UMass will try to prove its breakthrough performance at Rutgers wasn’t a one-week occurrence when it returns to McGuirk Alumni Stadium for Saturday’s home opener against Sacred Heart.

The Minutemen are coming off a 37-21 victory at Rutgers that snapped a 16-game losing streak and gave head coach Joe Harasymiak his first win at UMass. Now comes a very different challenge.

Sacred Heart is an FCS program, but Harasymiak has spent the week making it clear he doesn’t want the Minutemen’s approach dictated by the name on the other sideline.

“We’re not playing up or down,” Harasymiak said Monday. “We’re playing game for 60 minutes.”

The Pioneers went 8-4 last season and are beginning their first year as a member of the CAA. They opened the season with a 31-24 loss at Monmouth, but outgained the Hawks 408-350, picked up 26 first downs and had an opportunity to tie the game on their final possession.

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“We have a great opponent coming in here, eight-win team from last year,” Harasymiak said. “They just opened up on the road at Monmouth and they had a chance to go down and score to tie the game.”

Saturday will be the first meeting between UMass and Sacred Heart.

UMASS vs. SACRED HEART

Saturday, Sept. 12 • 3:30 p.m.
McGuirk Alumni Stadium

• WATCH: ESPN+

• LISTEN: WHMP 101.5 FM & 1400 AM

The UMass game notes list Joey Lindstrom and Tre Watson on the ESPN+ broadcast, with Jay Burnham, Matt Goldstein and Adam Frenier on the radio call.

OFFENSE

Sacred Heart’s offense begins with quarterback Poochie Snyder.

The junior is coming off an efficient 2025 season in which he completed 71.2 percent of his passes for 1,867 yards, 11 touchdowns and just three interceptions. He was also a significant part of the Pioneers’ running game, rushing for 553 yards and seven touchdowns.

His performance helped Sacred Heart finish sixth nationally in rushing offense at 217 yards per game and 10th in completion percentage.

“He’s dangerous,” Harasymiak said.

Snyder showed why against Monmouth.

He completed 14-of-25 passes for 191 yards and three touchdowns without an interception while adding 67 yards on 15 rushing attempts.

Snyder’s ability to extend plays is something Harasymiak has emphasized to his defense.

“He took one against Merrimack last year for like 70 yards on a scramble,” Harasymiak said. “He kind of sets a tone.”

The Pioneers also showed they have weapons on the outside.

Dean Hangey (#10) caught eight passes for 110 yards and two touchdowns against Monmouth. One of those scores came from 52 yards out. Jason Palmieri (#8) caught a six-yard touchdown from Snyder for Sacred Heart’s first score.

“They have two good wideouts in 8 and 10,” Harasymiak said.

The biggest change for the Pioneers comes in the backfield.

Mitchell Summers emerged as one of the best freshmen in the FCS last season, rushing for 1,060 yards and 12 touchdowns on 197 carries. He earned Stats Perform and FCS Football Central Freshman All-America honors and entered this season as a CAA Preseason All-Conference selection.

But Summers was lost for the season when he went down with a season-ending injury in the opener.

Without him against Monmouth, Chuck Webb handled much of the rushing workload, carrying 18 times for 72 yards and adding two receptions for 30 yards.

Even without Summers, Sacred Heart demonstrated an ability to sustain drives in its opener. The Pioneers ran 71 plays, rushed for 217 yards, possessed the ball for 35:26 and converted two of their three fourth-down attempts.

That presents a different challenge for a UMass defense coming off an impressive performance at Rutgers.

DEFENSE

Harasymiak’s first takeaway from Sacred Heart’s defense was its effort.

“Defensively and special teams, like I said, they play extremely hard,” he said.

That starts with a couple of players Harasymiak specifically identified Monday.

Safety Kymari Latney, a Springfield, Mass., native, had four tackles in the opener. Harasymiak was impressed with the physicality he saw from Latney on film.

“The safety over there comes downhill and hits you,” Harasymiak said.

On the edge, Janier Armstead recorded three tackles, including a sack and tackle for loss against Monmouth.

“They got 54 on the edge that can cause some havoc,” Harasymiak said.

Outside linebacker Myles Hamilton and Ryan Palmieri led Sacred Heart with nine tackles apiece against Monmouth. Hamilton also had a tackle for loss. Kyle Hall and Mike Deitelbaum finished with seven tackles each.

The Pioneers allowed 350 total yards against Monmouth, including 113 on the ground. Sacred Heart registered one sack and Monmouth finished with 5.6 yards per play.

Harasymiak was particularly impressed by the way the Pioneers tackled Monmouth’s skill players in space.

“Their d-line guys inside play tough, play strong,” he said. “I think they tackled really well in the open space against Monmouth’s skill.”

That’s something UMass will have to deal with after an opener in which Pop Watson distributed the ball to eight different receivers and the Minutemen rushed for exactly 200 yards.

SPECIAL TEAMS

Sacred Heart’s special teams had an uneven opener.

Ryan Bocklet made a 23-yard field goal in the fourth quarter to tie the game at 24, but he missed a 39-yarder in the second quarter.

Sacred Heart averaged 31 yards on three punts and 19.5 yards on six kickoff returns. The Pioneers allowed Monmouth a 27-yard punt return.

UMass enters the game coming off an excellent performance from kicker Derek Morris, who made all three of his field-goal attempts at Rutgers, including a 52-yarder. He was named MAC Special Teams Player of the Week.

WHAT IT MEANS FOR UMASS

This is as much a test of UMass’ mentality as it is a matchup with Sacred Heart.

The Minutemen just went on the road and beat a Big Ten opponent by 16 points. Nine days later, they’re hosting an FCS team that is 0-1.

Harasymiak doesn’t want those circumstances to matter.

“What I’m preaching to them is no matter who would’ve lined up more than likely on Thursday night, Big 10 team, MAC team, CAA team, we would’ve had a very good opportunity to win because of the way we played,” he said. “So that has to be the same.”

There are legitimate challenges within the matchup.

Snyder’s mobility will test a UMass defense that was outstanding against the run at Rutgers. Hangey demonstrated big-play ability in the opener and Sacred Heart’s ability to sustain possession could make things uncomfortable if UMass doesn’t get off the field.

But, Harasymiak acknowledged that if his team plays the way it did at Rutgers, they’ll have a good chance to win regardless of the opponent.

“No matter who would’ve lined up (against), more than likely on Thursday night, Big 10 team, MAC team, CAA team, we would’ve had a very good opportunity to win because of the way we played,” he said. “That has to be the same.”

This is an opportunity for the Minutemen to build on the balance they showed at Rutgers. UMass rushed for 200 yards while Watson completed 19-of-22 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns.

But the larger question Saturday is whether UMass can reproduce the approach that led to its breakthrough win regardless of the opponent.

Harasymiak started that process Sunday when the Minutemen reconvened.

“The first thing we did was put our hand on our head and throw Rutgers in the garbage,” he said. “So it’s over, it’s done with. We got to move on.”

Now comes the first chance to show what moving forward looks like.

“It’s our job to recreate and reestablish what the new standard is for UMass Football.”

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Joe Harasymiak intends to get a Gatorade bath one day at UMass.

But last Thursday wasn’t the day for it.

As the final seconds ticked away on UMass’ 37-21 win over Rutgers, Harasymiak caught a glimpse of his players getting ready to dump a water jug over his head.

He wasn’t interested.

“Whether it’s right or wrong, I told them to act like we’ve been here,” Harasymiak said after the game. “You’re not putting the water jug on me. You’re not doing that. I don’t want that.

“Let’s change this place and act like we’ve been here before. And that’s the goal.”

Of course, none of the current Minutemen had been there before, at least not at UMass.

After an 0-12 season in his first year, Harasymiak’s squad entered Thursday on a 16-game losing streak. But throughout the buildup to the season-opener, he wasn’t talking about going to Rutgers and hoping to pull off an upset.

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He was talking about winning.

“The team meeting (Wednesday) night was we’re coming here to win the game,” Harasymiak said.

The Minutemen did exactly that and when they did, he wanted them to respond like a team that expected it.

“When I turned around, I saw them, I got pissed and I was like, ‘Put it down. We’re not doing that,’” he said.

