Wednesday, July 31, 2013

2013 UMass Football Blog road trip


Mrs Blog and I are off on our yearly road trip. This year we're going to Alaska.

We're going to spend a week touring with the Alaska Railroad, the spend a week on our own in Seward, and a week on Royal Caribbean cruise going down the Alaska coast and ending up in Vancouver.

As usual, I'll try to keep the blog going although there will be some gaps this year. The Seward resort does not have Wi-Fi, so I won't be posting during that week. Not sure about connectivity on the railroad tour.

I usually have some time in the morning for various reasons and if I'm surfing, then I'm checking out UMass news. I may as well do something useful and try to keep the blog going.

Anyway, Go UMass!

Wednesday--July 31, 2013

UConn coach Paul Pasqualoni says there is an urgency to improve. Note that the comment about UMass verbal Jason Sylva does not seem to be correct as he has tweeted he is committed to the Minutemen.

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The AAC teams are playing for this year.

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The Wisconsin Blog "Bucky's fifth Quarter" says the Badgers will have several FBS All-American candidates on their roster in 2013.

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The Buffalo Blog "Bull Run" has some tips for UMass fans intending to attend this year's game. Mrs Blog and I are going, In'shallah.

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CBS Sports say all eyes on #MACtion.

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Vladimir Ducasse and John Griffin both get mentions in this Jets training camp report.

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Stephane Milhim is out 1-2 weeks with an injured foot.

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Josh Samuda gets some praise in this article from the Sun-Sentinel.

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Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Dimitri Angelas commits to UMass

Scout.com image
Matty V. has an article (see previous blog post on Quai Jefferson) referencing Bob McGovern showing Dimitri Angelas, a 6-5 305 pound OL from Northville HS in Michigan, has verbaled to UMass.

Scout.com has an article featuring Angelas here.

This article from the "D-Zone" also features him.

Hudl.com has some physical stats.

Quai Jefferson verbals to UMass

Matty V. referencing Bob McGovern reports that Quai Jefferson, a 5-11 195 pound WR from NJ has committed to UMass.

Matty V's story here.

I've blogged about Jefferson before.


Randell West verbals to UMass

Kristen Vaugh image
UPDATE: Matty V. has an interview and story about West's verbal to UMass.

MassLive referencing Bob McGovern says Randell West, a 6-4 215 pound Pro-style QB from Lawrenceville, NJ has committed to UMass.

MassLive article here.

Rivals page here.

This article from February features West.

YouTube 2012 video highlights here.

Tuesday--July 30, 2013

It may be just the way the decisions are falling, but the MassLive scholarship database has seven of eleven recruits on the defensive side of the ball. Looking at the two "official" recruiting classes plus the Spring additions shows 20 of the 51 players brought in were defensive. That's around 40%.

Could 2014 be a big class for Coach Elamassian?

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Matt Sussman, the founder of the MAC blog "Hustle Belt" is leaving.

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Big Ten coaches talk MAC football.

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Western Michigan has been hit with injuries in the linebacker position this spring.

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John Griffin gets some praise in this article about the Jets camp (scroll down) .

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The LA Times says the new tackling rule puts college football on a slippery slope.

The same newspaper says maybe yellow cards are the answer.

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A Sun Sentinel writer says Josh Samuda is getting reps with the dolphins starting OL because he's one of the best pass blockers on the team.

More praise for Josh here.

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The day before UMass signed six recruits, Kansas State signed five and it was described as one of the "most memorable days" in the Cats recruiting history.

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The Wisconsin blog "Badger Bits" says only four weeks until the season starts.

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Charran Singh verbals to UMass

Manny Reeger image
MassLive, quoting Bob McGovern, reports Charan Singh, a 6-1 160 pound DB from Franklin Regional HS in PA has committed to the Minutemen.

MassLive article here.

NCSA recruiting profile here.

This article has a Q & A with Singh.


Monday, July 29, 2013

Monday--July 29, 2013

LOL, I can only shake my head when I remember Milt Cole would get about six column-inches for the UMass Spring Game and then there would be no media activity on Minuteman football until practice started in August.

