OXFORD, OH -- The 42-7 final score suggests “Easy.” It was anything but that, however, for much of two quarters Saturday at Yager Stadium.
Visiting Long Island (0-3) had seized momentum and was within two yards of taking a 14-7 lead against Miami midway through the second stanza. When the Sharks elected to go for a TD on fourth down, junior DL Kameron Butler broke through for a 13-yard sack of LIU quarterback Camden Orth.
"We stuffed the two plays in a row and we got to third and five," Miami Head Coach Chuck Martin noted. "They tried to sprint out. Ivan (Pace) kind of set the edge a little bit for us and then Kam Butler does what Kam does. . . . It was a huge play."
The defensive play not only stopped the Sharks, it helped ignite a Miami offense that fizzled after scoring seven points in its opening drive. Four plays after Butler’s key sack, it was MU holding a 14-7 lead. Brett Gabbert got the drive started with tosses of 35 and 45 to tight end Jack Coldiron. Kevin Nash ran twice - two yards and three yards - to finish the journey.
After forcing a Long Island three-and-out, the RedHawks offense came back for more. Gabbert had five completions while Miami drove 76 yards. His 16-yard toss to Jalen Walker in the right corner and the following PAT left the hosts up 21-7 at intermission.
"It looked like maybe they (the Sharks) were going to come out with the lead -- who knows -- and then you're up 21-7," Martin said. "We got it going in the third and the game was over pretty quick."
Redshirt sophomore quarterback AJ Mayer also saw action - just as he did the previous week -- and completed 8-of-9 for 123 yards and one TD against the Sharks.
Asked about using two quarterbacks, Martin noted injuries have limited each quarterback at times during weekly practices. This week they were both healthy enough, and both saw action. "They're bothreally talented kids, and they both play good football for us," Martin said. "I think we'll continue to use them both, (but) we don't have a total master plan."
While Miami’s defense kept Long Island off the board in the second half, the RedHawks added two final scores from the ground game. Kevin Davis scampered in from 13 yards out late in the third quarter and Keyon Mozee went in from a yard out with 10:12 left.
The RedHawks finished with a relatively balanced attack that produced 523 yards and six touchdowns -- three each from passes and runs. The ground game totaled 245 yards, while MU passes yielded 294 yards.
"We ran the ball a lot of yards (and) a lot of different kids got carries, which was nice," Martin said. All of our young backs got carries and all did some some nice things." The RedHawks have yet to use the two returning starters, who are recovering from injuries.
Four RedHawks registered at least five carries. David Afari contributed 78 yards on five rushes. Gabbert had a net gain of 45 yards on three carries, while Davis and Mozee combined for 16 rushes and 62 yards.
Jack Sorenson led receivers with five catches for 86 yards and MU’s first touchdown.
"We didn't throw the ball around a lot, but we had almost 300 yards," Martin noted.
Defensively, Miami registered four sacks and 10 tackles for loss. It limited the Sharks to 216 total yards, with much of the damage coming in the first half. LIU converted just 2-of-13 third downs, while the RedHawks were good on six-of-nine.
With MU forcing 52 yards of losses, Long Island netted just 38 yards on the ground. "We did a lot of good things and took care of business," Martin said, adding the Week Three contest was a bit of a physical break after contests against Cincinnati and Minnesota. He expect next week's game at Army to be another very physical contest. The Black Knights are 3-0, with the latest triumph being a 51-20 win over UConn.
NEXT: The RedHawks complete their non-conference slate with a game against Army at West Point.