After that, UC took over and won on Richards' field goal.
''When you turn the ball over with that kind of (4-to-1) ratio, you reduce your chances of winning,'' Miami coach Randy Walker said. ''I thought we played hard, but we just didn't play well.''
It was the fourth straight year that the UC-MU game has gone down to the final seconds, including UC's 30-23 triple-overtime win last year. The fans, dressed in every possible combination of red and black (UC) or red and white (MU), again got their money's worth, although the 1997 game was not quite the classic of 1996.
But it was just as close.
''I heard a lot about this rivalry,'' said Keck, a junior college transfer (Hutchinson CC, Kan.) who came to UC this year. ''They said it would come down to the wire, and it did.''
Miami grabbed an early 3-0 lead after a 14-play drive to start the game, setting the tone physically. But Keck answered with his punt return for a TD, giving UC a 7-3 lead.
The lead changed hands three times, and there were three tie scores. UC took a 17-10 lead to halftime and grabbed the game's biggest edge, 24-10, on Plummer's 61-yard run to open the second half. Miami fought back to tie it 24-24 by game's end, forcing overtime on a 16-yard pass from Sam Ricketts to 5-foot-9 wideout Ty Buxton.
In overtime, each team gets a chance to score with first-and-10 from the opponent's 25-yard line. UC scored on a 1-yard run by Daryl Royal and Miami answered with a 14-yard pass from Ricketts to Jay Hall, making it 31-31 through one overtime.
In the second OT, Hawkins picked off a Ricketts pass which glanced off the back of MU tight end Damian Vaughn. Four plays later, Richards kicked the winner despite Miami calling a timeout to ''ice'' him.
Does that tactic, in fact, ''ice'' a kicker?
''Maybe some people,'' Richards said, grinning.
The victory was a huge morale boost for UC, after a 41-38 double-OT loss at Houston last week. That defeat effectively knocked the Bearcats out of the Conference USA race and a chance for the Liberty Bowl, and many expected them to lose to a rampaging Miami team (five straight wins) that had just routed Marshall and their star receiver Randy Moss 45-21 last week.
''Our character showed through today, even though we were physically manhandled,'' Minter said. ''We were fortunate to win, and I know how Miami feels because we went through it last week. But our motto is W.I.T. . . . whatever it takes. And we had just enough.''
WEIRDNESS KICKS IN FOR UC Paul Daugherty column
TURNOVERS KILL MIAMI
UC-MIAMI NOTEBOOK
GAME STATISTICS
UC SEASON IN STORIES