Last evening, Daniel Malone, Matty V., Bob McGovern and I were all collapsing the wavefronts of electrons left and right.  We were all working late on a Sunday. Truly, it's the 21st Century...

Scroll down to see my posts on all six recruits.

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MassLive has a summary article on the Clambake Six.

So does Matty V.

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ESPN Boston has  a short article on the the verbals of Smiley, Wynne and Largay.

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Michael Cox NY Giants training camp image by Jim O'Conner

Michael Cox has also been returning kicks and punts for the Giants.

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Josh Samuda skirmished with Dolphins veteran Jared Odrick yesterday.

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Sunday, July 28, 2013

Jake Largay verbals to UMass

Twitter image
Matty V. reports that Jake Largay, a 6-6 280 pound DT from East Hartland, CT has verbaled to the Minutenmen.

Berecruited,com page here.

Hudl.com has video.

Jack Wynne verbals to UMass

Wynne #56/ Mike Ross image
Matty V reports Jack Wynne, a 6-4 240 pound DE from Greenwich, CT has verbaled to UMass.

247Sports page here.

NCSA page here.

Rivals page here.

Wynne drew interest from BC, Iowa, Penn State, UConn and Wisconsin

Joshua Smiley--commits to the Minutemen

Rivals image
Joshua Smiley, a 6-5 225 pound OLB from Pomfret School in CT has verbaled to UMass.

Rivals page here.

Quote from this Rivals pageSmiley was one of the more intriguing prospects at the event on Saturday. However, while he worked out at linebacker, his future seems to be at defensive end. An impressive-looking athlete, Smiley occasionally had problems in the open field, especially with his change of direction abilities. With his athleticism, burst of speed and body frame, he can easily grow into a defensive end that will have schools making a special stop in Connecticut over the next two years.

Chose UMass over offers from Boston College, UConn and Virginia.


Chris Carter verbals to UMass

UMass picked up its third verbal of the day when Chris Carter, a 6-4 258 pound DE from Bridgewater, NJ verbaled to the Minutemen.

247 Sports page here.

I blogged about Carter two weeks ago.

Chose UMass over an offer from Miami of Ohio.

Dan DiNicola verbals to UMass

247 Sports image
UPDATE: ESPN Boston has a story about DiNicola's verbal to UMass.

The Minutemen picked up their second Bay State recruit as Dan DiNicola, a 6-6 280 pound OL from Brookline, MA committed to UMass today.

Dan Malone has the story on MassLive.

Rivals two-star recruit.

9th ranked (by Rivals) Massachusetts recruit.

ESPN has junior highlights.

Besides UMass, DiNicola had a offer from new FBS school Old Dominion.

Jason Sylva verbals to UMass

Matty V. reports that Jason Sylva, a 6-2 245 pound LB from Dean Junior College has verbaled to UMass.

Matty references this tweet by ESPN's Brendan Hall.

I just blogged about Sylva on Wednesday with a link to a recent article about his de-commit from UConn.

Sylva was the second leading tackler on Dean's defense going 30 UT 34 AT 64 TT 9.5-34 TFL 2.5-19 SACKS 1 INT 2 FF.

The Minutemen are building a formidable LB corps.

Recruiting 2015--Tommy Hatton

247Sports image
NJ.com reports UMass has offered to Tommy Hatton, a 6-3 275 pound OG from St. Joe's HS in New Jersey.

Nj.com's article featuring Hatton here.

247Sports page here (note being recruited by Maryland coach Keith Dudzinski).

Rivals page here.


Sophomore year highlight above.

Besides UMass, Hatton holds offers from Rutgers, Boston College, UConn and Indiana.

Sunday--July 28, 2013

MassLive's Daniel Malone has ranking the former UMass players in the NFL.

He also has UMass QB Mike Wegzyn hopes the sequel is better than the premier.

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MAC Commissioner Jon Steinbrecher believes the conference is well positioned.

NCAA.com says the MAC is the conference of stability.

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The LA Times says the super BCS division is all about power and the Benjamins.

