2023 Miami RedHawks football team

2023 Miami RedHawks football
2023 Miami RedHawks football
MAC champion; MAC East Division champions
MAC Championship, W 23–14 vs. Toledo
Cure Bowl, L 9–13 vs. Appalachian State
Conference	Mid-American Conference
	East Division
Record	11–3 (7–1 MAC)
Head coach	Chuck Martin (10th season);
Offensive coordinator	Pat Welsh (1st season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Bill Brechin (2nd season)
Base defense	Multiple
Home stadium	Yager Stadium
	Seasons ← 2022 2024 →

2023 Mid-American Conference football standings
v t e
Team	W		L	W		L
East Division
Miami (OH) xy$	7	–	1	11	–	3
Ohio	6	–	2	10	–	3
Bowling Green	5	–	3	7	–	6
Buffalo	3	–	5	3	–	9
Akron	1	–	7	2	–	10
Kent State	0	–	8	1	–	11
West Division
Toledo xy	8	–	0	11	–	3
Northern Illinois	5	–	3	7	–	6
Eastern Michigan	4	–	4	6	–	7
Central Michigan	3	–	5	5	–	7
Ball State	3	–	5	4	–	8
Western Michigan	3	–	5	4	–	8
Championship: Miami (OH) 23, Toledo 14
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant

The 2023 Miami RedHawks football team represented Miami University as a member of the East Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) during the 2023 NCAA Division I FBS football season. They were led by tenth-year head coach Chuck Martin and played their home games at Yager Stadium in Oxford, Ohio.^[1] The Miami RedHawks football team drew an average home attendance of 13,395 in 2023.

Miami won the East division with a 7–1 conference record with their only loss coming against West champion Toledo.^[2]^[3] On October 21, during the regular season game between the division winners, Miami quarterback Brett Gabbert suffered a season ending leg injury.^[4] In spite of that, Miami won their first MAC Championship since 2019 with a 23–14 upset victory in the MAC Championship Game.^[5] They played Appalachian State in the Cure Bowl, who they lost 13–9.^[6]

Transfer portal

Outgoing

Name	Pos.	New school
Tre'Von Morgan	WR	Unknown
Ja'Von Kimpson	CB	Unknown
Brett Gabbert	QB	Miami (OH)
Devon Dorsey	WR	Albany State
Darez Snider	RB	Unknown
Austin Robinson	WR	Unknown
Jeremiah Batiste	WR	Chattanooga
Ryan O'Hair	IOL	Robert Morris
John Saunders	CB	Ole Miss
Caleb Shaffer	IOL	Oklahoma
Deavon Pierce	S	Robert Morris
Tyre Shelton	RB	Louisiana Tech
Rusty Feth	IOL	Iowa
Rowan Zolman	S	Minnesota
Angelo Butts	WR	Missouri State
Joe Humphreys	QB	Murray State
Kamell Smith	QB	Unknown
Jeffrey Simmons	TE	Ball State

Incoming

Name	Pos.	Previous school
Rashad Amos	RB	South Carolina
Maddox Kopp	QB	Colorado
John Young	OT	Kentucky
Gage Larvadain	WR	Southeastern Louisiana
Joe Wilkins	WR	Notre Dame
Cade McDonald	WR	Michigan State

Preseason

Preseason polls

Coaches Poll

On July 20, the MAC announced the preseason coaches poll. Miami was picked to finish second in the East.^[7]

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
East
1	Ohio	63 (9)
2	Miami	52 (2)
3	Buffalo	51 (1)
4	Bowling Green	35
5	Akron	26
6	Kent State	19

Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
West
1	Toledo	66 (11)
2	Eastern Michigan	55 (1)
3	Northern Illinois	38
4	Central Michigan	37
5	Ball State	27
6	Western Michigan	23

