Sunday--March 25th, 2012

UMass seniors

UMass spring practice starts Tuesday, March 27th. Let's look at who has to be replaced.The Minutemen graduated 15 seniors. The seniors comprised the majority of the offensive production.

Receptions:

• Tom Gilson WR  39-446  40.5 yards/game
• Jesse Julmiste WR  43-522 4 TD 47.5 yards/game
• Julian Talley WR  60-759 4 TD 69.0 yards/game
• Emil Igwenagu TE R 38-375 3 TD 34.1 yards/game
• Jonathan Hernandez  18-209 19.0 yards/game

That's 198-2311 11 TD's total receiving production. All receptions totaled 221-2560 13 TDS. UMass lost 89.5% of  receptions, 90.2% of the yardage and  84% of receiving TD's.

Rushing:

• Jonathan Hernandez RB 261-1190 12 TD 99.3 yards/game
• Julian Talley WR 7-134 2 TD's 12.2 yards/game
• Jesse Julmiste WR 6-564.5 yards/game
• Emil Igwenagu TE 4-7 0.6 yards game.

Total rushing production of the seniors was 313-1549-16 TD's. All UMass rushing was 404-1761. In 2012 UMass will have to replace  87.9% of rushes, 87.9% of the rushing yards and 84.2% of rushing TD's.

Punt returns:

• Julian Talley 15-122 
• Jesse Julmiste 1-2 

Team totals 16-124. UMass will have to replace 100% of the punt return yardage in 2012.

Kick Returns:

• Jesse Julmiste 32-789 2 TD's
• Julian Talley 1-8
• Kirk Nelms 1-20 (non-senior loss) 

 Total kick returns 54-1061 2 TD's. In 2012 the Minutemen will lose 62.9% of the returns and 77.0% the kick return yardage.

Coach Molnar and staff will need to find a lot of productive replacements on offense this year.

Saturday---March 24th, 2012

Rene Ingoglia and Steve Schubert have been named to the College Football Hall-of-Fame ballot.

The College Football Hall of Fame's move to Atlanta has hit a significant snag.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

UMass has announced the dates for the 2012 summer football camps. A day at Gillette is among the choices.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Meanwhile, Villanova tries to recover from its failed attempt to move to the Big East.

Relevant quote for UMass fans to file away for future reference:

With Navy's entrance (to the Big East) in 2015, the conference will have an odd number of teams at 13, so it seems assured the conference will add another member in the future.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Temple thinks it's ready for the Big East.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--John Montelus

Rivals image

ESPN has reported that UMass has offered to John Montelus, a 6-5 293 pound OL from Everett, MA.

Montelus' Rivals page here.

Scout.com page here.

Besides UMass, Montelus has double-digit offers from BCS schools.

Friday--March 23rd, 2012

UMass football gets a it's first FBS-level preview from SBNation. The writer does a good job with limited applicable information. Since we had a losing season in FCS, it's tough to predict how ready we are for the MAC. Like the author, I think Coach Molnar has made a good start on the transition. We'll know in November how much further we need to go.

The MAC blog "Hustle Belt" reacts to the SBNation article.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Matty V reports (at the end of this article) Victor Cruz tweeted he'll be at the UMass-Stanford game at Madison Square Garden.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Former UMass A.D. Ian McGraw is enjoying success at Baylor.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Despite the current conference realignments, the Utah Attourney General is continuing his suit against the BCS system for anti-trust reasons.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2012---Michael Cox II

I've blogged about Michigan transfer Michael Cox before.

Wolverines blog "Maize and Blue Nation" has a blog post on Cox's transferring.






-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thursday--March 22nd, 2012

I was looking at the 2012 Spring Roster. Seventeen (by my count) underclassmen who were on last year's roster do not appear on this one.

Most of the juniors probably graduated because they had a redshirt year. Some of the losses are probably scout team members.

Missing are (classes are for last year):

• Theo Agnew DL RS So
• Kevin Donahue LB SO
• Nick Gottshall OL RS JR
• James Lizotte WR JR
• John Moran OL RS JR
• Kyle Morgan DL FR
• Manoel Nascimento RB SO
• Kirk Nelms DB SO
• Andrew Ortiz K FR
• Benjamin Patrick RB FR
• Ray Pendagast QB SO
• Ryan Phillips LB FR
• Travis Poston OL RS JR
• Jeff Skoog OL SO
• Caleb Violette K/P JR
• Cody Watts DB FR
• Dominic Wooten TE SO

I miss anyone?
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eight UMass football players took part in Boston College's Pro Day.

