Home may be where the heart is for the University of Massachusetts football team, which is undefeated over the last two years at McGuirk Alumni Stadium.
But the road is where the Minutemen must show their heart - never more so than this afternoon (3:15 p.m., NESN) in Carbondale, Ill. That's where the Minutemen (10-2) will take on the Southern Illinois Salukis in a second-round matchup in the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs.
UMass will face a hungry team that has been to this point, the Elite Eight, three years in a row without ever having advanced. This year's Salukis come in at 11-1, the lone loss a 30-24 decision at Northern Iowa, the undefeated and top-ranked team in the nation. A raucous sellout crowd is expected at McAndrew Stadium.
The Minutemen come in with the confidence, though, of a team that has been road-tested. To a man, they point to last season's victory at Montana as a source of inspiration. That victory in the national semifinals was played at a stadium in Missoula where fans are just feet behind the bench; it is widely regarded as one of the best home-field advantages at any level of college football.
"I don't think there's any question that that experience has given us confidence going anywhere," UMass coach Don Brown said.
Brown's bunch has survived the winnowing of the 117 FCS teams that began the year hoping for big things. The eight that remain include Appalachian State, the two-time defending champ that ousted UMass in last year's title game.
To get back to that grand stage, UMass must first contend with a Saluki team that Brown praises for its "great tradition."
If traditions can be built on a half-decade of success, there's no doubt about it. Southern Illinois's fifth consecutive playoff appearance is the second-longest active streak, ranking behind only Montana (whose record 15th straight appearance ended with a first-round loss to Wofford last week).
The Salukis have one national title to their credit, in 1983. Immediately afterward, they fell into a football abyss, posting only two winning seasons out of the next 19 years. When Jerry Kill took over as head coach in 2001, he recalls, the school was considering disbanding the program. His first year, a 1-10 campaign, didn't do much to drum up support.
"At 1-10, you always have your doubts," Kill said earlier this week. "We knew we had to change the culture. We had a losing culture, and we needed to change it to a winning culture."
In 2002, things improved marginally to 4-8. In the five seasons since, however, the Salukis have turned things around completely with an aggregate record of 49-13.
Now they are all gaga about football in Carbondale. The school has built a new weight room and a new academic facility. A new stadium will be ready in two years.
"Winning changes a lot of things," Kill said.
The Salukis are led by senior quarterback Nick Hill, who has completed 74.4 percent of his passes with 25 touchdowns and just four interceptions. Hill is a lefthander, the first one UMass has faced this season. In practice this week the Minutemen had southpaw Scott Woodward, Liam Coen's primary backup, work a bit on the scout team to familiarize the defense with the port-side approach.
UMass might get a boost today with the possible return of tight end Brad Listorti. A year ago, Listorti was a major part of the Minutemen's playoff run, but he has missed the entire year because of a back injury. After practicing this week, he will be a game-time decision for Brown.
