UMass Football News--October 31st, 2021

 Some observations on yesterday's game:

1. If George Georgopoulos is not an All-American, I don't know who is. He went 7-346 yards 48.6 AVE 59 LONG and 3 inside the 20. Liberty has one of the top punt returners in the nation and the Flames had ZERO punt return yards for the game. We've been hearing crickets from the athletic dept lately but they really need to dust off a memo machine and send out press material on Georgopoulos so that someone outside of the 413 area code knows about him. It'll be a shame if a bunch of parochial sports writers from the Big Ten or the SEC give him a "Honorable Mention" All-American.

2. The UMass running game averaged 4.6 yards a carry and Ellis Merriweather averaged 6.2. If we had any sort of passing game, the Minutemen could have a much better total offense.

3. Which brings me to the quarterback situation. Brady Olson has struggled with his accuracy all season. Yesterday, he was not putting the ball anywhere near his receivers. He could have thrown another 3 or 4 INT's. He missed Merriweather on a sure TD situation. Olson went 9-25, 74 total yards 1 INT, 1 TD. That's an NCAA efficiency rating of 66.0. If we have to shorten the passing game to 8 yard inside slants to get a completion, why not give that opportunity to Zamar Wise or Garrett Dzuro? Maybe sitting him down for a game with no pressure will help him get his feet back under his game. Right now it seems to me that he is regressing. 

4. Kudos to the UMass team for staying together. It's not easy losing, but the team seems to be still engaged and trying.

UMass write-up here. 

Liberty write-up here.

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Pitt lost a QB duel with Miami.

Boston College lost their fourth straight game. 

Eastern Michigan plays Tuesday night.

Coastal Carolina beat Troy Thursday night.

Toledo plays Eastern Michigan Tuesday night.

UConn had a bye.

Florida State lost by 10 to Clemson.

Rhode Island got beat by Maine for their third straight loss.

Army had a bye.

New Mexico State had a bye.

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Game Day--Liberty October 30th, 2021

 

UMass will be in their all-whites for the Liberty game.

Another Saturday and another strong opponent for the Minutemen. UMass faces a potential first-round draft pick in Malik Willis. He's a dual-threat QB and we have not defended the rushing game well at all this year. On the up side, Willis is nicked up a little and Liberty might take him out early. The Flames have been good this year, but they're not as dominate as they were in 2020.

One goal for UMass is to simply play better on the road. We've played respectable games against BC, Eastern Michigan and UConn at home, but on the road we have not. Make some positive plays today.

Go UMass!

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Sports Chat Place has odds and predictions for the UMass-Liberty game.

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Howard Herman of the Berkshire Eagle wonders what the conference realignment might mean for the Minutemen. 

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UMass Football News--October 29th, 2021

 Winners and Whiners picks UMass to cover the 36 point spread.

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The Deseret News says UConn, Liberty and New Mexico State are in discussions to join Conference USA. 

Fan Sided looks at potential destinations for the remaining teams in C-USA if the conference goes under. 

James Madison to the Sun Belt?

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Yahoo Sports reports Liberty QB Malik Willis could be a first-round NFL pick.

This NBC Sports mock NFL draft has the Eagles taking Willis #13.

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UMass Football News --October 28th, 2021

 UMass has the game notes for Liberty up.

Liberty's game notes for UMass. 

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Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post about, and interview with, UMass commit Cornelius Wright.

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UnderDog Dynasty says UMass may be left behind in conference realignment and it's the athletic administration's fault.

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Two UMass opponents tangle this Saturday as Maine travels to Rhode Island.

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Could New Mexico State join C-USA?

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UMass Football News--October 27th, 2021

 Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" recaps the Florida state game.

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The Hampshire Gazette reports on Coach Bell's thoughts on realignment.

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CBS Sports reports UMass reclaims the #1 spot in the bottom 25. 

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Sports Illustrated has odds, plays and insights for the Liberty-UMass game. 