“That’s for championships, that’s for bowl games. We went on the road, we beat a great opponent, here we go, shake their hand and let’s go get it.”

It wasn’t an attempt to minimize what UMass had accomplished. Instead, it was about continuing to try to change the program’s expectations.

“We’re an FBS school,” he said Monday. “I understand that it’s been a certain way, and with me last year. But that’s what’s expected. Earn the right to win. That’s what we have to go do.

“I told them just earlier in the week, when we go there and win, just act like we were supposed to win.”

Harasymiak believed his team had earned that right through its preparation and wants them to embrace his vision of how to handle success.

“I have a certain style and a certain personality,” he said. “I want to win with respect, respecting the game, respecting your opponent and doing the right things.”

The victory immediately brought a level of attention to UMass that the program hadn’t experienced in some time, at least not for something positive. There were media requests, interviews and plenty of people suddenly interested in what Harasymiak and the Minutemen were doing.

That part, he was more than happy to embrace.

“That’s honestly the best part of the job, just kind of reacting to that stuff and just living it,” he said.

The shock that helped generate so much of that attention won’t be there the next time. UMass can only go from 0-12 to winning a game nobody expected it to win once.

So, if the Minutemen generate that kind of attention again, there will probably be another Gatorade bath nearby.

And this one would be the kind Harasymiak would proudly accept.

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The best husbands and fathers embrace the sacrifices they’re called to make.

The most fortunate sometimes find themselves getting even more from their families in return, especially when times are tough.

Joe Harasymiak is one of the lucky ones.

Harasymiak knows being the head coach at UMass means his wife, Brittany, has to serve as the head coach of their family, “which is the most important thing.”

“She kind of runs the show, I’m kind of an assistant coach there,” Harasymiak said on Monday.

“The lifestyle that they have to live without getting any help usually; for her raising two kids by herself. Really doing everything; driving to school, driving to practice, waking them up, feeding them, she never really gets a break.”

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Harasymiak’s first season as UMass head coach tested him in ways he probably didn’t anticipate when he accepted the job. The Minutemen lost every game and were ranked by most as literally the worst team in the country.

For Harasymiak, there was no escaping the responsibility that came with that. He was the head coach. The losses belonged to everyone inside the program, but ultimately his job was to fix it.

When he went home, though, he wasn’t the head coach of a winless football team. He was a husband and Dad.

Throughout the miserable season, Harasymiak consistently referenced the support he was receiving from his wife. At one point, he acknowledged how grateful he was for her simply reminding him that he hadn’t forgotten how to coach.

For a coach who had experienced plenty of success before arriving at UMass, suddenly, no matter how hard he or his staff worked or how strongly he believed in what they were building, game days kept providing the same result.

His wife didn’t need those results to tell her who her husband was or whether he could coach.

His daughters offered a different type of support. Following one particularly painful loss, Harasymiak acknowledged that all he wanted to do was go home and be Dad.

It was the kind of comment that got lost in the immediate aftermath of yet another defeat, but one that provided a glimpse of emotions impossible to fake.

Any dad listening could relate to the thought of coming home after a terrible day to children who were simply happy he was there and the boost their excitement can provide without them even realizing it.

But Harasymiak also realized his daughters weren’t completely insulated from what was happening each week.

“You always have the embarrassment of facing them because they’ve got your last name,” he said. “They’re in the local schools, they’re around, people know.”

Last week, they finally got to experience the other side of it.

They didn’t make the trip to Piscataway for UMass’ 37-21 victory over Rutgers on Thursday night, but Brittany kept the girls up past their bedtime on a school night to watch.

The family FaceTimed from the winning locker room.

“That was pretty special,” said Harasymiak, who coached for the Scarlet Knights for three seasons before taking the job in Amherst.

“It was funny, my youngest daughter was kind of in conflict before the game. She didn’t know who she wanted to win, Rutgers or UMass. So we got over that, which was good.”

Still, the reminders of how much of family responsibilities fall on wives showed up in no time.

“I’m sure their Friday experience at drop off was a little bit better than it’s normally been,” Harasymiak said.

“I was not there for it. I was here.”

The following day did finally offer the chance to enjoy some of what Thursday had provided. UMass was off and Harasymiak was able to spend the day with his family.

“Saturday was just a great day to kind of relax with them, get back and just enjoy those moments,” he said. “I’ve got to do a better job of that and of enjoying the time off and those things, but certainly getting a chance to do it off a win is special.”

The ups and downs of being the wife and children of a college football head coach remain, but last week they were able to share their first real high as members of the UMass community.

His wife never needed a final stats sheet to remind her what caliber of coach her husband was. A scoreboard will never determine how excited his daughters are to see their dad. But after everything his family gave him during his first year at UMass, it had to be pretty sweet to have that scoreboard finally give them a reason to celebrate.

And when Harasymiak looks back on how he survived that first season, he credits his wife.

“She’s my rock. She’s everything to me. She’s really the reason I made it through last year, to be honest with you.”

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We take a close look at how first-year offensive coordinator Max Warner put guys like Pop Watson, Joe Griffin and Elijah Faulkner in positions to succeed in Piscataway.

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Harasymiak discussed the importance of his family’s support, offensive coordinator Max Warner’s role in the win, the challenge of turning the page after an emotional victory and preparing for Sacred Heart.

He also spoke about the culture being built within the program, running back Elijah Faulkner and much more.

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For most of the college football world, Thursday night was an introduction to Pop Watson.

For most of Springfield, it was the same Pop Watson they’ve been watching since he was playing AYF for the Tigers.

Now UMass’ quarterback, Watson walked into SHI Stadium in New Jersey for his first start with the Minutemen and helped deliver a stunning 37-21 victory over Rutgers, snapping a 16-game losing streak and giving UMass its first win over an FBS opponent since 2023.

For those who followed Watson from his youth football days through his career at Central, none of what they saw Thursday night was out of character. The stage was bigger and the opponent was better, but Pop was still Pop.

UMass head coach Joe Harasymiak hasn’t known Watson as long as those in his hometown, but it hasn’t taken Harasymiak long to understand why so many have so much faith in him.

“He’s just got something about him that you don’t doubt,” Harasymiak said.

“I think that’s the best way to put it. If you ever talk to Pop, you wouldn’t doubt him.”

Springfield certainly never has.

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Watson was one of the city’s most recognizable athletes long before he became a Division I quarterback. The buzz around him began when he was a youth standout in both football and basketball, to the point that he arrived at Central with almost as much hype as he carried with him to UMass.

He didn’t shrink from any of it. Instead, he thrived and eventually established himself as probably the city’s most beloved athlete since Travis Best.

That’s why nobody back home has ever been particularly concerned about whether Watson could handle becoming the face of UMass Football. He’s been training for it his entire life.

Watson completed 19 of 22 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns against Rutgers, becoming the first UMass quarterback in the FBS era to throw three touchdown passes while completing at least 80 percent of his attempts.

“He’s a winner and that’s what we’ve been missing at that position probably for a very, very long time around here is a winner,” Harasymiak said.

Multiple watch parties around the city on Thursday night were filled with people eager to see one of their own get a true opportunity. They were thrilled with what they saw, but not surprised.

The rest of the country saw a quarterback making his UMass debut on the road against a Big Ten opponent as a massive underdog. Springfield saw the same kid it has watched embrace moments like this on a smaller scale for years.

“People gravitate toward him,” Harasymiak said. “He doesn’t have a panic button. He is very, very confident.”

That confidence isn’t an act and the bravado isn’t something he turns on when a camera lights up. He’s comfortable with people watching him because people have been watching him most of his life.

And yet, when the attention inevitably comes his way, Watson rarely keeps it there very long. He’s quick to redirect it toward teammates on both sides of the ball. That instinct is part of what makes him such a leader.

Even after delivering the kind of performance people will remember around UMass for a long time, Watson talked less about what Thursday meant for himself than what he believed it meant for everybody else.

“I feel like I owe that not just to you guys, but the state of Massachusetts,” Watson said. “I told these guys in the pregame, we’ve been laughed at for so many years. I channeled all the laughter, all the hate, all the we-can’ts and showed everybody that UMass is back.”

