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SPORTS
Editor Michael Solomon
sports@miamistudent.net
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2011
NEXT HOME GAME: 1 p.m. Saturday, vs. Bowling green
ross simon SIMON SAYS
’Hawks seek win at home By JM Rieger Staff Writer
Looking to notch their first win under Head Coach Don Treadwell, the Miami University football team (0-2) will host Bowling Green State University (2-1) this Saturday at Yager Stadium. Following two close losses to the University of Minnesota and to the University of Missouri where the RedHawks failed to capitalize on various scoring opportunities and turned the ball over at key moments in the game, the Red and White will try to put together a balanced, disciplined game this week. “I think we’re moving forward with positive strides,” Treadwell said. “I think if we can continue, which we will do, to clean up those things that put you in a negative situation, which we always know are turnovers, we can continue to improve in those areas.” One of the keys this week on the offensive side of the ball for Miami will be establishing the running game. Redshirt sophomore running back Erik Finklea has performed well thus far, but the running game may prove to be an important factor this week against a Bowling Green team that has allowed over 110 yards per game on the ground, while
holding teams to under 200 yards passing through three games. “It is really important that we protect the football [this week],” Running Backs Coach Mark Spencer said. “We need to establish the run early. It matters what happens between the lines and at the end of the day, we are focused on the game and on executing each play.” However, look for the RedHawks to utilize their dynamic passing attack early and often. Sophomore wide out Nick Harwell will look to build on a 162 yard, 12 catch performance last week while redshirt senior wide receiver Chris Givens will likely be a big target for Miami, especially in the red zone. “Big plays on offense are huge,” Treadwell said. “I think Nick came back in and added a little bit of juice to the offense. But it also, when you have more than one receiver, makes the passing game in general better, and I think that’s what he did was just provide us more opportunities for more people to demonstrate their ability.” Defensively, the Red and White will look to shut down one of the top passing offenses in the country. Bowling Green’s redshirt sophomore quarterback Matt
Schilz is first among all MidAmerican Conference quarterbacks in passing yards, while senior wide receiver Eugene Cooper leads a veteran receiving corps that has caught 11 touchdown passes already this year. Shutting down these weapons will be one of the keys this week for the RedHawks defense. “We need to play hard and play physical all day for all four quarters,” sophomore cornerback Dayonne Nunley said. “[Bowling Green] has a great offense and we need to come out ready to go [on Saturday].” Miami has struggled against the run this season, partially due to the two du-
progresses to help shut down opponent’s ground attacks. The Red and White have also struggled on special teams this year, but most of the mistakes are correctable and the team is not concerned, according to Treadwell. In addition, Miami is very close to selling out Yager Stadium for the first time in eight years. Saturday not only marks the home opener for the RedHawks, but it is also Family Weekend. Campus Activities Council, Red Alert and the Miami Athletic Department will cosponsor Tailgate Town Saturday starting at 10 a.m. in the Millett Hall parking lot.
We need to play hard and physical all day for four quarters. Bowling Green has a great offense and we need to come out ready to go.” Dayonne nunley
SOPHOMORE DEFENSIVE BACK
al-threat quarterbacks they have faced, but has shut down opponent’s passing attacks. The RedHawks have allowed just over 150 yards per game through the air this year, and a veteran front seven will likely come together as a unit as the season
Fans should wear white and arrive early. If you cannot make it to the game tomorrow, you can listen to the game on Miami’s IMG Sports Network or on WMSR at www.redhawkradio.com. Kickoff is set for 1 p.m. ET.
BLAKE WILSON THE MIAMI STUDENT
THREE IN A ROW AND COUNTING
Freshman Emily Hyde watches her shot fly towards goal as the Indiana State University goalkeeper makes a diving attempt. The RedHawks beat the Sycamores in overtime 2-1 on Sunday to increase their win-streak to three.
