Miami 52-3 Central Michigan (Sep 26, 2026) Final Score

Team pages: Central Michigan · Miami

Central Michigan2-23

No. 6 Miami4-052Final

Sat, Sep 26 · Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Fla. · Crowd 65,338

No. 6 Miami routed Central Michigan 52-3.

We had Miami favored. It won.

Next: Central Michigan beat Akron 41-17, Sat Oct 3

Next: Miami beat Clemson 41-13, Sat Oct 3

Top comment in the game thread

ACC refs are like no other

Q3 8:34 · r/CFB game thread · Sat, Sep 26

How it swung

Before kickoff, our ratings gave Miami a 97% chance, and the closing betting line (Miami was a 41.5-point favorite) put it above 99%.

Miami led by 4 after the first quarter and by 32 at the half.

Fumble return TD

Miami · Q3 6:00

FinalMiami 52-3 Central MichiganMiami wonMove across the chart, or tap a numbered swing, to see any play.

No single play moved the chance by 20 points.

What fans said, play by play

The line in bold above each quote is written by our model from the thread’s comments and the play-by-play.

Q1 11:23Miami fans panic over offensive line struggles after a three-and-out driveOnly one drive but starting to panic about that offensive line.r/CFB game threadThis team better shape up or conference play will not be kind to us.r/CFB game thread
Q1 5:56Central Michigan scores a field goal to take a 3-0 lead over MiamiIn my very non-biased opinion, I think we've seen enough and the game should be called.r/CFB game thread
Q1 1:58Mallory runs for a touchdown as Miami fans mock Central MichiganThere’s the TDr/CFB game thread
Q2 3:22Miami fans celebrate the 28-3 lead and look ahead to ClemsonWell next week is Clemsonr/CFB game threadthank you duke. incredible trade this off-season.r/CFB game thread
Q3 8:34Miami fans rage at phantom OPI call on Mensah pass to JacobsQuoted at the top of the page.Do these refs get paid per flag?r/CFB game thread

Miami’s chance to win after every play.

How to read this chart

Starts from the pregame line (Miami -41.5), at 99% for Miami (the play-by-play feed's kickoff number, moved to match the line; our model's and the betting line's own numbers are in “The betting line, and the fans”). Dots are the biggest swings; ticks under the chart are scores. Outlined diamonds mark rare plays. Under the scores, r/CFB comments per minute from fans with a Miami or Central Michigan flair (281 and 25); both sides share one scale, regulation only. A gold diamond marks a play fans were reacting to.

Watch the plays

The bar and the arrow show Miami’s chance to win after each play; the logo is the team the play helped.

Every drive

Miami scored on 7 of its 10 drives; Central Michigan on 1 of its 10.

Miami’s drives are teal, Central Michigan’s amber. A line runs from where a drive started to where it ended; a filled dot means it scored.

“Honestly best part of this thread is just FireUpChips247 holding it down for his whole team. Good for him. Respect.”

A Miami fan

When fans got loud

Roaring

The biggest reaction came in the third quarter.

Jump to the loudest stretch

The jump was roaring; the crowd was quiet.

A large share of the loudest stretch was about the officiating.

Fans of both teams were loud at once in the bracketed stretch.

“Will they show us the penalty?”

A Miami fan

What it cost

Miami’s chance to make the playoff fell from 70% to 68%.

Make the playoff

Central Michigan · lost0% → 0%

Miami · won70% → ▼68%

Win the conference

Central Michigan · lost2% → 2%

Miami · won60% → ▼58%

Before the game (September 25, 2026) → after this result, in our model.

Box score

Miami 52, Central Michigan 3

Miami covered −41.5 by 7.5. The total, 55, went over 52.5.

Team totals	Central Michigan	Miami
Total yards	158	572
Passing	21 of 26, 137 yds	27 of 34, 371 yds
Rushing	25 for 21 yds	34 for 201 yds
First downs	10	31
Third down	6 of 14	6 of 9
Fourth down	0 of 0	1 of 1
Turnovers	3	0
Penalties	6 for 36 yds	13 for 107 yds
Time of possession	28:50	31:10

Central Michigan leaders

Passing Jadyn Glasser 13 of 15, 88 yds, 1 INT
Rushing Nicholas Woodford 6 for 21 yds; Jayden Clerveaux 6 for 13 yds
Receiving Tayte Vanderleest 1 for 24 yds; Langston Lewis 2 for 22 yds

Miami leaders

Passing Darian Mensah 23 of 27, 338 yds, 3 TD
Rushing Chris Wheatley-Humphrey 11 for 104 yds, 1 TD; Girard Pringle Jr. 7 for 38 yds
Receiving Malachi Toney 6 for 120 yds, 1 TD; Cooper Barkate 4 for 47 yds, 1 TD

No rain and calm

83° at kickoff · no rain recorded · wind 5 mph from the north, gusts to 12

September game-day temperatures at Hard Rock Stadium

Drag along the chart, or step through the game.

First quarter, 14:49 left6:41 p.m.