Watson wasn’t around for the losing that created all of that negativity, but as the program’s new leader, he’s embraced it as his own anyway. Losing isn’t something he’s had much experience with though, but belief is. And whether he was responsible for creating most of that belief or succeeded because of it, he’s received plenty of it from his hometown.

“Once again, man, I owed it to the state,” Watson said. “There was so much belief in me throughout the state and I blocked out all the naysayers, man. I couldn’t be more thankful for Massachusetts. I couldn’t be more thankful for UMass.

“Springfield molded me.”

The confidence, toughness, comfort with expectations and belief that when the moment gets bigger, he’s supposed to get bigger were all on display Thursday night.

Still, some of the emotion Watson usually keeps underneath that confidence came out when he and Harasymiak shared an embrace on the field immediately after the win.

Video via @cam_pellegrino

“He got a little emotional just saying, ‘Hey, thanks for giving me the chance,’” Harasymiak recalled. “That’s what a lot of those kids want. They need their chance and this is his chance.

“I’m just so happy he gets to do it in front of his family right in front of Western Mass. and gets to get this place rolling again.”

One game doesn’t guarantee Watson will get UMass rolling again. It doesn’t erase everything that has happened to the program or mean the Minutemen are already back to where they need to be.

But Watson wanted a chance, and when it finally came, the rest of the college football world got to see what Springfield has known for years.

Pop Watson made the most of it.

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Joe Harasymiak was hired by UMass in December of 2024 to do something that proved impossible for those who tried it before him.

By the end of his first season, plenty of people were convinced it would be impossible for him too.

60 minutes into Year Two, it suddenly looks like Harasymiak may be in position to actually turn UMass Football around.

It’s not just that nobody saw UMass’ 37-21 stunner over Rutgers coming. It’s how dramatically one night changed what seems possible for the Minutemen.

Coming into the game, I publicly wondered whether Harasymiak would keep his starters on the field during a three-score game in the fourth quarter. Turns out he did.

Of course, I asked the question under the only scenario I could imagine - the only one anyone could have imagined - with UMass being the team down three scores.

Instead, as the team winning 37-14, it was obvious the Minutemen would keep their starters in as anybody involved in UMass Football had been conditioned for years to fear an all-time collapse.

How big of an upset was it?

ESPN’s Bill Connelly had Rutgers and UMass separated by 140 spots in his preseason SP+ rankings. There are only 138 FBS teams.

That’s right. Connelly didn’t merely have UMass (#201) ranked behind every other FBS program in the country. He had the Minutemen behind 63 non-FBS programs too.

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And yet, Thursday’s game never felt like the plucky underdog catching a superior opponent off guard or getting a couple lucky bounces and then hanging on for dear life.

UMass whipped Rutgers.

After allowing a touchdown on the opening possession, the Minutemen scored 30 straight points and looked like the better team all night.

The Minutemen didn’t need any miracles. They were just better. If these two teams ran it back next week, UMass would probably be favored by more than a touchdown.

Imagine that, UMass being favored on the road over a Big Ten team.

It felt bizarre. It still does.

Go back to last November, probably the most embarrassing moment of an embarrassing season came during UMass’ 10th loss. After kicking a field goal midway through the fourth quarter against Northern Illinois to cut the Huskies’ lead to 45-3, operations at McGuirk set off celebratory fireworks.

But Rutgers’ postgame pyrotechnics on Thursday night looked like the grand finale of the Boston Pops Fourth of July display by comparison (via @cfbtravelguy).

That’s how quickly things have reversed.

Last year’s loss to Bryant, an FCS team that proved to be a bad FCS team at that, was viewed by many as the worst loss in UMass history.

A year later, the Minutemen handed Rutgers what some of its own fans were calling the worst loss in their school’s history.

And it wasn’t simply because Rutgers lost to UMass. It was the way UMass beat them.

Coming into the season, we looked at the schedule and said if UMass could somehow return to Amherst 3-1 for its October home game against Eastern Michigan, there would be a real buzz around the program.

That seemed like the most optimistic scenario.

Forget October. That buzz is almost certain to be present when the Minutemen return to Amherst next week for their home opener against Sacred Heart.

And 3-1?

What was a best-case scenario as recently as Thursday afternoon now feels like it would represent a letdown of sorts.

That’s an insane sentence to write about a team that entered Thursday having lost 16 straight games. But Thursday changed the math.

Sacred Heart and Stonehill come to McGuirk Stadium the next two weeks. Then UMass travels to Sacramento State before returning home to face Eastern Michigan.

Many fans may still be entering those home dates against FCS foes with more caution than optimism, but the expectation will be what it probably should have been all along. The Minutemen need to pound those teams.

Going to California to face Sacramento State is no gimme, but UMass should be favored there too.

Before Thursday, it was reasonable to wonder where the wins were going to come from. Now, it’s time to start wondering how many there may be.

Our friends at the Rutgers TKR Podcast now have virtually zero confidence in the Scarlet Knights reaching a bowl game.

Meanwhile, our friend Rene Ingoglia’s long-held dream of UMass going bowling suddenly doesn’t seem so crazy after all.

We understand we’re getting way, way, way ahead of ourselves. It was one game and the Minutemen could crash back to earth in embarrassing fashion. But these are the moments that make being a fan of a team worth it.

And even the most pessimistic UMass follower has to admit, Thursday night felt different.

After every game a year ago, UMass fans were understandably asking why they continued subjecting themselves to the torture. They got their answer Thursday night.

For once, it was the other team’s fans wallowing in their sorrows and questioning their life decisions.

By the end of last season, Harasymiak acknowledged needing to remind himself he hadn’t forgotten how to coach.

One game into 2026, Rutgers fans are openly discussing the idea of firing Greg Schiano and trying to replace him with Harasymiak.

They say all publicity is good publicity. Not for UMass. Not last year.

At least for today though, the Minutemen are the darlings of college football.

None of this makes any sense.

We can’t explain it. But we can enjoy it.

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Umm…wow!

Nobody saw that coming.

UMass walked into SHI Stadium Thursday night and stunned Rutgers, 37-21, delivering a statement victory to open Joe Harasymiak’s second season with the Minutemen.

The victory snapped a 16-game losing streak for UMass, which hadn’t won since beating Wagner on Oct. 26, 2024, and went winless during Harasymiak’s first season in Amherst.

It also came against the program Harasymiak left to take the UMass job. Harasymiak spent three seasons as Rutgers’ defensive coordinator under Greg Schiano before taking over the Minutemen following the 2024 season.

Pop Watson led the UMass offense, completing 19 of 22 passes for 197 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. Watson also rushed for 40 yards on six carries as the Minutemen finished with 397 yards of offense, including 200 on the ground.

Curtis Kimmons IV rushed for 78 yards and a touchdown on 11 carries, while Elijah Faulkner added 62 yards on 19 attempts and caught two touchdown passes. Joseph Griffin Jr. caught two passes for 61 yards and a touchdown, while T.Y. Harding had five receptions for 55 yards.

Defensively, UMass forced four turnovers and recorded five sacks and seven tackles for loss. Jahmad Harmon intercepted Dylan Lonergan twice, Isaiah Reed added another interception and Romando Johnson forced and recovered a fumble.

This wasn’t simply UMass hanging around long enough to steal one late.

After Rutgers marched 75 yards for a touchdown on the opening possession, the Minutemen took control of the game. UMass scored the next 30 points, built a 23-point fourth-quarter lead and answered Rutgers’ only attempt at a late rally with another touchdown of its own.

The Minutemen responded immediately to the Scarlet Knights’ opening score.

UMass went 75 yards in seven plays on its first possession. Watson converted a third-and-6 with a 10-yard run before connecting with Griffin for 30 yards. Three plays later, Watson found Faulkner for a 21-yard touchdown to tie the game.

The UMass defense followed with a three-and-out, dropping Rutgers running back Antwan Raymond for losses on consecutive plays before forcing a Lonergan incompletion.

UMass took advantage with another extended drive, going 68 yards in 13 plays and taking 7:28 off the clock. Reece Adkins converted a fourth-and-1 with a 2-yard run in UMass territory and the possession carried into the second quarter before Watson connected with Faulkner for a 2-yard touchdown and a 14-7 lead.

