Miami tried its best to get Junior McMullen off the field.
McMullen, irate after a pass interference call on the RedHawks, went off the deep end. The linebacker was flagged for comments toward an official after the pass interference. But as teammates begged and pleaded for him to calm down, he kept going. McMullen was flagged again and then ejected.
The pass to Papi White which drew the flag came from Ohio's own 31-yard line. Without completing a pass or breaking off a long run, Ohio ran its next play from Miami's 24.
Seven plays later, Ohio found the end zone to go up two scores and effectively put its rival away in the conference title race with a 45-28 win over Miami at Peden Stadium on Tuesday night.
“I was on the sideline, but I ended up being on the field," A.J. Ouellette said. "I was going crazy, throwing my towel like it was a flag. After you get in their head and they get a little frustrated, you know you’ve got the game won."
With the win, Ohio moved to 7-2 and 4-1 in the Mid-American Conference. Miami now sits at 3-6 overall with a 2-3 conference record. The only way that Miami could win the MAC East is if it runs the table the rest of the way — and Ohio loses its remaining three games.
With what started as an illegal grab of White's jersey ended with Miami losing a grip on just about everything that mattered.
“It was big, at that point we were really trying to put the nail in the coffin and really separate ourselves from them," quarterback Nathan Rourke said. "We had a bunch of opportunities throughout the game where we were up by 14 and not pull away. Obviously we didn’t draw it up like that, but we’re glad that it happened.”
The matchup against Akron two weeks from Tuesday will be the game that almost assuredly will decide the MAC East. Both teams sit at 4-1 in the conference with three games left to play. Before that, however, Ohio will have to face the preseason MAC favorite Toledo at Peden Stadium next Wednesday night.
But that game carries less importance, less necessity and less urgency now, as Miami's division chances nearly vanished with an another offensive outburst from Ohio.
The Bobcats were able to jump out to a 14-point lead, twice, but both times squandered the lead. The only time they didn't allow the RedHawks back into the game was when a RedHawk lost his self-control.
"They’re getting frustrated and can’t stop you, so at that point you know you’re in their head,” Ouellette said.
Of course, there were reasons behind the lost composure: Rourke accounted for three passing touchdowns and 294 yards through the air. Ouellette and Rourke combined for 134 yards on the ground as Rourke added three rushing touchdowns.
Despite a strong effort from RedHawks wideout James Gardner, who tallied 10 catches for 166 yards and three touchdowns, Miami couldn't find its footing when it mattered most. It turned out, the RedHawks couldn't find their heads either.
There were flea-flickers and reverse flea-flickers. There was an ejection and 10 total touchdowns. There were even new uniforms. The only thing missing from Ohio's win on Halloween night was a conference cluster in the MAC East.
And that left town long, long ago.