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Josh Samuda took snaps as the starting center for the Dolphins recently.

The Dolphin's offensive line denied stealing Samuda's Chevy Impala.

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The official NY Jets blog says there's an opening for John Griffin to run through.

The Jets running back coach is excited to work with an "underrated group".

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The changing roles of fullback in Chip Kelly's offensive scheme may be a problem for Emil Igwenagu.

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UMass was picked last in the MAC Media Day poll; you may have missed Boston College being picked last in the ACC's Media Day poll.

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Saturday, July 27, 2013

Recruiting 2014--Alex Gardner, Stephan Lewis and Kenneth Rawls

Western Michigan ran their 2014 class to 28 verbals signing seven recruits recently.

Three of the Broncos signings had UMass offers: Alex Gardner, Stephan Lewis and Kenneth Rawls.

Saturday--July 27, 2013

The UMass website has video of Mike Wegzyn and Rob Blanchflower during the MAC Media Day.

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Matty V. has former UMass players in NFL Camps.

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FBS Schedules has a post on Notre Dame and Temple moving their game to 2015. UMass is on the schedule for both teams.

Temple will be at UMass in 2015

UMass at Temple in 2017

UMass at Notre Dame in 2015.

Future Temple schedules.

Future Notre Dame schedules.

UMass' future schedule is in a link in the blog sidebar. FBS Schedules had a post on the UMass-Temple two-game series back in April. The Minutemen need to add a three-game seriews with UConn.

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The Dayton Daily News has a report from the MAC Media Day and some quotes from Coach Molnar.

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AP/John Raoux image
Former UMass player Stephane Milhim opened the Jaguars camp on the "physically unable to play" list.

Milhim also appeared on a Florida Sports talk show.

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James Ihedigbo had an INT for a score in the Ravens first training camp day.

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Friday, July 26, 2013

Friday--July 26, 2013

MassLive has the second half of their interview with Phil Steele on the state of UMass' program as it goes into its 2013 FBS season.

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In 2014, UMass will play at Vanderbilt as the third in a four game series. The Commodores will play all four of their OOC games in Nashville in '14. The last game of the series will be in 2018.

The Vanderbilt blog "Anchor of Gold" previews the Commodores 2013 offensive line.

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UMass will be the first test of Wisconsin's new 3-4 defensive scheme.

Speaking of the Badgers, QB Tanner McCovey was mugged recently.

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Kansas State will have to replace nine defensive starters for 2013.

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The Daily Chronicler reports the MAC's commissioner believes the league deserves attention.

SB Nation has some images on Miami's new unis and helmet. I dunno...

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Football Scoop reports that former UMass coach Brian Butterworth has hired at FCS Sacred Heart to coach defensive backs (scroll to Wednesday).

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The Baltimore Ravens site says James Ihedigbo is eyeing a starting job.

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The Empire Writes Back says Michael Cox is in at running back for the Giants.

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I watched the Alouettes win over Edmonton last night. They don't throw to Brandon London enough.

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Recruiting 2013--Shakur Nesmith

NCSA image
Both MassLive and Matty Vautour report that UMass will add former Temple recruit Shakur Nesmith, a 6-4 192 pound WR from Phildelphia, PA.

Rivals has Nesmith as a two-star recruit.

Ran a 4.61 40 in HS.

This article from Philly Tribune.com has a couple of paragraphs on Nesmith.

Huld.com has a video from Milford Academy.

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Recruiting 2014--Derrick Ingram II

I've blogged about Derrick Ingram, a 6-2 192 pound WR from Tampa Bay, FL before.

He verbaled to Ohio recently.

However, the article says he is still planning on a visit to UMass this fall.

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Thursday--July 25, 2013

MassLive has an interview with college football guru Phil Steele concerning the state of UMass football going into the second year of FBS.

Steele gives a fairly optimistic view of the team. Since UMass won't have 85 scholarships until 2015, it would be unrealistic to expect the Minutemen to jump to the top of the MAC in its second year.

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Josh Samuda gets snaps with the Dolphins starting offensive line.

