UMass Football News--April 6th, 2019

I drove down to Amherst to watch the UMass practice on Thursday. Could have picked a warmer day.

If any blog reader is fairly local to Amherst I recommend attending a practice. It was fast paced. The players were not standing around waiting for the next drill. A young coaching staff was involved in teaching. There was no old guy with a whistle swearing at the players. In fact there was was remarkably little cussin' at all.

The only coach I got to say a couple of words with was Jason Tudryn. Saw him play for UMass and had a couple of long talks with his dad back in the day. That had me feeling a little old.

Several of the players called me "Sir".

Click on an image and Blogger displays a larger view.

Out of his jacket and tie, Coach Bell looks as if he could still catch some passes. He was rolling on the turf at one point to demonstrate a point.

I'll have some more images Monday

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The BYU blog "Vanquish the Foe" ranks all 12 opponent defenses for 2019.

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The San Diego News-Tribune has Andy Isabella going #90 in the third round of the NFL draft.

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UMass Football News--April 5th, 2019

I attended UMass practice #8 yesterday. Haven't had a chance to curate the images I took . I'll try to have a longer post tomorrow.

Click on the images below and Blogger displays a larger view.

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USA Today has a post on UMass recruiting European athletes for football. Former UMass DDL Brandon Collier's organization is prominent in helping European players getting recruiting exposure. Kudos to the new staff for paying attention and offering some of these players. The Minutemen need all the recruiting streams we can get.

247Sports has the top performers from the European combine.

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Lewis Pro Football looks at Andy Isabella as a fit for the Patriots.

Saturday Blitz asks if Andy is a can't miss prospect.

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This article refers to UMass recruit Nasir Currie-Sudler as a member of the best HS safety combination in the nation.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Grant Laws

Grant Laws, a 6-3 280 pound OG from Xavarian Bros HS in MA has Tweeted he'll attend UMass as a PWO.

247Sports page here.

This article reports on Laws' signing with UMass.

Hudl.com has video.

Boston Herald All-Scholastic in wrestling. 

Laws also had an offer from Sacred Hart.

UMass Football News--April 3rd, 2019

Josh Walfish reports the Minutemen defense is flying to the ball and coach Bell has finished with installing the new offense.

The Minutemen defense has a lot to do to climb out of the NCAA defensive cellar. Like UMass hockey, football is going to need more than one year to fix all the problems, but more speed in the front seven and generating some pass rush would be encouraging this year.

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Pitt's receivers are excited about Coach Whipple's offense. And they should be. UMass finished 14th in passing offense and 16th in passing efficiency last in 2018. In our case, the passing offense was all we had. The Minutemen finished 102nd in rushing offense and in the bottom ten in nearly every defensive stat. 2018 NCAA UMass stats and ranks here.

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Rutgers is getting ready for their opener against UMass.

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MyFantasySports.com profiles Andy Isabella.

Raising Zona thinks Isabella could help the Cardinals WR team speed.

CBS Sports has a mock draft with Kansas City taking Andy #30 in the 2nd round.

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UMass Football News--April 2nd, 2019

Josh Walfish reports new UMass strength coach Matt Shadeed is injecting the Minutemen with new dedication in the weight room.

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PennLive.com reports the Steelers had Andy Isabella in for a pre-draft visit.

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The Orlando Sentinel ranks the Big Ten's OOC schedules including UMass at Rutgers and UMass at Northwestern. The Minutemen's previous visit to Rutgers was in 1976 when Coach Mac's UMass squad lost to the Scarlet Knights 24-7. The Minutemen played Toledo, BC and Rutgers that year.

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With Walt Bell leaving for UMass, Florida State OC Kendal Briles will call the plays from the sideline.

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Jestus Johnson, who held a UMass offer, verbals to Virginia.

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Meanwhile, Rutgers tries to keep local talent at home. According to 247Sports, UMass has offers out to 31 Garden State prospects.

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BTW, congrats to UMass hockey for making the Frozen Four. All I know about hockey would fit in a shot glass, but I watched more hockey games last week than I had watched in my entire life.

