There is a good article here from the Springfield Union about UMass’ receivers.
This year the 2002 A10 Rookie-of-the-Year R.J. Cobbs 5-11 190 has been moved to WR. He will also do some punt and kickoff returns as well as some duty as RB. His career statistics as a receiver are 21 catches 140 yds 6.7 avg 1 TD 24 lg. All of those catches have been out of the backfield as a tailback.
In a two receiver set, the other starter will be Brandon London 6-4 210. He has excellent hands. His career totals are 38 catches 467 yds 12.3 avg 3 TD 35 lg.
Senior Dominique Stewart career 66 catches 744 yds 11.3 avg 2 TD 41 lg will probably be the third wideout. I’ve met his parents several times and they are just great people.
Sophomore J.J. Moore had a great year in 2004 32 catches 389 yds 12.2 avg 4td 40 lg. His 32 catches broke UMass record for receptions by a freshman (formerly held by Adrian Zullo 1998). He will push Stewart for the third spot. The Springfield Union had an article on him here.
UMass will also have two new WR’s for 2005. My favorite is Rasheed Rancher 6-5 187. I think Rancher will be an impact player in the future. He has NFL size. He and backup QB Liam Coen hooked up for a nice play in the Spring Game. Coen was flushed out of the pocket and spotted Rancher who had broken off his route. While running, Coen motioned for Rancher to take off. Rancher instantly went back into his pattern and Coen hit him on the fly for a nice gain. It was really a great football play.
Also available this year will be Victor Cruz 6-0 200. He was one of UMass’ top rated recruits in 2004 (one star Rivals), but ended up going to a year of prep school. Given the depth of the UMass receiving corps, he might get a red shirt.
Red Shirt Freshman Ryan Logan 6-2 217 is the subject of an article here.
The image to the right is a scan from the UMass 2005 press guide.
