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Hitchens leads Zips in second-half comeback
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Seven players added to Tribe’s 40-man roster
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Holmgren expresses interest in Browns position
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Kent State blown out in second half, loses to Temple 47-13
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Gameblog: Cavs vs. Philadelphia 76ers
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OSU – Michigan college football rivals meet in Baghdad
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Four area football teams play tonight
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Headed For Disaster
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Will Health Care Reform Pass?
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Silverdome Potentially SOLD!
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Steely Dan Plays "The Royal Scam" at E.J. Thomas Hall
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Colloquium at University of Akron
Akron Gamer:
Nintendo's Mario endures even as games come and go
By Tom Gaffney
Beacon Journal sports writer
POSTED: 02:22 p.m. EST, Nov 03, 2009
The Miami football team finally had a chance to sing the praises of a victory.
The RedHawks (1-8, 1-4) ended a two-season, 13-game losing streak last Saturday by defeating Toledo 31-24 in a Mid-American Conference crossover game at Yager Stadium in Oxford.
The win was the first for MU since beating Bowling Green on Oct. 18, 2008, and was followed by a traditional celebration that had been dormant for 54 weeks.
''They were extremely excited,'' first-year coach Mike Haywood said about his players. ''The thing that was most exciting was that they got to sing the fight song afterward. It's been a long time since they had that opportunity.
''More importantly, we had to stop that spiral. Now that we have stopped that spiral, it's time to start a winning path and understand what it felt like, as opposed to what it felt like the previous eight games.''
However, there was little time to savor the triumph because Miami plays again Thursday night at Temple.
''I told the guys to make sure to enjoy the victory because Sunday we were coming right back to work,'' Haywood said.
Against Toledo, the RedHawks were led by quarterback Zac Dysert, a redshirt freshman. Dysert, an Ada High School graduate, completed 31-of-51 passes for 344 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed 13 times for 60 yards and two touchdowns.
It was his third 300-yard passing performance since being inserted into the starting lineup in the fourth game.
''He has been getting better and better each and every week. He understands his reads and his progressions,'' Haywood said. ''He is going to be a good football player for us in the future. He is starting to understand the system better.''
The RedHawks' victory was accompanied by good fortune when a tying Toledo touchdown play in the final minute was overturned by the replay official.
Toledo (4-5, 3-3) was trailing 31-24 and had the ball at its own 1-yard line with 7:52 left. The Rockets, behind backup quarterback Alex Pettee, then drove deep into Miami territory with just over a minute left.
From the Miami 9, Pettee threw a short pass to sophomore tight end Danny Noble, who dove into the right pylon for an apparent touchdown. But the replay official ruled that Noble had fumbled before he scored and that the ball hit the pylon. That gave Miami the ball via a touchback.
''I know our officials do a good job in this league. They had the instant replay to determine that,'' Toledo coach Tim Beckman said. ''I don't think that was even what they were looking for at first. They were looking to see if it was a touchdown or if the ball was on the 1-yard line.
''The thing we have to do is have our hands on the football, secure it and make sure it doesn't come out.''
In other MAC developments:
Central Michigan (7-2, 5-0) — CMU probably lost its chance to finish in the Top 25 in the polls after losing at Boston College 31-10 last Saturday. The Chippewas came into the game 26th in the USA coaches poll and 27th in the Associated Press media poll. But the team still has a 11/2-game lead in the MAC West in its bid for a conference title and bowl appearance. ''We said in the locker room, we can't leave our season here in Boston,'' CMU coach Butch Jones said. ''We have all our goals, dreams and aspirations still in front of us. If we had started the season saying we'd be 7-2, undefeated in the conference and chasing a championship, I think we'd say, to a man, we'd take it. We have to learn from our mistakes . . . and get back to work.''
Northern Illinois (5-3, 3-1) — Over the course of the past six seasons, the Huskies have had two backs reach the 100-yard barrier in rushing in the same game only twice. Both came at home versus the University of Akron. The latest came last Saturday when junior tailback Chad Spann ran for 125 yards and sophomore quarterback DeMarcus Grady rushed for 109 in a 27-10 NIU victory. The last time that had happened previously was Oct. 2, 2004, when Garrett Wolfe had 110 yards and Adrian Davis had 104 as the Huskies prevailed over the Zips 49-19 in DeKalb, Ill.
Temple (6-2, 4-0) — The Owls, who lead the MAC East by a half-game, attained several milestones last Saturday in edging host Navy 27-24. It was their first six-game winning streak since 1974 and made them bowl-eligible for the first time since 1990, when they didn't receive an invitation. Tailback Bernard Pierce led the way with 29 carries for 267 yards and two touchdowns. He now has school records for freshmen with 1,033 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns. He also became the first Temple back to surpass 200 yards rushing in two consecutive games since Paul Palmer in 1986.