UMass basketball currently has the top-rated recruiting class in the A10 and I think Coach Bell has UMass on an upward trajectory. Hopefully, in a couple of years, we'll be seeing some good results in both those sports.

Looks like it'll finally be a good time to be a Minutemen fan!

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UMass Football Recruiting--Pete Bryant commits to UMass

Pete Bryant, a 6-3 250 pound TE/LB from Lawrence Academy has Tweeted he'll attend UMass as a PWO.

Hudl.com has Junior highlights.

This article from a couple of years ago mentions his dedication to football.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Ryan Driscoll commits to UMass

Ryan Lanigan image

Ryan Driscoll, a 6-0 175 pound WR/DB from Franklin, MA has Tweeted he'll attend UMass as a PWO.

Hudl.com has video.

Averaged 31 yards/catch with 12 TD's.

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UMass Football News--March 30th, 2019

The Daily Collegian reports new UMass coach Walt Bell is using social media to his advantage.

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The Sun Sentinel reports Palm Beach coach Billy Clark is stepping down to become a school administrator. He coached UMass OL Parker Ogle

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A 247Sports writer predicts a bowl game for UMass 2019 opponents FIU, Louisiana Tech,  Army, Northwestern and BYU.

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The Packers Wire reports Green Bay is "really interested" in Andy Isabella.

Clutch Points says New England is also interested in Isabella.

Chowder and Champions says the Pats interest in Andy is very real.

CLNS looks at Isabella fitting into New England's slot receiver spot.

For the Win reports every draftnik on the planet has connected  Andy with the Patriots.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Charles Payson commits to UMass

Twitter image

Charles Payson, a 6-2 265 pound MLB/OL has Tweeted he's joining the Minutemen as a PWO.

Hudl.com has video.

Central Mass Division III All-Star.

Payson had 93 tackles and three INTs on defense.

UMass Recruiting 2020--Ethan Mottinger verbals to UMass

Twitter image

UMass scored its second 2020 commit in two days as Ethan Mottinger, a 6-6 290 pound OT has Tweeted he's verbaled to UMass.

247Sports page here.

Hudl,com has video.

Rivals two-star player.

UMass was the first offer for Mottinger.

UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Brady Martin comitts to UMass

UPDATE: Mike Train of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on Martin verbaling to UMass.

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Brady Martin, a 5-11 188 pound pro-style QB from Leominister, MA has Tweeted he's verbaled to UMass

247 three-star player.

Hudl.com has video from last year.

I blogged about Martin way back in 2016.

Martin also had a FBS offer from Arkansas State. Nice in-state pickup for the Minutemen.

UMass Football News--March 27th, 2019

Image by Thom Kendall/UMass Athletics

The Boston Herald has coach Bell is bringing his enthusiasm to UMass Spring practice.

Josh Walfish reports Bell is making progress installing his offense.

Mike Curtis seems to be in the lead as starting QB so far. Curtis went 6-1 GP-GS 174.52 EFF 26-40-412 2 INT 65.0% 4 TD's in 2018. He actually led all the Minutemen QB's in efficiency (abet by a small margin).

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The UMass Football Twitter feed has some stills and video from the latest practice.

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Football Study Hall has the four main schools of the spread offense.

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Patriots Wire has a mock draft with New England picking Andy Isabella #37 in the third round.

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UMass Football News--March 26th, 2019

Matty Vautour reports Andy Isabella's unyielding belief made him a rising star in the NFL draft.

Saints Wire has three WR's for New Orleans to consider in this year's NFL Draft.

CBS Sports has Andy #65 in the top-100 players in the 2019 NFL Draft.

Football Maven thinks the Seahawks could take Isabella in the fourth round.

Andy also appears in this Detroit Lions mock draft.

Roto World has Isabella #1 in their WR success predictions.

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UMass legacy Kevin Lemieux commits to Syracuse.

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UMass Footbal Recruiting 2020--Hunter Salmon

Hunter Salmon, a 6-3 310 pound OL from Milford Academy has visited UMass.