The defense delivered the game’s first turnover on Rutgers’ next possession. Johnson sacked Lonergan, forced a fumble and recovered it at the Rutgers 36.

UMass needed just two plays to capitalize. After Kimmons picked up five yards, Watson connected with Griffin for a 31-yard touchdown to extend the lead to 21-7.

Rutgers went three-and-out again on its next possession before UMass leaned on its running game to extend the lead.

Kimmons ripped off consecutive gains of six, 11 and 19 yards as the Minutemen moved into the red zone. The drive stalled at the Rutgers 11, but Derek Morris connected on a 30-yard field goal to send UMass into halftime with a 24-7 lead.

Watson finished the half 11-of-13 for 144 yards and three touchdowns without an interception. UMass totaled 251 yards of offense in the first half, including 107 on the ground.

Kimmons had 50 rushing yards on six first-half carries, while Griffin had two receptions for 61 yards and a touchdown and Faulkner caught both of Watson’s other touchdown passes.

The UMass defense held Rutgers to 108 yards in the first half, including just 17 on the ground, while recording three sacks and five tackles for loss.

The Minutemen made sure Rutgers didn’t get the quick response it needed coming out of halftime by controlling the ball themselves.

UMass took the opening possession of the third quarter and kept the ball for 6:38. Watson picked up first downs with his legs and connected twice with Harding as the Minutemen moved into Rutgers territory.

The drive eventually stalled, but Morris drilled a 52-yard field goal to extend the lead to 27-7.

Rutgers finally mounted a sustained response on its ensuing possession, driving 63 yards in 12 plays and reaching the UMass 12. Faced with fourth-and-1, Lonergan tried to pick up the yard himself. The UMass defense stopped him for no gain.

That stand effectively slammed the door on Rutgers’ first real opportunity to make it a game again.

The Scarlet Knights reached UMass territory again on their next possession, but Reed intercepted Lonergan at the UMass 15 on the first play of the fourth quarter.

UMass couldn’t turn that takeaway into points, but Edward Phillipson flipped the field with a 59-yard punt that pinned Rutgers at its own 1.

Two plays later, Harmon intercepted Lonergan and returned it five yards to the Rutgers 7.

Penalties kept the Minutemen from converting the takeaway into a touchdown. A Watson touchdown run was wiped out by an illegal shift and another penalty pushed UMass back before Morris connected on a 31-yard field goal to make it 30-7 with 7:54 remaining.

Rutgers finally broke through again 45 seconds later when Lonergan connected with KJ Duff for a 78-yard touchdown, cutting the lead to 30-14 with 7:09 remaining.

But there would be no late Rutgers comeback. UMass went three-and-out, but Phillipson flipped the field again with a 67-yard punt.

Harmon intercepted Lonergan for the second time on Rutgers’ next snap and returned it six yards to the Scarlet Knights’ 22.

This time, UMass turned the takeaway into seven points.

Kimmons gained five yards on the first play before breaking a 17-yard touchdown run on the next, with Morris’ extra point extending the lead to 37-14 with 4:27 remaining.

Morris finished 3-for-3 on field goals and 4-for-4 on extra points, accounting for 13 points. Phillipson averaged 57.3 yards on three punts, with two landing inside the 20.

Rutgers added one final touchdown after the outcome had been decided. Backup quarterback AJ Surace led the Scarlet Knights 75 yards in 11 plays, connecting with Duff for a 6-yard touchdown with 1:57 remaining to make it 37-21.

Duff finished with nine catches for 196 yards and all three Rutgers touchdowns. Lonergan finished 16-of-29 for 242 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions, while Surace completed six of nine passes for 77 yards and a touchdown.

For a program that hadn’t won a game in nearly two years, the final minutes were unfamiliar as the Minutement simply had to run out the clock on one nobody saw coming.

UMass returns to action at home next Saturday against Sacred Heart.

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Introductions won’t be necessary when in Piscataway tonight.

UMass and Joe Harasymiak’s return to Rutgers will bring together two coaching staffs with relationships and shared history running throughout them.

But if familiarity is supposed to provide an advantage, Scarlet Knights head coach Greg Schiano isn’t convinced his team is the one that benefits.

Despite the extensive connections between the two programs, Schiano believes the Minutemen may have a better idea of what to expect in the season opener.

“It probably gives them a little bit more of an advantage, really,” the Rutgers head coach said this week. “They probably have a little better beat on what we’re gonna do than we do them.”

Harasymiak spent three seasons as Schiano's defensive coordinator at Rutgers before taking over at UMass following the 2024 season. He didn't leave Piscataway alone.

UMass defensive coordinator Jared Keyte worked under Schiano at Rutgers before joining Harasymiak in Amherst, while general manager Jared Osumah also spent time with the Scarlet Knights.

Schiano didn’t particularly enjoy losing either one.

“His GM is Jared Ozumah, who’s done a great job,” Schiano said. “They have 50, I don’t know, 53 new players on their roster this year, so Jared, I hated to lose him. He’s got Jared Keyte as his defensive coordinator, right? And didn’t want to lose him.”

The connections extend beyond their time together at Rutgers.

Harasymiak and Rutgers offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca previously worked together at Minnesota for a year, creating another layer of familiarity as Keyte prepares the UMass defense to face Ciarrocca’s offense. UMass special teams coordinator Joe Castellitto also has relationships with members of the Rutgers staff.

“Intermingling on these two staffs, a lot of football will be known,” Schiano said.

But not everything.

UMass has a new offensive coordinator in Max Warner. The Minutemen also recently added veteran coach and former UMass player Kevin Coyle to the defensive staff, another variable Schiano acknowledged as Rutgers tries to anticipate what it will see tonight.

“Who knows what they’re gonna do?” Schiano said. “Kevin’s been a defensive coordinator at every level, NFL, college. He is an excellent coach, so I’m sure Joe made a real smart move in getting him on the staff. So who knows what he brings to the scheme and what he’s gonna add there.”

Schiano has noticed Harasymiak and Keyte putting their own stamp on the UMass defense versus what they did under his direction in New Jersey.

“Joe’s been away for a year and Jared’s been the coordinator for a year, and obviously Joe has a big influence on it, but you watch some different things that they’re doing defensively last year, towards the end of the season especially, and you say, ‘OK, yeah, I can see that’s something that they believe in now that maybe we didn’t do,’” he said.

“It’ll be interesting to see what further growth they’ve had.”

There may be some uncertainty about what UMass will do, but Schiano is considerably more familiar with who will be doing it.

That starts with quarterback Pop Watson, who enters his first season as the Minutemen’s full-time starter.

“We saw Pop when he was at Virginia Tech,” Schiano said. “We were aware of him, we recruited him, so we’re very familiar with him. He’s a really excellent athlete.”

Schiano also pointed toward running backs Elijah Faulkner and Justin Williams-Thomas and a receiving corps led by Joseph Griffin Jr. and T.Y. Harding.

The 6-foot-4 Griffin provides the Minutemen with size on the outside, while Harding, who switched from #10 to #2 this season, has Schiano’s attention because of his ability to create explosive plays on offense and special teams.

“#10, who’s gonna be wearing #2 this year, he’s an explosive player,” Schiano said. “He’s their return guy, does a great job there, has taken it to the house, as well as deep shots. So we have to be aware of that.”

Schiano’s familiarity with the UMass defense becomes even more personal at linebacker.

Timmy Hinspeter followed Harasymiak from Rutgers to UMass and is now one of four Minutemen captains alongside fellow linebacker Tyler Martin.

“We know Timmy Hinspeter very well, obviously,” Schiano said. “Timmy’s another guy I didn’t wanna lose.

“Timmy’s a captain along with Martin, #5. Their linebackers are their heart and soul, their defense.”

The combination of familiar people, a dramatically different UMass roster and schemes that have continued to evolve leaves both sides with a little more uncertainty than their shared history might suggest.

“They knew what they walked into, and they went out and got half a hundred new players, more than that, that they believe in,” Schiano said. “It’s gonna be interesting to see. There’s some unknowns.”