Boston.com says Julian Talley opened some eyes.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mike Leach proposes a 64-team college football tourney. The article has a link to a hypothetical 2012 bracket that includes three MAC teams.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013-Peter Ngobidi

ESPN says UMass has offered to Peter Ngobidi, a 6-2 220 pd DE from Catholic Memorial in West Roxbury, MA.

247 Sports page here.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Wednesday--March 21st, 2012

More on Victor Cruz's big business move.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CBS Sports looks at hard times for fullbacks and mentions Emil Igwenagu.

Phil Steele also has Emil as the #2 fullback in the draft.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Our first FBS opponent UConn doesn't know who will be quarterbacking for them either.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Blog and Mrs Blog almost pitched an aneurysm during the Minutemen's 17 point comeback against Drexel last night.

Bruiser Flint says UMass refused to lose.

Matty V says UMass' win was memorable.

Philly.com says UMass earned admiration.

Key Quote for UMass fans:

Few have shown more heart in adverse settings than the Minutemen which is why they have extended their season.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2012---Tevin Montgomery

Rivals image

ESPN reports UMass has offered to Tevin Montgomery, a 6-4 290 pd DL from Tabor Academy (MA).

Montgomery's Scout.com page here.

Rivals page here.

Montgomery hold offers from Boston College, UConn, Rutgers and Temple.

Recruiing 2013--Todd Stafford II

Bob Luckey image

Two more stories about 6-6 QB Todd Stafford verbaling to UMass.

I blogged about Stafford last Saturday.

New ESPN article about Stafford here.

Matty V chimes in here.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tuesday--March 20th, 2012

The Spring UMass football Roster is up. The new coaches bios have also been added.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Victor Cruz has a new contract agent.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vanderbilt, on our OOC schedule for 2012 is starting spring practice.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A website called Drafttek has Emil Igwenagu ranked as the #8 fullback and the #20 ranked TE in the NFL Draft.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

OT:

UMass basketball plays tonight a 7:00 pm on ESPN.

Ron Chimelis says the Minutemen are looking for another happy ending.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Jake Kennedy

Kennedy #75/Joe Marchilena image

Various sources say UMass has offered to Jake Kennedy, a 6-4 280 pd OL from Amherst, NH.

New Hampshire football report has the story here.

New Hampshire Note Book also has the story.

MaxPreps page here.

Highlight Video here.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Monday--March 19th, 2012

Matt Vatour has a story about Michael Cox the Michigan running back transferring to UMass. I did a blog post on Cox yesterday.

SB Nation Detroit also has a mention of Cox's move.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This story on Bleacher Report says the 2011 NY Giants story was all about Eli Manning and Victor Cruz and talks about Victor's 99 yard TD against the Jets.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

UMass' first official FBS game will be against UConn. The Huskies start their spring practice tomorrow.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Did I mention the Jacksonville Jaguars signed Jememy Cain to a contract back in February?

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2012--Michael Cox

UMass has added a transfer from Michigan. Michael Cox a 6-0 214 pd RB from Michigan has announced he'll transfer from the Wolverines.

Cox is originally from Dorchester, MA.

His Michigan bio here.

ESPN article on Cox transferring here.

The Detriot Free Press mentions his moving to UMass.

Cox received limited playing time with Michigan, but when he did, he averaged 8.9 yards a carry.

Cox will be in grad school at UMass.

Recruiting 2012--Trey-Dudley-Giles V

Richard Green image

I've blogged a number of times about UMass recruit Trey Dudley-Giles.

He's a pretty good baseball pitcher too.

Sunday---March 18th, 2012

I totally missed one wrinkle on the new NCAA kickoff rule. If the kicker booms the kick through the endzone, the ball is placed on the 25 yard line not the 20 like it was previously.

This article covers Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops covers the possibilities of the various trade-offs of the new rule.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now realignment hits college hockey. We've talked a couple of times here about the synergy of college football and college hockey. Now that the Big 10 Conference is up and running, it will, in my opinion, quickly become the 600 pound gorilla of college hockey because of the Big 10 Network. The national TV exposure should give the new Big 10 league the most financial resources of any hockey league.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Congrats to UMass hoops. They're one game away from the NIT Final Four.

The Boston Herald says the Minutemen are the men of the hour.