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John Griffin gets a mention in this article on the Jets.

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The Kennebec Journal  says the University of Maine Black Bears are looking forward to the 2013 season.

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Ann Arbor.com says Eastern Michigan's Ron English is on the hot seat this year. The Eagles and UMass are the only teams in the MAC with no appearances in the MAC Championship Game. Hopefully, around 2016 or so for UMass, that will change...

The South Bend Tribune says the MAC Conference avoids realignment.

Coach Molnar gets some quotes on the hiring of new Western Michigan HC P.J. Fleck.

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Matt Elam, James Ihedigbo's potential replacement as starting Safety for the Ravens, is off to a slow start.

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The "Giants 101" blog previews the G-men's backfield including Michael Cox.

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Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Recruiting 2014-- Jason Sylva

Scout.com image
Kudos to the UMass Football Blog reader who sent me a link showing Jason Sylva, a 6-3 250 pound LB from Dean Junior College has reopened his recruiting.

The article reporting Sylva's de-commit from UConn is here.

Sylva is a Rivals three-star player.

His stats from Dean.

Hudl.com has video.

Sylva still holds an offer from UMass.


Wednesday--July 24, 2013

Matty V. has some quotes from the MAC Media Day.

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The MAC Conference website has a replay of the day's video.

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The MAC Report online has a compendium  of the league's various watch lists.

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MassLive has five stories from Media Day:

Coach Molnar wouldn't wish a FCS to FBS transition on anyone.

Coach Molnar thinks Mike Wegzyn didn't really get a chance to show what he could do last year.

UMass will not reach the FBS 85 scholarship limit until about 2015.

Notes on the MAC.

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MassLive also has an article on the UMass offensive line being a priority for 2013.

I've blogged before that probably the #1 thing that went wrong in our initial year in FBS was the offensive line. The Minutemen were last in the MAC in yards per carry and 12th in total rushing offense. And that was with a RB good enough to be drafted into the NFL.

Generally, if you can run the ball, you've got a good looking offense. Remember the first game at Michigan? Being able to run the ball also makes your play-action work, which in turn makes the QB look good. UMass was last in the MAC in QB efficiency in 2012.

UMass was also 12th in the MAC in sacks against.

It all starts with the offensive line.

Phil Steele says the Minutemen had the second highest total of lost starts in the nation last year.

Contrast that with 1998, our National Championship year. Our offensive linemen were:

LT Cliff Bolden
LG Mike Wynne
C Deyate Haygood
RG Tyler Laubeck
RT Mim Hill

How many starts did that group miss? Cover the screen and then guess. UMass played 15 games in 1998, so that means there were 75 individual starts available for the OL. The number of missed starts was..
.
.
.
.
.

One. Corey Mitchell started for Cliff Bolden in the first UConn game. Other than that, the OL unit had the same starters for every game.

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Four RB's will fuel Western Michigan's game this year (includes an image of UMass).

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The University of Buffalo thinks the Bulls could turn the corner in the MAC this year.

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Sports Illustrated says the new NCAA targeting rule will spark controversy.

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Tuesday, July 23, 2013

MAC Media Day--2013

The MAC league site has Media Day notes.

The MAC site also has a preseason poll. UMass is last in the MAC East by a considerable margin.

MassLive has an article on the MAC Media Day. The event will be on ESPN3 and Coach Molnar is scheduled for 10:20 AM.

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The ACC commissioner sees big changes coming to the NCAA.

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A Kansas State blogger says one of the Cats offensive linemen could start at QB against UMass and still get the win.

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The Cleveland Plain Dealer says the MAC still has a shot at the Detroit Bowl.

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Western Michigan's WR's will continue to play a big role in the Broncos offensive success. They certainly had a big day against the Minutemen last year. Western Michigan's receivers went 23-283 5 TD's.

If Ohio was the best game UMass played in the MAC last year, then the rout by the 4-8 Broncos was probably the worst.

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Speaking of preseason polls, BC is last in the ACC poll.

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As you know, Coach Molnar is recruiting freshmen and building for the future. That approach will necessarily mean UMass will take its knocks for the first couple of years. Charlie Weis at Kansas is taking a different route.