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Rhode Island falls to #25 in the FCS Coaches poll following their loss to Villanova. 

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The NY Post predicts more struggles ahead for Boston College. 

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UMass Football News--October 26th, 2021

 Sports Illustrated has UMass vs Liberty odds, plays and insights.

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The Lines has more Minutemen-Flames betting stats and lines.

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Ole Miss releases the game time for Hugh Freeze's and Liberty's  return to Oxford.

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The News Advance reports Liberty's A.D. Ian McCaw thinks the Flames are in a good place as an Independent. 

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UMass A.D. Ryan Bamford Tweets he's going to have a virtual meeting of UMass supporters (I'm assuming the Grid Iron Club) about conference realignment.

If UMass gets an offer to join C-USA, I think we should jump for it. Yes, the C-USA will be the bottom FBS league. And their media package will be even worse after their losses. However, UMass currently has no media package at all and no bowl tie-in's. 

What may suck for other teams, is an improvement for us. As an Independent we play teams who schedule us because they think they can win. Not counting the money games against Power Five opponents, we get Toledo instead of Bowling Green. 

As a league member we would get to play three or four games against the bottom half of the league. UMass would have a league championship to play for and at least a chance at a bowl game. 

If it ends up with a larger number of Independents, say 10 or 12, then a scheduling alliance could work, but how stable would that be?  Independents would still be angling to get in a conference.

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UMass Football News--October 25th, 2021

 Liberty is a 36.5 point favorite over UMass.

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Tomahawk Nation says Florida State blew out UMass. 

Chop Chat says the 'Noles blew past the Minutemen.

War Chant reports Florida State demolished UMass.

Norvell pleased with the Seminoles dominate win over the Minutemen.

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Sports Illustrated has Liberty vs UMass odds, plays and insights.

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Liberty QB Malik Wills went from the field to a medical facility and then back to the field to lead the Flames to a victory over North Texas.

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Liberty A.D. Ian McCaw reflects on the Flames football future.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2022--Donta Whack commits to UMass

Donta Whack a 6-0 205 pound RB from Sanford, FL has committed to UMass.

247Sports three-star player.

Hudl.com has video.

MaxPreps has stats. 

Chose UMass over offers from Eastern Michigan, UAB and Western Kentucky.

UMass Football News--October 24th, 2021

 Well we were a bad match-up for the Seminoles. Our best thing is a power running game, which could not work against a big, fast Florida State defensive front. To be at least competitive we needed to be able to throw the ball like we did against Boston College. Yesterday, the Minutemen could not throw the ball and so did not have any offense. 

There are still some missing pieces on our road to respectability. UMass needs a more effective QB and the Minutemen need more size, speed and athletic ability at linebacker. With only one available RB, did did not have a speed guy to match the 'Noles defensive speed.

Forget about it and move on. We still have three winnable games left. Tyler Lytle, if he can play effectively, will help.

UMass write-up here.

Florida State write-up here.

The Hampshire Gazette reports Florida State shreds UMass.

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Pitt handled Clemson. The Panthers are 6-1.

Louisville held BC to 266 total yards and handed the Eagles their third straight defeat.

Eastern Michigan crushed Bowling Green 55-24. 

Coastal Carolina lost earlier in the week.

Toledo beat Western Michigan 34-15  

UConn lost earlier in the week.

Liberty had a bye.

Rhode Island was held to 165 total offensive yards and lost to Villanova 44-0. 

Maine beat Albany 19-16. 

Army lost to Wake Forest 70-56. Not a basketball score. 

New Mexico State lost to Hawaii 48-34.

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Game Day Florida State--October 23rd, 2021

 Another tough match-up for the Minutemen today. To play as an Independent we need these games to pay the bills. Some goals today would be to play better on the road--no turnovers or bad snaps. Work on the passing game and run stopping. The Seminoles lost to Jacksonville State, so they put their pants on one leg at a time just like us. It would be great to give them a hard time today.

Go UMass!

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The Hampshire Gazette says UMass is playing an improving Florida State team.

