Wednesday, January 16, 2019
UMass Football News--January 16th, 2019
UMass loses its defensive coordinator to Arkansas State almost before he unpacked in Amherst. Story here.
Nobody said it would be easy. Bell will find another guy.
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Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has some football news and notes.
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Former UMass assistant coach Eddy Morrissey (2004-2005) has joined the Austin Peay staff as OL coach.
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In Recruiting news:
UMass target TE Tyler Devera is expected to take an OV to Colorado. The article mentions his OV to UMass.
I've blogged about Devera twice before.
UMass target LB Josh Slay talks about his recent offer from Villanova.
I've blogged about Slay before.
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Tuesday, January 15, 2019
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Logan Darby comits to UMass
I just blogged about Logan Darby yesterday. He has Tweeted he's committed to UMass.
Darby's a safety, a position of need for the Minutemen.
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on last weekend's recruiting visits including Darby.
Darby's a safety, a position of need for the Minutemen.
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on last weekend's recruiting visits including Darby.
UMass Football News--January 15th, 2019
This short article from Gwinnett Sports mentions new UMass offensive line coach Micah Jones. Mill Creek is one of Georgia’s biggest high schools in a suburban Atlanta county full of power house programs. Hopefully, Jones will be able to do some recruiting in that talent-rich area.
Thanks to the blog reader who sent me the link and description of his high school.
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Josh Walfish on former UMass coach Mark Whipple being hired as offensive coordinator and QB coach for Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Sport Now evaluates Whipple's offense.
All UMass fans wish Whipple good luck at his new position. He gave UMass its National Championship and righted the program after the Molnar train wreck. Let's hope he prospers there.
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News Star evaluates Louisiana Tech's 2019 schedule. Tech has gone to five straight bowl games and handled Hawaii in the Hawaii Bowl 33-14.
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NY Giants site "Big Blue" has a podcast about WR's in the 2019 draft and considers Andy Isabella.
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Thanks to the blog reader who sent me the link and description of his high school.
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Josh Walfish on former UMass coach Mark Whipple being hired as offensive coordinator and QB coach for Pittsburgh.
Pittsburgh Sport Now evaluates Whipple's offense.
All UMass fans wish Whipple good luck at his new position. He gave UMass its National Championship and righted the program after the Molnar train wreck. Let's hope he prospers there.
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News Star evaluates Louisiana Tech's 2019 schedule. Tech has gone to five straight bowl games and handled Hawaii in the Hawaii Bowl 33-14.
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NY Giants site "Big Blue" has a podcast about WR's in the 2019 draft and considers Andy Isabella.
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Monday, January 14, 2019
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Logan Darby
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| Twitter image |
247Sports page here.
Hudl.com has video.
This article from October of 2018 features Darby.
Darby also has an offer from Akron.
Sunday, January 13, 2019
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Jared Martino verbals to UMass
UPDATE: Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on Martino's joining the Minutemen. It includes some quotes from the Malden native.
Jared Martino, a 6-1 220 pound RB from Malden, MA has Tweeted he's verbaled to UMass.
247Sports page here.
Hudl.com has video.
This article from December 2018 features Martino.
Martino also had an offer from Sacred Heart.
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| Cheshire Academy image |
247Sports page here.
Hudl.com has video.
This article from December 2018 features Martino.
Martino also had an offer from Sacred Heart.
Saturday, January 12, 2019
UMass Football News---January 12th, 2019
UMass adds a series with New Mexico and changes the dates of two future games.
The UMass-New Mexico contract.
The Lobos are a member of the Mountain West conference. They went 3-9 overall (including a 43-52 loss to Liberty) and 1-7 in the Mountain West.
UMass will play at Dreamstyle stadium on October 3rd, 2020.
The complete 2020 schedule is here.
Besides football playing all-New-Mexico, Minutemen hoops might meet at some future date either the Lobos or the Aggies.
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Neal Brown says the coaching bug kicked in at UMass.
A Journal (newspaper) writer grades Brown's hire as a "Wow!".
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Raiders Wire says Andy Isabella could be a target for Oakland.
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UMass football was #6 in teams that had the biggest drop in point differential (points scored minus points allowed).
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The UMass-New Mexico contract.
The Lobos are a member of the Mountain West conference. They went 3-9 overall (including a 43-52 loss to Liberty) and 1-7 in the Mountain West.
UMass will play at Dreamstyle stadium on October 3rd, 2020.
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| Dreamstyle Stadium |
Besides football playing all-New-Mexico, Minutemen hoops might meet at some future date either the Lobos or the Aggies.
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Neal Brown says the coaching bug kicked in at UMass.
A Journal (newspaper) writer grades Brown's hire as a "Wow!".
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Raiders Wire says Andy Isabella could be a target for Oakland.
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UMass football was #6 in teams that had the biggest drop in point differential (points scored minus points allowed).
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Friday, January 11, 2019
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Cameron Roberson
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| Bakersfield College image |
247Sports two-star player.
