UMass 2026 Football Schedule--Rutgers

 UMass opens its season with Big10 Rutgers. The Scarlet Knights went 5-7 (2-7 in the Big10) in 2025.

Oh, and they won their FCS game against Morgan State 60-10. 

For 2026, Lindy' College Football Magazine picks Rutgers  last in the Big10 and Athlon picks the Scarlet Knights 16th in the 18 team league.

I do not think the Minutemen have any chance of an upset here. Rutgers is operating on a different planet than UMass.

For one thing, they have two preseason All-Americans. Wide receiver  KJ Duff is 6-6 and went 60 catches for 1,084 yards in 2025. He also led the nation in contested catches (22). 

Running back Antwan Raymond ran for 1,275 yards and 13 TD's against Big10 defenses. 

Athlon Sports named Duff and Raymond pre-season All-Americans 

They also have last year's Boston College's starting QB  Dylan Lonergan. He started 9 games and threw for over 2,000 yards for the Eagles in 2025.

This article covers the Scarlet Knights QB battle. 

The Scarlet Knights also signed three (or four depending on the recruiting service) four-star recruits. That's more than the MAC, Sun Belt and American conferences combined. 

Last year Rutgers played two MAC teams and beat them both. Ohio played the Scarlet Knights tough and lost by three points. The next game Rutgers pulled away from Miami (Ohio) in the fourth quarter and won 45-17.

So Rutgers should be the best team UMass plays in 2026 by a significant margin. This article predicts the Scarlet Knights game-by-game season and thinks they beat UMass 44-7. 

The Minutemen should have a tough time with the high-octane Rutgers offense, but I'm hoping Pop Watson and the UMass offense can show some life and be competitive for most of the game. A score of 44-20 would indicate a substantial improvement over last year's Minuteman squad.  

I recently watched the full game Rutgers-Penn State 11/29/25 replay on YouTube. It's well worth watching if you like college football and will get your juices flowing for this year.

 Go UMass!

UMass FootballRecruiting 2030--Kevin Roig

 

Kevin Roig, a 5-11 150 pound WR from Manchester, NH has a UMass offer.

Some drill highlights here. 

This post features Roig. 

Although a 2030 recruit, Roig already has FBS offers from UMass, UConn and Syracuse. Rhode Island has offered from FCS. Coach Harasymiak should have the Minutemen rebuilt and competitive in the MAC by 2030 and Roig could play in front of family and friends in Amherst.

UMass Football Recruiting 2028--Gavin Strang

 

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Gavin Strang, a 6-5 190 pound QB from Brentwood, TN has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

Sports Illustrated has a post on why Oklahoma offered him. 

Strang has Power Four offers from Kentucky, Arkansas and Oklahoma. UMass and Kent State have offered from the MAC. Boston College and UConn have offered from New England. Strang could get an excellent education and be a fixture in the new Minuteman offense in Amherst.  

UMass Football Recruiting 2027--Trent Small commits to UMass

 Trent Small, a 6-4 272 pound DL from Hyattsville, MD has committed to UMass.

247Sports page here. 

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

The Minuteman Command has a post and interview with Small about his joining the Minutemen. 

Small had twelve offers and chose UMass over Syracuse, Oregon State, Temple, UConn and UCF.  Defensive linemen are sought after recruits and Small could be a fixture in the UMass defense in future years. I look forward to watching him play. 

UMass Football News--June 25th, 2026

 

QB Ty McCutcheon makes it official.

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The MAC blog "By the Belt" has a post on the MAC conference team rankings in  2026 EA Sports College Football .

Full list here. UConn is 74. Boston College is next to last in the ACC.

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PA Football News has a post on RB Amari Cannon's commitment to UMass.

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Sacramento State, the new MAC conference member, will be eligible for the college football playoffs and bowl games right away.

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UMass Football News--June 24th, 2026

 The Minuteman Command has an interview with 2027 RB commit Arami Cannon.

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 The UMass "Plant the Flag" podcast has an interview with A.D. Ryan Bamford about the state of UMass athletics in 2026.

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The MAC blog "By the Belt" has a post on one impactful offensive transfer for each MAC team in 2026.

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The networks are starting to publish their 2026 college TV schedules.

ESPN starting schedule is here. 

CBS Sports  starting schedule is here (includes the UMass-UConn game).

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UMass Football Recruiting 2026--Ty McCutcheon commits to UMass

 UMass social media is reporting JUCO QB Ty McCutcheon has committed to UMass

I blogged about McCutcheon back on June 18th. 

 McCutcheon took a OV to UMass last weekend and it looks like it was a good fit for both sides. He should provide depth and leadership in the QB room. Hope he has a great career with the Mionutemen.

 

UMass Football Recruiting 2027--Amari Cannon commits to UMass

 

Amari Cannon, a 6-1 185 pound RB from Downingtown, PA has committed to UMass.