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CBS Sports says spread offensives have created parity in college football.

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Hits on a defenseless player will lead to ejections this season.

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FOX Sports announces expanded college football coverage in 2013.

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Monday, July 22, 2013

Recruiting 2014--Dillon Guthro

Image credit unkown
The Newburyport Daily News reports UMass is showing interest in Dillon Guthro, a 6-3 215 pound DE/TE from Newburyport.

Article featuring Guthro here.

Hudl.com page here.


At the FBS level, Guthro has contact from UMass, Boston College and UConn. Colgate, Lafayette  Holy Cross and UNH are interested from FCS.

Recruiting 2014--Jaleel Kyles

Image credit unknown
ESPN Boston reports UMass is showing interest in Jaleel Kyles, a 5-10 160 pound athlete from Putnam  HS in Springfield.

ESPN article featuring Kyles here.

Kyles has an offer from AIC. Also drawing interest from UConn.

Monday--July 22, 2013

The Mansfield Patch report on former UMass player Tom Gilson being named Indoor Proffesional Football's offensive player of the Year. I did a post on Gilson with some video back on July 12th.

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The MAC's Media day will start live at 10:00 tomorrow on ESPN3.

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Rant Sport says Joel Stave will be Wisconsin's starting QB in 2013.

The Wisconsin Blog "Bucky's fifth quarter" says Wisconsin Coach Gary Andersen is maintaining his contacts in Utah.

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Six University of Maine football players were named to Phi Steele's All-American or All-CAA preseason lists.

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Kansas State placed five players on the Big Twelve's preseason All-League team.

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College football players see value in their likenesses.

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Sunday, July 21, 2013

Sunday--July 21, 2013

MassLive writer projects the standings of the MAC East and MAC West.

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The Burlington Free Press comments on the very few Vermonters who even got a tryout in the NFL. One player mentioned is former UMass standout Todd Rundle.

Rundle won four letters for the Minutemen in 1984, 85, 86 and 1987. He led UMass in sacks in '86 and '87. Rundle is still 2nd in career sacks with 31.5. All-Yankee Conference in 1885, '86 and '87.

In the "UMass Historical Scans" section of the blog there is a scan of a 1987 article featuring Rundle.

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The Milwaukee Journal says Gary Andersen's first season starting with UMass is approaching rapidly.

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The Star Press looks at coaching salaries in the the MAC. Coach Molnar is the lowest paid HC in the league and his staff is also the lowest paid.

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Since 2008 fifty-six college or universities have added football to their athletics.

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The Miami Sun-Sentinel says Josh Samuda is on the bubble in the Dolphins training camp.

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The Giants Blog "Big Blue" has a position review of the Giants running backs including Michael Cox.

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Saturday, July 20, 2013

Recruiting 2015--Cinjun Erskine II

Cliff Lavalle image
I've blogged about 6-3 200 Cinjun Erskine, a QB from Barnegat, NJ before.

This recent article features Erskine.

Besides UMass, Erskine has an offer from Miami of Florida.

Saturday--July 20, 2013

I was again traveling through Amherst yesterday, so I stopped and looked at the UMass stadium renovations. The construction guys were earning their pay as the temperature display in my truck read 99 degrees in stadium parking lot.

As usual, click on the image and Blogger displays a larger view.




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MassLive has a couple of articles on UMass football. They have a Friday "Daily Reader" with a number of links to various articles. In only 4,654 more "Daily" posts they'll catch up to the UMass Football Blog :)

 They praise Western Michigan for having 20 verbals while remarking UMass has signed "only five" so far. I've remarked before most of the Broncos verbals had either no other offers or only one from lower level MAC teams such as Central Michigan. The recruiting services also rank by the total number of recruits. You will remember, back in the CAA, Maine usually had the highest number of recruits, and you know how that usually worked out. IMHO, UMass is doing well in recruiting and we'll see how the classes rank in February and then again four years later...

