Miami University football started 3-1 this season for the first time since 2003, when two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Ben Roethlisberger captained the offense. It would have been a shame to blow that against Kent State University, the odds-on worst team in the Mid-American Conference.
Thankfully for the RedHawks, they took care of business against Kent, winning 23-3.
They held the Flashes to 36 rushing yards on 35 attempts. That's not sack-adjusted, but it was still a thoroughly dominant performance. After a first-drive field goal, each of Kent State’s ensuing 10 drives ended on downs or with a punt. The closest they got to the end zone the rest of the game was Miami’s 41-yard-line.
On their first drive of the day, the Golden Flashes went 59 yards in eight plays and kicked a field goal. They forced a RedHawk three-and-out on their next drive, and that’s where the Kent State success stopped.
On Kent State’s next drive, they attempted a fake punt on fourth-and-six from their own 22. Miami shoved their kicker out of bounds well behind the sticks and took the ball back. They couldn't get a yard though and settled for a field goal to tie the score at 3-3.
On their next two drives, the RedHawks scored a touchdown and a field goal to make the score 13-3, where it would stay until halftime. On their first two drives of the second half, Miami scored a field goal and a touchdown to make the score 23-3, where it would stay for the rest of the game.
The defense dominated, but nothing really clicked for the RedHawks on offense. Junior quarterback Brett Gabbert finished 11-for-23 for 216 yards and a touchdown while being sacked four times. Redshirt-sophomore Rashad Amos and junior Kenny Tracy each ran for just over four yards-per-carry over 22 combined attempts.
Redshirt-senior Joe Wilkins Jr. had his best game as a college player with three catches for 110 yards. Before this year, he had amassed 124 yards over his entire career, which began at Notre Dame in 2019.
Next week, Miami plays Bowling Green, another team not expected to compete for a MAC Championship in 2023. The game kicks off at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday from Yager Stadium in Oxford.