Hudl.com has video.
Bakersfield bio has stats.
This article from August of 2018 has some quotes from Roberson.
UMass is the first offer for Roberson.
UMass Football News--January 11th, 2019
UMass adds Micah Jones as an assistant OL coach. Jones' UCF bio.
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Also joining the UMass staff will be Cedric Douglas. He will be coaching the DL. Douglas' Arkansas State bio.
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Louisiana Tech announces their 2019 schedule including a home game against UMass on October 12th.
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TribLive says Neal Brown brings a strong track record to West Virginia. The story has quotes from Brown about learning offense from Coach Whipple.
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Pro Football Focus has Andy Isabella the 6th best player in college football in 2018.
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Thursday, January 10, 2019
UMass Football News--January 10th, 2019
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" reports on UMass RB Bilal Ally returning the UMass roster. He also reports the Minutmen's top 2019 signee Jaylin Bannerman has reopened his recruiting. Details here.
As I said yesterday, Ally returning is a big deal because without him UMass was down to one FBS-level running back. Ally has two years left, so he'll share carries with Jordan Fredericks this year. He could be the featured back in 2020.
Losing Bannerman is tough. He was the top-rated recruit in the first signing period. Bannerman was a rush defensive end, a type of player the Minutemen currently do not have on the roster. I would assume the defensive end position will continue to be a priority for the new coaching staff.
There is no sense speculating what went wrong. Sometimes it's just not a good fit for both parties.
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USA Today has final grades for all 130 FBS teams in 2018.
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Marquis Young will play in the East-West Shrine game on January 19th. The game will be available on the NFL Network.
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College football coaches are calling for changes to the targeting rule.
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As I said yesterday, Ally returning is a big deal because without him UMass was down to one FBS-level running back. Ally has two years left, so he'll share carries with Jordan Fredericks this year. He could be the featured back in 2020.
Losing Bannerman is tough. He was the top-rated recruit in the first signing period. Bannerman was a rush defensive end, a type of player the Minutemen currently do not have on the roster. I would assume the defensive end position will continue to be a priority for the new coaching staff.
There is no sense speculating what went wrong. Sometimes it's just not a good fit for both parties.
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USA Today has final grades for all 130 FBS teams in 2018.
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Marquis Young will play in the East-West Shrine game on January 19th. The game will be available on the NFL Network.
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College football coaches are calling for changes to the targeting rule.
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Wednesday, January 09, 2019
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Jamel Hamm
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| Twitter image |
247Sports page here.
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" reports Hamm will visit UMass this weekend.
Hamm has four offers including Kent State and Miami (Ohio) from the MAC. Back when Don Brown was HC UMass had a number of players from Fork Union. The Minutemen should have plenty of playing to offer Hamm.
Tuesday, January 08, 2019
UMass Football News---January 8th, 2019
Andy Isabella has been invited to the NFL Combine on Feb. 26th.
Music City Miracles interviews Isabella about his career and NFL hopes. Andy has nice things to say about UMass.
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Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" reports RB Bilal Ally will return to the Minutemen next year.
This is a big "recruit" for Coach Bell. Ally rushed for 25-139 5.5 AVE 66 LONG in 2018. Without Ally UMass would have been very thin at RB next year.
With Jordan Fredericks being a senior and Ally a junior next year, UMass still really needs a RB in the 2019 recruiting class, but the coaching staff can now afford to be more choosy in their offers.
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SB Nation looks at the chances of all 130 FBS teams of beating FCS National Champions North Dakota State.
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247Sports reports UMass could be a transfer destination for SMU QB Ben Hicks. He's SMU's all-time leader in pass attempts, completions, yards and TD's.
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Meanwhile, Clemson dismantled Alabama in the FBS National Championship game.
The Tigers walk-on WR Hunter Renfrow is a lot like Andy Isabella.
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Music City Miracles interviews Isabella about his career and NFL hopes. Andy has nice things to say about UMass.
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Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" reports RB Bilal Ally will return to the Minutemen next year.
This is a big "recruit" for Coach Bell. Ally rushed for 25-139 5.5 AVE 66 LONG in 2018. Without Ally UMass would have been very thin at RB next year.
With Jordan Fredericks being a senior and Ally a junior next year, UMass still really needs a RB in the 2019 recruiting class, but the coaching staff can now afford to be more choosy in their offers.
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SB Nation looks at the chances of all 130 FBS teams of beating FCS National Champions North Dakota State.
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247Sports reports UMass could be a transfer destination for SMU QB Ben Hicks. He's SMU's all-time leader in pass attempts, completions, yards and TD's.
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Meanwhile, Clemson dismantled Alabama in the FBS National Championship game.
The Tigers walk-on WR Hunter Renfrow is a lot like Andy Isabella.
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Monday, January 07, 2019
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Johnathan Weir
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| Twitter image |
247Sports page here.
Hudl.com has video.
247Sports had a Q & A with Weir back in April of 2018.