They also have another article on the good year Boston College is having with Massachusetts recruits. Well, most recruiting gurus believe there are annually less than a dozen FBS caliber recruits in the whole of New England. The Eagles had a terrible recruiting year in 2012 under the hapless Spazani. UMass, in its second year in the big time, cannot be expected to dominate in recruiting at home. The Minutemen will get their share as the program improves, but most of the scholarship players will come from out of state.

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ESPN Boston has some Patriots staff changes including one with a UMass connection.

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Matt Slachetka formerly of Chicopee, MA and a walk-on with UMass football has joined the Eastern Michigan strength and conditioning staff.

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Bloguin Sports ranks Vanderbilt's schedule at the bottom of the SEC's difficulty.

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Meanwhile, 150 colleges, conferences and bowl games have re-uped with EA Sports.

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Patriots Insider says James Ihedigbo plays for winners.

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You have to sit through a commercial to see this video of Brandon London's TD catch against the Stamps, but it's worth it.

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Friday, July 19, 2013

Friday--July 19, 2013

This is cool: Dan Malone of MassLive has started a UMass football recruiting database.

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The Boston Globe has a stub article on the buzz around the UMass football program.

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Ohio RB Beau Blakenship has been added to the Doak Walker Watch List.

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Off season distractions are not slowing Vanderbilt football.

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Kansas State gets picked sixth in the Big Twelves' preseason poll.

The UMass defense will see another Doak Walker Watch player in the Cats' John Hubert.

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CBS Sports says there's nothing wrong for Victor Cruz to want more money or for Matt Harvey to wish for more girls.

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The Wall Street Journal says six college football programs are worth over $ 1/2 billion and 63 over $100 million.

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Yet another Bleacher Report writer thinks Michael Cox will make the Giants 53 man roster.

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Thursday, July 18, 2013

Recruiting 2014--Tynen Greer

NCSA.com image
Several recruiting services show UMass has interest in Tynen Greer, a 6-0 180 pound dual-threat QB from Montour HS in PA.

Greer's Scout.com page.

NCSA.com has more info and video highlights.

This article from 247 Sports has a paragraph on Greer from a recent PA seven-on-seven.

Besides UMass, Greer is drawing interest from Northern Illinois, Pitt and Bowling Green.

Thursday--July 18, 2013

Both MassLive and Hampshire Gazette have stories about Frank Carter verbaling to UMass. Neither has any more information than my post of two days ago.

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A Bleacher Report writer says Michael Cox's chance of making the Giants is "solid".

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SI.com ranks the American Athletic Association's teams by offense: UConn's last.

The AAC will have six bowl link-ins in 2014.

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The Big Ten and the Detroit Lions inked a deal linking the Big Ten and that new Detroit Bowl.

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2014 OOC opponent Colorado is still struggling to pull its athletic dept together.

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NFL.com reports Victor Cruz is still saying the Giants contract is tough to accept.

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EA Sports will continue to publish an annual college football game even though the NCAA has pulled its logo.

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OT, but MassLive has a story about UMass basketball recruiting.

Will someone please start a UMass hoops blog? I'd read it.

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Wednesday, July 17, 2013

Recruiting 2014--- Juan Jenkins

Matt Stamey image
Several recruiting services say UMass has offered to Juan Jenkins, a 5-10 203 pound Safety from Gainsville, FL.

Rivals three-star player.

247 Sports page here.

Scout.com page here.

Video highlights here.

Jenkins holds 12 FBS offers. UMass is the only offer from the MAC

Wednesday --July 17, 2013

Western Michigan will be without five players from last year's squad (article with an image of UMass LB Jovan Santos-Knox).

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The NY Post says Victor Cruz is whining over his $46 million contract.

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USA Today previews #52 Bowling Green. The Falcons had arguably the MAC's top defense last year.  Bowling Green held UMass to 6 first downs and 118 total yards of offense. On October 5th, we'll see if Coach Molnar's 2.0 offense can do better. The Minutemen defense played well though, holding the Falcons to 282 yards despite Bowling Green having 17 more plays than UMass.

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Northern Illinois tries to parley its recent athletic success into more clout in Illinois.