I blogged about Cannon back on May 23rd. 

Cannon is a good sized RB who can also catch the ball out of the backfield. He had 10 total offers and chose UMass over FBS offers from Temple and Kent State.  He should be a strong addition to the 2027 class and I look forward to watching him play for the Minutemen.

UMass Football Recruiting 2026--Michael Streeter

 

UMass has added Australian punter Michael Streeter to the 2026 roster.

This website (scroll down) has a recruiting capsule on Streeter. 

 Streeter gets a mention in this article about Australians prepping for American or Canadian football.

Keegan Andrews was UMass' first FBS All-American and the best punter of the FBS era by a long shot. If Streeter can approach Andrew's production he will win the hearts of UMass fans.

UMass Football Recruiting 2028--Anthony Boniface

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 Anthony Boniface, a 6-6 285 pound OL/DL from Suffield Academy in Suffield, CT has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

Boniface also has an offer from UConn. He could play close to home and be part of the new UMass offense in Amherst. 

UMass Football Recruiting 2026--Ty McCutcheon

 Ty McCutcheon, a 6-3 195 pound JUCO QB from Southwestern College in San Diego will take a OV to UMass today.

Went 7 GP 94-155 1,122 yards 60.6% 11 TD's 4 INT's  139.7 EFF for the Jaguars last year.

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

Southwestern College "X" post about McCutcheon. 

Was a 247Sports three-star player out of HS. 

McCutcheon had Power Four offers from Arizona and Washington State out of HS. He could find a home in Amherst and give the Minutemen some added depth in the quarterback room. 

UMass Football News--June 17th, 2026

 During last weekend's visit 2027 commits  Jack Hinspeter and GaVin English rock the icy whites.

 

 

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UMass was tied for 3rd in the 247Sports 2026 MAC transfer rankings with 25 three-star recruits--that was before RJ Johnson left. 

Still a number of FBS QB's available including quarterbacks from Kent State and NIU.

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HERO Sports reports on rumors about UConn to the PAC-12.

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OT, but UMass rowing led the MAC with 25 selections to the MAC All-Academic team.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2027--Joel Gomez commits to UMass

 

Joel Gomez, a 6-6 215 pound TE from Manchester, NH has committed to UMass.

Three-star 247Sports athlete. 

I blogged about Gomez back on March 11th. 

This is a nice signing for the Minutemen. Gomez chose UMass over offers from Virginia Tech, Boston College, Rutgers and UConn. He should have a bright future with the resurgent Minuteman offense. 

UMass Football News--The Ides of June 2026

 The MAC Blog "By-the-Belt" has a post on football pundit Phil Steele's preseason All-Mac team.

MAC 2026 favorites Western Michigan and Miami (Ohio) dominate the 1st team selections.

UMass places seven players on the teams. Tyler Martin is first-team defense and Grant Mills makes the 2nd team special teams list. 

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Athlon Sports has a story about the top six Group-of-Five teams for 2026. 

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CBS Sports thinks the new PAC-12 immediately moves to the top of the non-Power conferences. 

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UConn signs a record setting QB.  The Huskies are up to 16 signed players for 2027.

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Boston College flips a Miami (Ohio) recruit.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2027--Louis Turpin

 

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Louis Turpin, 6-4 225 pound DE from Cheshire Academy, CT has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has video highlights from 2024-2025. 

Turpin is originally from Ontario, Canada. Defensive end has been a need for the Minutemen for a long time. He could play FBS football and get an excellent education in Amherst with UMass.

UMass Football News--June 12th, 2026

 UMass QB RJ Johnson III has posted on X he is transferring from UMass

This is a hit to the Minutemen's depth. Since moving to FBS, UMass has struggled to field a FBS-level quarterback. Except for Andrew Ford and Blake Fronapfel  in the Whipple II era, we have not had productive play from the QB position.

If Pop Watson should be injured,  UMass would be left without a proven QB. 

Remaining QB's would include redshirt sophomore Will Perry, true freshman Aedan McCarthy   and Drake transfer Logan Inagawa.

Inagawa was a three-star recruit out of HS. His Bulldogs bio here.

The Minutemen will probably try to add a QB transfer over the summer. 

 

UMass Football News--June 11th, 2026

 The Minuteman Command has a post-spring Wide Receiver review.

If the Minutemen are to improve in 2026, an improvement in the productivity of the wide receivers is strongly needed. We were flatly terrible in 2025. The top two receivers had a combined ZERO touchdowns. There was no deep threat at all (a tight end had the longest reception of the year).

When Ty Harding went down, that effectively stopped the UMass passing game. As in a dead stop. 

This year Harding is back and if his injury did not reduce his skills, he should make a significant improvement in production. 

