Tag: Massachusetts

Iowa Hawkeyes quarterback Mark Gronowski (11) looks for a pass against Iowa State during the fourth quarter in the Cy-Hawk football at Jack Trice Stadium on Sept. 6, 2025, in Ames, Iowa

Mark Gronowski, Iowa aim to ignite offense vs. UMass

Posted on | by Field Level Media

Iowa and UMass each will try to rebound from close losses last week when they meet Saturday night in Iowa City, Iowa.

Iowa (1-1) dropped a 16-13 decision to then-No. 16 Iowa State on Saturday after the Cyclones made a 54-yard field goal with 1:52 to play.

UMass (0-2) is coming off a 27-26 loss to Bryant, which competes at the FCS level. It was the Bulldogs’ first victory over an FBS opponent.

The Minutemen likely will be without starting quarterback Brandon Rose, who sustained a shoulder injury against Bryant. UMass coach Joe Harasymiak said X-rays on Rose’s shoulder were negative, but he’s not sure if he will be able to practice this week.

The Minutemen also used graduate student Grant Jordan and freshman AJ Hairston at quarterback against Bryant. Jordan, who took the majority of the snaps, spent four years at Yale before transferring.

“I feel very comfortable in both,” Harasymiak said. “Both will compete this week and we’ll make a decision. Ultimately it’s what gives us the best chance to win the game.”

Iowa will be looking for more production from quarterback Mark Gronowski, a transfer from South Dakota State. Gronowski has completed 21 of 39 passes for 127 yards with one touchdown and one interception in his two games with the Hawkeyes.

“It’s a matter of him getting more comfortable, and us making him more comfortable,” Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said.

Iowa will be without tight end Addison Ostrenga, who sustained an Achilles injury during the loss to Iowa State. Ferentz said Ostrenga will be out for the season.

Ferentz said his team needs to keep moving forward.

“This week is like any week,” Ferentz said. “Our goal is to win the game and then secondly, improve and grow. See what we can do to move forward as a football team.”

Both Ferentz and Harasymiak served as the head coach at the University of Maine.

–Field Level Media

Defensive coordinator Joe Harasymiak observes warm up exercises before Rutgers University football spring practice at Marco Battaglia Practice Complex in Piscataway, NJ Tuesday April 11, 2023. Ru02

Report: UMass hiring Joe Harasymiak as head coach

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UMass is hiring Rutgers defensive coordinator Joe Harasymiak as the new head coach of the Minutemen, ESPN reported Wednesday.

Harasymiak, 38, is expected to earn between $1.3 and $1.4 million annually, according to the report.

Harasymiak was the head coach at Maine from 2016-18, compiling a 20-15 record and winning a Colonial Athletic Association championship in 2018.

He played college football at Springfield College in Massachusetts before working as an assistant coach at Maine from 2011-15. Harasymiak was on the coaching staff at Minnesota from 2019-21 before joining Greg Schiano’s staff at Rutgers in 2022.

UMass parted ways with head coach Dan Brown on Nov. 18 after he compiled a 6-28 record in three seasons. Offensive coordinator Shane Montgomery coached the final two games for the Minutemen (2-10).

UMass moves from independent status into the Mid-American Conference next season.

–Field Level Media

Georgia quarterback Carson Beck (15) leaves the field after winning a NCAA college football game against Tennessee in Athens, Ga., on Saturday, Nov. 16, 2024.

Carson Beck, No. 10 Georgia dial in on UMass

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Following a season-reviving home win over then-No. 7 Tennessee, No. 10 Georgia is mindful of avoiding a misstep against UMass on Saturday afternoon in Athens, Ga.

Georgia (8-2, 6-2 Southeastern Conference) climbed two spots in Tuesday’s College Football Playoff rankings after its 31-17 win over the Volunteers last Saturday. On the heels of a 28-10 loss at Ole Miss on Nov. 9, the Bulldogs outscored Tennessee 31-7 over the final three quarters.

Georgia quarterback Carson Beck delivered a much-needed 347-yard, two-touchdown performance in the win.

Beck, who had thrown nine interceptions in his previous four games, was turnover-free Saturday for the first time since Oct. 5.

