 yards (10-148, 1 TD) ... 10/29/05
THE COACHES:
MIAMI HEAD COACH Shane Montgomery (North Carolina State, `90) is in his third season at the helm of the Miami program, owning a 13-17 record ... Montgomery led the RedHawks to a share of the MAC East Division title in his first season (2005) ... also serves at the offensive coordinator and has since 2001 ... since that time, Miami has consistently ranked among the top 30 in passing offense and has ranked among the top 45 nationally in total offense five times.
TEMPLE HEAD COACH AL GOLDEN (Penn State, `91) is in his second season guiding the Temple Owls and owns a 3-16 record at the helm of the program ... prior to assuming his present post, Golden was an assistant coach with Boston College, Penn State and Virginia ... he served as the defensive coordinator at Virginia from 2001-05 and was the youngest defensive coordinator in Division I-A when he took the position in 2001.
BEST MAC START SINCE 2003: Miami's 47-14 home-field victory vs. Bowling Green gave the RedHawks their first 3-0 start in MAC play since the 2003 club posted a perfect 8-0 conference record.
7, 40, 42: There are three special numbers in Miami football history, and the men who once wore those jerseys all were in attendance at last Saturday's game. Number seven, once the property of standout quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, is the latest to be retired by Miami. Thanks to an off-week for the Pittsburgh Steelers, "Big Ben" was able to come back to Oxford on Oct. 13 for the jersey retirement ceremony. Roethlisberger was joined by former Miami player and coach JOHN PONT (#42, retired in 1951), and former MU running back BOB HITCHENS (#40, retired in 1973).
BEST OF THE MAC: With its 47-14 win vs. Bowling Green, Miami improved its record to 3-0 in MAC play (2-0 vs. East Division teams). The RedHawks are one of only two undefeated MAC teams in overall conference games, joining Central Michigan (3-0) atop the standings. Miami and Buffalo are tied for first place in the MAC East Division with a 2-0 record; Central Michigan (3-0) and Western Michigan (2-0) share the West Division lead. The East and West Division leaders will square off in the MAC Championship Game on Saturday, Dec. 1, at Detroit's Ford Field. Miami has won more MAC games than any other conference member (256), and its all-time MAC winning percentage of .676 (256-120-11) also leads the league. Miami has won or shared 14 MAC titles, more than any other program.
MIAMI AMONG COLLEGE FOOTBALL'S ELITE TEAMS: In college football history, Miami ranks 20th in terms of all-time victories with 645. MU is the only non-BCS-affiliated school in this rarified air. Among all-time collegiate teams with the best winning percentage, Miami ranks 16th at .6328 (645-365-44). MU ranks 13th in winning percentage among schools that have played 100 or more seasons, trailing only Michigan, Notre Dame, Texas, Oklahoma, Penn State, Ohio State, Alabama, Nebraska, Southern California, Tennessee, Georgia and LSU.
REDHAWK CAPTAINS: Miami has three captains in 2007, and will name a fourth player each week to be a game captain. The three players who were elected by their teammates include quarterback Mike Kokal (Sr., Warren), running back Brandon Murphy (Sr., Strongsville) and linebacker Joey Hudson (Jr., Piqua). Senior receiver PETE WALTERS (Columbus) was the game captain for the Bowling Green contest. The captain for the Temple game will be named later this week.
REDHAWKS' INJURY REPORT: Mickey Mann (injured knee vs. Syracuse), out for Temple game ... Andre Bratton (injured knee vs. Cincinnati), out for season... Brandon Murphy (injured knee vs. Minnesota), out for season ... Matt McKeown (injured shoulder vs. Ball State), out for season ... Mike Kokal (injured knee vs. Kent State), out for Temple game ... Ben Huddle (injured knee vs. Kent State), out for Temple game ... Cory Jones (injured knee vs. Syracuse), questionable for Temple game ... Jerrid Gaines (injured leg vs. Syracuse), probable for Temple game.
IN TWO WEEKS: Miami steps out of MAC play on Oct. 27 (2 p.m. ET) with a game at Vanderbilt. The RedHawks return to league action on Nov. 3 (3 p.m.) with a home game vs. Buffalo.
KROGER BECOME TICKET SOURCE FOR REDHAWK SPORTS: Miami University football fans can now purchase reserved-seating tickets to RedHawk football games at all 110 southwest-Ohio Kroger supermarkets. A $2 discount per-ticket is given to patrons who purchase their Miami University football tickets at Kroger. Customers can ask to purchase the tickets at the checkout lanes with the amount added to their grocery bill and the vouchers printed out on site. Miami football tickets purchased at Kroger are non-refundable and each ticket purchased is valid for one reserved seat to any 2007 RedHawk home game. The tickets, issued in voucher form at any checkout lane, will be exchanged for tickets at Yager Stadium ticket windows--located at the south and west sides of the stadium--on game day. Reserved Miami football tickets purchased at Kroger are for all west sideline sections at Yager Stadium with the exceptions of sections 3, 4 and 5.
