2003 Miami RedHawks football team

The 2003 Miami RedHawks football team represented Miami University in the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. They competed in the East Division of the Mid-American Conference (MAC) . The team was coached by Terry Hoeppner and played their homes game in Yager Stadium. The Redhawks finished the season with a record of 13–1 (8–0 MAC). They won the MAC for the first time since 1986 and was invited to the GMAC Bowl, where they beat Louisville 49–28.

2003 Miami RedHawks football
MAC champion MAC East Division champion GMAC Bowl champion
MAC Championship Game, W 49–27 vs. Bowling Green
GMAC Bowl, W 49–28 vs. Louisville
Conference	Mid-American Conference
Division	East Division
Ranking
Coaches	No. 12
AP	No. 10
Record	13–1 (8–0 MAC)
Head coach	Terry Hoeppner (5th season)
Offensive coordinator	Shane Montgomery (3rd season)
Defensive coordinator	Pat Narduzzi (1st season)
Home stadium	Yager Stadium

2003 Mid-American Conference football standings

	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
East Division
No. 10 Miami (OH) x$		8	–	0					13	–	1
Marshall		6	–	2					8	–	4
Akron		5	–	3					7	–	5
Kent State		4	–	4					5	–	7
UCF		2	–	6					3	–	9
Ohio		1	–	7					2	–	10
Buffalo		1	–	7					1	–	11
West Division
No. 23 Bowling Green x		7	–	1					11	–	3
Northern Illinois		6	–	2					10	–	2
Toledo		6	–	2					8	–	4
Western Michigan		4	–	4					5	–	7
Ball State		3	–	5					4	–	8
Eastern Michigan		2	–	6					3	–	9
Central Michigan		1	–	7					3	–	9
Championship: Miami 49, Bowling Green 27
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance
August 30	12:00 pm	at Iowa*		Kinnick Stadium Iowa City, IA	ESPN2	L 3–21	54,128
September 13	12:00 pm	at Northwestern*		Ryan Field Evanston, IL	ESPN Plus	W 44–14	24,215
September 20	3:00 pm	at Colorado State*		Hughes Stadium Fort Collins, CO		W 41–21	31,610
September 27	2:00 pm	Cincinnati*		Yager Stadium Oxford, OH (Victory Bell)		W 42–37	27,512
October 4	2:00 pm	Akron		Yager Stadium Oxford, OH		W 45–20	20,157
October 11	2:00 pm	Buffalo		Yager Stadium Oxford, OH		W 59–3	23,683
October 18	3:00 pm	at Ball State		Ball State Stadium Muncie, IN	ESPN Plus	W 49–3	18,396
October 25	2:00 pm	at Kent State		Dix Stadium Kent, OH	ESPN Plus	W 38–30	10,693
November 4	7:30 pm	No. 15 Bowling Green		Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPN2	W 33–10	28,023
November 12	7:30 pm	Marshall	No. 23	Yager Stadium Oxford, OH	ESPN2	W 45–6	26,286
November 22	2:30 pm	at Ohio	No. 18	Peden Stadium Athens, OH (Battle of the Bricks)	FSN	W 49–31	14,327
November 28	1:00 pm	at UCF	No. 15	Florida Citrus Bowl Orlando, FL		W 56–21	12,902
December 4	7:00 pm	at No. 20 Bowling Green	No. 14	Doyt Perry Stadium Bowling Green, OH (MAC Championship Game)	ESPN	W 49–27	24,813
December 18	8:30 pm	vs. Louisville*	No. 14	Ladd–Peebles Stadium Mobile, AL (GMAC Bowl)	ESPN	W 49–28	40,620
*Non-conference game Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Eastern time

Roster

2003 Miami RedHawks football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class WR 5 Andre Henderson So WR 6 Michael Larkin Jr QB 7 Ben Roethlisberger Jr QB 8 Josh Betts So OL 60 Dan Kosta Sr OL 61 Dave Rehker Jr OL 62 Todd Londot So OL 64 Ben Hartings Jr OL 66 Joe Serina Sr OL 70 Ryan Meyer So OL 71 Ben Herrell Sr OL 74 Jacob Bell Sr OL 75 Mark Kracium So OL 76 Chris Fessel So OL 78 Kenneth Getch So OL 79 Nate Bunce So WR 82 R. J. Corbin So WR 83 Calvin Blackmon Jr TE 84 Tyler Vogel So TE 87 Matt Brandt Sr WR 88 Korey Kirkpatrick Sr TE 89 Dan Tyler So TE 90 Geoff Robinson Sr	Defense Pos. # Name Class DL 47 Jeremy Thompson Jr DL 48 Bill Lautar So DL 49 Will Stanley Sr DL 65 John Glavin So	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Terry Hoeppner Coordinators/assistant coaches Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible Injured Redshirt

After the season

Comments

Two Miami players were drafted into the National Football League: quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, left as a junior without a degree with a year of college eligibility remaining and was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the first round, #11 overall, and guard Jacob Bell, taken by the Tennessee Titans in the fifth round, #138 overall. Roethlisberger's #11 selection was the highest ever draft pick for a player from Miami.

Awards

The Columbus Dispatch named Hoeppner "Ohio College Coach of the Year." The 2003 team as a whole earned the American Football Coaches Association's "Academic Achievement Honor" for achieving a graduation rate over 70%.