Central Michigan 0, Miami 0 · Miami 99% to win

no rain · wind 8 mph from the north, gusts to 14 · 83°

Mensah 7-yd pass to Lofton

Where this weather comes from

Measured at Hollywood/n. Perry airport, 2.9 miles away, and Miami/opa Locka airport, 4.3 miles away. Rain is NOAA's radar-and-gauge estimate at the stadium and wind is an airport reading; neither is measured on the field. Game times come from the play-by-play, good to a minute or two. Source: National Weather Service, through the Iowa Environmental Mesonet; rain radar from NOAA MRMS, through Iowa State University. Field direction from OpenStreetMap contributors.

Before kickoff

Recent games, the series and the betting line below are as they stood going in; the season profile is the season so far.

Recent games

Last three games

Central Michigan · 2-1

Rated 120th in our preseason ratings, 131st now.

2-1 in its last three, capped by a 14-point win over Wyoming as a 1.5-point underdog.

W 24-10 vs Wyoming #136 of 668

won by 14 as a 1.5-point underdog

W 13-10 vs Colgate #167 of 668

won by 3 as an 18.5-point favorite

L 7-38 @ New Mexico #72 of 668

lost by 31 as an 11.5-point underdog

Last three games

Miami · 3-0

Rated 10th in our preseason ratings, 9th now.

Three straight wins, one over ranked or top-40 competition.

W 33-20 @ Wake ForestTop 25 #73 of 668

won by 13 as a 20.5-point favorite

W 77-7 vs Florida A&M #216 of 668

won by 70 as a 59.5-point favorite

W 45-6 @ Stanford #93 of 668

won by 39 as a 24.5-point favorite

Week by week

Miami

Wk 1Wat Stanford45-6
Wk 2Wvs Florida A&M77-7
Wk 3Wat Wake Forest33-20

Central Michigan

Wk 1Lat New Mexico7-38
Wk 2Wvs Colgate13-10
Wk 3Wvs Wyoming24-10

Power rating by week

Miami is rated 14.9 points ahead as of week 3. Our power rating by week; higher is better.

Matchups

Biggest mismatch: Miami’s EPA/play against Central Michigan, 81 points

Each row ranks the two sides among all teams. The longer the line, the bigger the mismatch.

Miami’s EPA/play against Central Michigan’s defense
Miami offense, 100th percentile · Central Michigan defense, 19th
Central Michigan’s passing EPA against Miami’s defense
Central Michigan offense, 3rd percentile · Miami defense, 71st
Miami’s explosive plays against Central Michigan’s defense
Miami offense, 68th percentile · Central Michigan defense, 92nd

Season profile, all the rows

Season profile

Central MichiganMiami

EPA/play, offense

EPA/play, defense

Success rate, offense

Success rate, defense

Explosive-play rate, offense

Explosive-play rate, defense

Rush EPA, offense

Rush EPA, defense

Pass EPA, offense

Pass EPA, defense

The series

Miami leads the series 1-0

1 meeting since 2019 · Miami won the last meeting

2019Miami 17-12

Each line is Miami’s chance to win through that meeting.

Line, fans and home field

The betting line, and the fans

Miami fans are feeling it less than most fanbases this week (40th among FBS fanbases), and the other side is no happier.

Miami favored by 41.5 · Total 52.5

How games like this usually go

Miami by 41.5, and it went to form

Half of games8 in 10 gamesThis game

The band is where a favorite’s chance ran in the 411 games since 2025 with a favorite of 21.5 points or more.

The market

The spread moved 1 point toward Central Michigan.

The total fell 2 points.

Weather at kickoff

Warm and dry. Feels like 82° at kickoff.

Central Michigan at Miami · Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026 · Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens

82°feels like at kickoff
Dryno rain at kickoff
92weather score, Comfortable
Tiedfor the best of the day's 8 kickoff times

At kickoff, Sept. 26, 2026.

Weather score: 0 to 100, higher is better, for the first 3 hours and 20 minutes of the game. Ideal is 100, Comfortable 90 to 99, Mixed 75 to 89, Rough 50 to 74, Harsh under 50.

Later kickoff times scored higher that Saturday

Games in this time zone used 8 kickoff times that day, local time (kickoffs within 30 minutes of each other count as one). This game, ringed, was tied for the best of the day's eight kickoff times. At Hard Rock Stadium that day, a 7 pm kickoff would have scored 94, against 92 at 6 pm.

noon: 69, Rough
12:45 pm: 68, Rough
2 pm: 66, Rough
3:30 pm: 68, Rough
4 pm: 71, Rough
5 pm: 79, Mixed
6 pm: 92, Comfortable (this game)
7 pm: 94, Comfortable

Weather score at each kickoff time.

Tap a dot to read that kickoff time.

At kickoff, Sept. 26, 2026. Wind is not drawn here; gusts are in each score.

Home field

Miami has had no measurable home edge since 2018 — +1.0 points (±4.0), home against road — 6th percentile of FBS.

70% at home, 60% on the road against FBS opponents (33-14 home, 26-17 away).

Our model gives every stadium the same flat 2.3-point home edge (why); the books use about 3. Against the closing line this stadium reads -4.7 at home vs. away over 98 games — inside the ±6.2 noise, so the flat number is the honest one here.

Night kickoff — historically worth about half a point more to the home side against the number, and not much more than that. The visitors travel about 1,244 miles to get here.

No. 6 Miami routs Central Michigan 52-3