Miami (OH) Football: Redhawks hope recapture 2019 magic

Eight starters return for Miami (OH) Football defense

It was hard to get a read on how good Miami (OH) football was on defense last season, so it will be interesting to see if the Redhawks will be good enough on that side of the ball to get back to the MAC title.

The defensive line is a talented group heading into the season and they are going to be led by their edge rushers Ben Kimpler, Kameron Butler, and Dominique Robinson. That is a pretty deep group of front and they should be able to put pressure on the quarterback. The interior of the defensive line is going to be headlined by a couple of young guys in Austin Ertl and Anthony Collier.

The linebackers are another group that is going to be able to get pressure on the quarterback. Ivan Pace Jr. showed how talented he was in 2019 when he set the school record for sacks in a game when he tallied six vs Akron. Pace Jr will lead the way, but Ryan McWood is a talented player as well and led the team in tackles last season.

The secondary is going to be led by the safety group of Mike Brown and Sterling Weatherford, who are both three-year starters. Cecil Singleton is returning at Nickelback and Ja’Don Rucker-Furlow is at corner, but the secondary did take a bit of a hit with the loss of cornerback All-MAC performer Manny Rugamba.

This defense can be solid if the secondary comes together. They will have a solid pass rush and the run defense was solid as well last season.