Weir seems to have a high motor and he could contribute to a 2019 UMass defense that's going to feature Isaiah Rogers and ten new starters.
Sunday, January 06, 2019
UMass Footbal News--January 6th, 2019
CBS Sport has more on Neal Brown being hired at West Virginia.
Brown addressed Troy's fans during the halftime of their basketball game against Appalachian State.
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Florida State defends hiring Kendall Briles to replace Walt Bell.
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A News-Tribune writer says transfers are the new normal for college football.
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The Virginia Pilot wonders what the college football playoff championship game is doing in Santa Clara.
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Brown addressed Troy's fans during the halftime of their basketball game against Appalachian State.
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Florida State defends hiring Kendall Briles to replace Walt Bell.
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A News-Tribune writer says transfers are the new normal for college football.
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The Virginia Pilot wonders what the college football playoff championship game is doing in Santa Clara.
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Saturday, January 05, 2019
UMass Football News--January 5th, 2019
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| Arkansas State image |
Shadeed's Arkansas State bio. This podcast interviews Shadeed and he talks about his background and strength philosophy.
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Underdog Dynasty has a post on Aazaar Abdul-Rahim joining the Minutmen as defensive coordinator.
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Multiple stories about former UMass player and coach Neal Brown being named the new head coach at West Virginia:
ESPN's notice.
Troy's players are happy and excited for Brown.
The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports the reviews are positive for Brown's hire.
Congrats to Neal on his new job at a Power Five school. Hopefully, we'll be reading the same thing in five years about Coach Bell when he gets a massive contract at Texas Tech after "doing a remarkable job turning around UMass".
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Cougar Sports Insider looks at how BYU's 2018 opponents finished the season.
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THE SCIENCE IS SETTLED
Bacon makes you happy.
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Friday, January 04, 2019
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Raykwon Anderson
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| 247Sports image |
247Sports three-star player
Hudl.com has video.
MaxPreps has stats.
Recently de-committed from North Carolina.
Anderson has twelve offers including Power Five schools Florida, Kentucky, Maryland and Purdue. Wants to play in a spread offense, so UMass could be in contention.
Thursday, January 03, 2019
UMass Football News--January 3rd, 2019
Andy Isabella has been named a Lombardi Award semifinalist.
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J.C. Collins, a 6-0 180 pound Athlete from Williamstown, NJ is back on the recruiting market after the new coaching staff at UMass pulled his scholarship offer.
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An NJ.com writer predicts Rutgers 2019 season and thinks the Scarlet Knights will go 3-9 with two of the three wins being UMass and BC.
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Former UMass WR Marken Michel has signed a contract with the Eagles after playing in the CFL for the last two years.
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Former UMass player and Coach Neal Brown is being mentioned as the next next head coach at West Virginia.
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Dawn of the Dog says Georgia was just not interested in playing at the Sugar Bowl.
Speaking of Georgia, a pregame photo-op between Texas mascot Bevo and Georgia's mascot Uga didn't go well.
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J.C. Collins, a 6-0 180 pound Athlete from Williamstown, NJ is back on the recruiting market after the new coaching staff at UMass pulled his scholarship offer.
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An NJ.com writer predicts Rutgers 2019 season and thinks the Scarlet Knights will go 3-9 with two of the three wins being UMass and BC.
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Former UMass WR Marken Michel has signed a contract with the Eagles after playing in the CFL for the last two years.
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Former UMass player and Coach Neal Brown is being mentioned as the next next head coach at West Virginia.
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Dawn of the Dog says Georgia was just not interested in playing at the Sugar Bowl.
Speaking of Georgia, a pregame photo-op between Texas mascot Bevo and Georgia's mascot Uga didn't go well.
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Wednesday, January 02, 2019
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Marlyn Johnson
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| Suzette Knoscavage Schmidt image |
247Sports three-star player.
Hudl.com has video.
MaxPreps has stats.
Decomitted from Rutgers in October.
Johnson has fifteen offers mostly from Power Five schools including BC, Pitt, West Virginia and Buffalo from the Northeast. Maryland also offered so maybe the new recruiting staff knows him.
Tuesday, January 01, 2019
New year's Day--2019
Happy New Year to all! May 2019 bring us health and happiness this year. Some big, strong, fast and athletic recruits would not hurt either...
Monday, December 31, 2018
UMass Football News--December 31st, 2019
Coach Bell said when he arrived that recruiting was all about having a "relationship" with the recruit. With the minimal time he has had for 2019 recruiting, he seems to have done pretty well.
According to the 247Sports recruiting page (I'm a subscriber), UMass has 196 offers out for 2019 (if I counted right). Many of those might not be active as they were from the previous staff.
Coach Bell has 150 offers out for 2020 and 30 for 2021.
Those numbers are way too much for me to do recruiting posts on each. I'll stick to the "Top Target", "High Choice" and "Interested" categories.
