A.J. Doyle Throws For 249 And Two Touchdowns In 17-10 Win Over Miami

Oct. 12, 2013

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FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - Sophomore A.J. Doyle threw for 249 yards and two touchdowns to lead Massachusetts to a 17-10 win over Miami (Ohio) at Gillette Stadium on Saturday.

UMass (1-5, 1-0 Mid-American Conference) established season-highs with 376 yards of total offense and 23 first downs. Doyle was 19-of-35 on the day and had two interceptions as well.

Redshirt sophomore Jamal Wilson had his second 20-plus carry game as he rushed 23 times for 82 yards. Redshirt senior Rob Blanchflower led the UMass receiving corps with five catches for 98 yards and touchdown.

The Minutemen defense continued it's strong play by forcing three turnovers, with two interceptions by sophomore Khary Bailey-Smith and one by senior Devin Brown. Redshirt junior Stanley Andre led all players with a career-high 14 tackles.

Miami (0-6, 0-2) had 290 yards of offense and was just 1-of-11 on third down. Austin Boucher threw for 166 yards on 14-of-34 with one touchdown.

The last time UMass held an opponent to fewer than 300 yards of total offense came on Oct. 29, 2011 at Richmond (299).

The UMass offense came out strong in the early going, compiling a pair of drives that penetrated the red zone.

After a turnover at the Miami one-yard line on their first possession, the Minutemen made good on drive number two as Doyle found redshirt sophomore Elgin Long on a scramble for a 22-yard strike to go ahead 7-0 just past the midway point of the first quarter. Long finished with a career game as he caught four passes for 29 yards.

Miami answered with a 64-yard drive that saw Boucher connect with Steve Marck for a 13-yard pass to tie the game up at 7-7.

The RedHawks took their only lead of the game at 10-7 when Kaleb Patterson connected on a season-long 45-yard field goal with 8:09 left.

UMass regained the lead with a methodical 9-play, 81-yard drive that culminated in a 47-yard Doyle pass to Blanchflower. The ball was tipped and almost intercepted near the 20-yard line by Miami's Dayonne Nunely, but Blanchflower caught the ball behind the safeties and scampered in untouched for the longest reception of his career.

Early in the fourth, Bailey-Smith plucked a tipped ball out of mid air and returned it to the Miami 26, where Blake Lucas converted a 25-yard field goal six plays later to extend the lead to 17-10 with 11:19 to play.

UMass will return to play next week when it travels to Buffalo (4-2, 2-0) on Oct. 19. Kickoff at UB Stadium is set for 3:30 p.m. Eastern time.

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