Miami 7, Akron 0

Miami moved one game closer to the MAC Championship game with a bizarre 7-0 win over Akron on Senior Night at Yager Stadium.

Neither offense scored the entire game, as the Redhawks picked up the night’s only score on defensive end Craig Mester’s fumble return touchdown with just under ten minutes to play. The score was Mester’s first at any level of football, and came on his final game in Yager Stadium.

“I picked some pretty good timing, don’t you think?” Mester quipped afterward.

Both defenses suffocated the offenses all night, forcing 17 punts altogether. The Redhawks were more successful moving the ball, but Akron picked off Daniel Raudabaugh passes in its own endzone on three straight possessions to keep the Redhawks at bay.

A Miami fumble gave Akron its best field position of the night to start the fourth quarter. The Zips advanced to the Redhawk 29 yard line before QB Chris Jacquemain badly underthrew Zip WR Jabari Arthur in the end zone for an interception. That drive followed 9 straight Akron possessions ending in punts.

Finally, Miami (4-1, 5-1, 6-5) broke the ice on Mester’s fumble return. Akron coach elected to give backup QB Carlton Jackson a try after Jacquemain struggled terribly all night (12-33, 116 yards, 2 INT). On Jackson’s first series, the Zips took over at their own 23.

Facing a third down and long, Jackson dropped to pass but was rushed by Miami LB Clayton Mullins. Mullins rocked Jackson’s arm as he went to throw, and the ball fell right in to Mester’s arms. The senior took it 7 yards for the score.

Mullins and the Miami defense owned the night, holding Akron to just 216 yards on 70 plays. Mullins himself had 5 TFL as the Redhawks repeatedly frustrated Akron’s offensive attack.

Both quarterbacks had brutal nights throwing the ball, with Jacquemain unable to find open targets and Raudabaugh continuously giving the ball away deep in Zip territory.

Most importantly for Miami, the Redhawks are now one win away from winning the MAC East and advancing to face CMU in the MAC title game in Detroit. If Miami loses to Ohio next Saturday at Peden Stadium, the Redhawks can still advance with a Buffalo loss to either Bowling Green or Kent State.