Rank	Team	Votes
Coaches poll (MAC Championship)
1	Toledo	7
2	Ohio	4
3	Buffalo	1

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
September 1	7:00 p.m.	at Miami (FL)*	Hard Rock Stadium Miami, FL (Confusion Bowl)	ACCN	L 3–38	49,024
September 9	3:30 p.m.	at UMass*	McGuirk Alumni Stadium Amherst, MA	ESPN+	W 41–28	9,207
September 16	7:00 p.m.	at Cincinnati*	Nippert Stadium Cincinnati, OH (Victory Bell)	ESPN+	W 31–24 ^OT	38,193
September 23	3:30 p.m.	Delaware State*	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPN+	W 62–20	15,812
September 30	2:30 p.m.	at Kent State	Dix Stadium Kent, OH	ESPN+	W 23–3	13,598
October 7	3:30 p.m.	Bowling Green	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPN+	W 27–0	19,047
October 14	3:30 p.m.	at Western Michigan	Waldo Stadium Kalamazoo, MI	ESPN+	W 34–21	20,039
October 21	4:00 p.m.	Toledo	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPNU	L 17–21	17,321
October 28	3:30 p.m.	at Ohio	Peden Stadium Athens, OH (Battle of the Bricks)	CBSSN	W 30–16	19,854
November 8	7:30 p.m.	Akron	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPNU	W 19–0	7,233
November 15	7:00 p.m.	Buffalo	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPN2	W 23–10	7,561
November 25	12:00 p.m.	at Ball State	Scheumann Stadium Muncie, IN (Red Bird Rivalry)	CBSSN	W 17–15	8,054
December 2	12:00 p.m.	vs. No. 23 Toledo	Ford Field Detroit, MI (MAC Championship Game)	ESPN	W 23–14	20,200
December 16	3:30 p.m.	vs. Appalachian State	FBC Mortgage Stadium Orlando, FL (Cure Bowl)	ABC	L 9–13	11,121
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

^[8]

Game summaries

at Miami (FL)

Game One – Miami (OH) RedHawks (0–0) at #Miami Hurricanes (0–0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
RedHawks	0	3	0	0	3
Hurricanes	7	9	8	14	38

at Hard Rock Stadium • Miami Gardens, Florida

Date: Friday, September 1, 2023
Game time: 7:00 p.m. EST
Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 86 °F (30 °C)
TV announcers (ACCN): Jay Alter (play-by-play) and Rene Ingoglia (analyst)
Pregame line: Miami −17.5

Game information

First quarter

(13:26) MIA – Colbie Young 44-yard pass from Tyler Van Dyke, Andres Borregales kick (Drive: 3 plays, 56 yards, 1:25; Miami 7–0)
(4:02) MIA – Andres Borregales 34-yard field goal (Drive: 15 plays, 66 yards, 7:33; Miami 10–0)

Second quarter

(2:33) MIA – Andres Borregales 32-yard field goal (Drive: 10 plays, 64 yards, 5:02; Miami 13–0)
(0:58) M–OH – Graham Nicholson 48-yard field goal (Drive: 6 plays, 44 yards, 1:35; Miami 13–3)
(0:00) MIA – Andres Borregales 43-yard field goal (Drive: 5 plays, 50 yards, 0:58; Miami 16–3)

Third quarter

(11:09) MIA – Mark Fletcher Jr. 26-yard run, Xavier Restrepo–Tyler Van Dyke pass (Drive: 5 plays, 65 yards, 2:14; Miami 24–3)

Fourth quarter

(13:43) MIA – Henry Parrish Jr. 12-yard run, Andres Borregales kick (Drive: 6 plays, 78 yards, 2:57; Miami 31–3)
(4:29) MIA – Donald Chaney Jr. 20-yard run, Andres Borregales kick (Drive: 8 plays, 69 yards, 4:46; Miami 38–3)

Statistics	M–OH	MIA
First downs	9	26
Plays–yards	49–215	61–493
Rushes–yards	25–51	36–250
Passing yards	164	243
Passing: comp–att–int	13–24–0	20–25–1
Time of possession	27:07	32:53

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Miami (OH)	Passing	Brett Gabbert	12/21, 127 yards
	Rushing	Rashad Amos	8 carries, 30 yards
	Receiving	Gage Larvadain	8 receptions, 80 yards
Miami	Passing	Tyler Van Dyke	17/22, 201 yards, TD, INT
	Rushing	Henry Parrish Jr.	9 carries, 90 yards, TD
	Receiving	Colbie Young	4 receptions, 79 yards, TD

at UMass

Game Two – Miami (OH) RedHawks (0–1) at Umass Minutemen (1–1)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
RedHawks	21	7	3	10	41
Minutemen	0	7	14	7	28

at Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium • Hadley, Massachusetts

Date: Saturday, September 9, 2023
Game time: 3:30 p.m. EST
Game weather: Cloudy • Temperature: 87 °F (31 °C) • Wind: S 7 MPH
Game attendance: 9,207
Referee: Charles Lamertina
TV announcers (ESPN+): Jay Burnham, Andy Gresh, and Matt Goldstein
Pregame line: Miami −7.0

