Sunday, July 31, 2016

Recruiting 2016--Rod Jones Jr committed to UMass?

CC of San Francisco image
Rod Jones Jr is a 6-2 250 JUCO All-American DL from College of San Francisco, CA.

Special thanks to a blog reader who pointed me to Jones' Twitter page which shows the UMass "Unite the Masses" screen shot.

First team JUCO All-American and CCCAA defensive player-of-the-year.

Strong interest from Alabama.

Hudl.com has video.

Had 36 UT 17 AT 53 TT 16.5 SACKS 2 FR. All his stats here.

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Recruiting 2017--J.P. Roane II

Back on March 13, 2016 I blogged about J.P. Roane a 5-11 175 pound WR from Williamstown, NJ.

Michael Traini on his "Fight Massachusetts" site updates Roane's recruiting.

Roane's best atribute is his speed. Some recruiting services report he ran a 4.39 40...

UMass is Roane's only FBS offer at this time. Receiving interest from Temple, West Virginia and Kent State.

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Recruiting 2017--Darius Stills commits to Rutgers

I've blogged about Darius Stills a three-star DT from West Virginia twice before.

NJ.com reports he verbaled to Rutgers.

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Saturday, July 30, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Kenney Bennett

Scout.com image
Pittsburgh Sports now reports that Kenney Bennett, a 6-2 196 pound CB from Simon Gratz school in Philadelphia has UMass in his top five schools.

247 Sports three-star player.

NCSA Recruiting has some stats.

Hudl.com has video.

Besides UMass, Bennett's other top schools are Pitt, Virginia Tech, Temple and Maryland.


Recruiting 2016--Colbert Calhoun II

On July 18th I blogged about Colbert Calhoun, a 6-1 215 pound LB from San Bernardino College verbaling to UMass.

Mike Traini has an update on Calhoun who's already on campus.

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Saturday--July 30th, 2016

Todays U Sports says UMass is a good fit for the AAC.

Online Sports Guys reports the AAC believes some teams are leaving.

Grid Iron Now reports AAC commissioner Mike Aresco said the AAC could stay at 10 teams if two members left.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution says UConn is one of the favorites for Big 12 expansion.

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Fan Sided has a new UMass beat writer at "Chowderandchampions".

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NFL Fantasy Football says Tajae Sharpe is a "deep sleeper".

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The Detroit News says Don Brown is a fitting sidekick for Harbaugh.

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ESPn looks at the Packers secondary. Randall Jette is one of five UFA's.

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Marken Michel is one of eleven WR's at the Vikings camp. Michel's Vikings bio.

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Friday, July 29, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Massaman Bagauoko II

Several recruiting sources indicate UMass has offered to Massaman Bagayoko, a 6-6 300 pound OL from Mission Hills, CA. I blogged about Bagayoko back on July 11th.

Mike Traini updates his recruiting in a  post featuring Bagayoko dated yesterday.

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Friday--July 29th, 2016

Dan Malone looks at the Minutemen's running backs for 2016.

UMass went into Spring ball with only two scholarship RB's. With the UMass website still under construction I can't link to any of the bios.

Sekai Lindsey broke his ankle in the game against Toledo. When he was hurt he had totaled 34-113 1 TD.  We'll have to see how much he's recovered. Lindsay didn't exactly set the world on fire during his first six games. He is, however, the Minutemen's only RB over 200 pounds (5-8 215)Marquis Young showed he could play and he dominated in UMass' win over buffalo.

I would be willing to bet at least one of the incoming FR running backs won't redshirt. Maybe both.

Bilal Ally is three-star recruit and is 5-10 185. Ally's senior highlights.

Paytton Pickett (5-10 183) is a two-star recruit. Pickett's senior highlights. BTW, Pickett wore #5 in high school.

Given UMass's killer schedule in 2017 (three SEC teams, BYU, BC and Louisiana Tech) 3.5 yards and cloud of rubber pellets would be a most excellent game plan for about half of the 2016 season.

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The kickoff time for the UMass-Mississippi State game at Gillette has been announced.

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Introducing Don Brown, AKA "Dr Blitz".