MIAMI'S OFFENSE RED ZONE RESULTS: Miami has drastically improved its Red Zone efficiency over the past three weeks. The RedHawk offense is 12-of-14 (.857) inside the opponent's 20-yard line during their three-game win streak. Miami was 3-for-4 against Syracuse, 4-for-4 against Kent State and 5-for-6 in the Red Zone against Bowling Green. Prior to its three-game win streak, the RedHawks had been 7-of-13 (.538) in the Red Zone.
TAKING TURNS: Senior running back Austin Sykes (Coraopolis, PA) rushed for a career-high 124 yards vs. Bowling Green, increasing his 2007 numbers to 369 yards. Sykes entered the 2007 campaign as Miami's No. 3 running back. Brandon Murphy began the season as the starter, and paced Miami in rushing vs. Ball State (123 yards) and Minnesota (78 yards). He injured his knee in the game against the Gophers and had season-ending surgery on Oct. 5. Andre Bratton (Woodbridge, VA) took over for Murphy, but he was injured early in game three vs. Cincinnati. Sykes subbed in for Bratton and was MU's top rusher the next two weeks (76 yards vs. Cincinnati and 29 yards vs. Colorado). Cory Jones (Florence, MS) gained a team-leading 125 yards vs. Syracuse, but was injured on his last carry against the Orange and was forced to sit out the last two games. Jones might return to action this week, so he and Sykes could share the load against Temple. Three other young players--redshirt freshman Jamel Miller (Tallmadge) and true freshmen Thomas Merriweather (Florissant, MO) and T.J. Lattimore (Maple Heights)--also are seeing a portion of the playing time. Against Bowling Green this trio combined for 118 yards on 27 carries. For the season, Miller has 78 net rushing yards (20 carries), Merriweather has 45 yards (16 carries) and Lattimore has 27 yards (5 carries). Not including the quarterbacks' rushing statistics, MU's backs are averaging 143.4 yards per game and 5.0 yards per attempt.
THINGS GO BETTER WITH KOKAL: As a starter this season, Mike Kokal (Sr., Warren) is 3-2 (victories over Ball State, Syracuse and Kent State, and losses to Minnesota and Cincinnati). He moved into eighth place on passing yardage list, now totaling 3,173 yards. Only nine other RedHawk quarterbacks have reached 3,000 passing yards during their careers. Kokal will not play against Temple, but coaches are hopeful that he could return before the end of the regular season.
RAUGHDABAUGH CONTINUES: Quarterback Daniel Raudabaugh (Coppell, TX) has been particularly effective in his last two appearances, averaging 9.6 yards per offensive play. Against Kent State (Oct. 6), he averaged 12.1 yards for each of his 15 offensive plays (182 total yards), the best single-game effort among all MAC players in 2007.
QUARTERBACK DUO: As a pair, Daniel Raudabaugh and Mike Kokal have combined for 1,595 yards and six TD passes in 2007. More than 26 percent of their total yardage came at Minnesota when they totaled 418 passing yards, the fourth-best, all-time, single-game mark in Miami history. The only three performances exceededing that effort were by former RedHawk great Ben Roethlisberger (525 yards vs. Northern Illinois in 2002, 452 yards vs. Hawai'i in 2001, and 440 yards vs. Bowling Green in 2003). As either the head coach or the offensive coordinator, Miami's Shane Montgomery has had a direct hand in the school's top 13 single-game passing efforts.
BELTON READY FOR DUTY: For the second week in a row, true freshman quarterback Clay Belton (Dayton, OH) is listed No. 2 on Miami's depth chart. Belton was a first-team all-Ohio signal-caller at Dayton's Northmont High School. He has not yet appeared in any of Miami's first seven games.
MIAMI'S RECEIVERS: Eighteen different RedHawk receivers have caught passes through the first seven games of 2007. Ten of those 18 players have recorded their first collegiate receptions this season. Over the past two games, Miami receivers have caught 32 passes and averaged an impressive 17.1 yards per grab. Among the 32 catches have been eight receptions of 20 yards or more, including gains of 73, 54, 49 and 43 yards. Dustin Woods (So., Cincinnati) has a team-leading 21 catches for 325 yards and one TD. The team's next most frequent receivers are Eugene Harris (R-Fr., Atlanta, GA) with 20 catches for 281 yards and Armand Robinson (R-Fr., Reynoldsburg) with 18 receptions for 248 yards. True freshman Chris Givens (Chillicothe) averages 18.8 yards for each of his 14 catches.