“This team’s been in some tough situations this year,” Georgia head coach Kirby Smart said. “And they’ve never cowered down from those opportunities. They’ve shown resiliency, and they’ve battled back.”

After wrapping up its conference slate, the Bulldogs still need help in qualifying for the SEC Championship Game. Entering Saturday, Georgia sits behind a pair of one-conference loss teams in No. 3 Texas and No. 15 Texas A&M. The Bulldogs are tied with No. 7 Alabama and No. 9 Ole Miss in the loss column but would lose the tiebreaker to each of those teams.

Smart dismissed the idea of worrying about hypotheticals ahead of Saturday’s matchup.

“The focus is on UMass,” Smart said. “I mean, it really is. So, why would I put energy or time into trying to figure out what the best pathway is, including the SEC Championship, when I’m worried about UMass? I just don’t think it’s a quality conversation.”

Georgia and Smart hope to see the injury bug go away. Leading rusher Trevor Etienne (477 rushing yards, seven touchdowns) was sidelined against Tennessee with a rib injury, while wide receiver Dillon Bell (405 receiving yards, four touchdowns) left last week’s game with an ankle injury.

“No update on Dillon really,” Smart said. “He’s got an ankle sprain. It’s stable. It’s not going to require any kind of surgery or anything. So, we’re hopeful to get him back, and same with Trevor.”

UMass (2-8) nearly pulled off its first FBS win of the season last Saturday, however a missed an extra point in overtime proved large in its 35-34 home loss to Liberty. Two days later, the school fired head coach Don Brown after compiling a 6-28 record in two-plus years in his second stint with the program.

Offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach Shane Montgomery will take over as interim coach for the Minutemen’s last two games of the season.

“We’ve got two games left, two big games,” Montgomery said. “We still have a lot to play for. … There’s two ways you can go from here. You can either feel sorry for yourself and not improve daily, or you can keep improving. If you’ve watched us the last number of weeks, I think you see a team that seems to be improving. We’re excited about going down to Georgia.”

UMass, which has played Georgia once before — a 66-27 loss in the season finale in 2018 — already has faced off against a pair of SEC teams this season. The Minutemen fell to Missouri 45-3 on Oct. 12, and 45-20 to Mississippi State on Nov. 2.

In place of Taisun Phommachanh, who’s out for the season with lower body injuries, the Minutemen will start freshman AJ Hairston. Hairston thrown for 225 yards and a touchdown in two games.

–Field Level Media

Nov 2, 2024; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. (0) runs the ball against the Massachusetts Minutemen during the first quarter at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Bush-Imagn Images

Mississippi State routs UMass to end seven-game slide

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Michael Van Buren ran for two touchdowns and passed for another as Mississippi State ended a seven-game losing streak by beating visiting UMass 45-20 Saturday in Starkville, Miss.

Van Buren completed 14 of 25 passes for 222 yards in the win.

Mississippi State (2-7) trailed 10-0 after one quarter, but led 21-10 at halftime and 35-10 entering the fourth. The Bulldogs won for the first time since they opened the season by beating Eastern Kentucky 56-7.

UMass (2-7) used three quarterbacks in the loss. Starter Taisun Phommachanh appeared to get shaken up after taking a hit late in the first half and did not play in the final two quarters. Ahmad Haston and AJ Hairston each took snaps in the second half.

UMass led 10-0 thanks to Brandon Campbell’s 3-yard touchdown run with 7:23 remaining in the first quarter and Jacob Lurie’s 24-yard field goal with 1:13 left in the quarter.

Mississippi State erased its 10-point deficit by scoring 21 points in the second quarter. After Van Buren’s 4-yard TD run 33 seconds into the second got Mississippi State on the scoreboard, the Bulldogs took a 14-10 lead on tight end Seydou Traore’s 19-yard TD catch with 9:05 left in the quarter, and led 21-10 after Van Buren’s 2-yard scoring run with 1:56 to play in the first half.

Mississippi State stretched its lead to 25 points by scoring two touchdowns in the third quarter. Johnnie Daniels (six carries, 92 yards) scored on a 36-yard run with 11:11 left in the third, and Davon Booth added a 30-yard run with 3:25 remaining in the quarter.

