The loss dropped Miami to 5–4, 4–1 in the Mid-American Conference. Ohio improved to 6–3, 4–1, before a crowd of 22,231.
Miami led twice in the fourth quarter. Finn hit Braylon Isom on a 4-yard scoring pass to cap an 11-play, 60-yard march at 13:29 for a 13–10 edge, only to see Bangura take the ensuing kick up the right seam to the house at 13:15. The RedHawks answered again when Finn lofted a 27-yard touchdown to Kam Perry with 9:29 to play for a 20–17 lead, but the Bobcats’ defense forced a punt and their offense answered five minutes later. On 2nd-and-10, Navarro stepped up against pressure and delivered a deep shot to Harris down the left side for the go-ahead score.
Miami owned the ball for 32:50 and outgained Ohio 338-330, but special teams swung it toward the Bobcats. Ohio averaged 49.6 net yards per kickoff to Miami’s 30.8, and Bangura’s return provided a non-offensive touchdown. The RedHawks also opened the night with a pair of missed opportunities in short fields and settled for two Dom Dzioban field goals — from 23 yards with 1:57 left in the first half and 46 yards at 8:15 of the third quarter.
Bangura powered Ohio on the ground with 17 carries for 102 yards, including a 22-yard touchdown burst that put the Bobcats ahead 10–6 at 4:37 of the third. Navarro went 16 of 31 for 201 yards with one touchdown and one interception, finding Harris five times for 92 yards, while Chase Hendricks added three receptions for 40.
Finn finished 17 of 25 for 194 yards with two touchdowns and one interception for Miami. Cole Weaver was his favored target with six catches for 94 yards. Perry had three receptions for 45 yards and the go-ahead grab in the fourth, and Isom caught two for 31 and a score. Jordan Brunson led the RedHawks with 49 rushing yards on 15 carries.
The teams traded field goals late in the first half for a 3–3 tie at the break. Miami pieced together a 13-play, 74-yard drive that stalled at the 1 before a false start pushed the RedHawks back, and Dzioban converted from 23. Ohio answered in the two-minute drill, and David Dellenbach hit from 35 with seven seconds left.
Momentum swung several times after halftime. Miami converted an Ohio fumble into three points when linebacker Corban Hondru sacked Navarro and recovered at the Bobcats’ 36, setting up Dzioban’s 46-yarder. Ohio responded with its 75-yard touchdown drive keyed by Bangura’s 22-yard scoring burst. The RedHawks then authored back-to-back touchdown drives of 60 and 65 yards around Bangura’s kick return before Navarro and Harris delivered the final punch.
Miami was 4 of 13 on third down but went 2 for 2 on fourth, while Ohio was 6 of 12 on third. Each side turned it over once. The RedHawks finished 2 for 2 in the red zone, and Ohio’s lone red-zone trip also produced points.
Dellenbach was perfect on three PATs and a field goal for Ohio. Dzioban went 2 for 2 on field goals and 2 for 2 on PATs for Miami. Pierse Stainton averaged 41.2 yards on five punts with two downed inside the 20, and Ohio’s Magnus Haines averaged 35.2 on four.
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