GIVENS TOPS TEAM IN YARDS PER CATCH: Chris Givens (Fr., Chillicothe) has had receptions of 55 yards (vs. Minnesota), 39 yards (vs. Cincinnati) and 34 yards (vs. Kent State). Earlier this season against Minnesota, Givens became only the second true freshman receiver in Miami football history to crack the century mark for yardage (five catches for 112 yards).
JARED'S BIG JAUNT: Quarterback turned receiver Jared Elliott (Jr., Franklin, TN) had a 35-yard pass reception vs. Colorado, his first-ever collegiate catch. That single gain comprised 25.1% of Miami's total offensive yardage (139) against the Buffaloes.
TIGHT END TOTALS: Among Miami's receivers, three junior tight ends have accounted for 15 receptions. Junior Tom Crabtree (Carroll), Jake O'Connell (Naples, FL) and Pat Shepard (Pittsburgh, PA) average 11.1 yards per catch.
ALMOST 60-40: Of Miami's 2,681 total offensive yards in seven games, 1,595 yards (59.4 percent) have come via the passing game.
WINNING-GAME STATS: In Miami's four victories, the team rushing yardage (827) and team passing yardage (815) are virtually even. Conversely, in the RedHawks' three losses, the team's passing yardage (780) far exceeds the team's rushing yardage (259).
577-YARD PERFORMANCE SIXTH-BEST: Miami's 577 yards of total offense vs. Minnesota ranks sixth-best in school history. The all-time record offensive explosion came in 2003 vs. Kent State when Miami piled up 648 yards. Five of the top six single-game total offensive efforts have come with Shane Montgomery as either the head coach or offensive coordinator. The 1,154 cumulative yards of total offense by Miami (577 yards) and Minnesota (577 yards) rank as the second-most in MU single-game history. It was just seven yards shy of the all-time mark of 1,161 yards piled up by Miami (616 yards) and Hawaii (545 yards) in 2001. The 1,154 total yards by Miami and Minnesota is sixth-best in the MAC record books. The all-time Mid-American Conference single-game record for total offense by two teams is 1,245 yards by Bowling Green (618) and Northwestern (624).
FRONT-LINE WARRIORS: Three postseason award candidates--left tackle Charlie Norden (Sr., Dublin), left guard Dave DiFranco (Jr., LaGrange) and center Steve Meister (Sr., Allison Park, PA)--have been stalwarts in Miami's offensive effort. DiFranco split time between right and left tackle a year ago, and Meister played the last two seasons at left guard. MU's offensive line was decimated by injuries a year ago, but has remained healthy and intact throughout the 2007 campaign.
MIAMI'S DEFENSE: DEFENDING THE RUN: One of the key factors in Miami's success during its three-game winning streak has been its effectiveness in defending the run. MU's last three opponents--Syracuse, Kent State and Bowling Green--have gained less than 100 yards per game (294 total rushing yards) and have averaged just 3.0 yards per carry. Miami's three MAC opponents have averaged just 123 rushing yards per game and only 3.5 yards per attempt.
14 POINTS OR LESS EQUALS 4-0: It has been a very simple equation, really. In all four Miami victories, the RedHawks have allowed 14 points or less (13.5 ppg). In the RedHawks' three losses, opponents have averaged 43.3 points per contest.
MIAMI DEFENSE SHOOTS DOWN THE FALCONS: Bowling Green came into last Saturday's game averaging 32.4 points and 438.2 yards per game. Miami's defense yielded just 14 points and 232 yards to the powerful Falcon offensive unit.
DEFENSIVE LINE TURNS UP THE HEAT: Miami defenders recorded a season-high 10 tackles for loss and a season-best six quarterback sacks vs. Bowling Green. Eleven of Miami's 15 QB sacks have been registered in the last two games.
MIAMI SECOND IN MAC SCORING DEFENSE: Miami ranks second behind Northern Illinois in MAC scoring defense, allowing 26.3 points per game. Prior to its three-game winning streak, Miami was near the bottom of the list in this category.
DOUBLE-DIGIT TACKLER: Clayton Mullins (Fairborn) is tied for 29th place on the NCAA tackles list with 10.0 tackles per game. He is one of only 34 Division I players whose tackles-per-game average is in double digits.
MAC TACKLERS: Junior outside linebacker Clayton Mullins (Fairborn) ranks fifth among all MAC defensive players with 10.0 tackles per game (70 total). Sophomore outside linebacker Caleb Bostic (Galloway) is the MAC's eighth-leading tackler with 64 stops through seven games.