247Sports page here.

Hudl.com has video.

This article mentions Salmon's visit to UMass.

His father Nick Salmon lettered for UMass in 1986, '87 and was captain in 1988.

UMass Football News--March 25th, 2019

Salem HS elects 14 into the schools Hall of Fame. Among those honored is Kyle Harrington who is currently stationed in Afghanistan as a member of the US Special Forces. Harrington won letters for UMass football in 2004, 05 and 06. His UMass bio.

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Bryton Barr and Ross Comis are the 2018-2019 winners of the Michael Boland Inspirational award.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Timmy Lawton

Timmy Lawton, a 6-2 275 pound DL/TE from Maynard, MA has Tweeted he's joining the Minutemen as a PWO.

Hudl.com has video.

MaxPreps has stats.

Lawton is another local player and defensive line/TE is a position of need for UMass.

UMass Football Recruiting 2019--Derek Laundry

This Tweet reports former Bryant LB Derek Laundry has joined the Minutemen.

Bryant bio here.

Hudl.com has senior year highlights.

Laundry is a Massachusetts kid and we can use all the help we can get on defense.

UMass Football News--March 22nd, 2019

UMass had its Pro Day yesterday. Josh Walfish reports from the event.

The UMass Football Twitter account has some video from Pro Day.

NFL Draft Diamonds says Andy Isabella shone. Walfish's Twitter feed said Marquis Young also had a good day. I think Young will surprise if he gets a chance. He might also do well in the CFL with some space around him.

Also nice to hear Andrew Ford is recovering and will be available Pro mini-camps.

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Boston College also held their Pro Day yesterday.

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Former UMass assistant strength and conditioning coach Darren Mustin joins the USC staff.

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TCU coach Gary Patterson thinks the NCAA's new transfer rule will ruin college football.

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UMass Football News--March 21st, 2019

UMass DB's lookin' alert!

Joseph Norwood
Donte Lindsey
Justin Lewis
Martin Mangram
Isaiah Rogers
Elijah Johnson
Aaron Kelly

Mangram must have decided to play his senior year at UMass. Kelly is not listed on the UMass roster.

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The UMass student militia is growing.

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Old CAA foe Albany adds West Virginia to its future opponents list. UMass and the Great Danes play next year.

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Zach Venesky means to be Rutgers starting left guard when the Minutemen visit on August 30th.

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NBC Sports Boston looks at Andy Isabella as a slot receiver for the Pats.

Isabella could be on the 49ers shopping list.

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NO WONDER AUBURN RECRUITS SO WELL

Auburn Tigers win sex tournament.

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UMass Football News--March 20th, 2019

UMass has it's first Spring practice.

Highlights of the first Spring practice . There is also an audio interview of Coach Bell.

Josh Wallfish says the Minutemen were energized.

The Berkshire Eagle reports on UMass' first practice under Coach Bell.

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Arrowhead Addict has a multi-page draft analysis of Andy Isabella.

Sports Day thinks Dallas won't draft Andy.

A Steelers four-round mock draft includes Isabella in the third round.

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UMass Football News--March 19th, 2019

Josh Walfish has burning questions at the start of UMass' Spring football practices.

IMHO coach Bell and staff have the biggest rebuilding task since Molnar was fired. On offense, which was the team strength last year, Bell must replace the starting QB, the starting RB, the nation's best WR and and the entire interior offensive line. The return of Bilal Ally will help. Bel will have Mike Curtis who led UMass QB's with a 174.52 efficiency rating. UMass will also add Andrew Brito, a JUCO QB from the College of the Canyons. Brito was a Top-100 player from New Jersey in HS.

Development of the offensive line is more worrying. As I said in a previous blog post, the Minutemen have never finished above the #100 mark in rushing offense since the move to FBS. Jaylan Larry should start at center, but both guard positions are open. In addition to three starters UMass must find at least a couple reserves.