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Ford Field (the home of the Detriot Lions) will host a bowl game starting in 2014. A MAC team would be in the running for a slot.

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A Bleacher Report writer has three Wisconsin freshmen who will make an impact in 2013.

ESPN ranks the Big Ten's OOC games including UMass.

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SB Nation has ten things to know about 2013 Kansas State team.

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The NY Jets blog on ESPN looks at the Jets running backs. John Griffin not listed as making the squad.

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Keron Williams gets lots of quotes in this article about the BC Lions' win over Edmonton.

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Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Frank Carter verbals to UMass

Big County Preps image
Big County Preps has announced that Frank Carter, a 6-2 318 pound OG has verbaled to UMass.

Big County Preps announcement here.

Relevant quote: "A massive body with quick feet and a mean punch. Was a standout performer at the BHSN/BCP Ignite Showcase. Our #8 ranked interior offensive line prospect."

This January 2103 Big County Preps article features Carter.

Scout.com page here.


Chose UMass over an offer from UConn. Also drew interest from Georgia Tech and Virginia Tech.

Good recruit for the Minutemen! Can't wait to see those three-star RB's running behind the OL that the coaches are building...

Recruiting 2015--Jake Pickard

247 Sports image
247 Sports reports UMass is showing interest in Jake Pickard, a 6-5 213 pound TE from Millburn HS in New Jersey.

Pickard's 247 bio here.

This article features Pickard.

Drawing interest from Michigan, Penn State, Rutgers and Virginia.

Tuesday--July 16, 2013

A Bleacher Report writer has Jets players who will surprise during training camp: Vladimir Ducasse and John Griffin.

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Former UMass WR Jarvis Bentley has five offers from FBS schools.

Bentley's Itawamba JUCO bio here.

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More on the MAC Conference's giving fans a chance to sit in on the conference Media Day.

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ESPN has a long article on the recruiting process through the eyes of four prospects.

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A Bleacher Report writer asks is Delaware still a FCS powerhouse?

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NBC Sports says Victor Cruz wants to be a role model and the Zimmerman Tweet was "wrong".

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Vanderbilt football releases the names of four players dismissed from the team due to the sex crimes investigation.

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A Nike NFL T-shirt fail.

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I had one blog reader tell me she didn't much care for my photography, but I did a little macro-imaging yesterday. It's not UMass football, but it was something to do on a very hot day. I have nine images in a Picasa web album here. Click on this image and blogger displays a larger view.


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Monday, July 15, 2013

Recruiting 2015-- Shareef Miller

NJ.com image
Several recruiting sources say UMass has offered to Shareef Miller, a 6-4 200 pound weakside DE from Philadelphia, PA.

Rivals page here.

This article features Miller.

Sophomore highlight video here.

Besides UMass, Miller has offers from Rutgers and Buffalo.

Monday--July 15, 2013

A Bleacher Report writer has a story on college football weight lifting vs the average gym guy.

At the UMass Night of Champions, UMass' Robert Kitching was going to attempt a 600+ pound squat  but they had trouble with the equipment.

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NBC News says neck strengthening may help with concussion issues.

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Another writer thinks Michael Cox has a good shot to make the Giants.

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Brandon London has a great catch in the Larks opening set of downs, but Montreal fizzled for the rest of the game.

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Another Bleacher Report story has strengths and weaknesses of Wisconsin going into the fall practice.

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Victor Cruz apologizes for Zimmerman tweet.

How Victor's new contract will pay out.

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College Football 2013 pumpup.

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OT, but Andy Katz of ESPN says for basketball conferences 10 is the Magic Number.

Relevant quote: " But the Big East is still trying to get off the ground for the fall, and new commissioner Val Ackerman hasn't shown any early signs of expanding. Still, the A-10 would be the prime plucking area if the Big East were to take on two more. The American could always look to take UMass -- a candidate before Tulsa was chosen -- which would be from the A-10, too."

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Meanwhile, Massachusetts hooligans are spreading terror up here in New Hampshire.

