UConn Loses 24-21 at Miami (Ohio) After Second-Half Collapse
The short version
- UConn fell to 2-2 with a 24-21 loss at Miami (Ohio), which also sits at 2-2
- The Huskies led 14-0 in the first quarter before the RedHawks tied it by halftime
- An Osborne interception set up Miami's game-winning 33-yard field goal
- Osborne threw for 215 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 88 yards and a score
- UConn hosts Syracuse on Oct. 3 at noon on CBS Sports Network
The Huskies built a two-touchdown lead in the first quarter but fell to the RedHawks on a late field goal set up by an interception.
The UConn Huskies slipped to 2-2 on the season with a 24-21 road loss to the Miami (Ohio) RedHawks, who also moved to 2-2. It was a tight finish decided by a 33-yard field goal in the closing stages, coming after UConn quarterback Kalieb Osborne was picked off in his own territory.
The visitors controlled the opening frame. Osborne opened the game with a 24-yard completion to Ryder Treadway, and after Javon Brown converted a 3rd-and-15 with a 20-yard catch despite a holding penalty, Brown hauled in an eight-yard touchdown to put UConn ahead 7-0. Midway through the quarter, on fourth-and-one from the Miami 38, Osborne faked a handoff and raced untouched outside for a score that made it 14-0.
Miami responded with a 90-yard touchdown drive after a UConn punt. A horse-collar penalty moved the ball to the Huskies' 35, and quarterback David McComb finished the possession himself on an option keeper with just over six minutes left in the half. Following another UConn punt, McComb connected with tight end Brendan Loftus on a 58-yard touchdown, Loftus making a one-handed grab at the 30 and completing the play, to send the teams to the break tied at 14.
The Huskies had a chance to lead at halftime, moving 40 combined yards on passes to Brown and Cam Abshire, but Jack O'Connor's 46-yard field goal attempt as time expired was off target. Miami's momentum continued after the break. After K'Von Sherman sacked McComb for a nine-yard loss to force a missed 44-yard attempt, the RedHawks took their first lead of the night on a drive featuring back-to-back third-down conversions, a 32-yard McComb scramble, a 23-yard pass to Rodney Nelson, and an 11-yard touchdown throw to Scoop Smith.
UConn answered late in the third quarter. Osborne hit Shamar Porter for 53 yards, ran for nine, and Bowers finished from one yard out to tie the game at 21. That would be the Huskies' last points.
McComb exited in the fourth quarter, and UConn could not take advantage. Osborne's interception gave Miami the short field it needed for the go-ahead 33-yard field goal. Getting the ball back with three minutes remaining, UConn moved to the RedHawks' 38 behind two first-down catches from tight end Matt Ragan, but a deep shot on first down fell incomplete, pressure disrupted second down, a sideline catch on third was overturned on review, and Osborne found no one open on fourth down as Miami ran out the clock.
Osborne finished 17-of-32 passing (53.1%) for 215 yards and two touchdowns, plus 88 rushing yards and a score. UConn's offensive output dropped in every quarter after a fast start, while Miami's attack grew stronger until McComb left. Defensively, Sherman also stopped running back D'Shawntae Jones on a fourth-down run in the first half, and McComb's top connections included a 31-yarder to Damarion Witten, a 16-yard fourth-down pass to Braylon Isom, and a 35-yard Isom catch to open the second half.
UConn returns home to Rentschler Field for homecoming against Syracuse on Saturday, Oct. 3, at noon. The game will be carried on CBS Sports Network.
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