Ohio (6-3, 4-1) — Redshirt freshman Matt Weller, a Twinsburg High graduate, tied a school record with four field goals last Saturday in a 20-17 triumph over Ball State. His kicks were from 39, 24, 52 and 41 yards. He now shares the record with Michael Braunstein (2007) and Barrett Way (2008).
Tom Gaffney can be reached at tgaffney@thebeaconjournal.com.
The Miami football team finally had a chance to sing the praises of a victory.
The RedHawks (1-8, 1-4) ended a two-season, 13-game losing streak last Saturday by defeating Toledo 31-24 in a Mid-American Conference crossover game at Yager Stadium in Oxford.
The win was the first for MU since beating Bowling Green on Oct. 18, 2008, and was followed by a traditional celebration that had been dormant for 54 weeks.
''They were extremely excited,'' first-year coach Mike Haywood said about his players. ''The thing that was most exciting was that they got to sing the fight song afterward. It's been a long time since they had that opportunity.
''More importantly, we had to stop that spiral. Now that we have stopped that spiral, it's time to start a winning path and understand what it felt like, as opposed to what it felt like the previous eight games.''
However, there was little time to savor the triumph because Miami plays again Thursday night at Temple.
''I told the guys to make sure to enjoy the victory because Sunday we were coming right back to work,'' Haywood said.
Against Toledo, the RedHawks were led by quarterback Zac Dysert, a redshirt freshman. Dysert, an Ada High School graduate, completed 31-of-51 passes for 344 yards and one touchdown. He also rushed 13 times for 60 yards and two touchdowns.
It was his third 300-yard passing performance since being inserted into the starting lineup in the fourth game.
''He has been getting better and better each and every week. He understands his reads and his progressions,'' Haywood said. ''He is going to be a good football player for us in the future. He is starting to understand the system better.''
The RedHawks' victory was accompanied by good fortune when a tying Toledo touchdown play in the final minute was overturned by the replay official.
Toledo (4-5, 3-3) was trailing 31-24 and had the ball at its own 1-yard line with 7:52 left. The Rockets, behind backup quarterback Alex Pettee, then drove deep into Miami territory with just over a minute left.
From the Miami 9, Pettee threw a short pass to sophomore tight end Danny Noble, who dove into the right pylon for an apparent touchdown. But the replay official ruled that Noble had fumbled before he scored and that the ball hit the pylon. That gave Miami the ball via a touchback.
''I know our officials do a good job in this league. They had the instant replay to determine that,'' Toledo coach Tim Beckman said. ''I don't think that was even what they were looking for at first. They were looking to see if it was a touchdown or if the ball was on the 1-yard line.
''The thing we have to do is have our hands on the football, secure it and make sure it doesn't come out.''
In other MAC developments:
Central Michigan (7-2, 5-0) — CMU probably lost its chance to finish in the Top 25 in the polls after losing at Boston College 31-10 last Saturday. The Chippewas came into the game 26th in the USA coaches poll and 27th in the Associated Press media poll. But the team still has a 11/2-game lead in the MAC West in its bid for a conference title and bowl appearance. ''We said in the locker room, we can't leave our season here in Boston,'' CMU coach Butch Jones said. ''We have all our goals, dreams and aspirations still in front of us. If we had started the season saying we'd be 7-2, undefeated in the conference and chasing a championship, I think we'd say, to a man, we'd take it. We have to learn from our mistakes . . . and get back to work.''
Northern Illinois (5-3, 3-1) — Over the course of the past six seasons, the Huskies have had two backs reach the 100-yard barrier in rushing in the same game only twice. Both came at home versus the University of Akron. The latest came last Saturday when junior tailback Chad Spann ran for 125 yards and sophomore quarterback DeMarcus Grady rushed for 109 in a 27-10 NIU victory. The last time that had happened previously was Oct. 2, 2004, when Garrett Wolfe had 110 yards and Adrian Davis had 104 as the Huskies prevailed over the Zips 49-19 in DeKalb, Ill.
Temple (6-2, 4-0) — The Owls, who lead the MAC East by a half-game, attained several milestones last Saturday in edging host Navy 27-24. It was their first six-game winning streak since 1974 and made them bowl-eligible for the first time since 1990, when they didn't receive an invitation. Tailback Bernard Pierce led the way with 29 carries for 267 yards and two touchdowns. He now has school records for freshmen with 1,033 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns. He also became the first Temple back to surpass 200 yards rushing in two consecutive games since Paul Palmer in 1986.
Ohio (6-3, 4-1) — Redshirt freshman Matt Weller, a Twinsburg High graduate, tied a school record with four field goals last Saturday in a 20-17 triumph over Ball State. His kicks were from 39, 24, 52 and 41 yards. He now shares the record with Michael Braunstein (2007) and Barrett Way (2008).
Tom Gaffney can be reached at tgaffney@thebeaconjournal.com.
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