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The Big 12 is likely to pick its expansion candidates before the start of the 2016 season.

The Star-Telegram has six essential elements to the Big 12 expansion.

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RotoWorld says Tajae Sharpe has already established himself as "one of the better route runners out there:.

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Thursday, July 28, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Chinedu Ogmonna II

247 Sports image
Back on April 11, 2016 I blogged about Chinedu Ogbonna, a 6-2 200 pound OLB from Wheeler HS in GA.

Michael Traini has a post on Ogbonna and updates his recruiting.

Ogbonna holds 15 offers, including two from Power Five schools Minnesota and Indiana. UMass is his only offer from the Northeast.

Thursday--July 28th, 2016

Dan Malone says a quarterback competition looms for the Minutemen. With the UMass Athletic website still down, I can't link to any of the QB's bios.

Bleacher Report image



My take would be since Whipple has brought in Virginia Tech transfer Andrew Ford (Hokies bio), he would be in the front position. In the past Whipple has brought in Todd Bankhead, Jeff Krohn and Blake Frohnapfel as transfers. Unless Ford is injured or out of shape (or gets in Whipple's doghouse like Richard Lucero did), I would think he'd be a sure bet to start against the Gators.

The interesting race will be to see who's #2. Ross Comis has the most experience and he looked good against Notre Dame. I was impressed with Randall West in the Spring Game. James Sosinski looked like he had a long way to go. Austin Whipple was still on the roster, but DNP in the Spring game.

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An ESPN1500 writer looks at the odds of Minnesota Free Agents making the Vikings roster. Included Marken Michel.

Michel's Vikings bio.

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NJ.com reports Victor Cruz is excited to prove people wrong.

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Teams seeking to leave the AAC face a $10 million exit fee.

Three MAC teams interested in the AAC ?

The North Carolina Governor and Atty. General tout East Carolina. Can you imagine the Massachusetts Governor pumping up UMass? I can't either.

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Wednesday, July 27, 2016

Recruiting 2016--DaVonne Hall

Twitter image
I've blogged about DaVonne Hall, a 6-3 315 pound DL from Butler Count CC several times before.

Michael Traini adds a post about Hall's joining the Minutemen 2016 class.

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Wednesday--July 27th, 2016


UMass Football Golf outing.

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Former member of the UMass football announcing team Adam Giardino is now the voice of the Trenton Thunder and Dartmouth football.

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The Herald-Dispatch reports Old Dominion is fired up for the 2016 season and says it should include a win over UMass.

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A Fan Sided writer thinks Tajae Sharpe could be in the top-2 WR's for the Titans this year.

NFL.com says Sharpe has been a "hype bunny" this Spring.

Upi.com thinks Sharpe could be a starter for the Titans.

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Victor Cruz hears the doubters.

Cruz says he's ready for training camp.

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A West Virginia writer thinks a Big 12 expansion to BYU and Houston isn't good for the Mountaineers.

The Salt Lake Tribune says TV is pushing the Big 12 expansion.

The Mountain West gives permission to the Big 12 to contact its member schools.

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Tuesday, July 26, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Cole McCubery IV

I've blogged about 2017 verbal Cole McCubery three times before.

Mike Traini continues with his recruiting catch-up articles by featuring McCubery in this post.

He's the second recruit to reference the Isenberg School of Business as one of the reasons he signed with the Minutemen.


Tuesday--July 26th, 2016

Tajae Sharpe will be signing autographs on August 2nd at the Titans training camp.

BTW, the Titans have an extensive bio for Sharpe up on their roster.

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The Des Moines Register says BYU, Cincinnati and Houston are the fan favorites for Big 12 expansion.

ESPN looks at the motives behind the Big 12's expansion.

Houston says they're the best.

The Wall Street Journal says UConn and USF are the best.

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Florida QB turned WR Treon Harris is leaving the program.

Speaking of the Gators, defensive coordinator Geoff Collins just became the latest million dollar assistant. I'm guessing Tom Messella doesn't make that much.

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An Auburn site previews Mississippi State.

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Back on July 8th I blogged about old foe Georgia Southern being hit with NCAA sanctions. On Sunday it was announced the Eagles will vacate three wins in 2013-2014 for using an ineligible player.