On defense the rebuild is even more total. The two top play makers in the front seven, Bryton Barr and Jarell Addo are both gone from a unit that finished in the bottom-five in any defensive category you wish to name. Last year's coaching staff struggled to put eleven players on the field. The 2019 UMass defense could be Isiah Rogers and ten new starters. Most of the defensive freshmen recruits will see playing time. It's going to take a couple of recruiting cycles before the Minutemen defense is re-stocked.

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Two Texas A&M-Commerce football players are shot and robbed during Spring break.

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UMass Football News--March 18th, 2019

Joel Reinhardt joins the UMass football strength and performance staff. He's a Springfield College grad.

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NJ.com has random thoughts after the first five Spring practices at Rutgers.

Quote from the article:

"While you never know, most presume the Scarlet Knights will be coming off an early open date at 1-1 with a win over UMass and a loss at Iowa"

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Purpleptsd.com has a Viking draft profile of Andy Isabella.

Sports Hub 98.5 has a podcast that touches on Isabella.

The Cardinals interviewed Andy during the NFL Combine.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Israel Abanikanda

247Sports image

Israel Abanikanda, a 5-11 183 pound Athlete has Tweeted he's received an offer from UMass.

247Sports three-star player.

Hudl.com has his Junior year video.

MaxPreps has stats.

2nd Team USA Today All-NY.

Abanikanda has nine offers including BC, Pitt, Temple, Syracuse and Rutgers from the Northeast.

UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Eric Rogers II

Twitter image

I've blogged about Eric Rogers, a 6-2 170 pound DB from Camden Catholic HS in Cherry Hills NJ before.

NJ.com has a post on his recruiting status and lists him as one of New Jersey's Top-50 recruits.

Hudl.com has his Junior highlights.

UMass seems to be his only offer at this time after a change in coaches at North Carolina.

UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Charles Bell VI

Twitter image

Charles Bell VI, a 5-11 195 pound Safety from Galthersburg, MD has Tweeted he's received an offer from UMass.

247Sports page here.

Hudl.com has video.

MaxPreps has some stats.

This article features Bell's offer from Maryland.

Besides UMass, Bell has offers from BC, Syracuse, Pitt, Temple, Liberty and Maryland.

UMass Football News--March 13th, 2019

The Athletic has a Q&A with new UMass football coach Walt Bell (note the article is paywalled unless you sign up for a seven day free trial).

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Roto Baller has Andy Isabella as a NFL Draft sleeper.

Fox 13 says an undersized underdog's road to the NFL runs through Tampa.

With Cole Beasley leaving Dallas WFAA.com wonders if there is a role for Isabella with the Cowboys.

Sports Day says Beasley is a step back for Dallas' passing game but the Cowboys could draft a similar receiver.

Fantasy Pros reports Andy could go in the second round of the NFL draft. Spotrac has projected NFL draft contracts for the entire 2019 draft. If the Patriots picked Isabella as the last pick in the second round, his signing bonus would be about $1.3 million.

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The college entrance bribery scandal may impact college football recruiting.

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247Sports has an article on the schools who led the nation in fan ejections in 2018.

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IT'S NOT CHEATING IF THE GOVERNMENT DOES IT

North Carolina legislature helps with school performance.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Justin Bellido

247Sports image

Justin Bellido, a 5-10 165 pound WR has a 2020 offer from UMass.

247Sports three-star recruit.

Hudl.com has video.

This article features Bellio's visit to Rutgers.

2018 2nd Team All-New York.

Bellido has seven FBS offers including BC, Syracuse, Temple and Rutgers from the Northeast.

UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Andrew Nee

Hudl.com image

Andrew Nee, a 6-4 282 pound OG from Walpole, MA has Tweeted he's received an offer from UMass.

247Sports three-star player.

Hudl.com has video.

247Sports National Combine All-Combine team. 

UMass is the first offer for Nee. Drawing interest from Army and several Ivy League schools.

UMass Football News--March 9th

UMass Football is working hard in the weight room.

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The Newburyport News has a mock NFL draft with the Patriots taking Andy Isabella in the third round.

Fantasy Pros has sleeper prospects that boosted stock at the 2019 Combine.