Lurie kicked a 35-yard field goal to trim Mississippi State’s lead to 35-13 with 12:05 to play, but Kyle Ferrie’s 24-yard field goal made it 38-13 with 10:17 remaining in the game.

Mississippi State’s Xavier Gayten scored on a 72-yard TD run with 6:51 left in the fourth before UMass wrapped up the scoring on a 4-yard TD pass from Hairston to Jakobie Keeney-James with 17 seconds to play.

UMass was penalized nine times for 99 yards.

–Field Level Media

Oct 26, 2024; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. (0) reacts after a touchdown against the Arkansas Razorbacks during the third quarter at Davis Wade Stadium at Scott Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Bush-Imagn Images

UMass vows to ‘keep fighting,’ visits struggling Mississippi State

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Mississippi State will look for significant improvement on defense as it attempts to end a seven-game losing streak when Massachusetts visits Starkville, Miss., for a non-conference game on Saturday afternoon.

The Bulldogs (1-7, 0-5 Southeastern Conference) rank last in the 16-team SEC in both yards allowed per game (477.7) and points allowed per game (36.4). No other team in the conference has allowed an average of more than 23.6 points per contest.

Mississippi State surrendered 673 yards of offense — 359 on the ground — in a 58-25 loss to Arkansas last Saturday. Quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr. completed 22 of 31 passes for 309 yards and two touchdowns in the loss, but he was intercepted twice and also fumbled the ball away twice. The Bulldogs turned the ball over five times.

“We had shown great improvement in the three weeks before Saturday,” Mississippi State coach Jeff Lebby said. “Saturday we did not play the way we needed to play on the defensive side of the ball. Getting back to playing with really clean eyes and having incredible communication will get us back to the way we played in the three weeks prior, and that is something we need to do.”

Quarterback Taisun Phommachanh turned in a strong performance to help Massachusetts (2-6) defeat Wagner, an FCS program, 35-7 last Saturday. Phommachanh passed for a touchdown and ran for two scores in the win.

Phommachanh has completed 126 of 221 passes for 1,541 yards with eight touchdowns and five interceptions this season. He’s also the team’s No. 2 rusher with 282 yards and three touchdowns on 101 carries.

“Taisun got his legs going a little bit,” Massachusetts coach Don Brown said. “That’s the best running day we’ve had. That was good to see. What we have to do is keep fighting, keep fighting, and we’ll worry about the scoreboard at the end of the day.”

This will be the second time Massachusetts has faced an SEC opponent this season. The Minutemen, who will join the Mid-American Conference next season, lost at then-No. 21 Missouri 45-3 on Oct. 12.

Mississippi State is seeking its first victory since it opened the season with a 56-7 win against Eastern Kentucky.

–Field Level Media

Oct 12, 2024; Amherst, Massachusetts, USA; Missouri Tigers linebacker Corey Flagg Jr. (11) intercepts a pass during the first half against the Massachusetts Minutemen at Warren McGuirk Alumni Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images

No. 21 Missouri cruises past Massachusetts

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Quarterback Brady Cook completed 14 of 19 passes for 219 yards and two touchdowns as No. 21 Missouri routed Massachusetts 45-3 on Saturday in Amherst, Mass.

After suffering a 41-10 loss at Texas A&M in their previous game, the Tigers (5-1, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) muscled up against the independent Minutemen (1-6) in their final nonconference game.

With Missouri’s leading rusher Nate Noel sitting out with back tightness, Marcus Carroll stepped in to run for 91 yards and three touchdowns.

Receiver Luther Burden III rushed for 68 yards and a touchdown on two carries and caught five passes for 59 yards for the Tigers before exiting the game in the third quarter with an apparent shoulder injury.

Missouri outgained Massachusetts 461-237 and built a 231-95 advantage in rushing yards and 22-13 in first downs.

Minutemen quarterback Taisun Phommachanh completed 12 of 22 passes for 132 yards and an interception. Jakobie Keeney-James caught six passes for 80 yards.

On the second play from scrimmage, Burden broke a 61-yard touchdown run on a jet sweep play as Missouri took a 7-0 lead 57 seconds into the game.

Missouri moved 80 yards on 13 plays on their next possession to double their lead to 14-0. Carroll capped the drive with a 3-yard TD run.