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Monday, July 25, 2016

Recruiting 2017--C.J. Lewis verbals to Tennessee

UMass target C.J. Lewis, a 6-4 205 pound dual-threat QB from Cheshire Academy in CT  has verbaled to Tennessee.

Lewis was mentioned as a UMass target as recently as last Friday.

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Recruiting 2017--Mike Ruane IV


I've blogged about 2017 UMass comit Mike Ruane, a 5-11 220 pound LB three times before.

Michael Traini features Ruane in his first recruiting bio in the re-booted UMass site at 247 Sports.

Quote from Ruane "I'm excited. That schedule is just the football I want to play"

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Monday--July 25th, 2016

Michael Traini continues his catch-up articles with coverage of UMass' April 9th Junior Day.

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The Virginia Pilot wonder why the prognosticators are so down on Old Dominion.

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Howard Herman of the Berkshire Eagle praises the return  of UMass-Temple basketball.

Quote from the article "The best rivalries are built on animosity."

There's a lesson there for football too. It's why UMass, BC and UConn need to play each other in football.

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A Syracuse Blog parses the Big 12 expansion and has UMass in the AAC.

The USA Commerce Daily says Big 12 expansion is good news for UMass.

Sports Day in Dallas thinks UConn is one of the top five schools being considered by the Big 12.

The Orlando Sentinel also thinks the Huskies make the top five.

The Hartford Courant says UConn's academics, athletic budget and 13 National Championships since 2003 make the Huskies a good choice.

Saturday Blitz thinks BYU is a no-brainer.

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The Starksville Daily news report Mississippi State's schedule has a different feel to it. Mentions UMass.

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Saturday, July 23, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Hunter Verdi

One of the players that visited UMass for it's February Junior Day was Hunter Verdi, a 6-5 315 pound OG/OT from Cheshire CT.

247Sports page here.

Hudl.com has video.

Verdi is drawing interest from UConn, Syracuse, Rutgers, BC and Penn State.

Saturday--July 23rd, 2016

Elijah Wilkinson and Peter Angeh make College Sport Maddness' first team All-independent squad.

Fabien Hoeller, Logan Laurant, Shane Huber and Charan Singh make the second team.

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Dan Traini starts to catch up on UMass recruiting news for the period the Maroon Musket was dormant.

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UConn prepares its pitch and waits for the call from the Big 12.

The Hartford Courant has five questions about the Huskies joining the Big 12.

The Reflector says AAC schools scramble to attract the Big 12's attention.

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SB Nation has five conspiracy theories on why Texas is backing Houston.

Texas Tech joins the Houston bandwagon.

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BYU says they'd take a football-only invite.

Speaking of the Cougars, they're deep and talented in running backs.

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Newly independent New Mexico State hopes some of the Big 12's cards fall in their favor.

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Friday, July 22, 2016

Friday--July 22nd, 2016

Michael Traini reboots the Maroon Musket. This is good news for UMass fans as 247Sports has been more or less ignoring the Minutemen since the Bob McGovern left the Maroon Musket.

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Michigan opens as a 41-point favorite over Hawaii. It's the Wolverines largest point spread since the played UMass in 2012.

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SB Nation's "Fake Teams" says Tajae Sharpe probably won't be a viable fantasy football pick.

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Texas governor Greg Abbot says the Big 12 must take Houston.

The Longhorns may be on board with that.

NJ.com wonders if UConn is a viable candidate.

BYU has started its own website BYU to the Big 12.

The Star-Telegram says there is something to nit-pick about every candidate.

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The Sun-Herald says UMass would bring a good basketball program and a large market to the AAC.

The New Haven Register looks at the AAC's hoops teams. Being in a league with Temple and UConn would be a major boost for Minutemen basketball in fan interest. There's no connection with A10 teams except for Rhode Island for most UMass fans.

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Victor Cruz preps for training camp.

A Bleacher Report writer says history is not on Victor's side.

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Thursday, July 21, 2016

Thursday--July 21st, 2016

Dan Malone says UMass needs to be ready to pounce if the Big 12 expands.