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Sunday, July 14, 2013

Recruiting 2015--Irvin Charles, Sam Madden, Daiquan Kelly and Steven Gonzales

There's been a couple of articles on a quartet  of players UMass has offered for 2015. I've blogged about all four previously.

Irvin Charles, a 6-4 215 pound WR from Haddenfield, NJ.

Sam Madden, a 6-7 335 pound OL from Barnegat HS in NJ.

Steven Gonzalez, a 6-4 315 pound OL from Union City, NJ.

Daiquan Kelley, a 6-3 205 pound WR from Union City, NJ.

This article from NJ.com mentions  three of the players and updates their recruiting.

The Hudson Reporter has an article featuring Daiquan Kelly and Steven Gonzalez.

Irvin Charles gets another mention from this June 23rd article from NJ.com.


Saturday, July 13, 2013

Saturday--July 13, 2013

UMass has officially announced that Michael Orsei, a 6-4 280 pound Senior offensive lineman from Rutgers has joined the Minutemen.

UMass press release here.

MassLive also has an article on Orsei here.

This is a good pickup for UMass. Orsei is versatile  He can play center, guard and tackle. That will help getting the five best guys into starting position.

He's also good on academics. Four of the top nine recruits in the 2013 class are offensive linemen. They are the future and it be good for them to have a redshirt year to adjust to school and to college level football. Most 18/19 year olds are in a tremendous physical mismatch against a 23 year old who has been on a college weight program for five years. Getting a freshman beat can have a big negative affect on his career.

Taking a WAG at the 2013 UMass O-line I'd say:

Anthony Dima is a lock for LT.

Sam Zeff at LG. Zeff is a true freshman, but has been in for Spring football.

Matt Sparks at Center. Sparks survived last year and he should be bigger and stronger this year.

Josh Bruns at RG. A JUCO transfer. Should bring some experience and maturity to the line.

Orsei at RT. Your RT should your best run blocker. Most teams run right for the most part because predominately people are right handed and are more comfortable running that way. If UMass wants to run more, the right side of the Minutemen line will be the guys that make it happen.

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The MAC Blog "Hustle Belt" has a post on the new UMass scheduling plan once the renovations for McGuirk are complete.

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Former UMass star Jullian Talley has been playing for the Pittsburgh Power arena football team.

This article features Talley. He's been tearing up the league going 64-749 and 16 TD's

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OT, but I've mentioned a number of times about the risk to UMass Athletics of doing nothing. UMass hockey is probably the most popular sport on campus, but the hockey world is changing. Remember my post when 110,000 people showed up for a Michigan hockey game.

This article says the BTN network will pay Big Ten hockey schools $2 million a year each for the broadcast rights.

Big East hockey schools like Merrimack, Providence and the traditionally cash-strapped New England state schools are going to find it tough to compete with numbers like that.

FCS football was a dead end. Coach Molnar will make us into a winner in the MAC. Basketball recruiting is picking up. I think the future is bright. The people who think where we were five years ago  was sustainable are delusional. My sport is football (obviously), but all UMass athletics has to continually improve in order to survive. The world is changing fast.

Friday, July 12, 2013

Recruiting 2014--Chris Carter

NJ.com image
Several of the recruiting services show UMass has offered to Chris Carter, a 6-4 258 pound DE from Bridgewater, NJ.

Rivals page here.

This article from November 2012 features Carter.

NJ.com has an article from February that features Carter's recruiting.


Carter also has an offer from Miami (Ohio).

Friday--July 12, 2013

#70 Anthony Dima
Anthony Dima has been named to the Outland Award Watch List.

MassLive has a post on Dima.

Phil Steele has the national Outland Award Watch list.

In Pro Football, the highest paid player is usually not the fan favorite quarterback. It's the left tackle, who keeps him upright.

UMass has a long history of excellent offensive lines. Hopefully Anthony can lead the 2013 Minutemen offensive line back to being a team strength.

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Former UMass WR Tom Gilson has been named the Professional Indoor Football League's Offensive Rookie of the Year.


Congrats Tom!

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The MAC Conference Media Day will be live on #ESPN3 on July 23rd.

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