The Tigers made it 21-0 less than 4 minutes into the second quarter. They moved 80 yards on nine plays with Carroll scoring from 4 yards out.

Jacob Lurie put the Minutemen on the board with a 28-yard field goal with 6 minutes left in the first half.

Missouri increased its lead to 24-3 at the half after Corey Flagg Jr.’s 80-yard interception return set up Blake Craig’s 42-yard field goal as time expired.

The Tigers made it 31-3 on Carroll’s 35-yard touchdown run with 10:09 left in the third quarter. Joshua Manning’s 63-yard scoring catch-and-run play upped the margin to 38-3.

Missouri made it 45-3 on Cook’s 8-yard touchdown pass to Brett Norfleet with 1:24 left in the third quarter.

–Field Level Media

Oct 5, 2024; College Station, Texas, USA; Missouri Tigers quarterback Brady Cook (12) throws a pass in the first half against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images.

After first loss, No. 21 Missouri makes ‘no excuses,’ looks to rebound at UMass

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After absorbing an ugly 41-10 loss at Texas A&M last Saturday, No. 21 Missouri will try to rebound against host Massachusetts on Saturday afternoon in Amherst.

The Tigers (4-1, 1-1 Southeastern Conference) will face the independent Minutemen (1-5) after being outgained 512-254 in the rout by the then-No. 25 Aggies.

Missouri averaged just 2.3 yards per carry rushing while allowing Texas A&M to average 6.6.

Texas A&M quarterback Conner Weigman came off the injured list and completed 18 of 22 passes for 276 yards.

“At the end of the day, it falls on my shoulders to make sure it’s better, and our focus is leading up to UMass,” Missouri coach Eli Drinkwitz said. “We make no excuses about it. Shouldn’t have mattered who was playing the quarterback position. We should have been better, and we need to focus this week on stopping this quarterback and figuring out our scheme so that we can execute at a higher level.”

Hosting Missouri is a huge deal for Massachusetts, which will join the Mid-American Conference next season.

“SEC, it gets no bigger than that. Our guys are going to have an opportunity to make history,” Massachusetts coach Don Brown said. “All they have to do is go out and compete, play at a high level, and good things will happen. Some of the opponents we have played recently helped us prepare for this game.”

The Minutemen went into overtime at Miami (Ohio) on Sept. 28 before losing 23-20, then were tied 13-13 at Northern Illinois going into the fourth quarter of their 34-20 loss last Saturday.

Dual-threat quarterback Taisun Phommachanh has completed 104 of 181 passes for 1,280 yards and seven touchdowns with three interceptions for the Minutemen this season. He is the team’s leading rusher with 253 yards and a TD.

Jalen John (210 yards, one touchdown) and C.J. Hester (208 yards, two TDs) have split the workload at running back.

Brown said he expects Missouri to test his defense with a ground game led by Nate Noel (471 yards, two touchdowns) and Marcus Carroll (190 yards, two TDs). Quarterback Brady Cook has run for 108 yards and four touchdowns.

“The biggest challenge is they are going to do what they do,” Brown said. “They have a style of run that they run. They run the slash play, which is kind of an off-tackle, speed, outside zone play. It is their No. 1 run play.

“They also throw the ball pretty darn well. They have a good group of receivers, so that will certainly challenge us. The run game and the play-action pass game, I think, will be the determinate on how we perform on Saturday.”

Missouri, however, didn’t establish an effective running game to set up play-action passing against the Aggies.

“There needs to be a more considered, a concerted effort to find an offensive rhythm,” Drinkwitz said. “Whether or not that is creating or designing runs, we need to play with better rhythm. And looking back, whether it’s tempo runs, which I think we’ve been effective in, or design quarterback runs, it comes back to us finding our offensive identity.”

Missouri’s Cook completed just 13 of 31 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown while suffering six sacks against the Aggies.

“There were a lot of things that went bad,” Drinkwitz said. “Our inability to get into an offensive rhythm because of our lack of execution on third downs. We were predominantly in third-and-long, which allows them to get into a heavy blitz package, contributed to the issues there.”

Cook has completed 105 of 165 passes for 1,132 yards and five touchdowns this season. Preseason All-American Luther Burden III has 26 catches for 339 yards and four touchdowns.