Harasymiak has a similar view of how much all of that familiarity will ultimately matter.

While he knows plenty about Schiano, Ciarrocca and the way Rutgers wants to play, he sees enough differences on both sides that trying to win a game based on inside knowledge isn’t the focus.

“From a game plan standpoint, all of football is really kind of the same plays,” Harasymiak acknowledged. “I think it’s who you put in those positions to get the plays. And I certainly think UMass offense and Rutgers defense is a little bit different. There’s two new coordinators. They have a whole new staff.

“I recognize some of the names there that were younger when I was there, but there’s a lot of guys I do not know. I just wasn’t there for it.”

Harasymiak has spent more time preparing his team for the characteristics he expects to remain the same under Schiano.

“I’m focusing on trying to get our team ready for what the mentality will be to have a chance, the physicality, the grind, the strength of their team, how big they’re going to be upfront especially, and how strong they are,” he said. “That’s what we got to be prepared for.”

For all of the connections between the programs, both coaches eventually arrive at essentially the same place.

“Definitely an opener that has a lot of plot twists to it,” Schiano said. “And at the end of the day, we gotta be prepared and we gotta go play, right? Go play our best game, and that’s really all I’m concerned with, us playing our best game.”

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UMass football kicks off the 2026 season Thursday night at Rutgers, and Minuteman Command is hosting a watch party in Springfield.

Fans are invited to join us at Nathan Bill’s Bar & Restaurant for Thursday night’s season-opener, which kicks off at 6 p.m.

The game will feature a pair of Springfield Central products playing prominent roles for the Minutemen, quarterback Pop Watson and wide receiver Joseph Griffin.

Come out to Nathan Bill’s for food, drinks and a chance to watch the beginning of Year 2 under UMass head coach Joe Harasymiak with fellow Minutemen fans.

DIRECTIONS TO NATHAN BILL’S

UMass-Rutgers Watch Party

• Thursday, Sept. 3

• 6 p.m. kickoff

• Nathan Bill’s Bar & Restaurant

• Springfield, Mass.

We hope to see you there.

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Minuteman Command’s Christian McCollum joined Mike Broadbent on The Knight Report podcast to preview Thursday night’s matchup between UMass and Rutgers.

The conversation covers what to expect from quarterback Pop Watson and the UMass offense, some of the players to watch on both sides of the ball and how the Minutemen could match up with the Scarlet Knights.

They also discuss the familiarity between the two programs with UMass head coach Joe Harasymiak returning to Rutgers, where he spent three seasons as defensive coordinator, before wrapping up with predictions for Thursday’s season opener.

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UMass won’t have to wait long to find out whether the changes made during Joe Harasymiak’s second offseason have moved the Minutemen closer to where he wants the program to be.

They’ll get a Big Ten measuring stick immediately.

UMass opens the 2026 season Thursday night at Rutgers, where Harasymiak spent three seasons as defensive coordinator before taking over in Amherst. The Scarlet Knights are coming off a 5-7 season, but return some of the most accomplished offensive players in the Big Ten while introducing a new quarterback and an almost completely reshaped defense.

Rutgers has won eight consecutive season openers and is 15-0 in regular-season nonconference games since Greg Schiano returned as head coach in 2020. The Scarlet Knights have also won 14 of their last 16 home openers.

Harasymiak knows what that challenge will look like, even if he doesn’t know everything Rutgers will show schematically.

“This is going to be a very physical, violent game,” Harasymiak said. “They’re going to play extremely hard. That’s what Coach Schiano teams do. So I wouldn’t expect anything less.”

Here’s a closer look at the Minutemen’s first opponent.

OFFENSE

The most significant question for Rutgers is at quarterback, but just about everything around the new starter should make his transition easier.

Boston College transfer Dylan Lonergan was named Rutgers’ starting quarterback last week after joining the Scarlet Knights following one season with the Eagles.

Lonergan completed 190 of 284 passes, 66.9 percent, for 2,025 yards and 12 touchdowns in nine starts at Boston College last season. His best statistical performance came at Michigan State, where he completed 34 passes for 390 yards and four touchdowns. Lonergan began his college career at Alabama before transferring to BC.

He replaces Athan Kaliakmanis, who threw for 3,124 yards and 20 touchdowns last season before being selected in the NFL Draft.

The larger concern for UMass will be the established weapons surrounding Lonergan.

Running back Antwan Raymond enters the season as the Big Ten’s leading returning rusher after carrying 244 times for 1,241 yards and 13 touchdowns in 2025. He added 18 receptions for 225 yards and two more scores, giving him 1,466 all-purpose yards and 15 total touchdowns.

Raymond has scored 18 rushing touchdowns over his last 14 games and has reached the end zone either rushing or receiving in 12 of those contests. His junior season included four 100-yard rushing games, highlighted by 240 yards on 41 carries against Maryland.

Harasymiak expects offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca to lean on him.

“They’re going to try and run the ball down our face and make us quit,” Harasymiak said. “I think Kirk calls it body blows, like a heavyweight fight, when you drop your hands and you’re standing there late in the round and they go out and get you.”

Ciarrocca has developed a first or second-team All-Big Ten running back in each of the last four seasons, and Rutgers is the only power-conference program to produce a 1,200-yard rusher in each of the last three.

That commitment to the running game also allows Rutgers to control possession. The Scarlet Knights averaged 32:31 of possession last season and held the ball for at least 10 minutes in a quarter seven different times.

“We probably won’t get a ton of possessions,” Harasymiak said. “That’s just kind of the way Kirk is. He runs the ball, check with me, he can go tempo, but they’re the best when they’re grinding you out.”

When Rutgers does put the ball in the air, KJ Duff presents another significant problem.

The 6-foot-6 receiver caught 60 passes for 1,084 yards and seven touchdowns last season, averaging 18.1 yards per reception. His 90.3 receiving yards per game ranked third in the Big Ten and seventh nationally. He had three 100-yard games, including six catches for 241 yards against Purdue.

Duff also led the country with 22 contested catches according to Pro Football Focus and enters 2026 on the Biletnikoff Award and Walter Camp Player of the Year watch lists.

Up front, Rutgers brings back one of the nation’s top guards in Kwabena Asamoah.

The 6-foot-2, 311-pounder has started 25 consecutive games at right guard and earned Second Team All-America honors from ESPN last season. Asamoah joins Raymond and Duff as preseason All-America selections, giving Rutgers three preseason All-Americans for the first time since 2008.

Harasymiak remembers Asamoah from his own time in Piscataway.

“Kobe was there, who’s the strongest guy in the world at the time,” Harasymiak said. “So he’s a big dude.”

Rutgers averaged 407.1 yards per game last season, including 266.1 through the air. Its 28.7 points per game were the second-most of its Big Ten era, and the Scarlet Knights set a school record with 23.2 first downs per game.

The quarterback has changed, but the identity around him hasn’t.

DEFENSE

This is where projecting Rutgers becomes considerably more difficult.

The Scarlet Knights struggled defensively last season, allowing 432.8 yards per game, including 209.9 on the ground. Opponents averaged 6.8 yards per rushing attempt and scored 25 rushing touchdowns. Rutgers also allowed 23 passing touchdowns while intercepting only five passes.

Schiano responded with significant changes.

Travis Johansen takes over as defensive coordinator after spending last season as the head coach at South Dakota. Johansen went 10-5 in his lone season leading the Coyotes, reaching the FCS quarterfinals after six previous seasons as South Dakota’s defensive coordinator. Rutgers credits Johansen with directing six top-10 defenses during his career.

For UMass, that means preparing for a defense that doesn’t have much 2026 Rutgers tape to study.

“Certainly their whole defense is brand new,” Harasymiak said. “So that’ll be kind of the unknown we have to handle. I think in first games, regardless of what you think you know, there’s a level of unknown that comes out of that and you’ve got to be able to handle.”

Rutgers also attacked the transfer portal to reshape the personnel Johansen will have available.

Defensive lineman J’Dan Burnett arrives from Tulsa with 42 games of FBS experience, 82 career tackles, 19 tackles for loss and 11.5 sacks. He had 6.5 sacks and 9.5 tackles for loss last season while earning Second Team All-American Athletic Conference honors.