Cleveland.com on why the Browns should draft Andy.

247Sports says the Packers take a DL and Andy Isabella.

A CBS Sports writer has the Patriots picking Isabella #32 in the draft (as in the first round).

The Gloucester Times has the Pats picking Andy in the third round.

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Neal Brown's wife Brooke is settling in her job as the first lady of West Virginia football.

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UMass Football News--March 8th, 2019

Athlon Sports ranks all 130 FBS teams going into Spring Ball. UMass is #128. With the Minutemen losing the division's top receiver, both starting QB's and the starting RB and three of the five starting linemen, the offense needs a complete rebuild. We also lose two starting LB's and three of the four 2018 DB's. That's a lot.

Coach Bell will have his hands full for a couple of years.

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Berkshire Eagle image

NFL Draft Diamonds introduces Jarell Addo. At 6-1 200 Addo would be a Safety in the pros. At UMass he played mostly OLB.

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College Sports Maven says adding Penn State to the Big Ten changed Eastern football. The article thinks if Penn State had stayed in the Big East then the Big East football could have looked like this in 2019:

"Penn State, Pitt, West Virginia, Boston College, Rutgers, UConn, Miami, Virginia Tech, Temple, Syracuse, UMass and Cincinnati".

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Sports Illustrated has a story on how Rivals and 247Sports turned college football recruiting into a internet obsession. 

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UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Cole Finney

Twitter image

Cole Finney, a 6-6 230 pound TE from Hingham, MA has Tweeted he's received an offer from UMass.

247Sports three-star player.

Hudl.com has video.

MaxPreps has stats.

Finney has FBS offers from UMass, Air Force and Army. FCS offers from Ivies Yale, Dartmouth and Fordham.

UMass Football News--March 6th, 2019

The Amherst Wire has a post on the recently announced McGuirk Stadium upgrades.

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Watchstadium.com has changes to the 2019 Bowl schedule. Mentions UMass would have try for an open slot if a bowl could not fill it's tie-in's.

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MassLive image

When Mrs Blog and I lived in Western Mass we would go to Joe's cafe in Northampton after football or basketball games. This article has post on the Northampton fixture.

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The Draft Network has Andy Isabella #75 in NFL Draft.

MassLive considers how Andy Isabella and other Massachusetts players performed at the NFL Combine.

CBS Sports says Andy is trending towards a Day 2 position in the NFL Draft.

247Sports reports Andy was Green Bay's most interesting interview at the Combine.

Larry Brown Sports says Isabella was one of ten prospects who boosted their stock at the Combine.

Chris Johnson at one time held the NFL Combine 40 yard dash record. He has a conspiracy theory about the current 4.22 mark.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2019---Jaykwon jefferson

Twitter image

Jaykwon Jefferson, a 6-3 230 pound TE from Minnesota State Community College has Tweeted he's received an offer from UMass.

Hudl.com has video.

247Sports page here.

UMass did not sign a TE in February's 2019 recruiting class. Jefferson has two FCS offers.  He would have three years of eligibility.

UMas Football News--March 4th, 2019

UMass Athletics image

Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a Twitter post reporting starting UMass center Derek Dumais won't return for his senior year.

That will bring the number of open OL positions to three as LG Jake Largay and RG Lukas Kotler have both graduated.

The probable replacement at center will be Jaylan Larry who appeared in ten games in 2018

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USA Today has a human interest story about Andy Isabella.

Yahoo Sports wonders if the next Patriots slot receiver will come from this year's draft.

The News Herald reports after a timing snafu is fixed Andy Isabella sizzles at the NFL Combine

The News Herald said the clock malfunction could have cost Andy a lot of money.

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Cougar Sports insider ranks BYU's 2019 schedule by how much the fan base wants a win.

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UMass Football News--March 3rd, 2019

Andy Isabella----- faster than your average laser timer..

Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" says it could have been 4.27.

MassLive reports Isabella tied for the Combine lead.

Boston.com says Andy ran the fastest.

USA Today reports after clarification, Andy ran 4.31.

