WEST POINT, N.Y. —Miami Ohio had no answer for Army’s triple option offense attack. Quarterback Christian Anderson ran for two first half touchdowns to lead the Black Knights past Miami Ohio 23-10 on Saturday at Michie Stadium.
Anderson dashed 72 yards on Army’s third play then sprinted for a 75-yard score in the second quarter. He had a career-high 236 yards rushing on 15 carries before leaving with just over six minutes to go in the fourth quarter with an shoulder injury. Anderson left the game twice in the first half with injuries before returning both times.
Army accumulated 384 yards of offense all on the ground. Not a single completion was required for the Black Knights (4-0) against Miami (1-3). Army scored three touchdowns Saturday, but the Red Hawks defense pretty much bottled up the Black Knights — it was the two long QB touchdowns that spanned over 70 yards which was the difference in the game.
Miami struggled to move the ball on a consistent basis. The Red Hawks punted five times in the first half on drives of four plays or fewer.
A 21-yard field goal by Cole Talley after Reikan Donaldson blocked a Red Hawks punt made it 17-3 at the break. At that point, the Black Knights had outgained Miami 232-72 with all of it coming on the ground, 174 by Anderson on nine carries.
In the second half, the Red Hawks moved the ball down the field with a few short passes from Brett Gabbert. But Miami OH couldn’t punch the ball in after two opportunities from the Black Knights 1-yard line. Army immediately responded by taking 11 minutes of clock on a 99-yard scoring drive to make it 23-3.
“It just was a real battle for us to win that football game,’’ Army coach Jeff Monken said. “We kind of felt all week it was going to be the best team that we had faced so far and I think that was true.’’
The Red Hawks managed to score a touchdown with roughly 11 minutes remaining in the contest. Gabbert found halfback Kevin Davis on a wheel route and Davis dashed to the end zone for an 80-yard score. Gabbert threw for 193 yards for the day and was under duress all game long.
Miami extended its non-conference losing streak against FBS teams to 31 games. Ironically, the Red Hawks’ last out-of-conference FBS victory transpired over Saturday’s opponent, defeating Army 35-28 in 2011.
“We emphasize stopping the run and everybody did a great job of gapping it out and playing fast and physical,’’ said nose tackle Nolan Cockrill. As for the red zone stoppage, he said: “The intensity is just heightened and it’s always great to be able to get the ball back to the offense and keep points off the board. Everybody did a good job down there.’’
Army’s 4-0 start is the fourth since 1958. Only the 1996 (9-0) and 1985 Peach Bowl (5-0) teams have done better. The Black Knights have also won 13 in a row at home, one of the top-five streaks in the nation.
Next Up:
Army will travel to Muncie Indiana to play Ball State at 5:00pm ET ESPN+
https://youtu.be/vTOLSJF5lAs
