Jared Murphy led Miami with nine receptions for 122 yards and a TD. (MVSmith/MRO) By MIKE SMITH
YPSILANTI, MI – In a conference blessed with some prolific passers, Gus Ragland’s numbers don’t always draw a lot of attention. Two numbers, however, are gaining the Miami RedHawks quite a bit of attention. Those numbers are 3 and 0.
Miami (3-6, 3-2 MAC) moved its record with Ragland at quarterback to 3-0 Saturday with a 28-15 win over Eastern Michigan at Rynearson Stadium.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: CLICK PHOTOS TO ENLARGE)
Ragland, a redshirt sophomore who . . .
YPSILANTI, MI – In a conference blessed with some prolific passers, Gus Ragland’s numbers don’t always draw a lot of attention. Two numbers, however, are gaining the Miami RedHawks quite a bit of attention. Those numbers are 3 and 0.
Miami (3-6, 3-2 MAC) moved its record with Ragland at quarterback to 3-0 Saturday with a 28-15 win over Eastern Michigan at Rynearson Stadium.
(EDITOR'S NOTE: CLICK PHOTOS TO ENLARGE)
Ragland, a redshirt sophomore who . . .
Kenny Young cuts back on a 54-yard first quarter touchdown. Young has produced two long TDs and set up another score over the last three games. (MVSmith/MRO) . . . returned mid-season after a serious knee injury in spring ball, completed 15 of 23 passes for 175 yards with one TD and no interceptions. He also ran two yards for the game’s first score as Miami took an early lead.
"His "body feels better and better," Miami head coach Chuck Martin said. He's "getting more comfortable. I think you saw more stuff (from him) today. ... He's going to get even better as the season goes on."
Kenny Young made it a 14-0 game before the quarter ended when he weaved his way through traffic and then sprinted to a 54-yard touchdown. It was the sophomore’s third big yardage play in three games – all wins.
Young finished with 58 yards on four carries, while Maurice Thomas carried seven times for 82 yards. His 45-yard sprint on he opening drive was a big play leading up to Miami’s touchdown. Alonzo Smith powered his way to 59 yards and a score. Altogether, MU totaled 230 yards with three touchdowns on the ground.
"Obviously, running the ball for 230 yards was a huge key to the game," Martin said. Kenny and Mo (Thomas) being healthy makes a big difference. ... We didn't have them for a game-and-a-half. Those are guys that if you get them out there, they can make big plays."
Eastern Michigan’s defense helped set up an Eagles score before intermission. Jeremiah Harris stripped the ball away while sacking Ragland and his is recovery put EMU’s offense on the field at the Eastern 44. After reaching Miami’s 22, the hosts settled for a 40-yard Paul Fricano field goal.
"His "body feels better and better," Miami head coach Chuck Martin said. He's "getting more comfortable. I think you saw more stuff (from him) today. ... He's going to get even better as the season goes on."
Kenny Young made it a 14-0 game before the quarter ended when he weaved his way through traffic and then sprinted to a 54-yard touchdown. It was the sophomore’s third big yardage play in three games – all wins.
Young finished with 58 yards on four carries, while Maurice Thomas carried seven times for 82 yards. His 45-yard sprint on he opening drive was a big play leading up to Miami’s touchdown. Alonzo Smith powered his way to 59 yards and a score. Altogether, MU totaled 230 yards with three touchdowns on the ground.
"Obviously, running the ball for 230 yards was a huge key to the game," Martin said. Kenny and Mo (Thomas) being healthy makes a big difference. ... We didn't have them for a game-and-a-half. Those are guys that if you get them out there, they can make big plays."
Eastern Michigan’s defense helped set up an Eagles score before intermission. Jeremiah Harris stripped the ball away while sacking Ragland and his is recovery put EMU’s offense on the field at the Eastern 44. After reaching Miami’s 22, the hosts settled for a 40-yard Paul Fricano field goal.
Jeremiah Harris knocks the ball loose while pressuring MU quarterback Gus Ragland. Harris recovered and Eastern Michigan cashed in with a field goal just before intermission. (MVSmith/MRO)
That closed the gap to 13-3 and EMU received the second half kickoff. Miami’s defense, however, kcpt the Eagles in check throughout the period and Miami added another TD with 3:27 remaining in the quarter. Smith rammed his way in from one yard out to make in 21-3 after the PAT.
Eastern Michigan responded on its next possession despite a dubious start. Quarterback Brogan Roback was sacked by Brad Koenig for a loss of 15 yards on the very first play. Roback, however, hit Dieuly Aristilde twice – first for 11 yards and then for 27 – to get the drive back on track.
Miami’s defense stiffened in the red zone and the Eagles faced a fourth and three from the four. Roback managed to find Nigel Kilby dragging across the middle for a touchdown, The score remained 21-9 after a two-point try failed.
Eastern Michigan responded on its next possession despite a dubious start. Quarterback Brogan Roback was sacked by Brad Koenig for a loss of 15 yards on the very first play. Roback, however, hit Dieuly Aristilde twice – first for 11 yards and then for 27 – to get the drive back on track.