Game information

First quarter

(13:14) M-OH – Gage Larvadain 26 Yd pass from Brett Gabbert, Kellan McLaughlin Kick (Drive: 4 plays, 75 yards, 1:46; Miami 7–0)
(1:40) M-OH – Gage Larvadain 99 Yd pass from Brett Gabbert, Graham Nicholson Kick (Drive: 2 plays, 99 yards, 1:02; Miami 14–0)
(1:17) M-OH – Kobe Hilton 0 Yd Fumble Return, Graham Nicholson Kick (Drive: 1 play, -14 yards, 0:10; Miami 21–0)

Second quarter

(11:10) UMASS –Dashaun Jerkins 53 Yd Interception Return, Cameron Carson Kick (Drive: 6 plays, 28 yards, 3:37; Miami 21–7)
(2:39) M-OH – Gage Larvadain 13 Yd pass from Brett Gabbert, Graham Nicholson Kick (Drive: 6 plays, 52 yards, 2:51; Miami 28–7)

Third quarter

(10:20) UMASS –Greg Desrosiers Jr. 32 Yd pass from Carlos Davis, Cameron Carson Kick (Drive: 5 plays, 62 yards, 2:17; Miami 28–14)
(2:51) UMASS –Mark Pope 50 Yd pass from Carlos Davis, Cameron Carson Kick (Drive: ; Miami 28–21)
(0:12) M-OH – Graham Nicholson 33 Yd Field Goal (Drive: 7 plays, 44 yards, 2:32; Miami 31–21)

Fourth quarter

(11:16) UMASS –George Johnson III 5 Yd pass from Carlos Davis, Cameron Carson Kick (Drive: 2 plays, 2 yards, 0:43; Miami 31–28)
(10:57) M-OH – Cade McDonald 1 Yd pass from Brett Gabbert, Graham Nicholson Kick (Drive: 1 play, 70 yards, 0:11; Miami 38-28)
(3:32) M-OH – Graham Nicholson 44 Yd Field Goal (Drive: 7 plays, 25 yards, 3:31; Miami 41–28)

Statistics	M–OH	UMass
First downs	17	18
Plays–yards	57-446	65-306
Rushes–yards	35-144	30-62
Passing yards	302	244
Passing: comp–att–int	22-35-1	12-22-2
Time of possession	30:59	29:01

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Miami (OH)	Passing	Brett Gabbert	12/22, 302 yards, 4 TD, 2 INT
	Rushing	Rashad Amos	23 carries, 115 yards
	Receiving	Gage Larvadain	8 receptions, 273 yards, 3 TD
UMass	Passing	Carlos Davis	22/32, 244 yards, 3 TD, INT
	Rushing	Kay'Ron Lynch-Adams	15 carries, 57 yards
	Receiving	Mark Pope	4 receptions, 70 yards, TD

at Cincinnati

Game Three – Miami (OH) Redhawks (1-1) at Cincinnati Bearcats (2-0)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	OT	Total
RedHawks	7	7	7	3	7	31
Bearcats	10	3	3	8	0	24

at Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, Ohio

Date: Saturday, September 16, 2023
Game time: 7:00 p.m. EDT
Game weather: Sunny • Temperature: 80 °F (27 °C) • Wind: 5 mph
Game attendance: 38,193
Referee: Matt Packowski
TV announcers (ESPN+): Sean Kenney (play-by-play) and Brad Hopkins (analyst)
Pregame line: Cincinnati by 14.5 • FPI odds to win: Cincinnati 90.7% • Game summary:

Game information

First quarter

(14:45) M-OH - Gage Larvadain 79-yard pass from Brett Gabbert (Graham Nicholson kick) - 7-0 Miami (OH), Drive: 1 play, 79 yards, 0:11
(11:47) CIN - Corey Kiner 4-yard run (Carter Brown kick) - 7-7, Drive: 6 plays, 75 yards, 2:58
(1:40) CIN - Carter Brown 28-yard field goal - 10-7 Cincinnati, Drive: 11 plays, 72 yards, 4:48

Second quarter

(9:22) M-OH - Javon Tracy 17-yard pass from Brett Gabbert (Graham Nicholson kick) - 14-10 Miami (OH), Drive: 12 plays, 69 yards, 7:12
(1:52) CIN - Carter Brown 23-yard field goal - 14-13 Miami (OH), Drive: 16 plays, 79 yards, 7:23