Malachi Davis comes from Toledo with 57 career tackles, 14 tackles for loss and eight sacks, while Ty Morris arrives from Rice after accumulating 153 tackles, 17.5 tackles for loss and seven sacks over the last three seasons.

Linebacker Sean Allison brings even more production from the FCS level. The Drake transfer has 289 career tackles, including more than 100 in each of the last two seasons, and was a finalist for the Buck Buchanan Award as one of the top defensive players in the FCS last year.

The secondary has also been supplemented by experienced transfers.

Zahmir Dawud arrives from Villanova with 93 tackles, 13 pass breakups and four interceptions over three seasons. Mikey Munn followed Johansen from South Dakota after intercepting five passes and breaking up 10 more last season, when he earned FCS All-America recognition.

Rutgers does have some returning production, most notably safety Kaj Sanders. He finished third on the team with 65 tackles last season while also blocking two punts. Abram Wright returns after making 58 tackles in 2025, while Moses Walker is back after being limited to four games last fall.

The result is a defense with plenty of experience, but much of that experience was accumulated somewhere other than Rutgers.

That may give UMass opportunities early if the Minutemen can handle the uncertainty without hurting themselves.

“We’ve got to execute at a high level,” Harasymiak said. “And then ultimately we have to handle the unknown because there’s going to be some unknown of what their defense gives us.”

SPECIAL TEAMS

There may not be another area where Rutgers’ identity under Schiano is more obvious.

The Scarlet Knights have blocked 76 kicks during Schiano’s tenure, including 46 punts, 17 field goals and 13 extra points. Those blocks have produced 18 touchdowns.

Rutgers has blocked 13 punts since 2022, the most in the country over that span. Three blocked punts resulted in touchdowns last season alone.

Sanders was responsible for two of those blocks and scored on one of them.

Rutgers is also experienced in the more conventional areas of the kicking game.

Punter Jakob Anderson averaged 44.2 yards per punt last season while allowing only five returns. Seventeen of his 33 punts resulted in fair catches and 10 were downed inside the 20.

Kicker Jai Patel has made 43 of 55 career field-goal attempts, including three from at least 50 yards. He went 13 of 18 last season with a long of 51 and kicked the game-winner as time expired at Purdue. His 78.2-percent career conversion rate is the best in Rutgers history among kickers with at least 30 attempts.

For UMass, avoiding the kind of catastrophic special-teams mistake Rutgers has built a reputation for creating will be a significant part of staying in the game.

WHAT IT MEANS FOR UMASS

Rutgers isn’t without questions.

The Scarlet Knights are replacing their starting quarterback. They’re installing a new defense after allowing more than 430 yards per game last season. Much of that defensive roster has been rebuilt with transfers, meaning Rutgers will be working through some of the same early-season cohesion questions as UMass.

But the known quantities are significant.

Raymond gives Rutgers a proven Big Ten running back capable of carrying the offense. Duff provides Lonergan with one of the league’s premier receivers. Asamoah anchors the line. And Schiano’s special teams have consistently created the kind of game-changing plays that can turn a competitive road game into something else quickly.

For UMass, the formula begins with surviving what Harasymiak already knows is coming.

“I’m focusing on trying to get our team ready for what the mentality will be to have a chance, the physicality, the grind, the strength of their team, how big they’re going to be upfront especially, and how strong they are,” he said.

The Minutemen won’t know exactly what Rutgers will show Thursday night.

They know exactly how the Scarlet Knights intend to play.

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Joe Harasymiak doesn’t know everything Rutgers will throw at UMass on Thursday night, but there is one thing the former Scarlet Knights defensive coordinator is certain of.

Rutgers is going to try to beat the Minutemen up.

Now the head coach at UMass, Harasymiak’s time at Rutgers gives him an unusual level of familiarity with what his squad will face in its season opener, particularly the mentality Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano has established in Piscataway.

“This is going to be a very physical, violent game,” Harasymiak said. “They’re going to play extremely hard. That’s what Coach Schiano teams do. So I wouldn’t expect anything less.”

Exactly how Rutgers will try to accomplish it is a little more difficult to predict.

Harasymiak spent three seasons working alongside Rutgers offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca and had previously gone against him when Ciarrocca was at Minnesota.

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That gives the UMass head coach an understanding of Ciarrocca’s approach, but Harasymiak isn’t assuming that means he knows exactly what the Scarlet Knights will do.

“Certainly working there with Kirk and all those kinds of things and going against him before when I was at Rutgers and he was at Minnesota,” Harasymiak said. “But offseasons or you have new studies, you do a lot of things.”

The uncertainty will be even greater when UMass’ offense is on the field.

Rutgers has a new defensive staff, leaving Harasymiak and offensive coordinator Max Warner preparing for possibilities rather than knowing precisely what they’ll see.

“I think in first games, regardless of what you think you know, there’s a level of unknown that comes out of that and you’ve got to be able to handle it,” Harasymiak said.

While schemes present uncertainty, Harasymiak is much more confident about the mentality Rutgers will bring.

He expects the Scarlet Knights to test the Minutemen physically from the beginning, particularly on the ground.

“They’re going to try and run the ball down our face and make us quit,” Harasymiak said. “I think Kirk calls it body blows, like a heavyweight fight, when you drop your hands and you’re standing there late in the round and they go out and get you.”

Harasymiak is familiar with some of the players Rutgers will use to try to accomplish that.

He was in Piscataway when running back Antwan Raymond and wide receiver KJ Duff were younger players in the program and is familiar with the strength Rutgers possesses along the offensive line.

Raymond and Duff are two of the Big Ten’s most productive skill players.

Raymond rushed for 1,241 yards and 13 touchdowns while adding 225 yards and two scores as a receiver. Duff caught 60 passes for 1,084 yards and seven touchdowns.

“Obviously what the strength of their team is, obviously KJ Duff and Antwaun Raymond, I’m sure they’re excited about their o-line,” Harasymiak said. “I know their young receiver corps is good. All those things, who knows how they’re going to attack, but I know the mentality of what they are.”

Up front, Rutgers has one of the nation’s most accomplished returning offensive guards in Kwabena Asamoah, who was in the program during Harasymiak’s time.

“Kobe was there, he was one the strongest guy in the world at the time,” Harasymiak said of the 6-foot-2, 311-pounder. “He’s a big dude.”

Asamoah has started 25 consecutive games at right guard and earned Second Team All-America honors from ESPN following the 2025 season. He helped Rutgers average 389.1 yards of offense in Big Ten play last fall, the program’s best mark since joining the conference, and enters 2026 with additional preseason All-America recognition.

Rutgers’ commitment to the run game won’t only challenge the UMass defense.

Harasymiak expects the Scarlet Knights’ ability to control the football to impact the Minutemen’s offense as well.

“We probably won’t get a ton of possessions,” Harasymiak said. “That’s just kind of the way Kirk is. He runs the ball, check with me, he can go tempo, but they’re the best when they’re grinding you out.”

Instead of trying to anticipate every possible wrinkle, Harasymiak wants the Minutemen prepared for the physical demands he knows will be coming.

“I’m focusing on trying to get our team ready for what the mentality will be to have a chance, the physicality, the grind, the strength of their team, how big they’re going to be upfront especially, and how strong they are,” he said.

“We’ve got to be physical. We have to maintain that level of physicality. We got to execute at a high level. And then ultimately we have to handle the unknown because there’s going to be some unknown of what their defense gives us.”

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Joe Harasymiak knows what UMass should expect Thursday night at Rutgers.

He knows the coaches, many of the players and understands the environment in Piscataway for the season opener.

But perhaps most importantly, Harasymiak understands the mentality Rutgers head coach Greg Schiano has built his program around. Harasymiak served as the Scarlet Knights’ defensive coordinator for three seasons immediately before coming to Amherst.

Now Harasymiak has to prepare his own team to handle it.

“It’s obviously part of this game,” Harasymiak said of facing his former program. “I credit Coach Schiano for a lot of things that have gotten me to this point.”

Harasymiak spent three seasons at Rutgers before being named UMass head coach in December 2024.