NESN thinks Isabella could add another gear to the Patriots offense.

NFL.com reports Paris Campbell and Andy Isabella clocked 4.31's at the Combine.

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UMass Football recruiting 2019--Alec Miseo verbals to UMass

Twitter image

Alec Miseo, a 6-5 280 pound OL from Bridgewater, NJ has Tweeted he's joining the Minutemen as a PWO.

Hudl.com has video.

NJ.com has him as one of New Jersey's top-40 underrated players.

Chose UMass over a PWO offer from Colorado and several FCS schools.

UMass Football News--March 2nd, 2019

Coastal Carolina releases it's 2019 schedule. UMass and Coastal meet on September 21st. The Chants are 2-0 against the Minutemen. Sigh.

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Andy Isabella aims to keep impressing at the NFL Combine.

The 49ers Web Zone says Isabella met with San Francisco coaches.

Isabella says he was "star struck" on meeting Wes Welker.

The 49ers need a WR who can take it to the next level.

Daniel Jeremiah predicts Andy will run a 4.35 40.

WEEI looks at WR's who could stand out from the Patriots perspective. 

Patriots Wire reports Andy was one of a group of WR's who met with the Pats.

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UMass Football News--March 1st, 2019

Coach Bell at the UMass Club in Boston event

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UMass and Toledo schedule a home & home in 2021 and 2022. The Rockets are usually the MAC's best team. Toledo went 7-6 in 2018 and lost to FIU in the Bahamas Bowl.

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Thanks to the blog reader who sent me the link the top five candidates to run the fastest 40 in the NFL Combine.

NBC Sports has 12 players with something to prove at the NFL Combine.

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Football Scoop says the "Air Raid" offense is more of a philosophy than X's and O's.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Caleb Fauria

Hudl.com image

Caleb Fauria, a 6-5 210 pound WR from North Attleboro, MA has Tweeted he's received an offer from UMass.

247Sports three-star player.

Hudl.com has video.

MaxPreps has some stats.

Son of former Patriot TE Christian Fauria.

Fauria has offers from UMass and UConn as well as Power Five teams Boston College, Colorado and Iowa.

UMass Football News--February 27th, 2019

The Tennessean has Luke Paschall joins "brother" Walt Bell at UMass.

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247Sports has the Spring practice start dates for a bunch of schools including UMass.

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Jake Bentley, who contributed to South Carolina's win over UMass in 2016 leaves the Gamecocks.

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NJ.com has a report from Rutgers Junior Day that features Miles Bailey, who has a UMass offer.

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DetroitLions.com has five things to watch for in the 2019 combine. One of them is how fast will Andy Isabella run the 40?

Saints Wire.com has 20 prospects New Orleans could be interested in at the Combine.

247Sports has nine "burner" WR's the Broncos could be considering at the Combine.

Lombardiave.com has three things the Packers should watch for in slot receivers at the Combine.

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UMass Football News--February 26th, 2019

Sports Day has 10 potential draft picks for the Dallas Cowboys (includes Andy Isabella).

Big Blue View looks at the top ten wide receivers in the NFL Draft, which of course, includes Andy.

Niners Wire thinks a certain speedy small school WR could be the perfect answer for San Francisco.

USA Today looks at ten WR's could star in the NFL Combine.

Yard Barker looks at ten burning questions for the NFL Combine. One of which is how fast will Andy Isabella run?

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SB Nation previews the 2019 Charlotte 49ers and predicts a 61% chance of a win over UMass.

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NJ.com looks at the players Rutgers offered during its Junior Day. A couple of them have Minutemen offers.

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Former UMass coach Jimmy Reid changes to DE coach for the BC Eagles.

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UMass Football Recruiting 2020--Brady Martin II

247Sports image

Brady Martin, a 6-0 180 pound pro-style QB has Tweeted he's received an offer from UMass

247Sports three-star player.

Hudl.com has video.

I blogged about Martin way back in 2016.

Besides UMass, Martin has an FBS offer from Arkansas State. In addition he holds offers from UNH and URI.