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The Deseret News has the top plays from each of BYU's games in 2018.
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The Heights reviews Boston College's 2018 season.
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Roanoke.com has a profile of Military Bowl analyst Rene Ingoglia.
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Maine promotes from within to fill their head coaching position.
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OT, but:
Georgia coach Tom Cream credits sellout crowd for the Dogs win over UMass.
A UMass fan at the Georgia game sent me the image below.
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Dave Barry's (he cracks me up) Year in Review asks "Is there anything good we can say about 2018?"
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According to the 247Sports recruiting page (I'm a subscriber), UMass has 196 offers out for 2019 (if I counted right). Many of those might not be active as they were from the previous staff.
Coach Bell has 150 offers out for 2020 and 30 for 2021.
Those numbers are way too much for me to do recruiting posts on each. I'll stick to the "Top Target", "High Choice" and "Interested" categories.
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The Deseret News has the top plays from each of BYU's games in 2018.
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The Heights reviews Boston College's 2018 season.
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Roanoke.com has a profile of Military Bowl analyst Rene Ingoglia.
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Maine promotes from within to fill their head coaching position.
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OT, but:
Georgia coach Tom Cream credits sellout crowd for the Dogs win over UMass.
A UMass fan at the Georgia game sent me the image below.
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Dave Barry's (he cracks me up) Year in Review asks "Is there anything good we can say about 2018?"
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Sunday, December 30, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Josh Slay
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| Reggie Davis image |
247Sports page here.
Douglas County Sentinel Defensive Player-of-the-Year.
Hudl.com has senior highlights.
MaxPreps has stats.
Slay has 28 offers including Army, Navy, Georgia Southern, Charlotte and FAU from FBS. He will take an OV to UMass on January 25th.
Saturday, December 29, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Bryquice Brown II
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| 247Sports image |
I blogged about Brown back in October.
247Sports page here.
Hudl.com has video.
MaxPreps has stats.
Brown will take an OV to Amherst on January 25th.
Friday, December 28, 2018
UMass Football News--December 28th, 2018
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on "Minutemen add a new defensive coordinator and more coaches to staff".
The Baltimore Sun also has a story on Abdul-Rahim moving to UMass.
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Also joining the Minutemen will be Jason Tudryn. He was a four-year letter winner (1992, 93, 94 and 95) for the Minutemen as a Safety. Tudryn's North Carolina Bio.
Another North Carolina football staff member will be joining the Minutemen as Rory Pommerining will become general manager/assistant AD for football. Pommerining's North Carolina bio.
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My take is Coach Bell is building a strong staff. Abdul-Rahim is known as a strong recruiter, which is just what the Minutemen need. Football is roster driven and no amount of coaching can compensate for deficiencies in personnel.
Maryland finished 5-7 in 2018. However, the Terps recruit in a different universe that does UMass. Maryland's 2018 recruiting class was ranked 28th by 247Sports.
Let's hope some of that recruiting magic moves to UMass. The Minutemen can't win with bottom 10% recruiting classes.
Adding veteran defensive coach David Duggan is also a good move. His experience will help Abdul-Rahim as he's never been a defensive coordinator before
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Don Brown says there should be twelve teams in the college football playoffs.
There should be 16. The top four get byes in the first round. Of the remaining 12 teams five should be the Group-of-Five league champions and the rest drawn by the polls. The Power Five conferences would get 11 (usually) of the 16 slots.
Speaking of Don Brown, he said he'd listen if offered a head coaching job.
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Former UMass assistant coach Ted Roof joins Appalachian State as defensive coordinator.
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The Baltimore Sun also has a story on Abdul-Rahim moving to UMass.
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| North Carolina Athletics image |
Another North Carolina football staff member will be joining the Minutemen as Rory Pommerining will become general manager/assistant AD for football. Pommerining's North Carolina bio.
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My take is Coach Bell is building a strong staff. Abdul-Rahim is known as a strong recruiter, which is just what the Minutemen need. Football is roster driven and no amount of coaching can compensate for deficiencies in personnel.
Maryland finished 5-7 in 2018. However, the Terps recruit in a different universe that does UMass. Maryland's 2018 recruiting class was ranked 28th by 247Sports.
Let's hope some of that recruiting magic moves to UMass. The Minutemen can't win with bottom 10% recruiting classes.
Adding veteran defensive coach David Duggan is also a good move. His experience will help Abdul-Rahim as he's never been a defensive coordinator before
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Don Brown says there should be twelve teams in the college football playoffs.
There should be 16. The top four get byes in the first round. Of the remaining 12 teams five should be the Group-of-Five league champions and the rest drawn by the polls. The Power Five conferences would get 11 (usually) of the 16 slots.
Speaking of Don Brown, he said he'd listen if offered a head coaching job.
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Former UMass assistant coach Ted Roof joins Appalachian State as defensive coordinator.