Miami’s defense stiffened in the red zone and the Eagles faced a fourth and three from the four. Roback managed to find Nigel Kilby dragging across the middle for a touchdown, The score remained 21-9 after a two-point try failed.
Nigel Kilby scores Eastern Michigan's first touchdown. (MVSmith/MRO) Miami struck back quickly. Five plays into its next drive, Ragland found Jared Murphy streaking down the middle. Murphy caught the ball in stride and outraced defenders to the end zone for a 54-yard play that put Miami up 28-9. With sophomore James Gardner unavailable, Murphy stepped up to grab nine receptions for 122 yards and the TD.
As quickly as MU scored, Eastern Michigan would score even more quickly. Two plays into EMU’s next drive, Roback launched a long bomb to Aristilde down the right sideline. The 6-4 freshman pulled it in and scored to complete a 75-yard play. It was part of a huge day for Aristilde, who caught seven balls for 193 yards and the score. It was the highest EMU receiving output since 2004. Roback, meanwhile, completed 23 of 39 for 328 yards with two TDs and one interception on the day.
Another two-point try failed, leaving the hosts down 28-15. Although 11:43 remained in the final period, Miami churned out enough offense to eat up some clock time and give Eastern Michigan a long field. MU’s defense took care of the rest, stopping the Eagles on downs once and finishing them off with a Heath Harding interception with 48 seconds left.
"They out-played us. It's pretty much as simple as that," EMU head coach Cris Creighton said. "We weren't able to do what we set out to do tonight."
"Besides one long ball, our defense played great," Martin said. "We're starting to play some solid football, and we're excited about the opportunities. ... (We've got) back-to-back-to-back wins, and they've all been hard fought."
As quickly as MU scored, Eastern Michigan would score even more quickly. Two plays into EMU’s next drive, Roback launched a long bomb to Aristilde down the right sideline. The 6-4 freshman pulled it in and scored to complete a 75-yard play. It was part of a huge day for Aristilde, who caught seven balls for 193 yards and the score. It was the highest EMU receiving output since 2004. Roback, meanwhile, completed 23 of 39 for 328 yards with two TDs and one interception on the day.
Another two-point try failed, leaving the hosts down 28-15. Although 11:43 remained in the final period, Miami churned out enough offense to eat up some clock time and give Eastern Michigan a long field. MU’s defense took care of the rest, stopping the Eagles on downs once and finishing them off with a Heath Harding interception with 48 seconds left.
"They out-played us. It's pretty much as simple as that," EMU head coach Cris Creighton said. "We weren't able to do what we set out to do tonight."
"Besides one long ball, our defense played great," Martin said. "We're starting to play some solid football, and we're excited about the opportunities. ... (We've got) back-to-back-to-back wins, and they've all been hard fought."
DeAndre Montgomery (21) looks on as J.T. Jones gets to EMU quarterback Brogan Roback. Jones registered two of five Miami sacks on the day. (MVSmith/MRO)
After a pair of road wins, Miami returns home for a Friday night game against Central Michigan this week. It's another tough challenge, but Martin is enjoying the RedHawks late season opportunities with a team that is getting healthier.
"I think we'll ... be as healthy as we've been all year going to Week 10," Martin said. "We're starting to play cleaner football, and it's showing in the results."
NOTES:
► Miami held 405-36 advantage in total yardage and had 23 first downs to 16 for the hosts, who converted 4 of 14 third downs. MU was 4 of 9 on third down chances.
► Ninety percent of Eastern Michigan’s yardage came via passes as the Eagles gained just 33 yards on the ground. By contrast, MU totaled 230 rushing yards, averaging 5.4 ypc thanks to several long gainers.
► "It was going to be very important for us to run the ball and to throw the ball," Creighton said. "We really struggled to run the ball against them last year. We (also) knew that they had a really good pass rush and pass defense, and it was what we thought and it was effective."
► Each team had one turnover, Miami, which had been struggling with penalties, drew just two flags for a total of 15 yards against EMU. The Eagles owned seven penalties for 67 yards.
"I think we'll ... be as healthy as we've been all year going to Week 10," Martin said. "We're starting to play cleaner football, and it's showing in the results."
NOTES:
► Miami held 405-36 advantage in total yardage and had 23 first downs to 16 for the hosts, who converted 4 of 14 third downs. MU was 4 of 9 on third down chances.
► Ninety percent of Eastern Michigan’s yardage came via passes as the Eagles gained just 33 yards on the ground. By contrast, MU totaled 230 rushing yards, averaging 5.4 ypc thanks to several long gainers.
► "It was going to be very important for us to run the ball and to throw the ball," Creighton said. "We really struggled to run the ball against them last year. We (also) knew that they had a really good pass rush and pass defense, and it was what we thought and it was effective."
► Each team had one turnover, Miami, which had been struggling with penalties, drew just two flags for a total of 15 yards against EMU. The Eagles owned seven penalties for 67 yards.
 Jared Murphy sprints for the goal line on his 54-yard touchdown reception. (MVSmith/MRO) |  Brogan Roback completed 23 of 39 passes for 328 yards and two TDs. It was his third consecutive game with more than 300 passing yards. (MVSmith/MRO) |
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