Third quarter

(7:23) CIN - Carter Brown 23-yard field goal - 16-14 Cincinnati, Drive: 11 plays, 62 yards, 4:21
(3:01) M-OH - Kevin Davis 1-yard run (Graham Nicholson kick) - 21-16 Miami (OH), Drive: 9 plays, 75 yards, 4:22

Fourth quarter

(13:52) CIN - Emory Jones 17-yard run (Emory Jones two-point pass to Chamon Metayer) - 24-21 Cincinnati, Drive: 11 plays, 75 yards, 4:09
(5:10) M-OH - Graham Nicholson 20-yard field goal - 24-24, Drive: 7 plays, 88 yards, 3:09

Overtime

(1OT) M-OH - Joe Wilkins Jr. 8-yard pass from Brett Gabbert (Graham Nicholson kick) - 31-24 Miami (OH), Drive: 2 plays, 25 yards

Statistics	MIA	CIN
First downs	16	30
Plays–yards	49-358	93-538
Rushes–yards	29-121	57-273
Passing yards	237	265
Passing: comp–att–int	12-20-1	18-34-2
Time of possession	23:42	36:18

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Miami (OH)	Passing	Brett Gabbert	12/20, 237 yards, 3 TD, 1 INT
	Rushing	Brett Gabbert	9 carries, 75 yards
	Receiving	Gage Larvadain	1 reception, 79 yards, 1 TD
Cincinnati	Passing	Emory Jones	18/34, 265 yards, 2 INT
	Rushing	Ryan Montgomery	20 carries, 104 yards
	Receiving	Xzavier Henderson	12 receptions, 140 yards

Bowling Green

Game Six – Bowling Green Falcons (2–3) at Miami RedHawks (4–1) – Game summary

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bowling Green	0	0	0	0	0
Miami (OH)	7	7	10	3	27

at Yager Stadium • Oxford, OH

Date: Saturday, October 7, 2023
Game time: 3:30 p.m. EDT
Game weather: Cloudy, 60 °F (16 °C) • Wind: NW 14 mph (23 km/h)
Game attendance: 19,047
Referee: William Williams
TV announcers (ESPN+): David Wilson, Marcus Ray

Game information

First quarter

(03:29) MIA – Rashad Amos 1-yard run (Graham Nicholson kick) (Drive: 17 plays, 75 yards, 11:31; Miami 7-0)

Second quarter

(00:52) MIA – Nate Muersch 2-yard pass from Brett Gabbert (Graham Nicholson kick) (Drive: 10 plays, 82 yards, 3:53; Miami 14-0)

Third quarter

(03:33) MIA – Kenny Tracy 39-yard pass from Brett Gabbert (Graham Nicholson kick) (Drive: 9 plays, 72 yards, 5:17; Miami 21-0)
(00:09) MIA – Graham Nicholson 52-yard field goal (Drive: 4 plays, 2 yards, 1:34; Miami 24-0)

Fourth quarter

(03:21) MIA – Graham Nicholson 30-yard field goal (Drive: 13 plays, 51 yards, 9:54; Miami 27-0)

Statistics	Bowling Green	Miami
First downs	9	20
Plays–yards	135	356
Rushes–yards	19–63	47–186
Passing yards	72	170
Passing: comp–att–int	11–23–1	15–18–0
Time of possession	20:31	39:29

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Bowling Green	Passing	Connor Bazelak	8/17, 64 yards, 1 INT
	Rushing	Terion Stewart	8 carries, 63 yards
	Receiving	Odieu Hiliare	4 receptions, 27 yards
Miami	Passing	Brett Gabbert	15/18, 170 yards, 2 TDS
	Rushing	Kenny Tracy	11 carries, 58 yards
	Receiving	Joe Wilkins	6 receptions, 70 yards

at Ohio

Game Nine – Miami RedHawks (6–2) vs. Ohio Bobcats (6–2)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Miami	0	13	10	7	30
Ohio	9	0	0	7	16

at Peden Stadium • Athens, Ohio

Date: Saturday, October 28, 2023
Game time: 3:30 EDT
Game weather: sunny
Game attendance: 19,854
Referee: David Siegle
TV announcers (CBSSN): Jason Knapp, Malik Zaire
Pregame line: Ohio -7.5; O/U 39.0 • Ohio notes, boxscore