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Tomahawk Nation does a Q & A about the game with someone not familiar with UMass (?!).

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Noles247 says Florida State has a chance to make another step forward against UMass. 

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UConn lost to Middle Tennessee State last night 44-13. The Huskies put up a good fight in the first half being only down eight points, but the second half was all MTS.

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UMass Football News--October 22nd, 2021

 Mike Norvell promises the Seminoles won't look past UMass.

He's also sick of "up-and-down" practices.

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College Football News predicts Florida State 48 UMass 13.

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The Hampshire Gazette says Florida State is not much of a homecoming for Coach Bell. 

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The Berkshire Eagle says the Minutemen head south to take on Florida State.

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Jordan Travis is becoming more comfortable as the 'Noles quarterback.

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Liberty, Old Dominion and JMU moving to new conferences?

The Virginia Pilot looks at Liberty and JMU possibly moving to C-USA. 

So far, no mention of UMass and UConn.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2022--Cornelius Wright commits to UMass

247Sports image

 Cornelius Wright, a 5-11 165 pound CB from Miami, FL has committed to UMass.

247Sports bio here.

Hudl.com has video. 

MaxPreps has some stats. 

Wright, a three-star player, chose UMass over a Power Five offer from Louisville and Group-of-Five offers from Appalachian State, Coastal Carolina, FAU, Colorado State and Utah State.

 

UMass Football News--October 21st, 2021

Florida State has their game notes for UMass up.

UMass has their game notes for Florida State up.

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 The Action Network says take the "over" in the UMass-Florida State game.

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Chop Chat has takeaways from the Florida State Depth chart for UMass.

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How to watch or listen to the Seminoles-Minutemen game.

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War Chant explains what has changed in Florida State recently improved offense. 

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Seminole QB Travis Jordan is more comfortable running the Florida State offense.

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Appalachian State upset Coastal Carolina last night. It was the Chants first loss since 2019.

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UMass Football News--October 20th, 2020

 The Hampshire Gazette says the bye week was just what the banged-up Minutemen needed. On the injury report, it appears QB Tyler Lytle is still not medically cleared to play. I would think Lytle still has three appearances to burn this year. An improved passing game could make a difference against Army, New Mexico State and the two FCS teams. 

DL's Devin Baldwin and Billy Wooden appear to be available for Florida State. OL Max Longman probably won't be.

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How to watch and listen to the Seminoles-Minutemen game.

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WTXL says Florida State is focused on the task at hand against UMass.

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BroBible reports for the first time in 10 years the state of Florida does not have a team in the Top-25.

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Reuters reports Florida State wants to run their winning streak to three against UMass.

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After Wisconsin, Army gets another Power Five team in Wake Forest. 

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UMass Football News--October 19th, 2021

 Sports Illustrated has Florida State vs UMass :odds, plays and insights.

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Mike Norvell promises the Seminoles won't look past UMass.

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Florida State's coordinators talk about UMass, recruiting and development.

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Fan Duel reports the 'Noles have a 98% win chances. 

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The Orlando Sentinel says Florida State used the bye week to evaluate progress and to prepare for UMass.

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SB Nation says Florida State has two running back who are averaging 7+ yards/carry. The Minutemen have not been good at stopping the run. That's one reason the spread is 37 points.  

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Washington State HC Nick Rolovich and four assistants were fired for refusing to comply with the state's vaccination decree. 

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WTXL reports the Seminoles are refreshed from the bye week and are ready for Homecoming.

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Rhode Island's loss to Towson dropped the Rams to #19 in the FCS coach's poll.

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UMass Football News--October 18th, 2021

 Tomahawk Nation reports FSU opens as a 37-point favorite over UMass. The Minutemen have not played well on the road so far this year. In addition, UMass will probably not be able to grind out running plays against the big, fast Seminole defense. We will have to throw the ball. UMass was able to do that against Eastern Michigan and the second half against BC. We will need to do that again to keep it under the point spread.

