Miami football loses 59-14 to Pitt, looks toward home opener against Holy Cross

The RedHawks suffered a major defeat at the hand of the Panthers, but a return home offers an opportunity for growth.

The opening weekend of the 2026-27 college football season has officially concluded. Some teams exceeded expectations, while others floundered or failed.

The Miami RedHawks fell into the latter category in its opening matchup against the Atlantic Coast Conference’s (ACC) Pittsburgh Panthers at Acrisure Stadium, losing 59-14.

Head Coach Chuck Martin said he was “disappointed” with the score postgame.

“Obviously, my team wasn’t prepared to play Pitt in this environment, and structurally what they did against us, we were not prepared,” Martin said. “It starts and ends with me. I know we’re better than this. We’ve got a lot of work to do.”

The RedHawks began the game with a 55-yard kick return from Pittsburgh native and two-time former Pennsylvania Player of the Year, Scoop Smith. The 5-foot-5, 150-pound freshman showcased his blazing speed early and put Miami in a strong position for their first drive. 

Then, it was time for another first-year player to take the reins. Under center towered Kansas transfer quarterback David McComb, who was not only stepping into his first game with the RedHawks, but also into his college football career. However, after completing his first collegiate pass on third down, the RedHawks were forced to give the ball to the Panthers for their first drive.

Pittsburgh promptly took advantage not just of a porous Miami pass defense, but a facemask penalty that gave them a new set of downs on 3rd and 6, and scored to make the game 7-0. 

The second and third drives for both programs were more of the same. Miami’s offense looked out of sync and stagnant, while sophomore quarterback Mason Heintschel and the Panthers’ offense dissected the RedHawks. Pittsburgh scored on their first three possessions to lead 21-0, including an 89-yard drive across seven plays on their second possession.

Miami didn’t achieve their first extra set of downs until the 14:03 mark of the second quarter. After a conversion on 4th and 9, the RedHawks would march their way to the end zone for their first touchdown of the season: a rush at the one-yard line from redshirt sophomore running back D'Shawntae Jones following a 30-yard catch by Smith.

The two squads traded stops on defense, but the Panthers came back with a 45-yard passing touchdown to extend their lead to 28-7 before Miami responded with McComb’s first passing touchdown of the season, a 75-yard touchdown to junior Ohio State transfer Damarion Witten. 

Pittsburgh hit a 58-yard field goal to head into the half 31-14. 

Miami and Pitt’s second-half performances continued to be diametrically opposed. The RedHawks did not score a point, while the Panthers reached the end zone four straight times, all of which were Heintschel passing touchdowns. The sophomore quarterback ended the contest, going 31-41 on passing attempts with 453 yards and seven total touchdown passes, tying a Pitt single-game school record. 

With a final score of 59-14, the RedHawks trudged off Heinz Field disappointed and beaten down. The season is long, but blowout losses sting regardless, and McComb and Martin both acknowledged the team has plenty to work on. 

“Obviously, (we were) not great,” McComb said. “You put in a lot of work in the offseason, so you can hopefully see (that) down the field. There were some flashes, I don’t want to be too negative. There were some things we did well. But that was few and far between. There are a lot of things we need to improve on.”

Miami’s next test will be the College of the Holy Cross Crusaders, who will head to Oxford 0-2 on the season in the Patriot League.

Last year, Holy Cross finished third in the Patriot League with a 3-9 overall record, going 3-4 in conference play. They finished the season with two of the three recorded wins, but did not gather a victory at home all season. 

Holy Cross’ first two matchups this year came against other Patriot League opponents: the Colgate University Raiders and the Lehigh University Mountain Hawks – arguably the best team in the conference following a 12-1 overall season last campaign. Both games finished with scores of 35-10 in favor of the Crusaders’ opposition. 

Holy Cross junior quarterback David Lynch threw for 264 yards with no touchdowns and three interceptions in his first outing of the season. In his second, he launched for 313 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions. Two wide receivers bore the brunt of those targets and yards over the two contests: junior Ty Curran (162 yards on 10 catches) and junior Myles Abernathy (138 yards on 10 catches).

The Crusaders may not be the same caliber of opponent that Miami saw in the Panthers, but out-of-conference games often pose a great test for not just the ability of the underdog team, but its mindset as well. The last time Holy Cross played a team from the Mid-American Conference, they lost by only two points (Northern Illinois on Aug. 30 last season).

Martin said of the RedHawks, “Just like any week, we’ve got to focus on ourselves.”

“I know whenever you play up, you usually get the team’s best effort,” Martin said of the Crusaders. “I know they’re going to be excited to come here and take a shot at Miami. Obviously, it’s not the same caliber of recruit that Holy Cross recruits versus Pitt, but as we know in this sport, anything can happen any week. We should be fighting for our lives to just play the game the right way, try to compete and make some plays because we didn’t do that very often Saturday.”

For McComb, dropping back in that first game, despite the beatdown, offered him some relief. With the addition of the atmosphere and historic stadium, the Power Four opponent across the line of scrimmage was a huge but exciting test. Now, he’ll have the opportunity to play in front of his home fans with the first game jitters out of the way. 

“Getting the first one under your belt is good,” McComb said. “Being able to play and get comfortable out there (is nice). I’m not saying I played the best game I’ve ever played, but there was not a time where I didn’t feel like I was meant to be out there. I felt like I had the confidence and the poise to go out and play and execute.”

Miami and Holy Cross will kick off their second week of the season at 1 p.m. EST, Saturday, Sept. 12, in Oxford.