Chuck Martin enters his 12th year in Oxford, one of the longer tenures in the entire FBS, and that continuity matters when the depth chart is this unsettled. His staff has been running a genuine competition this spring between returning arm Thomas Gotkowski, Kansas transfer David McComb, and Division II transfer Caleb Heavner, with new offensive coordinator Gus Ragland — a former Miami quarterback himself — tasked with picking a lane. Central Michigan's situation reads similarly murky: Angel Flores, Marcus Beamon and Jadyn Glasser are all in the mix after Joe Labas graduated, and second-year coach Matt Drinkall hasn't tipped his hand publicly.
The head-coaching angle cuts a different way. Martin is a known commodity who's kept Miami near the top of the MAC's pecking order for over a decade. Drinkall is still building a resume — this is his first head-coaching job above the NAIA level, and he's got a full offseason under his own system for the first time. That gap in experience shows up in how each staff has handled its quarterback situation: Miami's is being treated like a genuine battle with stakes, Central Michigan's more like an open audition.
Recent history in this series is lopsided. Miami has won five straight meetings dating back to 2016, including a 46-7 blowout the last time these two played in 2024, and leads the all-time series 17-13-1. Central Michigan's own athletic department didn't mince words about how its 2025 season ended either, calling its 34-7 bowl loss to Northwestern a "giveaway" performance — not the kind of language that inspires confidence heading into a rebuild year.
None of that means Central Michigan is hopeless. Having three viable quarterback options isn't nothing, and if one of them separates in fall camp, this offense could look sharper than last year's committee approach. Miami, meanwhile, is dealing with real attrition on defense, having lost contributors to the NFL, and ESPN's preseason MAC outlook still lists the RedHawks among the conference's top contenders — but that projection assumes the quarterback competition resolves itself cleanly, which is far from guaranteed this early.
Bet on the name recognition and track record here, not the hope. Miami's coaching stability and its dominance in this specific series carry real weight against a Central Michigan team still trying to find its footing under Drinkall. Until the Chippewas prove they can beat Miami with a fresh cast at quarterback, the RedHawks are the safer lean on paper.