The NY Times says UMass is surging.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Todd Stafford

Bob Luckey/Greenwich Times image

Rivals.com report that Todd Stafford, a 6-6 240 pd pro-style QB from Greenwich, CT has verbaled to UMass.

Stafford's Rivals page here.

AFAIK, Stafford is our first ever Junior commit.

ESPN shows Stafford on its UMass page.

Scout.com has a story on his verbaling to UMass.

Relevant quote for UMass fans:

"I went up there for the junior day that they had at Gillette Stadium," said Stafford. "That's where they're playing their home games. Both times I've gone up there I've gotten great vibes from the coaching staff and the direction the program is heading."

UMass is Stafford's only offer so far, but BC, Duke and Miami have shown interest.

Saturday---March 17th, 2012

Roger Brown of ESPN Boston says Coach Molnar is making a splash in New England recruiting.

Interesting stuff. If UMass is to succeed at the FBS level, we need to recruit. I am impressed with the level of energy that Coach Molnar and his staff have showed since their arrival. Upwardly impressed.

New England develops enough FBS players so that UMass can have a significant portion of the roster from this area. If you look at the rosters from Coach MacPherson's era, you'll find a large number of the players were from Massachusetts. Many of those players would be considered FBS-level kids today.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

South Carolina RB Kenny Miles is a fith-year graduate senior (which means he could play right away for another team) may be on the market to transfer.

Miles led the Gamecocks in rushing in 2009.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mocking the Draft looks at the success some undrafted players have achieved in the NFL.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Don't forget UMass hoops at 11:00 am EDT. Go UMass!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013-- Rashad Kinlaw

Kinlaw #5/Sean Fitzgerald image

Rivals.com says UMass has offered to Rashad Kinlaw, 6-2 185 pd athlete from Galloway, NJ.

Kinlaw's Rivals page here.

Kinlaw runs the spread offense.

Kinlaw holds offers from Boston College, Iowa, Notre Dame, Rutgers and Temple.

Friday--March 16th, 2012

Today is a light news day for UMass football and gridiron news in general. However, recruiting news continues to come in.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vegas Insider has at Victor Cruz 12-1 to appear on the cover of Madden 2013.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Vegas also has UMass +7.5 against Seton Hall.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Pats are working to sign free agent James Ihedigbo.

ESPN's Patriots blog says Ihedigbo fits.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Jeromy Miles has another free agent contract with the Bengals for the 2012 season.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Janarion Grant

Octavio Jones/Tampa Time image

Rivals.com says UMass has offered to Janarion Grant a 5-9 165 pd WR from Dade City FL.

Grant's Rivals page here.

This article mentions UMass' offer.

Grant was Co-Suncoast Player-of-the-Year with UMass recruit Trey Dudley-Giles.

Grant holds offers from Bethune-Cookman, UConn, East Carolina, Rutgers, South Florida and Western Kentucky.

Thursday--March 15, 2012

Good morning on the Ides of March.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Kansas City Examiner says Emil Igwenagu is the best fullback in the NFL Draft.

This draft webpage has Emil as the #12 TE in the draft.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Victor Cruz meets his fans.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Temple, which I believe did not beat a MAC team with a winning record, returns only 9 starters for their first year in the Big East.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

COLD.

The owner of the Pittsburg Power arena football team fired the entire team during a pregame meal at Olive Garden.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

UMass-Seaton Hall is sold out.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013---Anthony Averett

Marc Narducci image

Max Preps says UMass has offered to Anthony Averett, a 6-1 175 pound athlete from Woodbury, NJ.

Rivals page here

This article mentions UMass' offer.

Besides UMass, Averett holds offers from Alabama, Rutgers, West Virginia, Temple, East Carolina and Syracuse.

Wednesday--March 14th, 2012

RPI has a feature story about Guido Falbo being named interim head coach. Falbo was an assistant coach at UMass from 2004 to 2010.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Former UMass star Peter McCarty has been named defensive line coach for Fordham.

I've blogged about McCarty several times before.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Our new MAC conference mate Ohio is one of only five teams to win 10 or more games in football and 25 or more in basketball in one season.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

New FBS team Texas-San Antonio and Charlotte (which may be leaving the A10) are leading candidates for the Sun Belt.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mississippi State lost to UMass and Renardo Sidney quit the Bulldogs in one night.

I thought the Minutemen played a spirited, but sloppy game. If they had taken a little better care of the ball we could have won by 15...

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Tommy Hopkins

Rivals image

Thanks to Nick Baker for pointing out to me UMass is interested in Tommy Hopkins, a 6-6 282 pd OT from Thornwood, NY.

