Harasymiak Talks Kent State Challenge
UMass head coach Joe Harasymiak previews an interesting Week 7 matchup
UMass takes on Kent State this Saturday in search of its first win of the season. The Minutemen enter this week with a record of 0-5, while the Golden Flashes come in at 1-4.
The two teams haven’t started their seasons anywhere close to where they wanted to, and both squads have played five total Power-4 opponents in the last four weeks. Kent State is coming off a beatdown 44-0 at the hands of No. 6 Oklahoma, while the Minutemen suffered a MAC-opening loss 21-3 to Western Michigan.
The similarities of the two programs continue with their unfortunate spots in most FBS rankings. For the most part, the Golden Flashes and the Minutemen sit at the bottom of the whole subdivision.
For UMass, this presents a major opportunity to crawl out of a dark hole, and build some much-needed momentum.
“First MAC road game coming up for us against a great opponent that’s kind of in a similar situation as us,” UMass head coach Joe Harasymiak said at his Monday press conference. “They’re playing hard, they’re doing all the right things and just probably not getting the results that they want yet. It’s going to be a tight one.”
Kent State sits dead last in the MAC for average points allowed per game, and total sacks allowed. Its offense sits at 26.7 percent when it comes to third-down conversions, while allowing the most conversions in the conference on first down.
Despite the Golden Flashes’ record, Harasymiak assured the media there wouldn’t be an ounce of complacency from his players on Saturday.
“I’ve said this before and I said it against Bryant, we’re in no position to treat any team differently,” Harasymiak said. “Every opponent is a nameless and faceless opponent that we’ve got to go out and we’ve got to conquer and see where it puts us in the game.”
Even though Kent State’s overall numbers have been poor, UMass’ haven’t been much better. The Minutemen sit at the bottom of the conference in points per game with 10.4, as well as being the worst team in the conference on opponent third-down conversion.
One thing the Golden Flashes have on their side is their offensive efficiency. They sit at No. 5 with an 130.3 efficiency, which is much to do with redshirt sophomore quarterback Dru DeShields.
DeShields was on fire in Kent State’s close loss to the highly-touted Buffalo Bulls. He threw for 279 yards and two touchdowns, going 22-for-32 on attempts. His running ability was also on display. He took off 14 times for 37 yards and a touchdown.
According to the broadcast team at Kent State’s last game against Oklahoma, interim head coach Mark Carney opted to rest and save DeShields for conference play to avoid injury in a game they weren’t going to win.
“I know their quarterback didn’t play last week, but he scares me from the ability to run when things break down, and he was outrunning the Buffalo defense a lot,” Harasymiak said. “I think it’s going to be a challenge for us. I think the explosive play has been hurting them like it was hurting us in the beginning of the year.”
Last Saturday, the Minutemen faced a different running quarterback in Western Michigan’s Broc Lowry. For the first three quarters, UMass contained him. However, a late fourth-quarter surge got Lowry up to 92 yards and a touchdown on 15 attempts. The Minutemen defense will take that experience into Saturday’s matchup against DeShields.
“(DeShields) doesn’t have a lot of designed quarterback runs, at least in what we’ve seen so far, and certainly with him not playing last week for whatever reason that was,” Harasymiak said. “I think last week was a little bit more of a designed quarterback run, but (Kent State’s) ability to extend the play in that Buffalo game was huge for them.”
UMass’ head coach was even more impressed with Carney’s ability to duel with Buffalo.
“(Kent State) is a very good football team,” Harasymiak said. “That game, Buffalo probably felt like they lost it from a lot of the things that happened… I got a chance to sit down with Coach Carney at Media Day. I know he is about the right stuff, so I’m looking forward to the opportunity of coaching against him.”
On the other side, the Minutemen are still yet to announce their starting quarterback, which could potentially make it four games in a row with a different starting quarterback.
“You guys will find out on Saturday (who the starter will be), but I have full confidence in my heart that I’m going to make the right decision,” Harasymiak said.
Kickoff between UMass and Kent State is at 2:30 p.m., and can be streamed on ESPN+. Stay tuned for more information and updates on the Minuteman Command website and all of our social media platforms. the Fall of 2026.
Your one-stop-shop for all your sports marketing needs… Owned and Operated by UMASS Grads.
We specialize in providing top-quality marketing & printing services for coaches, athletic directors, and sports marketing professionals.
Get Fan Ready!
With Hairston under constant pressure you would think of some design QB rollouts.???Also stop going for it on 4th already