CAUSTIC BOSTIC: Caleb Bostic ranks second among Miami players with 64 tackles. In his first collegiate start, he registered a season-high 17 tackles in the season opener at Ball State game. Among MAC defensive players, Bostic's eight TFLs through seven games are sixth best.
GAFFORD 13th AMONG DB TACKLERS: Sophomore free safety Jordan Gafford (Columbus) has 53 total tackles through seven games, tops among the team's defensive backs. He led all Miami defenders with 13 tackles (including 10 solo tackles) vs. Minnesota.
DON'T CROSS THE HUDSON: Junior middle linebacker and tri-captain Joey Hudson (Piqua) continued his amazing comeback, leading the RedHawks in tackles (8) vs. Bowling Green. Against the Falcons, he also recorded an interception (37-yard return), a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, a quarterback hurry and a pass break-up. For his efforts, Hudson was named the MAC East Division Defensive Player of the Week for the second time this season. He also earned player of the week honors following the Syracuse win. Hudson, who suffered a knee injury at Minnesota and whose availability for the balance of the season was very much in question, got back in the starting lineup against Colorado. A member of the Butkus Award's "Watch List" and the Rotary Lombardi Award's "Watch List", Hudson now has 47 tackles for the year and shares the team lead with two interceptions.
MR. WILSON: Junior apache (strong safety) Robbie Wilson (Cincinnati), an All-MAC candidate, has 52 total tackles through the first seven games of 2007, ranking fourth on the team behind Clayton Mullins (70), Caleb Bostic (64) and Jordan Gafford (53). He now totals 120 career tackles.
SUPER-SUB SHULA: Junior middle linebacker Chris Shula (Cooper City, FL) had five tackles and a quarterback sack vs. Bowling Green at Kent State. He subbed for the injured Joey Hudson in game two at Minnesota and racked up a career-best 11 tackles (10 solos). Shula, the grandson of NFL Hall of Fame coach Don Shula, has 27 tackles through seven games. He had 25 total tackles for the entire 2006 season.
THOMPSON TOUGH IN THE CLUTCH: Sophomore cornerback Jeff Thompson (Worthington) continues to be one of Miami's best defensive backs, and is the RedHawks' co-leader with two interceptions. Thompson's best game came at Colorado where he had a career-best five solo tackles. Four of his five stops came on third-down plays by the Buffaloes.
MIAMI'S SPECIAL TEAMS: RICHARDSON FOURTH IN NCAA STATS: Junior punter JAKE RICHARDSON (Oxford) averaged 46.7 yards per punt last Saturday vs. Bowling Green, including kicks of 54 and 53 yards, and a 33-yarder that was downed at BG's four-yard line. He ranks fourth in the latest NCAA statistics with an average of 46.50 yards per punt (38 attempts). Just ahead of him are Cincinnati's Kevin Huber (48.07), Ball State's Chris Miller (47.83), and Virginia's Ryan Weigand (46.53). Richardson's average is a yard-and-a-half better than Miami's single-season record of 45.0 ypp by Gary Layton in 1994. Over the last four games, Richardson's punting average is 48.6 yards per kick. Seventeen of Richardson 38 punts have traveled 50 yards or more, including boomers of 64 yards and 62 yards. Richardson's career punting average at Miami after 134 punts is 41.7 yards, exactly the same as Layton's school-record 41.7 career average (1991-94).
THE LATEST RETURNS: Miami punt returners rank second among all Mid-American Conference teams with an average run-back of 13.8 yards. Eugene Harris (R-Fr., Atlanta, GA) ranks second among MAC players with an average of 14.5 yards per punt return (14 for 203 yards). He ranks 16th in the NCAA punt return statistics.
TRUE FRESHMAN PAIR HANDLES KICK RETURNS: True freshmen Jamal Rogers (Fort Myers, FL) and Chris Givens (Chillicothe) make up Miami's kick return tandem. Rogers is averaging 21.8 yards per return (19 attempts) while Givens has returned three kicks an average of 17.0 yards.
PARSEGHIAN GETS NOD AS REDHAWK PLACEKICKER: Junior placekicker NATE PARSEGHIAN (Sylvania) got a chance to play at Kent State and also was the starter vs. Bowling Green. Over the past two games, "Par" has connected on three of his four field goal attempts and has alsohas been successful on seven consecutive PAT attempts. He is Miami's third-leading scorer with 16 points. Nate is the great grandnephew of college coaching luminary and Miami graduate Ara Parseghian.
COOK A GROZA CANDIDATE: Trevor Cook (So., Sioux Falls, SD) has made five of his 10 field-goal attempts this season and has converted eight of nine PAT tries. He leads the RedHawks in scoring with 23 points.
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