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Thursday, December 27, 2018
UMass Football News--Coach Bell expands his staff
Multiple additions to Coach Bell's staff:
Joining UMass from Maryland is Aazaar Abdul-Rahim. Terps Ace Recruiter Officially Moves on. Abdul-Rahim will be Co-Defensive coordinator at UMass.
Rahim's Terps bio. More on Rahim here.
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Joining Rahim as Co-Defensive coordinator is David Duggan. He will also coach linebackers. Duggan went to UNH and has extensive New England roots.
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Jon Bills will coach TE's and be the Recruiting Coordinator. Bills was an offensive assistant at FSU.
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Fredi Knighten will be running backs coach. Was assistant QB coach at FSU.
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| 247Sports image |
Rahim's Terps bio. More on Rahim here.
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| image credit unknown |
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Jon Bills will coach TE's and be the Recruiting Coordinator. Bills was an offensive assistant at FSU.
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Fredi Knighten will be running backs coach. Was assistant QB coach at FSU.
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UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Dariyan Wiley
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| 247sports image |
247Sports page here.
Hudl.com has video.
MaxPreps has stats.
2nd Team All-Region.
Wiley has 24 offers including many Sun Belt teams, Navy and Kansas. UMass is the only offer from the Northeast.
247Sports has Wiley visiting Amherst on 01/25/19.
Wednesday, December 26, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Malik Sanders II and Jaylin Bannerman II
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has two posts on recent letter-of-intent signees.
Mike's post on JUCO CB Malik Sanders is here. The Minutemen had three of four 2018 defensive back starters graduate. There should be plenty of playing time for the versatile Sanders.
Remember when Don Brown had three or four defensive packages besides his base set? Brown loved DB's. You have to have more than just two guys who are ready to play. Did UMass play the Nickle in 2018? Did we have a Dime package? The new DC should have Isiah Rogers, Malik Sanders, Chris Hunt and Bakhari Goodson.
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Mike also has a story on JUCO signee Jaylin Bannerman. Bannerman fills a position the Minutemen did not possess in 2018--a rush defensive end. UMass finished next-to-last in the entire FBS in sacks last year. We actually tied for last in number of sacks. And it's a good thing that the NCAA apparently does not have an official "QB hurries" stat or we would be a trivia question for the foreseeable future.
At 6-5 240, the Minutemen do not have another player in his category. Bannerman probably will be the first UMass recruit since Blake Fronapfel to have a green light from day one.
"Son, go in and do your thing."
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Mike's post on JUCO CB Malik Sanders is here. The Minutemen had three of four 2018 defensive back starters graduate. There should be plenty of playing time for the versatile Sanders.
Remember when Don Brown had three or four defensive packages besides his base set? Brown loved DB's. You have to have more than just two guys who are ready to play. Did UMass play the Nickle in 2018? Did we have a Dime package? The new DC should have Isiah Rogers, Malik Sanders, Chris Hunt and Bakhari Goodson.
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Mike also has a story on JUCO signee Jaylin Bannerman. Bannerman fills a position the Minutemen did not possess in 2018--a rush defensive end. UMass finished next-to-last in the entire FBS in sacks last year. We actually tied for last in number of sacks. And it's a good thing that the NCAA apparently does not have an official "QB hurries" stat or we would be a trivia question for the foreseeable future.
At 6-5 240, the Minutemen do not have another player in his category. Bannerman probably will be the first UMass recruit since Blake Fronapfel to have a green light from day one.
"Son, go in and do your thing."
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Tuesday, December 25, 2018
Christmas--2018
Mrs Blog and I wish all UMass fans, coaches and players a Merry Christmas and a happy holidays.
May 2019 bring us many excellent recruits and some victories. We deserve it.
Monday, December 24, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Cletus Mathurin II
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post and an interview with 2019 DL recruit Cletus Mathurin.
Mathurin is 6-2 290. UMass needs a huge upgrade in size, speed and athleticism in the defensive front seven. Out of a 129 FBS teams UMass finished 123rd in total defense, 125th in rushing defense, 126th in scoring defense and 111th in red zone defense.
The Minutemen also finished 128th in sacks.
In addition UMass loses defensive linemen Joe Previte (a Phil Steele All-Independent selection) and Basit Dennis to graduation.
I doubt Mathurin redshirts.
Sunday, December 23, 2018
UMass Footbal Recruiting 2019--Taj Jones II
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post and an interview with 2019 commit Taj Jones.
Victor Cruz was from NJ. Let's hope fellow Patterson resident Jones is equally successful.
Coach Bell runs the spread offense. This will be the Minutemen's second stint with the spread offense as Coach Molnar ran the spread in his two years with UMass.
The UMass WR corps may be the Minutemen's deepest unit at this time. Jesse Britt has returned to the team. Sadiq Palmer, Brennon Dingle, Zak Simon and Samuel Emilus all did well in 2018.
The Minutemen have the receivers to make a smooth transition to the spread. Now we need a QB.
Saturday, December 22, 2018
UMass Football recruiting 2019--Bryce Wade II
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on UMass OL recruit Bryce Wade.
