2011 Miami of Ohio Football Predictions
Written by Patrick Webb
Miami of Ohio had a dream season last year, going 10-4 following 2009’s 1-11 campaign. They replaced head coach Mike Haywood with alumnus Don Treadwell (Michigan State offensive coordinator) and will look to keep the momentum from last season’s turnaround with veterans in both coordinator spots.
The Redhawks return a lot of talent on both sides of the ball and have experience returning along both lines. Miami has two excellent quarterbacks and several talented receivers. They also return their top 8 tacklers from last season and should have an even better defensive team than last season.
Treadwell is suited to adjust his scheme to the strengths of this team and has some interesting choices to make at several skill spots. QB Zach Dysart’s very good season was cut short due to a lacerated spleen and Austin Boucher stepped in to lead the team to four straight wins, including the championship over a favored Northern Illinois and a bowl victory. No starter was named in spring but both of these quarterbacks are suited to run the offense and each completed above 60% of their passes last year.
Tailback is a bit of a mystery as the departed Thomas Merriweather rushed for nearly 1,000 yards last season as well as 12 TDs. Sophomore Tracy Woods is the starter heading into the fall camp and was solid both running and receiving in limited duty last season.
Miami has a nice receiving corps headlined by sophomore Nick Harwell, who scored 6 TDs last season and should see more passes his way with the departure of Armand Robinson. Three other returners caught at least 25 passes and tight end Kendrick Burton has great size and could see his role expanded in Treadwell’s offense.
The Redhawks must replace two seasoned starters on the offensive line, but return four experienced players to this unit. Miami really improved over the course of the season last year and they should be more consistent this season.
Defensively Miami was solid in points allowed and rushing defense last season. This defense can improve on last season’s 35 sacks and they return 19 interceptions from last year’s team.
The d-line has several experienced returners and has excellent size for a MAC team. Jason Semmes and Austin Brown provide a solid pass rush, and this unit has a lot of depth.
CJ Marck, Jerrell Wedge and Evan Harris all return at their respective spots and each excel at one phase of their position. Harris is a great pass defender (6 INTs), Marck had 4 .5 sacks and Wedge piled up 11.5 tackles for loss last season.
The secondary is still fairly young, but Hinkel, Brown, and Nunley combined for 11 interceptions last season and 46 starts in their careers. Anthony Kokal is looking to regain his form from ’09 as he lost time to Hinkel and Jordan Gafford last season. This team struggled against FBS competition last season, but was very good in MAC play, allowing only Ohio to score more than 30 points in a conference game last year.
Miami will have to replace placekicker Trevor Cook, who was deadly inside of 40 yards last year. They are hoping for Mason Krysinski to step up in his place. Punter Zac Murphy returns and will look to improve on a 39.1 yard per punt average. DeMarco Paine is a speedy and shifty return man and should headline at both return spots this season.
Schedule Analysis: Miami has a tough out of conference slate as they face Missouri and Minnesota on the road and host both Cincinnati and Army. The MAC schedule is set up to build momentum as they face only one tough opponent, Toledo, on the road in their first five conference games, including home games versus Bowling Green, Buffalo, and Akron. Miami closes the season against contenders, visiting Temple, hosting Western Michigan and ending with a visit to Ohio. If Miami can split on the road they will likely go bowling and could gain a championship appearance if they can knock off at least two solid road opponents.
Season Record Predictions: 8-4 Overall (6-2 MAC)
More Resources:
- Bettors World sees Miami of Ohio as having a letdown this season.
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