UMass Football News--February 23rd, 2019

WWLP takes note of the UMass stadium improvements.

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Minutemen 2020 and 2021 opponent New Mexico State works on finishing their schedule for both those years.

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Two Massachusetts lawmakers want to ban youth tackle football.

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Mike Traini of "Fight Massachusetts" has a post on Minutemen 2019 commit Xavier Graham. The 6-3 305 pound Graham is one of two three-star rated OL recruits in the 2019 class.

The 247Sports UMass scholarship distribution page shows Graham and fellow 2019 recruit Bryce Wade as the only three-star offensive linemen on the Minutemen roster.

I've mentioned before that UMass has struggled to run the ball since our move to FBS. As I showed in my February 8th blog note, the Minutemen have not finished above #100 in rushing rankings since 2012. 

As a point of comparison Boston College has one four-star and eight three-star players in their offensive line. The Eagles also have a second four-star recruit coming in.

Let's hope Graham and Wade are the start of an upgrade in the athleticism and run blocking for the O-line.

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UMass Football News--UMass annouces major Football facilities upgrade

Five years after the Football performance center opened in 2014, UMass has announced a major upgrade to its football facilities.

Click on the image and Blogger displays a larger view.

The South wall of the stadium will be taken down a a hospitality plaza built. The space will include a new 48 X 20.4 foot video board courtesy of a gift from Paul and David Manganaro.

A new practice field will be constructed parallel to press box side of the stadium.

A seasonal bubble will cover the practice field. All this is because of a $5.8 million gift from Martin Jacobson.

We now have a football complex. The covered practice field should be a big help to a cold weather team. It should also help in recruiting. New restrooms will be added and the sound system will be improved. All the improvements are an exciting improvement to the football program.

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 UMass LB Bryton Barr has been named ECAC defensive player of the year.

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Former UMass coach Scott Woodward has joined Coach Whipple in Pittsburgh.

247Sports thinks Pitt QB Kenny Pickett will benefit from having Whipple as OC.

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UMass Football News--February 21st, 2019

Paul Sheely of Pro Star Sports says Andrew Ford is ahead of schedule on his recovery from his knee injury. Hope he continues to do well and gets a shot at playing in the pros.

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UMass adds URI to the Minutemen's 2021 season. So with two games yet to add the 2012 season looks like:

09/04 - at Colorado
 09/11 - Boston College
 09/18 - Eastern Michigan
 09/25 - at Coastal Carolina
 10/09 - UConn
 10/16 - Rhode Island
 11/06 - at Liberty
 11/13 - Maine
 11/20 - at Army
 11/27 - at New Mexico State

AD Ryan Bamford relates there was no other FBS teams available. We'll add a Group of Five home game and an away pay game with a Power Five team.

The URI game could be interesting. As I blogged back on February 11th, URI coach Jim Fleming said he would love to play UMass.

One of the FCS games does not count towards bowl eligibility, but with no bowl tie-ins for UMass, it probably does not matter.

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Pro Football Focus says Andy Isabella is much more than just a slot receiver.

Full Press Coverage thinks Isabella would be a good fit for the Vikings.

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UMass Football News--February 20th, 2019

247 Sports has three recruiting articles worth reading:

Ten players to know in New England.

Ten players to know in New York's 2020 recruiting class. UMass has offers for a number of these.

Ten Players in District of Columbia's 2020 recruiting class. This is UMass defensive coordinator Aazaar Abdul-Rahim's wheelhouse. While most of the players in all three articles have multiple Power Five offers, it would be nice if UMass could pick up a couple higher-rated recruits from the Northeast.

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This one is a must read. How speed Andy Isabella on a fast tract to the NFL.

Rotoworld has a NFL draft profile of Andy Isabella.

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Michigan ramps up recruiting a Massachusetts player (last part of the article).

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UMass Spring practices will be open to the public. Remember when Don Brown was head coach and you could bring a lawn chair and watch the Minutemen practice on the mall in from of the Stadium?

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Four UNH football players are charged with felony riot charges after a fight at a UNH fraternity.

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