The end of college football as we know it A few weeks ago in the “the Good, the Bad and the Ugly,” Michael Solomon wrote that ‘the ugly’ was the formation of the new Super Conferences and how we’re closer to the “Pac-28” then the “Pac-10.” The same rings true today. Only three weeks later, the Big 12 and Big East have both started crumbling into ashes of what their former conferences were. Syracuse University and the University of Pittsburgh have left the Big East to join the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), while the University of Texas, Oklahoma University, Oklahoma State University and Texas Tech are all having closed door meetings to decide the future fate of their respective memberships in the Big 12. The potential destruction of the traditions and history surrounding many of these conferences is about to go straight out the window. The Big 12 is about to become a mid-major conference. According to Andy Katz of ESPN, the Big 12 is soon to be the Big 2 with only Missouri and Kansas not currently looking at other options. The Big East, once the premier college basketball conference with 11 of its 16 members making the NCAA Tournament just last year, is now the “Not so Big and Not so East” with Texas Christian University (TCU) having joined last year, which is located in Fort Worth, Texas. What we continually forget about these conference remodeling is not the fact that in the very near future we’re going to end up with two conferences which will just be called the “Big Pac West” and the “Big Atlantic EC” but why these Univer-
sities are making these major realignment switches. Every team needs to have the ability to change conferences, can you imagine if Tulane University still played in the SEC like they used to? But the fact is these universities are not making the switch for better and fairer competition or better academics, but rather for lots and lots and lots and lots of money. With the creation of the individual conference networks, money became a major tenet of the future of college sports. It started with a commercially viable Big Ten Network and has ended with the $330 million Longhorn Network. This is the penultimate problem with major college sports. What is the essential purpose of college sports? It is to provide students the opportunity to compete at a high level event for fun and glory. Today, college sports have turned into the “you’re here to play and win first, school second” rather then “you’re here to learn first and if you win, that’s great too.” Universities are losing touch with the essence of amateur athletics and have become obsessed with the bottom line. How many times have players been paid under the table all across the country while coaches, athletic directors, professors and even presidents and deans look the other way? These conference realignments are by far and large the most hypocritical event in American sporting history. Major colleges and universities can no longer say they are in athletics “for the student,” when they so blatantly are not. The student athlete is no more, might as well just call them “the money machine.”
Miami looks to start MAC schedule on a high note By Tom Downey
For The Miami Student
The Miami University women’s volleyball team enters Mid-American Conference (MAC) play after three tough losses against St. Louis University, the University of North Carolina and the University of Tulsa in the Tar Heel Classic. Their current record stands at 9-5, good for second in the MAC East right
the University of Delaware. Kent State typically has a very good serving team, with one or two goto players. However, Kent lost several seniors so their team is still a work in progress and it’s not quite clear who those go-to players are quite yet. Senior Amy Raseman said that Kent State is “very scrappy” and the team has to “never give up and play better defense” in order to beat
“Ohio typically has a strong team and we expect them to be strong as usual. In order to beat Ohio, we need to have a strong offense.” AMY RASEMAN
SENIOR OUTSIDE HITTER
now. The Red and White road record stands at 2-2 as they prepare for the Kent State University Golden Flashes and the Ohio University Bobcats. The ’Hawks travel to Kent State to open MAC play 7 p.m. Friday. The Golden Flashes record currently stands at 7-8, with two straight losses against Indiana University-Purdue University Fort Wayne and
them. Coach Carolyn Condit echoed similar thoughts. “Our team defense has to prove itself against both Ohio and Kent,” she said. In order for the team to win, they’ll need sophomore defensive specialist Madison Hardy to continue to play like she did in the Tar Heel Classic, where she averaged just over 19 digs per game. Following their match
against Kent, the Red and White then travel to Athens, Ohio for a match against the Ohio Bobcats at 7 p.m. Saturday. The Bobcats’ current record stands 8-6, with wins over the University of Maryland, Villanova University, Virginia Tech and the University of Pittsburgh. Much like Kent, Ohio lost several key seniors, but Raseman says the Bobcats will be a tough team. “Ohio typically has a strong team and we expect them to be strong as usual,” Raseman said. “In order to beat Ohio, we need to have a strong offense.” The Bobcats have been one of the better MAC teams over the recent years, demonstrated by the fact they are celebrating their “decade of dominance” this year. In order to win, the RedHawks will need to be on their best game offensively and need Raseman to continue her strong play, as she has averaged just over two kills per set this year. After two road games, the Red and White will return for their MAC home opening weekend. On Sept. 30 the ’Hawks welcome the University at Buffalo and then on Oct. 1 they will host the University of Akron.
JESSI THORNE THE MIAMI STUDENT
Senior Amy Raseman follows through on a swing on Sept -. 9 against Florida Gulf Coast University. Raseman and the RedHawks start their MAC schedule on the road this weekend.