Fbsschedules.com discusses the Big 12 expansion and says it might open a slot for UMass in the AAC.

Underdog Dynasty looks at the results if the Big 12 poaches one, two, three or zero AAC teams.

Big 12 expansion could net an additional $7 million per team for league members.

Maybe Boise State?

One you didn't think of: Tulane.

The Orlando Sentinel says the AAC remains focused.

NBC Sports reports AAC commissioner Mike Aresco braces for the inevitable.

A CBS sports writer ranks UConn #2.

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UMass football has new wheels.

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ESPN says Tajae Sharpe could start for the Titans.

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The Newsstar looks at the C-USA's 2016 schedules including Old Dominion.

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Onlygators.com expects Luke del Rio to start at QB against the Minutemen.

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BC Interuption says the Eagles should be marketed as "Boston's Team".

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The Ivy league moves kickoffs to the 40-yard line.

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The Iowa Register reports the Iowa state legislature wants to be in the loop if Iowa teams start selling beer.

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Wednesday, July 20, 2016

Wednesday--July 20th, 2016

Matty Vautour looks at the ins and outs for UMass football if the Big 12 expands.

Sports Illustrated says a Big 12 expansion is a near certainty.

CBS Sports reports Big 12 expansion is alive, well and likely.

ESPN says the Big 12 is looking for teams with good programs and big markets.

WLBZ reports the dominoes could reach as far as UMass.

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Teams available could be BYU, Colorado State, Cincinnati, Connecticut, Memphis, Houston and Central Florida.

For a two team expansion, I would speculate BYU (good team, good athletic dept and a national following) and Houston (big market in state with the best economy in the USA). BYU and Houston also fit the geographical footprint of the Big 12.

If four teams, then add Central Florida (big market and a chance to gain a foothold in SEC country) and one other team of your choice.

UMass would be a good fit for the AAC if a slot opens. The AAC would work even if UConn was picked by the Big 12. The Minutemen would probably open to C-USA or the Sun Belt for a football only.

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Rocky Top Sports previews South Carolina and says the Gamecocks should be rested after a game with UMass.

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The News-Star looks at OOC games for C-USA including FIU.

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The Indianapolis Colts signed former UMass star Emil Igwenagu to a free-agent contract.

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Ball State's Kevonn Mabon has been added to the Biletnikoff Award Watch list. He torched the UMass seconday for 150 yards in last year's game.

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Tuesday, July 19, 2016

Tuesday--July 19th, 2016

Music City Miracles looks at the state of the Titans WR corps. Mentions Tajae Sharpe a number of times.

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Victor Cruz is progressing.

ESPN says many questions remain about Cruz.

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College Football is thinking about eliminating kickoffs.

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The Salt Lake Tribune reports on the Cal-Hawaii game in Australia. I don't want to think about how lineman-sized players are going to cope with the flight. Last year, Mrs Blog and I, who are not big people, found the 15 hour flight to Australia very uncomfortable. It was a little like going into a phone booth (if you can remember those) and having two more people come in and staying there for 15 hours.

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Former Eagle running back Glenn Capriola sues BC over concussion syndrome.

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A new TV deal could put Florida International on the map.

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An Alabama site previews the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

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The Big Easy Believer says wins are coming to Tulane.

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This article features craft beers by SEC team. UMass fans going to the Florida and/or South Carolina could use it to taste some local brews.

If UMass should ever decide to do a craft beer day at McGuirk there are a lot of choices.


Click on the image for a larger view.

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Monday, July 18, 2016

Recruiting 2016--Colbert Calhoun verbals to UMass

Image credit unknown
There have been several Twitter posts reporting Colbert Calhoune, a 6-1 215 pound LB from San Bernardino College has verbaled to UMass

See this Tweet.

Hudl.com has video.

Calhoune was First-Team All League as a freshman and sophomore and All-Area as a sophomore. Had 88 TT and 5 SACKS. 3.24 GPA

Monday--July 18th, 2016

UMass and Pop Warner football will be working together quite a bit this season. Nice work by Coach Whipple, staff and players.

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The Herald-Bulletin looks at futures Indiana schedules including UMass' trip to Bloomington in 2023.