–Field Level Media

Oct 14, 2023; University Park, Pennsylvania, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions defensive end Jameial Lyons (19) pressures Massachusetts Minutemen quarterback Ahmad Haston (16) during the fourth quarter at Beaver Stadium. Penn State defeated Massachusetts 63-0. Mandatory Credit: Matthew O'Haren-USA TODAY Sports

Report: UMass joining MAC for all sports

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The University of Massachusetts is set to join the Mid-American Conference for all sports starting in 2025-26, ESPN reported Monday.

UMass currently competes as an independent in football and in the Atlantic 10 for most other men’s and women’s athletic programs.

MAC presidents voted on Monday to invite UMass as a new member and the school is expected to accept, according to the report.

The Minutemen would join the 12 current full MAC members: Akron, Bowling Green State, Buffalo, Kent State, Miami (Ohio), Ohio, Ball State, Central Michigan, Eastern Michigan, Northern Illinois, Toledo and Western Michigan.

UMass previously competed in the MAC for four seasons in football from 2012-15, compiling an overall record of 8-40 with a 7-25 mark in league play. The Minutemen finished 3-9 in 2023.

The Amherst, Mass., school has been a member of the A-10 for men’s and women’s basketball since the 1982-83 season.

–Field Level Media

Sep 30, 2023; Evanston, Illinois, USA; Penn State Nittany Lions quarterback Drew Allar (15) passes against the Northwestern Wildcats during the first half at Ryan Field. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-USA TODAY Sports

No. 6 Penn State takes Big Ten break to face UMass

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After rolling to three straight Big Ten victories by a combined 76 points, No. 6 Penn State will take a break from conference play when it hosts Massachusetts on Saturday in State College, Pa.

Another lopsided win appears likely for the Nittany Lions (5-0) despite coach James Franklin insisting that the Minutemen (1-6) are “maybe the most explosive team we’ve played this year.”

Penn State is healthy and eager to get back on the field following a bye week. The Nittany Lions haven’t played since rolling past host Northwestern 41-13 on Sept. 30 on the heels of a 31-0 rout of then-No. 24 Iowa.

A sturdy defense and balanced offense have helped steer the Nittany Lions to their unbeaten start.

In the Northwestern game, the Nittany Lions passed for 219 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 134 yards and three scores.

Quarterback Drew Allar passed and rushed for touchdowns behind an offensive line anchored by savvy center Hunter Nourzad, who has been especially impressive to Franklin of late.

“His approach, his maturity; gosh, he’s getting an MBA right now from Penn State. … He’s just one of those guys who’s a really great example of the importance of maturity on your football team,” Franklin said.

UMass enters Saturday’s game on a six-game losing streak. The program’s lone victory this season came on the road as quarterback Taisun Phommachanh contributed 288 yards of total offense and a rushing touchdown in a season-opening, 41-30 win at New Mexico State.

The Minutemen are coming off a 41-24 home loss to Toledo in which they were outscored 24-3 after halftime. Kay’Ron Lynch-Adams had 20 carries for a career-best 157 yards and a score, while Phommachanh passed for 272 yards and two TDs.

UMass coach Don Brown stressed that his team will need to sustain a notable effort throughout the afternoon if it expects to tread water at raucous Beaver Stadium.

“The place is going to be packed,” Brown said. “Going to be over 100,000 people there. And got to be a big boy and put your big-boy pants on and go to work. It’s real simple. Focus your attention on the task at hand and just stay in the fight for 60 minutes. And that’s kind of the deal. That’s the approach you got to take. It’s not rocket science.”

Penn State cruised past visiting UMass 48-7 in the lone previous meeting between the schools, on Sept. 20, 2014.

Smith and Franklin coached together at Maryland in 2009, with Brown serving as the Terrapins’ defensive coordinator and cornerbacks coach and Franklin fulfilling duties as offensive coordinator/assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach.

Minutemen safety Tyler Rudolph transferred to the school after playing in 11 games for Penn State from 2019-21.

The Nittany Lions will close the regular season with six straight Big Ten games, beginning with an Oct. 21 visit to No. 3 Ohio State.

–Field Level Media