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Sport Illustrated has odds, plays and insights for the Seminoles-Minutemen game.

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Noles247 says Florida State opens as a massive favorite.

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AP reports there is no Florida team in the Top-25. Gasp!

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Liberty is a 21.5-point favorite over North Texas.

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An Army fumble on their own 1-yard line helped Wisconsin get past the "pesky" Black Knights.

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Pitt is an actual 3-point favorite over over Clemson. Mark Whipple's offense against Clemson's defense.

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UMass Football News--October 17th, 2021

 I watched the UConn-Yale game. The first 20 minutes were kinda low energy, but three Huskie INT's in the first half got UConn going. With a couple of seconds left and the Huskies up by six, UConn got a too-many-players-on-the-field penalty, which gave Yale an untimed Hail Mary shot into the endzone for the win. That was a strange mental error. 

The UConn players awarded Coach Spanos the game ball.

Sports Illustrated reports on the Huskies first win in 721 days.

For the Win says UConn almost blew it. 

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Pitt powered past Virginia Tech 28-7 to go 5-1 for the season.

North Carolina scored four times in the second half to crush Boston College 33-7.

Eastern Michigan lost to Ball State 38-31.

Coastal Carolina plays Wednesday night.

Toledo lost in overtime to Central Michigan.

Florida State had a bye.

Liberty was upset by ULM.

Rhode Island was upset by Towson 28-7. The Rams were held to 162 total yards.

Maine upset William & Mary 27-16 for their first CAA victory of the year.

Army just missed upsetting Wisconsin.

New Mexico State had a bye.

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UMass Football News--Bye Week October 16th, 2021

 Thanks to the Blog reader who sent me this clip from College Football live about UMass' win over UConn.

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Sports Illustrated has odds, plays and insights of the UConn-Yale game today.

Sports Chat  Place picks UConn to win outright.

The Journal-Inquirer says the Huskies are starving for a win.

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Florida State's Treshaun Ward is the top graded RB in the country. He's a former walk-on BTW.

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College Football News predicts Liberty 48 ULM 13. Louisiana Monroe lost to Coastal Carolina 59-6 earlier in the season.

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Army plays Wisconsin tonight at 8:00 pm on the Big Ten Network.

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2 and 3 Colorado State is an 11.5 favorite over New Mexico State. The Aggies are 0-6 against the spread in 2021.

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UMass Football News--October 15th, 2021

 ESPN asks where does the Bottom 10 go after UMass-UConn?

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The UConn A.D. is on a mission to find the right coach for Husky football.

The Yale News reports the Bulldogs and the Huskies restore a historic rivalry Saturday.

Yale is a 3-point favorite over UConn.  

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Florida State has 25 transfers on its roster and they're making a big impact with the Seminoles.

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Madison.com has five things to know about Army football. Army is only a 14-point underdog to the mighty Badgers.

College Football News predicts Wisconsin 24-Army 10.

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Rhode Island is #14 in the FCS Coaches Poll.

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UMass Football News--October 14th, 2021

 Extra Points has a sympathetic essay on "What would football success at UMass look like?".

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UConn restores an old rivalry with Yale.

Husky HC Lou Spanos is keeping a virtual eye on his team this week. 

The UConn blog (good name) looks at the Huskies remaining opponents in 2021. 

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I DVR'ed the Florida State-North Carolina game and watched it last evening. The Seminoles are a load. They're a true Power Five team: big, fast and athletic. 

They have 6-2 338 pound NT Robert Cooper and 6-5 262 pass-rushing DE Jermain Johnson. Dual-threat QB Jordan Travis gave the Tarheels defense fits last week.

Mike Norvell is pleased with the second practice of bye week.

Florida State freshman DB Kevin Knowles is a surprise starter for the Seminoles.

State of the U has the Seminoles #4 in state power rankings. 

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Rhody looks to keep their five-game winning streak going against Towson this week.

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Maine gets William & Mary for Saturday's Homecoming weekend.

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