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The Sun Herald ranks the SEC. UMass gets several mentions.

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UMass ranks one notch ahead of Presbyterian in this ranking of the Gators schedule.

Speaking of the Gators, the News-Gazette ranks Florida #16 in its Top-25 list. That's a high ranking. No other publication I've come across ranks Florida that high.

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Fantasy Pros looks at the Titans receivers including Tajae Sharpe.

Titans Online takes questions from Tennessee fans and Sharpe is the focus of question #5.

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Military  Academy players will no longer be obligated to take 2 years of active duty after graduation.

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Saturday, July 16, 2016

Recruiting 2020--Brady Martin

Twitter image
Yes, 2020.

This article by 247 Sports reports UMass is interested in Brady Martin, a 5-11 170 pound QB from Lawrence Academy in MA.

This article names Brady as one of the top performers at SBU Camp in Boston.

Brady attended the Massachusetts Prep Stars camp in Springfield in May.

Brady currently has an offer from Rhode Island.

Saturday--July 16th, 2016


UMass Football visits the Holyoke Boys and Girls club.

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Something called the Big Lead says UMass-Mississippi State and BC-UConn are among the five worst non-conference games of 2016.

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Speaking of Mississippi State, there was lots to talk about during the Bulldogs section of the SEC Media Days.

A CBS writer says Mississippi State is one of the most disrespected teams in college football.

Former Bulldog Safety Deontay Evans is looking for a place to play for his senior year.

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Today's Pigskin has a Tennessee Titans primer. Talks about Tajae Sharpe and includes a nice image of him.

Fantasy Football talks about the Titans WR battles.

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Victor Cruz is having a grand time in London.

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Friday, July 15, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Michael Taylor II

Hudl.com image
I've blogged about Michael Taylor, a 6-4 240 pound DE from Riverside, CA before.

This article says Taylor will take a visit to Arkansas on July 20th-22nd.

Besides UMass, Taylor holds offers from Colorado, Utah State, Wyoming and New Mexico.

Friday--July 15th, 2016

Wow! Halfway through July already. Fall camp will be coming up and the Gators at the Swamp is not that far away.

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UMass RB Marquis Young makes his second preseason watch list. Minutemen fans will get to watch (or listen) to UMass defense try to cope with some serious RB talent. Paul Harris (Hawaii), Jordan Chunn (Troy), Ray Lawry (Old Dominion) , David Williams (South Carolina) and Jamaal Williams (BYU) all make the list.

Dontrill Hilliard of Tulane will be the lone member of the watch list to play at McGuirk.

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UMass rearranges it's 2017 schedule by swapping dates for away games with Tennessee and Mississippi State.

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Former UMass QB Andrew Verboys has transferred to Delaware.

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Speaking of the Florida Gators, the SEC Media Day press picked Florida to finish 2nd in the SEC East.

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College Football News predicts the results of every game for the ACC. Has BC beating UMass and going 6-6 in the 2016 season.

Speaking of BC. ESPN previews the 2016 Eagles.

BTW, BC opened at 10,000-1 to win the ACC championship. 10,000 to 1 !?

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Thursday, July 14, 2016

Recruiting 2018--Genuine Potts

Image credit unknown
Several recruiting services indicate UMass has offered to Genuine Potts, a 6-3 195 pound WR from Power Springs, GA

247Sports page here.

This article features Potts.

Hudl.com has video.

This page from September 2015 features Potts.

Besides UMass, Potts has an offer from Troy.

Thursday--July 14th, 2016

The Oklahoman ranks Power Five OOC schedules. BC gets dinged for its "awful" schedule of Buffalo, UMass and UConn.

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The Sports Daily looks at 10 NFL QB's to watch in 2016. Mentions Tajae Sharpe.

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Victor Cruz is excited to be playing the Rams in the English home of rugby, Twickenham Stadium.

Victor thinks they will be a non-American NFL franchise soon.

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A college football official explains five of the new rules for 2016.

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All 129 college football teams as Pokemon. A craze I have managed to totally miss.

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Wednesday, July 13, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Darius Stills II


I've blogged about Darius Stills, a 6-3 270 pound DE from West Virginia before.

