Minutemen are really catching on
AMHERST - University of Massachusetts football coach Don Brown tends to look back at games with a cold, sometimes brutal level of analysis. There are times, though, when he can't entirely suppress the little-boy wonder.
Yesterday's 36-13 domination of Towson was such a day. Brown stepped into the postgame press conference, looked over at senior Rasheed Rancher, and announced to the assembled gathering that the long, lean, dreadlocked wide receiver had just made "the greatest catch I've ever seen in 30 years of coaching."
The play came late in the first half with UMass clinging to a 12-10 lead with third and 8 from the Towson 35. Facing a man blitz, quarterback Liam Coen had to deliver the ball early to Rancher, 20 yards downfield, before the receiver had even made his cut. Reading the defender's eyes, Rancher instinctively put a hand up and deflected the ball in the air, absorbing a hit in the process. His momentum carried his body downfield, but he managed to stretch his long left arm way back, reel in the ball at full extension, and scamper into the end zone.
"I didn't know the guy was playing heavy inside," said Rancher. "I just tried to get inside of him. I just reached up - it was instinct-type stuff. I didn't really do it intentionally. I just reached out and happened to get a grip on it and just took off."
From the pocket, Coen could hardly believe his eyes. "I don't think he even really saw it," said Coen, who completed 16 of 21 passes for 196 yards and two scores. "He put his hand up and it kind of hit his hand. Then out of nowhere I see him running. I was like, 'Wow, that's a big play right there.' "
While the highlight-reel play belonged to the offense, the win was achieved more through a fierce defensive effort. Less than dominating during wins the first two weeks, the UMass defense seemed vulnerable when Towson (2-1, 0-1 Colonial Athletic Association) scored on its opening two possessions to take a 10-3 lead. After that, though, the Minutemen put on the clamps.
The defense was at its best when UMass needed it the most, early in the third quarter. Leading, 19-10, the Minutemen hit a brief stretch of Murphy's Law with back-to-back-to-back turnovers, giving the Tigers three 14-carat opportunities. Despite two possessions deep in UMass territory and one on the Towson 47, the Tigers and highly touted junior quarterback Sean Schaefer only came away with 3 points.
"It was just mind-set," said outside linebacker Josh Jennings. "The emphasis was just flying around."
After UMass extended its lead late in the third quarter to 22-13 on Chris Koepplin's second field goal, the Minuteman defense put the game away. Cornerback Sean Smalls sealed off his man on an underthrown ball into the wind, picked it off, and accelerated 90 yards for the score.
The Minutemen closed the scoring on Michael Omar's second 10-yard touchdown catch, this one technically ruled a running score on a behind-the-line-of-scrimmage reception.
UMass improved to 3-0 for the first time since 1986, and 1-0 in its inaugural year in the CAA.
There were certainly some causes for concern. The Minutemen again struggled to find the right balance of controlled aggression with penalties galore (15 after back-to-back weeks of 13). There were three turnovers. Coen tweaked his knee on a sack/fumble combo; he missed a series and hobbled the rest of the way.
Brown admitted some concern, saying, "It wasn't artistry. A lot of our wins aren't." He asserted that the Minutemen have a long way to go. "I don't think we're even close," he said. "We're not where we need to be."
Still, the coach admitted some genuine satisfaction. "Our effort and energy for 60 minutes," he said, "was incredible."
