 TOLEDO 48, MIAMI 28
It can be easy to stumble in MAC play, but the hosts quickly made sure it wasn’t going to be on this Homecoming Saturday.
“I challenged my team because they had not won a Homecoming game since 2007 and hadn’t won four straight games since 2004,” Toledo head coach Tim Beckman said. “We asked the senior class to lead us and teach us how to be champions.”
Defending champion Miami struggled much of the night against a Rockets team that seems to be on a mission now that conference play is in full swing.
“This is a tremendous football team (that) we played today, and certainly when you play a team as good as Toledo, you’ve got to be hitting on all cylinders. We certainly did not do that today,” Miami head coach Don Treadwell said after the contest.
In a game featuring the two media preseason picks for their division titles, Toledo (4-0 MAC, 5-3 overall) wasted little time in taking control. The hosts scored early and often, enjoying a 28-0 lead by the 11:58 mark of the second quarter. That’s when Robert Bell picked up a Zac Dysert fumble and raced 55 yards for a touchdown.
TOLEDO WINS TURNOVER BATTLE - AGAIN
It was one of three Miami turnovers in the contest. Toledo, which already led the MAC in turnover margin, will improve on its high marks after picking up three while committing none.
The visiting RedHawks also hurt their own cause with 11 penalties for 80 yards. Eight of the penalties (for minus-55 yards) came in a disastrous first half. A five-yarder (illegal formation) on Miami’s first punt eventually added 22 yards to Toledo’s field position following a second attempt.
Starting at the MU 48, Toledo scored in three plays – all rushes by David Fluellen. The 6-1, 215-pound sophomore ripped off 34 yards on the first UT play from scrimmage and finished the drive going seven yards around the right side.
Desmond Marrow’s interception of a Dysert pass three plays into Miami’s next possession quickly put the Rockets offense back in business – once again in MU territory. The hosts turned to running back Morgan Williams this time. His 21-yard scamper was a key piece in an eight-play, 39-yard drive. He had five carries along the way, including a two-yarder for the Rockets second touchdown.
Toledo did most of its early damage through the ground game, registering 225 yards rushing (9 ypc) with four TDs before halftime. Four different UT ball carriers found the end zone before intermission.
FIRST CARRY BACK A LONG ONE
Adonis Thomas, who returned to action after missing time with a broken arm injured at Syracuse, ripped off a 67-yard run on his first carry to kick start Toledo’s third possession. Two plays (and a Miami penalty) later, Thomas scored from three yards out.
“It just kind of happened,” Thomas said of his long run. “It’s a regular play that we called, and the offensive line opened up a big hole. That helped me get loose for a big gain. … The offensive line watches a lot of film, and that’s why we run the ball so well.”
Thomas was one of three injured Rocket returnees to the lineup. Junior LB Dan Molls and junior safety Jermaine Robinson also made it back for what turned out to be a very happy Homecoming. “It was good to fly around and have fun,” Molls said. “I had a blast out there tonight, and getting the win made it that much better.”
Bell’s fumble return and the Ryan Casano PAT made it 28-0 early in the second period.
MIAMI FINDS END ZONE
Aided by a Toledo personal foul penalty, Miami finally got on the scoreboard with a seven-play, 80-yard drive. Dysert, who had three runs and completed three passes on the drive, hit Justin Semmes on an eight-yard play for the score. However, Toledo quickly retaliated with another Williams touchdown.
A Bill Claus punt – his first of the game – left Miami 80 yards from the UT goal line with 2:38 left in the half. One play later, the RedHawks were at the Toledo nine as Dysert connected with sophomore Nick Harwell on a 71-yard pass play. Harwell registered his fifth 100-yard plus game of the season, pulling in five receptions for 101 yards.
Running back Eric Finklea finished the RedHawks drive with a one-yard TD run. Mason Krysinski’s extra point left the RedHawks on the short end of a 35-14 score at intermission, and the visitors would get no closer the rest of the night as the teams traded touchdowns after a scoreless third stanza.
Jerome Jones took a nine-yard pass from Austin Dantin in for a Toledo score early in the fourth quarter
SCOTT HAS BIG NIGHT
Miami, with Dysert passing – or attempting to pass – on every down, put together a nine-play, 60-yard drive for its third touchdown at 8:32. The big play was a 38-yard pass to Dawan Scott on fourth-and-five. Scott, a 6-1, 175-pound freshman, had seven catches for 140 yards to lead the RedHawks. Dysert hit Andy Cruse in the end zone on a three-yard play to finish the drive.
The RedHawks quickly got their hands on the football again when they recovered an on-side kick. Just as quickly, however, they gave it back. Dysert’s pass on the next play was intercepted by Desmond Marrow. The senior had two interceptions and a team-high six tackles.
“Against a good team like that, boy that’s tough when you are working up hill for the rest of the day,” Treadwell said of playing from behind. “They’re a good defensive team. They put a lot of pressure on Zac.”
RILEY LEADS SACK PACK
In addition to picking off two passes, the Rockets recorded five sacks for 57 yards. Senior defensive lineman Malcolm Riley recorded a pair of sacks – his first sacks of the campaign.
Terrance Owen’s 54-yard pass to Cordale Scott highlighted Toledo’s longest drive of the night – a 10-play, 93-yard journey. Justin Olack’s 10-yard reception gave the Rockets their final score of the night.
Miami managed one more touchdown, coming from the arm of sophomore QB Austin Boucher, who guided the RedHawks down the stretch in last year’s championship drive. Boucher hit Willie Culpepper on a 25-yard strike with 30 seconds remaining for the game’s final touchdown.
Toledo finished with 497 yards of total offense, with 269 yards coming via the ground game. The Rockets rushed 45 times, averaging 6.0 yards per rush while providing four TDs.
Toledo quarterbacks combined for 228 yards passing yards on 18-of-28, with no interceptions and two touchdowns. Eric Page was the leading receiver with six catches for 51 yards.
Miami’s 407 yards of offense included 394 passing yards. Dysert was 24-of-37 with two TD tosses and two interceptions. Boucher completed four-of-six with one TD and in his late stint at the helm.
The MU running game, which has struggled most of the year, never got untracked against Toledo. The RedHawks netted 14 yards on 21 attempts for the game. Dysert actually picked up 49 yards, but he also had 59 negative yards (57 in sacks).
ROCKETS V NIU NEXT WEEK
Toledo, which edged rival Bowling Green (28-21) the previous week, will remain home next week as it faces defending MAC West champ Northern Illinois (3-1 MAC, 5-3 overall) in a huge game at the Glass Bowl (7 p.m. ET).
REDHAWKS MUST REGROUP FOR UB
Miami (1-2 MAC, 2-5 overall) returns home to face a Buffalo squad that lost to NIU, 31-30, Saturday after missing a PAT following the game’s final touchdown. Game time is 3:30 p.m. With each team in the MAC East owning two conference losses, the struggling RedHawks are still in the hunt.
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