Wade has two things you can't coach: length (6-7) and athleticism (former TE). He will have three years of eligibility with the Minutemen.
UMass loses both guards to gradation as 2018 was Jake Largay's and Lukas Kotler's last year.
2018 three-star recruit Joshua Jefferson could be in line for one of those positions. Wade is more of a OT type. He has an NFL frame, but needs muscle and weight.
UMass Football News--December 22nd, 2018
UnderDog Dynasty reports UMass lands eight during early signing period.
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UConn fires their defensive coordinator.
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The Breeze breaks down JMU's new assistant coaches including former UMass strength coach Brian Phillips.
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UMass QB Randall West helps UMass basketball edge Fairleigh Dickenson.
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UMass opponents continued their bowl win streak.
FIU edged Toledo 35-32 in the Bahamas Bowl.
BYU rode a big second half to blowout Western Michigan in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
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UConn fires their defensive coordinator.
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The Breeze breaks down JMU's new assistant coaches including former UMass strength coach Brian Phillips.
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UMass QB Randall West helps UMass basketball edge Fairleigh Dickenson.
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UMass opponents continued their bowl win streak.
FIU edged Toledo 35-32 in the Bahamas Bowl.
BYU rode a big second half to blowout Western Michigan in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl.
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Friday, December 21, 2018
UMass Football News--December 21st, 2018
Today is winter solstice. Tomorrow a new astronomical year starts as the days get longer. Hope UMass football has a new start in 2019.
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UMass recruit Kevin Brown has been rated three-stars by 247Sports.
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Josh Wallfish reports coach Bell is waiting for his new staff to take shape.
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The Berkshire Eagle reports coach Bell is happy but not satisfied over his first wave of recruits.
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WGME Sports reports Maine coach Harasymiak is leave to become an assistant at Minnesota.
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HERO Sports has a post on the youngest coaches in FBS. Walt Bell is third youngest.
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Catching up with UMass' opponents:
Ohio crushed San Diego in the Frisco Bowl.
USF started the season 7-0. They finished 0-6 as they lost to Marshall in the Gasparilla Bowl.
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Thursday, December 20, 2018
UMass Football News--December 20th, 2018
UMass signs eight recruits in Coach Bell's first signing day.
Josh Walfish has a post on yesterday's recruits.
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The eight included a couple of recruits I haven't talked about.
Jaylen Bannerman, a 6-4 240 pound DE/LB from Arizona Western JUCO.
Bannerman's Tweet he's joining the Minutemen.
247Sports three-star player.
Hudl.com has video.
ACCAC has stats.
Chose UMass over FBS offers from Liberty, UTEP and Western Kentucky
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Keven Brown, a 6-0 225 pound RB from Everett, MA also joins the Minutemen.
Currently unrated by 247Sports, but probably will be two-stars shortly.
Hudl.com has video.
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Another addition is Helber Fagundes, a 6-5 290 pound OL who grayshirted last year.
I blogged about Fagundes back in Febuary of last year.
2017 Globe All-Scholastic.
Quote from the article:
"Standing 6-5 and 300 pounds, the senior is an imposing linemen. Everett coach John DiBiaso calls Fagundes the best offensive tackle in Massachusetts, a claim backed by the Tide’s dominant rushing attack that resulted in 41.8 points per game."
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UMass did lose one committ when Mike Ciaffoni flipped to Boston College.
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My take on Coach Bell's first recruits:
I think UMass fans should be excited about Bell's first efforts. With only two weeks to make offers and a very short staff, Bell landed five three-star recruits and filled some obvious needs. Four of the seven are defensive players including two DL, which was a huge need for the Minutemen. Three of the players are JUCO's designed to fill immediate needs. While I would love UMass recruit mostly four-year players, the Minutemen need to bring in some JUCO's and transfers every year.
Consider Mike Ciaffoni flipping to BC. Boston College is a freaking Power-Five school and they made the effort to flip a lightly recruited OL. It shows how scarce FBS recruits are in New England.
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UConn signs twelve players.
Boston College signed 18.
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Josh Walfish has a post on yesterday's recruits.
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The eight included a couple of recruits I haven't talked about.
Jaylen Bannerman, a 6-4 240 pound DE/LB from Arizona Western JUCO.
Bannerman's Tweet he's joining the Minutemen.
247Sports three-star player.
Hudl.com has video.
ACCAC has stats.
Chose UMass over FBS offers from Liberty, UTEP and Western Kentucky
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Keven Brown, a 6-0 225 pound RB from Everett, MA also joins the Minutemen.
Currently unrated by 247Sports, but probably will be two-stars shortly.
Hudl.com has video.
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Another addition is Helber Fagundes, a 6-5 290 pound OL who grayshirted last year.
I blogged about Fagundes back in Febuary of last year.
