“None of us are very happy. We had a chance on the road to beat a Big Ten team, and didn’t take advantage of it,” Miami coach Chuck Martin said. “We loved how our kids compete. We fought. It was a very physical defensive battle on both sides.
“It’s a game where somebody is going to make one more play, and you’ve got to find a way to make it in the end and get the game to overtime.”
Here are four takeaways from Miami’s season-opening loss to Northwestern:
1. Defense doing it again
Miami’s defense picked back up from where it left off last season.
“Defensively, No. 1 priority is defending the score,” Martin said. “They held a Big Ten team to 13 points. So, if that’s your No. 1 priority, then they did a phenomenal job of doing their No. 1 priority.”
Matt Salopek, the 2023 Mid-American Conference’s Defensive Player of the Year, led the RedHawks with a game-high 10 tackles.
2. McDonald making an early impact
The offense is simply going to have to produce more if the RedHawks want to mirror the type of season it had a year ago.
RedHawks receiver Cade McDonald was Miami’s offensive standout on Saturday. The senior had a career-high eight receptions for 105 yards.
“I was able to prepare and help the team prepare for that physical kind of game,” said McDonald, who transferred from Michigan State last season. “I feel like we didn’t come prepared, and we just came up short in the end.
“We did some good things as a team, and we also did some not-so-good things. Really, we just have to figure out the good things we did and build on them and focus on those coming in the next few weeks, and then fix the not-so-good things we did. Because we played a good game, we played a good Big Ten team. We should have came away with a win, but if we just keep building on these next two weeks and focus on what we need to get better at, I think we’ll be just fine.”
3. A healthy bunch
Martin said his RedHawks came out of Northwestern on the healthy side. Aside from being a little sore, not much was disclosed on the serious side.
“We have a lot of guys that weren’t moving so good,” Martin said. “But I’m hopeful that there’s nothing long-term unless an MRI shows up something that we don’t want to see. We had a few of those.”
The RedHawks have a bye this week, which gives them a couple extra days to recover and prepare for their Week 3 home opener at Yager Stadium against Cincinnati on Saturday, Sept. 14, at noon.
“The bye week is always good,” Martin said. “You’d rather have it later in the year when you need it more.”
Standout offensive lineman Reid Holskey hit the sideline mid-game on Saturday, but he was only out for less than a handful of plays.
4. The Gabbert Report
After suffering a season-ending leg injury during the 2023 campaign, quarterback Brett Gabbert returned to lead the Miami offense against Northwestern.
It took Gabbert some time to get back into game form, but Martin said he got there. Gabbert threw for 227 yards on 22 of 37 passing with two interceptions.
“I asked him how he did, and he said, ‘I felt rusty for the first few series,’” Martin said. “He goes, ‘Then I kind of felt good the rest of the way.’ So, I’ll trust how he felt. He said the first couple series, everything was moving a little quicker, and then he said, ‘I got hit a few times and from there, it felt good.’
“I thought he competed like he always does. I thought he gave us a chance to win it.”
NEXT GAME
Saturday, Sept. 14
Cincinnati at Miami, Noon, ESPNU, 980, 1450
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