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Report Card: Miami at Northwestern
REPORT CARD Miami at Northwestern
Pass offense
D
Zach Dysert’s first bad day. It had to come sooner or later, and he’s not the first Miami quarterback to have it come on a Big Ten Conference field. He completed only 16-of-37 passes for 176 yards, a touchdown and three interceptions. He also lost a fumble (which led to a Northwest touchdown) and allowed himself to be tackled in bounds as time ran down at the end of the first half (which cost Miami a chance at a touchdown or field goal). Dysert also was sacked seven times - that makes 17 sacks in two weeks. The fault, according to Mike Haywood, should be spread among the passer, the blockers and the receivers.
Run offense
C-plus
Thomas Merriweather did a nice job running with some strength after Andre Bratton was forced out in the first quarter with turf toe. Merriweather had a 16-yard run, his longest of the season, and finished with 52 yards on the ground after getting only 88 in his first five games. Dysert also did well on some, though obviously not all, scrambles and had 63 net rushing yards.
Pass defense
A-minus
Quarterback Mike Kafka had been hot, completing 71 percent of his passes over the three previous weeks. He wasn’t hot against the Redhawks, completing only 15-of-31 passes with no touchdowns and one interception, by Anthony Kokal. DeAndre Gilmore was a force on defense, making a team-high 12 tackles and breaking up three passes. Kokal finished with 10 tackles, Jordan Gafford had eight tackles (all solos) and broke up two passes, and D.J. Brown also broke up a pass.
Run defense
A
Anytime you hold a Big Ten team, on its home turf, to an average of 3.1 yards rushing, you’re doing something right. A lot of things, as a matter of fact. Jerrell Wedge had seven tackles, all solos. And Gilmore, a junior who has started at outside linebacker for five straight weeks now after seeing very little action during his freshman and sophomore seasons, established a career high with his 12 tackles. Gilmore, Wedge, Gafford and Kokal all could be MAC East Division Defensive Player of the Week candidates.
Special teams
B-minus
The RedHawks downed a punt on the Northwestern 1-yard line, they blocked a field goal, true freshman lineman Anthony Shoemaker intercepted a PAT pass after Northwestern had messed up the extra-point snap, and Miami senior punter Chris DiCesare had a better average (37.6) than Northwestern’s Stefan Demos (35.9). Miami still needs do better on returns, and the RedHawks were unable to convert their own 2-point attempt.
Intangibles
D
The RedHawks spent much of the afternoon doing exactly the things they knew to be poison to their hopes for an upset victory — not protecting the quarterback, multiple turnovers, silly penalties, mistakes in judgement. The RedHawks are young, but at some point they have to stop playing like rookies.
— Pete Conrad
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