Relevant quote for UMass fans:

"I'm going to the Duke junior day at the end of the month, as well as visiting N.C. State and North Carolina that weekend," said Hopkins. "On my spring break I'm going to Penn State, UConn, UMass, BC and Temple. Then I'm going to Syracuse for their spring game. I'm also visiting Buffalo in a few weeks and probably Rutgers and Virginia at some point."

Hopkins Rivals page here.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Tuesday--March 13th, 2012

Matty V has an article about UMass long snapper Travis Tripucka at the UMass Pro Day.

YouTube Video on the UMass ProDay here. Blogger won't insert it for some reason.

The ESPN New England Patriots Report has a story on the event. Julie Julmiste ran a 4.47. Josh Samuda did 30+ reps on the bench press.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ESPN's Notre Dame blog says Irish ties abound in Coach Molnar's staff.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Temple is looking forward to BCS perks.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Could UMass pick up some senior players from North Carolina now that the NCAA has dropped the hammer on the Tar Heels?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Atlantic 10 wants Butler to join the A10 basketball conference.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Speaking of basketball, a Springfield, MA coach was arrested after he bit off the ear of an opposing coach.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

UPDATE: UMass hoops opens its appearance at the NIT tonight.

Watch parties in Amherst. The game is on ESPN2 at 7:00 pm.

Go UMass! Beat State!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Shaquill Griffin

ESPN reports UMass has offered to Shaquill Griffin, a 6-1 183 pd CB from St. Petersburg, FL.


ESPN post here.

Griffin's Rivals page here.

This article mentions him.

Beside UMass, Griffin holds offers from Akron, FIU, South FL and UCF.

Monday--March 12th, 2012

UMass will be holding its annual Pro Day today. Tyler Holms and Julian Talley will be working out as well as Emil Igwenagu.

I've always thought Jesse Julmiste would be a good fit for the CFL. They could not kick away from him due to the huge CFL field. He's still raw because essentially he only played for one year, but he'd make CFL defensive backs look silly.

Thom Kendall image

"In the FCS Huddle" ranks Emil Igwenmagu as the third-best FCS offensive player for the draft. 

This writer says Pro Days can be pivotal for NFL hopefuls.

NFL Draft Scout's UMass page.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

While college football continues to rise, NCAA basketball  tourney attendance continues to fall.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2012--Blake Lucas

Lucas #23

UMass has added another recruit to its 2012 class as Blake Lucas, 5-10 165 pd kicker from Bleckley HS in Georgia has joined the Minutemen as a recruited walk-on.

Article showing his commitment here.

Kicking bio here.

Kicking stats and a 4.00 GPA here.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunday--March 11th, 2012

The Tampa Bay Times has a article on UMass assistant coach Allen Suber and his impact on UMass recruiting in the Tampa Bay area.

One relevant quote for UMass fans:

"UMass signed the North Suncoast's Co-Player of the Year in Pasco's Trey Dudley-Giles, who could be one of the steals of the 2012 class."

My original blog post about Trey Dudley-Giles.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Former UMass star John Griffin has been signed to a free agent contract with the NY Jets.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I thought Raphiael Putney's shot was going in as it left his hand, but it was not to be as the Minutemen fell to St. Bonaventure.

It was still a great run by UMass. Ron Chimelis said that UMass basketball had reconnected with its fan base.

Let's make another run in the NIT.

The NIT selection show will be at 9:00 PM on ESPNU.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Mitchell Wright

Tampa Bay Times reports that UMass has offered to Mitchell Wright, a 6-4 215 pd DL from Plant HS.

TB Times article here.

MaxPreps page here.

UMass is Wright's first offer.

Saturday--March 10th, 2012

Sarah Nathan/Record-Journal image

Former UMass star Vladimir Ducasse took part in the NFL's United Way Weekend.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A giants football blogger says Victor Cruz was Jerry Reese's best pick.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The National Football Foundation says interest and attendance for college football continued to soar in 2011.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I had a big day yesterday watching UMass sports. The Minutemen's win over Temple was huge for the program.

The Boston Herald has a nice article on the increased unity of the hoops team.

CBS Sports said it was a statement win for UMass basketball.

Today's UMass game against  St Bonaventure will be at 1:00pm on the CBS Sports Network, which is on Channel #152 on Dish and Channel #613 on Direct TV.

