Joe Harasymiak set the terms on Friday. UMass quarterback Pop Watson had to play great on the road in November and Toledo defensive end Andrew Zock could be a game-wrecker.
Watson lasted a drive and a half before leaving with an injury and Zock wrecked the game as Toledo beat UMass 24-0 on Wednesday night at the Glass Bowl, a shutout built exactly the way Harasymiak feared.
The Rockets outgained the Minutemen 436-188, not only did UMass not score, it never reached the red zone. The loss drops UMass to 5-5 overall and 2-4 in the MAC with two games left.
Watson completed a 9-yard pass to Max Dowling on the game’s first snap before Zock sacked him for a loss of 9 two plays later. Watson stayed in, started the second drive and hit Jabari Lewis for a fortunate 13-yard completion, but left one play later and did not return.
Logan Inagawa took over with 7:25 left in the first quarter and finished 10-27 for 99 yards.
The supporting cast was short too. UMass played without cornerback Isaiah Reed, receiver Joseph Griffin Jr. and cornerback Chris Stanley, all out before cornerback TJ Magee and receiver T.Y. Harding were hurt as well.
But with the way Zock and the Rockets offense performed, it’s not clear any of that would have mattered anyway.
Zock had a pair of sacks and hurried Inagawa into a throw that resulted in a pick-six that broke the game open. Toledo’s defense finished with 3 sacks and 10 tackles for loss, and Zock was in the middle of most of it.
UMass actually stopped Toledo first. The Rockets drove to the UMass 28 on their opening possession and turned it over on downs when quarterback John Alan Richter’s throw was dropped in the end zone.
But the UMass defense didn’t hold up for long. Toledo’s backup running back Connor Walendzak broke two tackles up the middle before racing to a 69-yard touchdown with 4:20 left in the first quarter, Toledo led the rest of the night.
The Rockets had a second touchdown taken away minutes later when Bryson Hammer’s 64-yard punt return was nullified by an illegal block, but the margin kept growing anyway.
Reice Griffith kicked a 27-yard field goal early in the second quarter before the game really got away from the Minutemen.
Inagawa then drove UMass to the Toledo 34 before being pressured by Zock and being forced into an errant throw intended for Kezion Dia-Johnson, but picked off by Nicholas Thompson, who returned it 62 yards for a touchdown and a 17-0 lead.
Magee answered by returning the kickoff 98 yards for an apparent touchdown, and that one came back too, on a holding call.
Late in the half, Richter found Adjatay Dabbs for 40 yards before closing out the drive with a 17-yard touchdown pass to Walendzak with 1:51 left in the half. UMass’s final drive of the half reached the Toledo 26, but died on downs with 22 seconds left.
The Minutemen defense held Toledo scoreless in the second half, but the damage had already been done and UMass never seriously threatened.
Inagawa led UMass on the ground with 40 yards on 10 carries while Curtis Kimmons IV added 33 yards on 11 carries as the Minutemen managed just 67 rushing yards on 28 attempts. Reece Adkins led the receivers with five catches for 33 yards, Drew Alsup had two catches for a team-high 35 yards, and Jabari Lewis caught two passes for 28 yards.
Richter finished 13-22 for 197 yards and a touchdown. Walendzak carried 14 times for 117 yards and caught 3 passes for 41, scoring both ways. Dabbs caught 7 passes for 144 yards, and CJ Miller added 83 rushing yards on 15 carries.
The math for UMass is now simple and unforgiving. At 5-5, the Minutemen have to beat Akron at McGuirk next Wednesday and win at Bowling Green on November 28 to reach seven wins and official bowl eligibility. Anything less leaves them at 6-6 at best, hoping for an invitation. Whether Watson is available for any of it is suddenly the only question that matters.
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