“Chuck continues to reinvigorate the Miami football program,” said Sayler. “Resurrecting a program that was on a 16-game losing streak to winning a MAC East Championship three years later shows that Miami football can compete with the top of the Mid-American Conference for years to come.”
When Martin accepted the head coaching job at Miami he had his hands full. Miami was 8-28 the last three years and was coming off of a 0-12 campaign in 2013.
Martin promised to build the roster the right way and to avoid the quick fix. He repeatedly has had one of the top recruiting classes in the conference. Over the last three years Martin’s classes have ranked third (2015), second (2016) and second (2017) according to Rivals.com. Even his first class in 2014, which he had less than two months to compile, has produced several key starters for the upcoming season.
Understandably, Miami struggled early under Martin, going 2-10 in 2014 and 3-9 in 2015, but Miami is 11-8 in its last 19 games under Martin, including a 6-0 run to close out the 2016 season, helping the RedHawks advance to the St. Petersburgh Bowl, Miami’s first bowl appearance since 2010. That same season, Miami went 6-2 in MAC play to capture a MAC East Championship.
Progress has not just been made on the football field. Since Martin’s arrival, nearly $40 million has been invested into the football program with the addition of the David and Anita Dauch Indoor Sports Center and the Athletic Performance Center, both located just north of Yager Stadium.