2017 Globe All-Scholastic.
Quote from the article:
"Standing 6-5 and 300 pounds, the senior is an imposing linemen. Everett coach John DiBiaso calls Fagundes the best offensive tackle in Massachusetts, a claim backed by the Tide’s dominant rushing attack that resulted in 41.8 points per game."
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UMass did lose one committ when Mike Ciaffoni flipped to Boston College.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
My take on Coach Bell's first recruits:
I think UMass fans should be excited about Bell's first efforts. With only two weeks to make offers and a very short staff, Bell landed five three-star recruits and filled some obvious needs. Four of the seven are defensive players including two DL, which was a huge need for the Minutemen. Three of the players are JUCO's designed to fill immediate needs. While I would love UMass recruit mostly four-year players, the Minutemen need to bring in some JUCO's and transfers every year.
Consider Mike Ciaffoni flipping to BC. Boston College is a freaking Power-Five school and they made the effort to flip a lightly recruited OL. It shows how scarce FBS recruits are in New England.
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UConn signs twelve players.
Boston College signed 18.
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Wednesday, December 19, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Malik Sanders verbals to UMass
![]() |
| Hudl.com image |
247Sports three-star player.
Hudl.com has video.
MaxPreps has stats.
Chose UMass over seven other offers all from FBS.
With Sanders verbal, Coach Bell has signed seven recruits, six of which are three stars. That ties the total for the entire 2018 recruiting cycle.
UMass Football News--December 19th, 2018
The Manganaro Family donates $500k for McGuirk improvements. The funds will be applied to a new high-definition video board. I watched Paul Manganaro play back in the day. He lettered in 1982, 83, 85 and was captain in 1986. Manganaro was All-Yankee Conference in 1985. With the new bubble practice facility coming, things are lookin' up at McGuirk.
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Andy Isabella adds his ninth post season award as he is named First Team All-America by Phil Steele.
Nine Minutemen made Steele's All-Independent team for 2018. Andrew Ford, Marquis Young, Jake Largay, Bryton Barr and Isiah Rogers made the first team. Sadiq Palmer, Ray Thomas-Ishman, Joe Previte and Lee Moses made the 2nd team. Marquis Young made the second team as kick returner.
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UMass adds former San Diego (FCS) coach Jim Jackson as OL coach. Jackson's San Diego bio.
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Josh Walfish report Coach Bell has a plan for recruiting.
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The Bangor Daily News reports Maine's Joe Harasymiak is the CAA's lowest paid coach, but he's in line for more lucrative offers.
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Tuesday, December 18, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Samuel Okuayinonu II
I've blogged about Samuel Okuayinonu before.
The 6-3 270 pound JUCO DE visited UMass last weekend. His current 247Sports page has him leaning towards UMass.
Okuayinonu also has offers from Oregon and Maryland. Oregon has the best uniforms in FBS, but the Ducks already have one five-star and two three-star DE's in their 2019 recruiting class. I would think he would be in line for far greater playing time with the Minutemen. Okuayinonu would be an instant starter in Amherst.
UMass Football News--December 18th, 2019
UMass DT verbal Cletus Mathurin has been rated three-stars by 247Sports. That makes five out of six 2019 recruits three-star rated. The Minutemen only signed six three-star recruits for the entire 2018 recruiting cycle.
Top Group-of-Five schools typically sign 20 or so three star recruits. Temple, for example has 20 out 21 2019 recruits with a three-star rating. Middle of the road Group-of-Five teams sign in the middle teens. Sub-ten three-star recruits will get the coaching staff fired.
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Five-start Georgia QB Justin Fields is looking for a new home. I wonder if Coach Bell will give him a call. Fields played against UMass in November.
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UMass' strength and Conditions coach Brian Phillips moves to James Madison. Not sure if he was not retained by the new staff or he left on his own.
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Flordia State QB Deondre Francois might stay with the Seminoles if Walt Bell recruit Sam Howell decommits.
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Top Group-of-Five schools typically sign 20 or so three star recruits. Temple, for example has 20 out 21 2019 recruits with a three-star rating. Middle of the road Group-of-Five teams sign in the middle teens. Sub-ten three-star recruits will get the coaching staff fired.
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Five-start Georgia QB Justin Fields is looking for a new home. I wonder if Coach Bell will give him a call. Fields played against UMass in November.
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UMass' strength and Conditions coach Brian Phillips moves to James Madison. Not sure if he was not retained by the new staff or he left on his own.
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Flordia State QB Deondre Francois might stay with the Seminoles if Walt Bell recruit Sam Howell decommits.
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Monday, December 17, 2018
UMass Football News--December 17th, 2018
Well, the big news is the successful recruiting session held this weekend by Coach Bell.
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on the signings.
This is excellent results for Coach Bell who does not even have half a staff yet. Four of the six verbals are defensive players, a major UMass need. Jermaine Johnson could also play WR..
I doubt any of the defensive players will redshirt. Xavier Gonsalves and Mike Claffoni were both recently named Herald All-Scholastics.