This article from 247Sports dated yesterday features Stills and his brother Dante.

Darius Stills was the feature in this article from January 2016.

Besides UMass, Stills has offers from Appalachian State, Kent State and Rutgers

Wednesday--July 13th, 2016

The Mississippi State Blog Maroon & White looks at Mark Whipple.

Speaking of the Bulldogs, HC Dan Mullins transcript from the SEC Media Days. Mentions UMass and Gillette.

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Campus Insiders says UMass will be a double-digit underdog in every game except for Wagner.

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Shane Huber is named to the Butkus Award Watch list.

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A Bleacher Report writer predicts Boston College as the surprise team of the ACC.

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The Alligator Army looks forward to the 2016 season opening.

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Tajae Sharpe #19/Mark Humphrey image
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Tuesday, July 12, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Claudin Cherelus

Cherelus #21/Image credit unknown
Several recruiting services indicate UMass has offered to Claudin Cherelus, a 6-2 200 pound Safety from Golden Gate HS in Fl.

This article features Cherelus and mentions UMass 2016 recruit Patric Volcy is his best friend.

247Sports page here.

Hudl.com has video.

Partial quote from a May 6th article on Scout.com on Cherelus' first offer from Minnesota:

"Coach Mike Sherels is the Minnesota coach that offered me," Naples (Fla.) Golden Gate safety Claudin Cherelus said to GopherDigest. "He told me he liked my size a lot and he loved my playing style. He watched us practice yesterday and he loved the way I'm aggressive and not afraid to hit someone. He said he's a man of chances and he sees a lot of potential in me, and so he wanted to offer me a scholarship to Minnesota. He liked my leadership too on how I'm helping the younger guys when I can and always being positive and coaching people up. The offer from the Gophers is at strong safety."

Besides UMass, Cherelus has FBS offers from Minnesota and Northern Illinois.

Tuesday--July 12th, 2016

Mississippi State blog Maroon & White Nation is looking at 2016 opponents and covers UMass DT Shi-Ki Holines.

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Real GM looks at South Carolina's schedule and says UMass could be the worst FBS level team.

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Tulane OLB Nico Marley might the best player you've never heard of.

Speaking of the Green Wave, Tulane has players on the Outland Trophy and Bednarik Watch lists.

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The UConn Blog previews Boston College.

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Gator Country says the Florida secondary lost a ton of talent to the NFL last year----and this year's secondary might be even better.

A network analyst loves the Gators.

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Old Dominion's stadium expansion will have some interesting features.

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Louisiana Tech, which went 9-4 in football last year, has C-USA's lowest athletic budget.

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Monday, July 11, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Massaman Bagayoko

247Sports image
Several recruiting services indicate UMass has offered to Massaman Bagayoko, a 6-6 300 pound OT from Bishop Alemany HS in CA.

247 Sports page here.

Hudl.com has video.

Scout.com three-star player.

Bagayoko holds offers from UMass, Nevada, Hawaii, San Diego State and UNLV in FBS

Monday--July 11th, 2016

The Garnet & Black attack ranks the Gamecocks most winnable games and says there is nothing to worry about when the Minutemen visit.

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A Bleacher Report writer thinks UMass could be a trap game for Boston College.

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A Mississippi State blog looks at the SEC East and ranks South Carolina 6th and Florida 2nd.

Speaking of the Bulldogs, the Maroon & White Nation looks at Marquis Young.

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The Tennessean looks at the top-10 off season moves by the Titans and says drafting Tajae Sharpe is one of them.

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Las Vegas Super Book releases updated College Football National Championship odds and reports of UMass' opponents, Florida at 60-1 has the highest odds of making the game. BC and UConn are 1000-1.

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Campus Insiders ranks the ten best college football defenses and has Don Brown's Michigan Wolverines as #2.

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The BYU Cougars run the pro-set offense, same as UMass. BYU RB Jamal Williams makes the BYU offense go.

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Neal Brown brings in four JUCO's for summer camp for the Troy Trojans.

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Saturday, July 09, 2016

Recruiting 2018--Pat Freiermuth IV

Jim Vaiknonas image
I've blogged about Pat Freiermuth, a 6-5 235 pound TE from North Andover, MA  a couple of times before.

