Miami Gameday: Last game for Miami seniors

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Updated 8:01 AM Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Behind the mask: A Q&A with Brandon Brooks, a sophomore offensive tackle on the Miami football team.

Q: What was your most memorable moment on a football field?

A: When I was in high school (Riverside, in Milwaukee), traditionally we weren’t very good, but in my senior year we were 11-2 and went to the state semifinals.

Q: Which three items would comprise your perfect meal?

A: Macaroni  and cheese, my favorite, my grandmother’s fried chicken, and mustard greens.

Q: What is your most prized possession?

A: My car, an ’04 Grand Prix, green. I’ve had it since I was a junior in high school.

Q: What is your favorite TV show?

A: Hands down, it’s “Family Guy.”

Q: What would be your ideal vacation spot?

A: South Beach, Fla. I heard you can have a great time there. I like the beach and I like to swim.

Key players

Miami quarterback Zac Dysert

His 61.3 completion percentage (so far) is the fifth-best in school history.

Miami wide receiver Armand Robinson

The junior “X” receiver is having an outstanding season with 67 receptions (tied for fifth in the school record book) for 788 yards and four touchdowns.

Buffalo quarterback Zach Maynard

The 6-foot-3 sophomore ranks fourth in the Mid-American Conference in passing yards per game and total offense.

Buffalo wide receiver Naaman Roosevelt

Roosevelt has 70 catches for 954 yards and nine touchdowns.

Scouting report

Another discouraging season, the third in the past four years, comes to a conclusion tonight, Nov. 18, for the 1-10 RedHawks. At first glance, a victory over Buffalo would only enable the team to match the 2-10 records from 2006 and ’08.

But this is clearly a team on the rise, a team dominated by freshmen and sophomores who have put together five encouraging performances over the past seven games (the win over Toledo, losses to Cincinnati, Northwestern, Northern Illinois and Temple).

This will be a tough game because the Bulls aren’t a bad team. Their last three losses have been by a total of seven points. But Miami coach Michael Haywood wants this game badly. “Any time you win the final game of the season, it propels you into a better off season,” he said.

Tonight will mark the final appearance of 11 Miami seniors. How many of those seniors are listed on the team’s first string?

One, cornerback Jeff Thompson, and he might not play because of a contusion on the thigh. “Thompson is questionable,” Miami head coach Michael Haywood said Monday. “(The contusion) has really limited his mobility.” However, Haywood, who has a rule that players who aren’t able to practice during the week will not be allowed to play in the game, said he would waive that rule for Thompson if he is able to play tonight.

A couple weeks ago, I listed four Miami players who have been named to the AP All-American second team. That number should have been five. Who was the other Miami player to receive that honor?

Doug Krause, in 1971. Krause, who went on to become a successful head coach at New Miami and Talawanda high schools, was a fierce competitor who began Miami’s tradition of having great middle guards on defense in the 1970s and ’80s when he was named All-Mid-American Conference in back-to-back seasons (1970 and ’71). Krause was followed by Brad Cousino (All-MAC in 1973 and ’74), Jeff Kelly (All-MAC in 1975), Jack Glowik (All-MAC in 1976 and ’77), John McCafferty (All-MAC in 1979 and ’80) and Brian Pillman (All-MAC in 1982 and ’83).

How many games have Miami co-captains Dustin Woods and Jordan Gafford started this season?

Because of injuries, only five by Woods and eight by Gafford.

Who have been Miami’s two MAC Freshmen of the Year?

Deland McCullough in 1992 and Ben Roethlisberger in 2001.

How about MAC Coaches of the Year?

There have been four: Bo Schembechler (1965), Bill Mallory (1973), Dick Crum (1974) and Terry Hoeppner (2003).