Game information

First Quarter

(09:57) OHIO - Sieh Bangura 2 yd Run (Gianni Spetic PAT blocked) 6 plays, 79 yards, TOP 03:04 (OHIO 6–0)
(01:28) OHIO - Gianni Spetic 33 yd Field Goal 14 plays, 49 yards, TOP 06:35 (OHIO 9–0)

Second Quarter

(12:11) M–OH - Graham Nicholson 26 yd Field Goal 4 plays, 2 yards, TOP 01:15 (OHIO 9–3)
(04:20) M–OH - Graham Nicholson 40 yd Field Goal 9 plays, 36 yards, TOP 05:20 (OHIO 9–6)
(01:21) M–OH - Rashad Amos 1 yd Run (Graham Nicholson Kick) 4 plays, 80 yards, TOP 01:24 (M–OH 13–9)

Third Quarter

(11:22) M–OH - Graham Nicholson 32 yd Field Goal 4 plays, 5 yards, TOP 02:04 (M–OH 16–9)
(01:21) M–OH - Aveon Smith 3 yd Run (Graham Nicholson Kick) 5 plays, 60 yards, TOP 02:21 (M–OH 23–9)

Fourth Quarter

(11:13) M–OH - Kevin Davis 46 yd pass from Aveon Smith (Graham Nicholson Kick) 7 plays, 72 yards, TOP 03:58 (M–OH 30–9)
(07:56) OHIO - Tyler Walton 1 Yd pass from Kurtis Rourke (Gianni Spetic Kick) 11 plays, 75 yards, TOP 03:17 (M–OH 30–16)

Statistics	Miami	Ohio
First downs	14	19
Total yards	291	363
Rushes/yards	45/188	26/50
Passing yards	103	313
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	7–11–0	25–39–0
Time of possession	32:19	27:41

Team	Category	Player	Statistics
Miami	Passing	Aveon Smith	7/11, 103 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Rashad Amos	21 rushes, 163 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Kevin Davis	3 receptions, 61 yards, 1 TD
Ohio	Passing	Kurtis Rourke	25/39, 313 yards, 1 TD
	Rushing	Sieh Bangura	9 rushes, 38 yards, 1 TD
	Receiving	Sam Wiglusz	5 receptions, 79 yards

Awards and honors

Individual yearly awards

National awards
Award	Player	Position
Lou Groza Award	Graham Nicholson	PK
Ray Guy Award Semifinalist	Alec Bevelhimer	P

MAC individual awards
Player	Position	Award
Graham Nicholson	PK	Special Teams Player of the Year
Matt Salopek	LB	Defensive Player of the Year

Weekly individual awards

MAC weekly honors
Award	Player	Position	Award
Week 1	Alec Bevelhimer	P	Special Teams Player of the Week
Week 3	Alec Bevelhimer	P	Special Teams Player of the Week
Week 12	Michael Dowell	DB	Defensive Player of the Week
Week 2	Brett Gabbert	QB	Offensive Player of the Week
Week 3
Week 7
Week 2	Gage Larvadain	WR	Offensive Player of the Week
Week 2	Graham Nicholson	PK	Special Teams Player of the Week
Week 4
Week 7
Week 9/10
Week 11
Week 12
Week 3	Matt Salopek	LB	Defensive Co-Player of the Week
Week 9/10	Matt Salopek	LB	Defensive Player of the Week

All-Americans

All-MAC
Player	Position	1st/2nd/3rd Team
Rashad Amos	RB	3rd team
Alec Bevelhimer	P	2nd team
Brett Gabbert	QB	3rd team
Reid Holskey	OL	2nd team
Will Jados	OL	2nd team
Cade McDonald	RS	2nd team
Graham Nicholson	PK	1st team
Matt Salopek	LB	1st team
Brian Ugwu	DL	2nd team
Caiden Woullard	DL	1st team
Source:^{[citation needed]}

CBS Sports / 247Sports
Player	Position	1st/2nd team
Graham Nicholson	PK	1st team
Source:^[9]

AP
Player	Position	1st/2nd team
Graham Nicholson	PK	1st team
Source:^[9]

Walter Camp
Player	Position	1st/2nd team
Graham Nicholson	PK	1st team
Source:^[9]

NCAA Recognized All-American Honors
Player	AFCA	FWAA^[9]	TSN	Designation
Graham Nicholson (PK)		2nd team		Consensus
The NCAA recognizes a selection to all five of the AFCA, FWAA and TSN first teams for unanimous selections and three of five for consensus selections. HM = Honorable mention. Source: ^[9]