UMass hockey worked hard against BC, but did not get the win. Could someone who knows more about hockey (which would be just about everyone on the planet) explain why the refs waived off that second period UMass goal?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruitng 2013---Alexander Officer

Thanks to the reader who e-mailed me about UMass offering to Alexander Officer, a 6-4 300 pd OT from Rochester, NY.

Officer's Rivals page here.

247 Sports page here.

Officer is the younger brother of Jerome Lewis who transfered from  Virginia Tech to UMass.

Officer holds offers from UConn, Pitt, Syracuse and FCS Old Dominion.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Rohan Blackwood II

I've blogged about Rohan Blackwood before.  The 6-5 195 pd DE/TE has received an offer from UMass.

Hernando Today has another mention of the Minutemen's offer.

The article also mentions UMass hoops recruit Tyler Bergantino has been named to a Florida Senior All-Star game.

Friday--March 9th, 2012

Former UMass player Ke'Mon Bailey will be playing for Richmond Raiders PIFL team soon. The article mentions UMass.

Richmond Raiders website here.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Philly.com says Temple to the Big East was a tortuous path.

Athalon Sports looks at what's next for the Big East.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

LSU's homecoming queen is trying out for the Tigers football team.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Off topic, but here's the CBS Sports preview of today's UMass-Temple hoops clash.

UPDATE: Congrats to UMass hoops for their biggest win in 10 years!!!

Let's win two more and make the big dance.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2012--Julian Kaminoff II

Bill Frazer image

I've blogged about 2012 recruit Julian Kaminoff once before. The 6-0 180 pd DB signed with the Minutemen in February.

His HS paper has a story on his commitment to UMass and some of his 2011 stats.

Recruiting 2012--Jovan Santos-Knox III

I've blogged about Jovan Santos-Knox twice before. The 6-2 235 pd LB/TE has signed with UMass for the coming year.

He scored 34 points in a Connecticut hoops tourney recently.

Some recruiting gurus like a basketball background for college football players as they feel it gives the recruit agility and quick feet.

Thursday--March 8th, 2012

Recruiting news continues to come in. I'll have a couple of notes today. In the meantime, have you seen the 2012 ESPN recruiting results for Massachusetts?

The Minutemen did pretty good for their first year in FBS. It's also apparent that non New England BCS teams ate Boston College's lunch.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Matty V. says UMass and the MAC are still committed to each other.

The Cleveland Plain Dealer relates that the MAC does not believe Temple's leaving will not impact the leagues TV contract or bowl game affiliations. The League Commissioner will not speculate on UMass' future.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Former UMass star Greg Niland has joined the Arizona Rattlers.

Niland's Arizona bio here.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Victor Cruz wants to buy his mom a house.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2012-- Matthew Breida

Hernado Today image

Tampa Bay.com reports UMass has offered to Matthew Breida, a 5-10 163 pd RB/DB  from Nature Coast HS in Tampa, FL.

Breida's Rivals page here.

Another bio page here.

Breida ran for 355 yards and six TD's in one game last fall.

Breida also holds offers from South Flordia and Akron.

Wednesday--March 7th, 2012

If you haven't watched the video feature about Ryan Carter donating his bone marrow, it's pretty inspiring. I can't find a way to directly link to those sidebar video features.

I missed the editorial in the Amherst Bulletin the first time around.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Daily Collegian has an article about Coach Molnar announcing his staff and includes quotes from a number of the new coaches.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Bleacher report has an article that mentions UMass and reflects the deep thinking that site is known for.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Could Victor Cruz be the cover image for Madden 13?

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Philly.com says sources indicate Temple's move to the Big East is imminent.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

OT, but John Calipari says his son may be the third Calipari to attend UMass.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2014---Rohan Blackwood

TampaBay.com reports UMass has offered to Rohan Blackwood a 6-5 195 athlete from Nature Coast HS.

AFAIK, Blackwood would be UMass' first ever sophomore offer.

Max Preps page here.

Blackwood is also a top-25 power forward in hoops.

Tuesday--March 6th, 2012

Coach Molnar announces his coaching staff.

UMass article here.

Matty V and the Gazette article here.

MassLive.com here.

Boston Herald here.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Some additional material on coaches I haven't covered before:

Jeff Burris Defensive backs /community outreach

Wikipedia article. Notre Dame career.













------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ted Daisher

Bryant bio here. As well as his other coaching jobs, Daisher has coached at two MAC schools: Northern Illinois and Eastern Michigan








---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Rod Plummer

Yale bio here.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I've previously covered

• Ron Hudson
• Phil Elamassian
•  Mike Kruczek
• Dave Sollazzo
• Allen Suber

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ESPN blog says it will cost Temple $2 million to leave the A10 immediately.