This article from today's Eagle-Tribune updates his recruiting.

Freiermuth is already ranked as a four-star recruit by some recruiting services.

Saturday--July 9th, 2016

Shane Huber is named to the Bronko Nagurski preseason watch list.


More here.


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The Boston College blog "BC Interruption" talks about UMass' marketing of the September 10th Eagles-Minutemen game.

A UMass upset in this game would be good for both schools. It would energize the Minutemen faithful and it would probably light a fire under the Boston College athletic dept, which right now, is heading for the perpetual cellar dwelling spot in the ACC.

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A Sport Blog previews the Tennessee Titans and likes Tajae Sharpe.

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The NY Post says Victor Cruz's return would make the Giants WR depth "scary".

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The entire state of Arkansas is pissed off at Michigan for canceling their football series.

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Friday, July 08, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Cole Schneider

image credit unknown
The Naples Daily News reports UMass has offered to Cole Schneider, a 6-4 295 OL/DL from Riverdale High School in FL.

The story featuring Schneider here.

247Sports page here.

Hudl.com has video.

This article from 2015 features Schneider.

Partial quote from a 05/06/16 article on Schneider from Scout.com by Ryan Burns.

"I'm also a state champion heavyweight wrestler as well," Schneider said. "I believe it's made me become the mentally tough, strong athlete that I am now. I have amazing hips, footwork, explosiveness and reaction time all thanks to wresting, and I also played soccer for nine years as well. 
Played everything except for goalie. As far as my strengths on the offensive line, I'm a fast and explosive pulling guard and I love to get north and south up the field when I see a hole. I'm pretty good with hand redirection as well. I'm not too sure when I want to make a decision yet as I'm hoping to get some more offers. I believe South Florida will be offering soon hopefully too. Location isn't a big deal to me either."

Schneider holds 12 offers with UMass as the only Northeast school.

Friday--July 8th, 2016

I don't know if most people saw this article about my old school the Isenberg School of Business by the Boston Globe. Good to see the school continuing to grow and attract students. The story has a neutral tone to it, far be it for Globe to praise UMass about anything.

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UMass punter Logan Laurent named to the preseason Ray Guy Award watch list.

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Old foe and 2017 opponent Georgia Southern was hit with NCAA sanctions for improper academic assistance.

More from the NCAA about the sanctions. The Eagles are still running their signature triple-option and have been highly successful with it since their move to the Sun Belt. They led the nation in rushing in 2015 averaging 363.0 yards/game. In 2015 the Eagles went 9-4 and nearly beat SEC power Georgia, losing in overtime. They crushed Bowling Green in the Go-Daddy bowl 58-27.

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Michigan cancels a home-and-home series against Arkansas. Could UMass play the Hogs? Our 2018 September schedule is full, but we have two slots in 2019. UMass could drop Maine for a big money guarantee in Fayetteville.

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Yahoo Sports previews the Tennessee Titans and mentions Tajae Sharpe.

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OT, but the Dayton Daily News ranks the Minutemen's hoop recruits #1 in the A10.

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Thursday, July 07, 2016

Wednesday--July 7th, 2016

With the verbal of Devone Hall, UMass now has 5 JUCO's in it's 2016 class. That's the way to build a winner in New England. The addition of Hall fills a need for sized on the DL.

Some of the reasons we are ranked so low in preseason previews is that we return so few of our statistical leaders from 2016. UMass needed a QB and Whipple got Andrew Ford. We needed defensive help and the Minutemen should have instant starters in Ali Ali-Musa and Tedrick Lowery.

One void still remains to be filled: tight end. UMass has an excellent recruiting class of TE's with Taylor Edwards, Cody Banks and Alvin Peah. I'd be willing to bet at least one of which will not redshirt. However, I would be a big help to have a experienced TE on the roster. Whipple's pro-set offense runs a lot better with big TE that can catch the ball.

I don't know if Scottsdale CC TE Sal Canella and UMass are still interested in each other, but a transfer TE that can play FBS ball would have an outstanding chance of being on the field against the Gators on September 3rd. Canella's most recent Hudl.com tape.