Joe Griffin is a legitimate FBS WR and had a productive two years with Boston College.  If he can regain his former level of production, UMass could have a double threat at wide receiver.

Coach Harasymiak has recruited well in his first two years and I think freshmen WR's Tavian Dashiell, Kai Owens and  David Moore are true FBS-level receivers. If they're good in this era, then they'll be gone in a year or two, so why not play them while they're here?

There has also been a positive buzz about freshman WR Drew Alsup. Nobody made any plays for UMass last year. Alsup seems to be the type of guy who will make some if given the chance.

 Overall, the talent level seems much improved from 2025. Now it's up to them to show it on the field.

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UMass opens it's season with Rutgers. Sports Illustrated previews the Big Ten and ranks the Scarlet Knights well,--- at least ahead of Purdue. 

SB-Nation looks at Rutgers schedule and predicts a 5-7 season with a "big, big" win over UMass. 

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UMass Football Recruiting 2027-Alex Haywood

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Alex Haywood, a 6-5 220 pound TE from Charlotte, NC has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

MaxPreps has stats. 

2025 All-Conference. 

Haywood has 14 offers. Coastal Carolina has offered from FBS. Yale, Dartmouth, Princeton, Colgate and more have offered from FCS. He could get an excellent East Coast education and play FBS-level football with the Minutemen.
  

UMass Football Recruiting 2027--Michael Harden Jr

 

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Michael Harden, Jr, a 6-2 215 pound LB from Xaverian Bros HS In MA has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

For 2025 Harden had 54 TT, 7 TFL, 5 SACKS, 1 INT and 1 FF.

Harden has an FBS offer from Army. From FCS, he has offers from Albany, Brown, Maine, URI and more. He could play FBS-level football and play in front of friends and family with the Minutemen in Amherst. 

UMass Football Recruiting 2027--Jireh Puka Aleaga

 

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Jireh Puka Aleaga, a 6-3 305 pound OL from Henderson, NV has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

All-Conference and All-City at Fort Hamilton HS, NY 

UMass is the first FBS offer for Aleaga. He has FCS offers from Bryant and VMI. The Minutemen need offensive line talent and he could find a home and a great education in Amherst. 

UMass Football News--June 6th, 2026

 

UMass ledgend Rene Ingoglia named to the 2026 College football Hall-of-Fame ballot.

2026 full ballot here. 

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The MAC blog "By-the-Belt" explores the proposed College Sports Act.

BTB also looks at the TV broadcast history of four MAC teams. 

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Athlon Sports predicts the 2026 MAC conference. 

The Athlon Sports 2026 college football magazine is out. 

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The official 2026-2027 college football bowl and playoff schedule is out. 

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UMass Football Recruiting 2030--Luke Maurino

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 Luke Maurino, a 6-3 200 pound WR from Melville, NY has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has highlight video. 

Offensive MVP of this camp. 

UMass was the first school to offer Maurino. He could play FBS-level football and receive an excellent education in Amherst with the Minutemen. 

UMass Football Recruiting 2028--Samuel Nurse

 

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Samuel Nurse, a 6-2 IOL/DT from Garfield Heights, OH has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

MVP offensive lineman in this camp. 

Nurse has an offer from Marshal. Miami (Ohio), Akron and Kent State have offered from the MAC. Nurse is a good athlete. He could play either line in college. UMass offers an excellent education and lots of playing time up for grabs. 

UMass Football Recruiting 2027--Jordan Shambley

 

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Jordan Shambley, a 6-2 183 pound QB from Tuscaloosa, AL has a UMass offer.

Hudl.com has video highlights. 

MaxPreps has stats. 

MVP of Rivals camp. 

Shambley has offers from North Alabama, Troy and Jax State. He's a excellent athlete who could thrive in the new-look Minuteman offense. 

UMass Football Recruiting 2027--Charles Carpender-Simms

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 Charles Carpender-Simms, a 6-2 190 pound DB/WR from Brookline, MA has a UMass offer. 

 Hudl.com has video highlights.

 Carpender-Simms has FBS offers from Navy and Delaware. Several FCS programs have also offered. He has FBS size and could play on either side of the ball in college. He could play in front of friends and family and get an excellent education with the Minutemen in Amherst. 

 

UMass Football Recruiting 2026--Jabari Lewis commits to UMass

 

 

Jabari Lewis, a 5-11 180 pound WR transfer from Fort Hays State University has committed to UMass.

Tigers bio here. 

Played in 25 games and recorded 59 receptions, 766 receiving yards, 225 kick return yards, 10 rushing yards, 2 tackles and 5 touchdowns (2023-25 seasons).

2023 247Sports page here.  Lewis was offered by UMass in 2023. He also had a Power Four offer from Syracuse. Akron, FIU and Florida Atlantic also offered. Lewis should add depth and productivity to the Minuteman WR room, who certainly needed reinforcements after last year.