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The opportunity represented an important step in his career. Harasymiak had previously been a head coach at Maine and spent three seasons on the staff at Minnesota, but he still credits Schiano with giving him a major career opportunity.

Results followed.

Rutgers allowed 396.5 yards per game in 2021, the season before Harasymiak arrived. That number dropped to 349.8 during his first season and 313.5 in 2023, when the Scarlet Knights finished 16th nationally in total defense.

“I’m really happy about a lot of the things we accomplished together; back to back bowl games,” Harasymiak told reporters on Friday. “We took over a defense that at the time was struggling. That’s obviously how I got the opportunity. In two years we got it to a top 15 or we were 16th in total defense.”

Not every memory from those three seasons is quite as positive.

Harasymiak can still identify games and even individual calls he regrets.

“I certainly want some things back,” he said. “I want back that UCLA game. I want back the USC game and I want back my Illinois call, Zero Blitz at the end of the game.”

Those frustrations haven’t changed the way Harasymiak views his time at Rutgers or the people he worked alongside.

Schiano remains someone Harasymiak credits for helping him reach his current position, and several other members of the two teams’ staffs will be familiar when they reunite in Piscataway.

Harasymiak matched wits in practice with Rutgers offensive coordinator Kirk Ciarrocca, who is still calling things for the Scarlet Knights. Meanwhile, he brought Jared Keyte with him from Rutgers to coordinate his defense in Amherst, along with other staffers.

And the return will give Harasymiak an opportunity to reconnect with people who played important roles during three years of his career.

“Unfortunately you remember the negative a little bit, but I try and focus on the positive in my relationship with Coach,” he said. “We’re still close. It’ll be great to see him and just great to see all those guys because I know how hard they work and certainly that’s rubbed off on me.”

The circumstances are different now, though.

Harasymiak is entering his second season at UMass and will walk back into SHI Stadium leading his own program. Rutgers will be trying to start its season with a victory against its former defensive coordinator, while Harasymiak will be trying to begin Year 2 in Amherst by beating many of the people he remains close with.

The significance of returning isn’t lost on Harasymiak.

“It’s certainly special for me,” he said.

But once the game begins, the relationships will have to wait.

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Elijah Faulkner isn’t the new guy anymore.

As a sophomore, Faulkner isn’t necessarily an old vet just yet either, but a lot has changed around the UMass running back since he arrived in Amherst a year ago.

Faulkner entered his first Fall Camp simply trying to figure out what college football was going to demand from him.

A year later, he’s one of the few returning pieces in Jeremy Larkin’s reshaped UMass running back room, surrounded by freshmen learning many of the same lessons he did a year ago and some veteran newcomers with lessons of their own to offer him.

“I pretty much sit in the middle kind of age wise,” Faulkner said. “I’m a sophomore, but we got two younger freshmen, TK Davis and Justin Lewis who are acclimating to college very well and they’re learning and they’re doing well, but they also got things they need to work on and Coach Larkin has done a great job with them.”

Faulkner understands that adjustment better than he did a year ago.

The Pittsburgh native arrived at UMass after a productive career at Central Catholic, one of Pennsylvania’s most accomplished high school programs. Faulkner rushed for 3,076 yards and 45 touchdowns over his final two seasons while earning First Team All-Conference honors both years.

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College football required another adjustment.

Faulkner played in all 12 games as a freshman, carrying the ball 40 times for 114 yards. The year of experience at the college level was just as important as the time he saw on the field, if not more.

“Being a freshman, going through your first fall camp, you really don’t know what to expect,” Faulkner said. “I was going into the camp last year just thinking I want to do as best as I can. I want to learn as much as I can and I want to do the best as I can.”

His mindset has changed entering Year 2.

“This year going into camp, I want to just exceed my expectations and I’m going to do everything, my ability to be the best I can,” he said.

While Davis and Lewis are going through many of the same adjustments Faulkner made a year ago, veteran additions Curtis Kimmons IV and Justin Williams-Thomas provide examples of players who have already spent several years navigating college football.

“I learn from them as well, being a sophomore, seniors being through the college football process, I pick up from them every day and I appreciate them and I’m just excited for the future,” Faulkner said.

Larkin is overseeing that mixture of experience and youth, but Faulkner’s development is also being pushed by the personality that offensive coordinator Max Warner has brought to the entire unit.

“He’s unapologetically himself,” Faulkner said of Warner. “If you like it or not, there’s not really a choice. It is what it is.”

It’s a welcome and needed intensity, according to Faulkner.

“I don’t think our offense would be ready to practice every day if it wasn’t for his push,” he said. “Me personally, I feel like I have no choice but to have a good practice. Personal opinions, personal goals, but also I want to make my coaches happy and play to the standard of the team.”

There is still plenty for Faulkner to learn and plenty of competition in a running back room featuring players at different stages of their careers. But that’s what makes his place within it unique.

He’s no longer the freshman simply trying to learn as much as he can, and he’s not yet one of the veterans who has seen everything college football can throw at him.

For now, Faulkner is somewhere in the middle, with an opportunity to learn from the players ahead of him while recognizing just how much he’s already learned himself.

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UMass football fans cannot be blamed for losing faith.

After years of losing capped by a winless 2025 season, few are expecting meaningful change anytime soon.

Inside the UMass football building, though, belief in what head coach Joe Harasymiak is building remains.

Greg Knox III didn’t come to UMass because everything was already going well. He came because it wasn’t.

And Elijah Faulkner didn’t stay because his first season went the way he’d hoped. He stayed because he believes the people in charge can change the direction of the program.

Knox understood the reaction when he told his former teammates he was transferring from McNeese to UMass this offseason.

“I know it was a shocker to them,” Knox said. “They were like, ‘You sure you want to do that?’ I was like, ‘Man, I’ve never been so sure about something in my life.’”

The offensive lineman was aware of the Minutemen’s recent struggles. He just viewed them differently.

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“I don’t want to go to nowhere where they already have everything going because I want to be a part of something that came from the ground up,” he said. “So I feel like that’s a big part of it.”

Knox’s belief started to take shape during the recruiting process.

The McNeese transfer had been looking for the right fit and heard about UMass offensive line coach Brian White from one of his fraternity brothers. Knox was told White could develop him as a player and, just as importantly, that he was somebody he could trust.

Since arriving in Amherst, the experience has reinforced his decision.

“Coach White’s a great guy,” Knox said. “He hasn’t disappointed since I’ve been here. I feel like I have a home here. I don’t feel out of the loop or nothing. I have good friends here, so I feel like that’s brought me closer to this place.”

Faulkner came to his belief from a much different perspective.

The sophomore running back arrived at UMass last year from Pittsburgh’s Central Catholic, one of Pennsylvania’s most successful high school programs.

Central Catholic has won four state championships and produced a lengthy list of major college and NFL players, including Dan Marino.

Faulkner was accustomed to more than just winning when he arrived at UMass. He had been a featured part of Central Catholic’s success, rushing for 3,076 yards and 45 touchdowns over his final two high school seasons while earning First Team All-Conference honors both years.

Faulkner flashed at times as a freshman and played in every game, but his first college season provided a drastically different experience than his high school one.

But, even those struggles didn’t lead him to look elsewhere.

“I have trust in my coaches,” Faulkner said. “I have trust in Coach H. I believe in what he says and how he’s going to turn this team around. My full trust is in them and I know at the end of the day that they’ve got my best interest and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.”

Trust is one thing. Seeing evidence that something is actually changing is another.

For Faulkner, some of those signs have become more apparent as the Minutemen have moved from spring practice through Fall Camp.

“I definitely see that,” Faulkner said. “In the spring, we were just starting to learn each other’s names and get to know each other, but this camp has brought us so much closer together.”

Knox has noticed that connection developing as well.

The graduate transfer arrived in January and has watched a roster filled with players from different backgrounds begin coming together throughout the spring and summer.

“We’ve all been building a good connection with each other,” Knox said. “So I think that’s the biggest thing.”

None of that guarantees the results will change this fall, far from it.

For a fan base that has waited years to see sustained progress, skepticism isn’t going to disappear because players believe things are different inside the building. The Minutemen don’t just understand that, they embrace that.

“People doubting this place is what’s going to make it better,” said Knox.