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Speaking of the Gators, Florida has three defensive players on the Bednarik Watch List.

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BTW, the whole UMass-Notre Dame game is available online.


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The Las Cruces Sun-Times reports on New Mexico State's quest to build an independent schedule. It contrasts their situation with UMass and has extensive quotes by UMass AD Ryan Bamford.

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SEC Country has "should win" games for the SEC West. Mississippi State over UMass is one of them.

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The Orlando Sentinel looks at the college football preview magazines.

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Campus Insiders ranks the college football conferences for 2016. The MAC in #9 and theAAC is #7.

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CBS Sports ranks all 128 FBS teams by total athletic department success.

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247Sports thinks South Carolina will get six wins and a bowl invite in 2016.

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Wednesday, July 06, 2016

Recruiting 2016--DaVone Hall verbals to UMass


Twitter reports Devone Hall, a 6-3 315 pound DL from Butler County CC in Kansas has verbaled to UMass.

Hudl.com Spring ball highlights here.

More video highlights here.

Orange Coast bio here.

Wednesday--July 6th, 2016

Marquis Young named to the Maxwell Award watch list. There is also a post on the UMass site, but it's down this morning.

The complete Maxwell Award and Bednarik Award watch lists are here.

UMass fans will get to see BYU QB Taysom Hill (Maxwell Award Watch List) and Boston College LB Matt Milano (Bednarik Award Watch List).

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The Florida Gators open 36 point favorites over UMass.

SEC Country takes a look at what the annual college football magazines have to say about Florida.

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SEC Country has SEC East "should win" games. UMass makes the list for Florida and South Carolina.

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Victor Cruz's high school wants to retire his jersey number.

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CBS Sports has Boston College's Steve Addazio and four MAC head coaches on the hot seat.

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BYU's Jamaal Williams looks to set the Cougars all-time rushing record in 2016.

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Tuesday, July 05, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Hunter Long

Image credit unknown
Several recruiting services indicate UMass has offered to Hunter Long, 6-5 235 pound TE from Exeter, NH.

His NCSA recruiting profile.

Hudl,com has video.

This article from 2015 features Long.

Seacoast Online says Long will take a prep year at Deerfield Academy.

Long currently holds offers from UMass, BC and UConn.

Recruiting 2017--Austin Burton

Chris Hayes image
I've blogged about Austin Burton, a 6-3 190 pound pro-style QB from New South a couple of times before.

He verbaled to Boston College.

BC Interruption also has a post on his signing with the Eagles.

He had offers from UMass and FIU.

Tuesday--July 5th, 2016

College football News previews the 2016 UMass Minutemen. As usual, it appears the author didn't put much research into his effort. He does not mention JUCO's or transfers. QB Andrew Ford will likely start as will Ali Ali-Musa at DE. Safety Tedrick Lowery and several of our outstanding 2016 freshmen will also be in the mix.

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Titans Online has a July 2nd, question-and-answer session one of which features Tajae Sharpe (scroll down).

Titans Sport Blog has five Tennessee rookies to be excited about. Tajae is one of them.

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Newsday previews the NY Giants WR corps, including Victor Cruz.

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A football writer predicts UConn first in the AAC East.

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As a 2016 associate member of the SEC, UMass fans will get to see some SEC traditions from Mississippi State, South Carolina and Florida.

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Monday, July 04, 2016

Fourth of July 2016

It's a slow news holiday weekend for college football, so I'll just wish everyone a happy Fourth of July.

I like reading and I like history. If you're looking for a summer vacation read, there is none better than Patriots: the men who started the American Revolution.


I'll be back tomorrow morning with some recruiting news and other links.

Saturday, July 02, 2016

Recruiting 2017--Jerry "Tre" Person

247Sports image
Several recruiting sources report UMass has offered to Jerry "Tre" Person a 6-0 165 pound DB from Westlake HS in GA.

Twitter post showing the UMass offer here.

Hudl.com has video.

247Sports page here.

MaxPreps has stats.

Besides UMass, Person holds offers from South Carolina State, Tulane, Georgia Southern, Georgia State, Mercer, and Troy.