Chuck Martin becomes the winningest coach in Miami football’s illustrious history with a dominating home victory.
When Chuck Martin was first introduced as Miami’s new head coach following the dismissal of Don Treadwell in 2014, there was skepticism around whether or not the former Notre Dame offensive coordinator would be able to get the RedHawks back to their glory days.
His first two seasons, said skepticism was valid, as Miami would go 5-19 overall— including a humiliating 17-10 loss to Eastern Kentucky in his first season— with a paltry 2-12 record in MAC play. A loss to Eastern Illinois early in 2016, combined with an 0-6 start, saw the Martin era called into question, with legitimate questions about if he would be fired.
Instead, something clicked after their 35-13 loss to the Akron Zips on Oct. 8th, as the RedHawks would win six-straight conference games to get to 6-6 and qualify for a bowl game against Mississippi State— nearly upsetting the SEC program in a one-point loss in St. Petersburg, Florida.
A decade after his initial hire, with two Mid-American Conference titles under his belt, Chuck Martin now stands as the winningest coach in Miami football program history, surpassing Randy Walker (59) to hold the solo spot at 60 wins and counting thanks to a 46-7 shellacking of the Central Michigan Chippewas.
The final score betrays what was a very tight game to start, as Dom Dzioban’s field goal to put Miami up 3-0 on the game’s first possession would be directly answered by a Myles Bailey two-yard run to put the visitors up 7-3 with 1:59 to go in the first quarter.
Miami found themselves vulnerable at the start of the second quarter, as stalwart quarterback Brett Gabbert went down with an undisclosed injury after a sack on a broken play, forcing backup Henry Hesson into action.
After some calibration, Hesson would find Reggie Virgil on the left side of the endzone from nine yards out, with Virgil high-pointing the ball through double coverage to put Miami back in the lead at 10-7 with 14:49 remaining.
The rest of the second quarter saw CMU’s defense buckle down, forcing Miami to kick two short field goals after getting into the redzone to out the halftime tally at 16-7.
Central would never threaten again, punting on their first five possessions of the second half and getting intercepted on the second-to-last possession deep in the fourth quarter after the game was already out of hand. Miami, meanwhile, found their scoring stride, posting 30 unanswered points in the final 30 minutes to polish off a 43-point unanswered streak which started in the second quarter.
Brett Gabbert was 10-of-12 for 165 yards and a touchdown on the day for the RedHawks. Henry Hesson finished 5-of-12 for 76 yards and a touchdown in relief.
Keyon Mozee was the workhorse back, finishing with 15 carries for 120 yards, with a long run of 72 yards early in the proceedings. Long runs and short scores were a pattern for RedHawk reserve backs, as Jordan Brunson had a long carry of 75 yards and scored on a three-yard give on three total carries, while Kevin Davis contributed a 70-yard long run and a two-yard touchdown on four carries.
Javon Tracy hit the century mark and had several highlight catches, finishign with five catches for 118 yards and a touchdown. Reggie Virgil finished with four receptions for 50 yards and a score as well.
Matt Salopek and Silas Walters paced the Miami defense with eight tackles each, with Salopek also notching two tackles-for-loss to lead the team. Adam Trick picked up a lone sack to lead the team, while Chirstian Schomer pulled down a pick late in the game.
Dom Dzioban scored 18 points on five field goal attempts and three point-after attempts, while Kellen McLaughlin scored his first field goal attempt and an extra point late to open his Miami account.
Miami now sits at 4-4 (3-1 MAC), and can continue their march towards the top of the conference table and the postseason thanks to the victory. They’re set to play Ball State on Tuesday, Nov. 5.
It was a tough day on offense for CMU, which combined for 168 yards as a unit. Tyler Jefferson was pressed into service once again, finishing 7-of-17 for 62 yards and an interception passing and 37 net yards on the ground to lead the team.
Evan Boyd (two catches, 21 yards) and Chris Parker (two catches, 20 yards) were the only major contributors in the pass game, while BJ Harris (eight rushes, 33 yards), Marion Lukes (15 carries, 25 yards) and Myles Bailey (five carries, 11 yards, touchdown) were also limited.
Despite the overall box score, there were some decent individual performances for CMU. Defensive tackle Jason Williams led the team with six total, while Michael Heldman’s two TFLs and two sacks led the team in both categories. CMU had four total sacks on the day. Donte Kent, Da’Raun McKinney and Jonah Pace all notched a pass break-up each.
Central Michigan sits at 3-5 (1-3 MAC) and have lost three-straight games since their magical comeback rally against San Diego State. The wounded unit will continue their march through the schedule against Bowling Green on Tuesday, Nov. 5.