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If anybody knew what last year’s loss of Timmy Hinspeter was going to mean for UMass, it was Tyler Martin.

The two linebackers are close friends off the field and were two of the Minutemen’s most productive defenders before Hinspeter’s season was cut short by injury.

Now, Hinspeter is back for their final seasons together, giving Martin another veteran alongside him and then some. More importantly, he has one of his closest friends and one of his best resources for understanding Joe Harasymiak’s defense.

“It’s great,” Martin said. “Me and him are very close off the field and on the field. And it’s definitely fun to have him back.”

Hinspeter was in the middle of a productive first season at UMass before suffering a season-ending injury against Buffalo. Through seven games, the 6-foot-1, 235-pounder totaled 69 tackles, four tackles for loss, two sacks, a forced fumble, a fumble recovery and an interception.

Martin went on to finish his own breakout season with 103 tackles, four tackles for loss and an interception, earning Third Team All-MAC honors. His 8.7 tackles per game ranked fifth in the conference.

Both are graduate students now, but Martin still sees Hinspeter as somebody he can learn from.

“He’s played in Coach H’s defense his whole career,” Martin acknowledged. “Even myself as a fifth-year guy similar to him, but only my second year in this defense, picking his brain and just really trying to get to know everything I can about the defense through him is really nice to have that resource.”

They also give the Minutemen a veteran presence in a linebacker room that could feature some new faces on the field this fall, including guys like transfer Joshua Iseah.

“I would say probably the biggest thing is just having a variety of guys that can do a lot of things,” Martin said. “I think guys like myself and Timmy Hines, just being older guys and being able to kind of help some of the guys that might be new transfers, young guys and stuff like that.

“From the top to bottom, guys are really good at certain things, athleticism-wise, can run, can cover and got some really good blitzers too. I just think like there’s a wide range and everyone kind of has their unique abilities and we all mesh really well.”

Hinspeter’s return gives that group another proven piece.

And for Martin, it gives him one more season alongside a player whose value he understands as well as anybody.

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Anybody who has spent time inside McGuirk Alumni Stadium this month probably noticed what looks like a date displayed prominently on the video scoreboard in the South end zone.

9.09.

Sept. 9? UMass doesn’t have a game that day.

Turns out, it isn’t a date at all.

Instead, 9.09 represents one of the principles behind the defense Joe Harasymiak and defensive coordinator Jared Keyte are building at UMass.

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“It’s the decimal version of 1/11th,” linebacker Tyler Martin explained. “So if everyone does their 9.09, their 9 percent on every play, that’s going to reach 100 percent and that’s a win for that play.”

The idea is simple and similar to Bill Belichick’s famous “Do Your Job” mantra.

11 defenders each have a responsibility on every snap. If each handles his share, the defense should be in position to succeed.

“And then you’ve got to put the ball down and do it again,” Martin said. “That’s what we preach on defense is if everyone does their 9 percent on every play, all 11 of us, there’s no way we can lose that play.”

For Martin, doing his part has become easier as he’s gained experience in Harasymiak’s defense.

The fifth-year linebacker is entering his second season in the system and believes the group has absorbed another one of Harasymiak’s challenges this offseason of being together.

“The biggest thing I’ve really enjoyed about playing in this defense is everyone’s really connected,” Martin said. “Everyone’s come together a lot since summer workouts into now and bringing in new faces, new people, but everyone’s getting along really well as a defense.

“We’re just playing with a lot of excitement. Everyone really wants to play for one another, which I’m excited about.”

That connection is important in a defense that asks each player to handle his 9.09, and Martin’s definition of doing the job goes beyond making tackles or defeating blocks.

Keyte has talked about bringing more violence to the UMass defense and pointed to Martin and fellow veteran linebacker Timmy Hinspeter as catalysts for establishing that style.

“I think violence can come in all sorts of forms,” said Martin. “Violence with your voice is huge in our defense, making sure everyone knows the call. Everyone’s aligned, gets aligned fast. Everyone is ready to go before the snap of the ball can assess pre-snap.”

Those details aren’t as noticeable as a big hit or a tackle for loss, but they fit into the larger idea behind the number displayed on the scoreboard. Each player has his responsibility. Each player has his 9.09.

“I think those are different ways, not just block destruction and tackling, that violence plays a huge role in stuff that we’re just trying to build on every day.”

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Joe Harasymiak can feel the difference when he stands behind the UMass defense and watches his defensive line rush the passer this preseason.

The Minutemen head coach believes UMass will be better than average up front in the MAC and has the potential to be “great.”

A more disruptive pass rush could unlock considerably more for the rest of the defense.

Harasymiak has been encouraged by what he’s seen throughout preseason camp, particularly when the Minutemen turn their defensive linemen loose in pass-rush situations.

“I think we’re going to be above average, I would believe, with the d-line that we have in terms of MAC play,” Harasymiak said. “When I stand back there and we rush, we have a chance to be great.”

UMass has multiple players contributing to that optimism.

Harasymiak pointed to Andrew Depaepe, William Depaepe, Justin Krueger and Joshua Nobles, while also singling out Romando Johnson for the progress he’s made during camp.

Nobles was expected to be a star for the Minutemen last year before suffering a season-ending injury last August. The Depaepe brothers transferred from Indiana this offseason and Johnson saw limited duty as a freshman in 2025. So the quartet are essentially all newcomers.

“Anytime I’ve been standing back there, you can feel it,” Harasymiak said.

“Just from seeing what a pass rush is supposed to look like over my career, I think we’re having some good battles.”

The results have already started showing up in other areas during camp.

Pressure has led to tipped passes this preseason with quarterbacks being forced to make throws under duress, creating additional opportunities for the secondary.

“We have the ability to get at the passer and you saw some today, some tipped throws, some contested throws for the quarterback,” Harasymiak said, alluding to a couple interceptions the defense pulled in after pressuring the passer.

But sacks themselves will also carry considerable importance.

Harasymiak plans to track them alongside two other areas he believes will be critical to UMass’ success.

“Sacks are huge,” he said. “We have explosive plays and turnover margins. Our third column is going to be sacks because there’s a crazy stat out there for a long time that if you win those three, you’re going to be in good shape.”

The biggest benefit of an improved pass rush may be the flexibility it gives UMass defensive coordinator Jared Keyte.

If the Minutemen can consistently pressure the quarterback with their four defensive linemen, Keyte won’t have to commit additional defenders, allowing him to be less predictable.

“The simplest way to think about it, if I only rush four, I have seven more guys that can move around to different types of coverages,” Harasymiak said.

For a defensive-minded coach like Harasymiak, the possibilities quickly expand from there.

“Your brain kind of gets into your different types of Quarters you can play, your different types of Cover-2, your different Fire Zones you can do,” he said. “Your 2-Inverts, your stuff like that. Your 3-Under/3-Deep if you want to send five.”

The ability to show one thing before the snap and play something different afterward makes the quarterback’s job more difficult, particularly when the defensive front can create pressure without help.

“It just allows you to use more of the pre-snap disguise per se,” Harasymiak said. “And that’s what we need to be able to do.

“It just frees you up more to be able to create some more confusion.”

UMass isn’t going to stop blitzing, but if it can create pressure with four, Keyte can become more selective about when he brings additional rushers and more creative with what the Minutemen show behind them.

“Now you can kind of rush with four, do some different things and we’re getting into that stuff and I think it’s going to pay benefits,” Harasymiak said.

The Minutemen still have to prove their improved pass rush will carry over once the season begins.

But Harasymiak believes the personnel is there, and if UMass can consistently affect opposing quarterbacks with its defensive front, the payoff should be felt throughout the defense.

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Magee discussed turning more of his opportunities on the football into takeaways, what he believes are the strengths of his game and how his understanding of the defense has grown entering his second year in the system. He also talked about his return from the injury that ended his 2025 season and the approach he took while working his way back.

The veteran cornerback also touched on the chemistry developing within the secondary, including the importance of building relationships away from the field. Magee explained how that connection carries over to the entire defense, the benefit of playing behind a defensive front capable of creating pressure and the emphasis head coach Joe Harasymiak has placed on improving each day rather than paying attention to expectations surrounding the Minutemen.

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