Philly.com says the Big East presidents will vote Wednesday on admitting Temple.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Joey Ivie II

I've blogged about Joey Ivie before.

The 6-5 245 pd DL added offers from Iowa State and FIU last week.

Tampa Bay Times article here.

Monday--March 5th, 2012

Matty V said in his story last week that UMass will add two one-year players who have earned their degrees and are eligible to play as transfers.

That got me thinking about previous graduate players.

At the Top of the list would be Jimmy Moore who had 92 catches for 1,494 yards in 1998 and was a big cog in our National Championship season.

Tim Washington had 55 carries for 205 yards and 3 TD's as well as 9 REC for 93 yards in 2006 and was a factor in our run to the 2006 National Championship game.

Can anyone think of another one year graduate player who make a big impact with UMass?

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Philly.com says Temple has also been contacted by the Mountain West-C-USA conglomerate, but is still evaluating their options.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

UConn's Memorial Stadium is going to be torn down. I've visited there a number of times for UMass-UConn football games.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

MassLive.com says Victor Cruz will receive "mid six figures" for his book deal.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sunday--March 4th, 2012

It's a really slow football news day on the intertubes.

Victor Cruz's jersey was #6 in sales for the entire NFL last year.

E-Bay has a lot of Cruz jerseys and memorabilia. Victor was first assigned number "3" last year and stuff with that number goes for a higher price.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'll be back tomorrow with some recruiting news.

Recruiting 2013---Charles Williams

ESPN reports that UMass has offered to Charles Williams, a 6-2 176 pd athlete from Hialeah, FL.

Williams' ESPN page here.

Rivals page here.

This page profiles him.

Sunshine Preps page here.

Williams holds offers from Western Kentucky, Louiville, Bowling Green, Purdue and Bethune-Cookman.

Saturday---March 3rd, 2012

CBS Sports on who's state has the fastest players of all?

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

CBS Sports also says Temple is joining the Big East as soon as it can hammer out a exit agreement with the MAC. The article says Temple may not leave the A10 until 2013.

Then again, Temple says there's no agreement or commitment to the Big East as yet.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Landers College in New York does not have a football team----so they're adopting the Ducks.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013---Mike Love

Image credit unknown

The Tampa Bay Times reports UMass has offered to Mike Love, a 6-4 205 pd DE from Countryside HS in FL.

Tampa Bay article here.

MaxPreps page here.

Rivals page here.

Love holds offers from UAB, Iowa State, Louisville, Ohio and FIU.

Friday--March 2nd, 2012

Negotiations are ongoing about Temple to the Big East.

The "Cardiac Hill" blog says Temple should make the move.

Phil Sheridan says the Owls should just say no.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

NFL Draft Scout has Emil Igwenagu as the #2 fullback on its list.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A Bleacher Report writer dubs Sam the Minuteman one of the "23 dumbest mascots in College football."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recruiting 2013--Xavier Johnson

According to the Tampa Bay times, UMass has offered to Xavier Johnson, a 5-9 170 pd RB/DB from Chamberlain  HS in FL.

Tampa Bay story here.

Johnson's MaxPreps page here.

Johnson had 231 carries for 1,736 yards and 16 TD's

Thursday--March 1st, 2012

Matty V. has an interesting story on Coach Molnar and his staff as well as updates on the UMass football program.

Among the news: UMass will have two fifth-year transfers.  Spring practice starts March 27th and Spring game will be April 28th.

UMass had almost 150 players attend two Junior Days.

In addition, a Tampa Bay news paper said (referring to UMass' offer to Darren Hambrick) " and it continues the Minutemen’s recruiting blitz in the Tampa Bay."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A MAC conference scribe is not happy about the prospect of Temple leaving the League.

Meanwhile, Philly.com asks "Is the Temple move to the Big East on hold?"

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ron Chimelis says the Temple-UMass hoops rivalry will be missed. Last night's Owls-Minutemen game was a barn-burner. Too bad we apparently will not have a chance to develop a series in football.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nice story about Victor Cruz in the Wall St Journal.

Quote from Victor:

At the suggestion his salary could make him bitter, he snorted and said, "the only thing I am is hungry, to win more championships. I never dreamed about being a millionaire—I dreamed about being a football player."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When it comes to recruiting, Stanford does different.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------