Of the six 2019 commits, four are three-star players. UMass only signed six total three-star recruits for the entire 2018 recruiting cycle.
All in all, a very promising start to Coach Bell's tenure in Amherst.
Still needed for the 2019 recruiting class are TE's, running backs and more of every position on defense.
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on the signings.
This is excellent results for Coach Bell who does not even have half a staff yet. Four of the six verbals are defensive players, a major UMass need. Jermaine Johnson could also play WR..
I doubt any of the defensive players will redshirt. Xavier Gonsalves and Mike Claffoni were both recently named Herald All-Scholastics.
Of the six 2019 commits, four are three-star players. UMass only signed six total three-star recruits for the entire 2018 recruiting cycle.
All in all, a very promising start to Coach Bell's tenure in Amherst.
Still needed for the 2019 recruiting class are TE's, running backs and more of every position on defense.
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Cletus Mathurin verbals to UMass
Cletus Mathurin, a 6-2 290 pound DT from Cheshire Academy, CT has Tweeted he's committed to UMass.
247Sports page here.
Mathurin chose UMass over FBS offers from Buffalo, Army, Navy and Old Dominion.
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Bryce Wade commits to UMass
![]() |
| Hudl.com image |
247Sports three-star player.
Hudl.com has video.
Chose UMass over offers from Eastern Michigan, New Mexico State and Old Dominion.
Sunday, December 16, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Taj Jones verbals to UMass
Taj Jones, a 6-2 201 pound WR from Sparta, NJ has committed to UMass.
I blogged about Jones on Thursday.
247Sports three star player.
Chose UMass over offers from Buffalo, Rutgers, Temple and Old Dominion.
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Jermain Johnson verbals to UMass
Jermain Johnson, a 5-10 165 pound CB from DeMantha Catholic has Tweeted he's committed to UMass
247Sports three-star player.
MaxPreps has stats.
Chose UMass over offers from FAU and Maryland.
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Stetson Bennett
![]() |
| 247Sports image |
247Sports page here.
Hudl.com has 2018 highlights.
Originally walked on at Georgia.
Bennett is one of the players visiting UMass this weekend. He also has an offer from Kent State.
Saturday, December 15, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Xavier Gray
![]() |
| Ray Stewart image |
Hudl.com has video.
This article features Gray.
Jackson's "Most Improved" player.
Gray was a teammate of current UMass QB Jaret Pallotta.
UMass Football News--December 15th, 2018
Four Minutemen, Bryton Barr, Andy Isabella, Jake Largay and Brice McAllister have been named All-ECAC. In addition, Barr was named ECAC Defensive Player-of-the-Year.
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Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has some news and notes about UMass sports including additions to the footballs staff and recruiting.
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Forbes.com has a post on the young coaches (including Walt Bell) hired this year in college football.
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Friday, December 14, 2018
UMass Football recruiting 2019--Josh Moore
![]() |
| Hudl.com image |
247Sports two-star player.
Hudl.com has video.
Coffeyville bio has some stats.
Moore has three offers including Bowling Green from the MAC.
UMass Football News--December 14th, 2018
The UMass website has a post on Andy Isabella being a consensus All-American.
Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" also has a story about Isabella being named consensus All-American.
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In a previous blog post I talked about Don Brown being in contention for the Temple HC job. Miami's Manny Diaz won the job. Thanks to the blog reader who sent me the link.
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UMass will play at USF in 2022.
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Thursday, December 13, 2018
UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Taj Jones
![]() |
| Hudl.com image |
247Sports three-star player.
Hudl.com has senior highlights.
MaxPreps has stats.
NJ.com Top-50 New Jersey.
Jones has seven offers with Buffalo, Rutgers and Temple joining UMass from the Northeast.
UMass Football News--December 13th, 2018
Andy Isabella was named 1st team American Football Coaches Association All-American yesterday. That's Isabella's seventh All-American team.
The News-Herald reports Isabella earns his seventh All-American honor.
The NCAA divided into divisions in 1973. Prior to that, UMass football All-Americans were:
1952 Tony Chambers E
1961 Bob Foote LT
1963 Paul Gorham T
1964 Milt Morin TE
1965 Milt Morin TE
1967 Greg Landry QB
1971 Bill DeFlavio MG
1972 Steve Schubert WR
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Isabella picks Alabama to win the College Football Playoffs.
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It's being reported Don Brown has been interviewed for the HC position at Temple.
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The News-Herald reports Isabella earns his seventh All-American honor.
The NCAA divided into divisions in 1973. Prior to that, UMass football All-Americans were:
1952 Tony Chambers E
1961 Bob Foote LT
1963 Paul Gorham T
1964 Milt Morin TE
1965 Milt Morin TE
1967 Greg Landry QB
1971 Bill DeFlavio MG
1972 Steve Schubert WR
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Isabella picks Alabama to win the College Football Playoffs.
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It's being reported Don Brown has been interviewed for the HC position at Temple.
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