There is a certain measure of revenge on the line this weekend as the University of Maine football team takes on Massachusetts at Alfond Stadium in Orono.
Last season, Maine was cruising along in the national top 10 when Massachusetts pulled the rug out from underneath the Black Bears at homecoming in Amherst. This year, it’s Massachusetts flirting with a national top 10 ranking (currently at No. 12) and Maine hosting a friends and family day game. Maine is ranked No. 15 or No. 16, depending on which poll is posted.
Confusing for Maine will be the fact that Massachusetts played two very different teams to begin the season, both of which were non-conference, and both of which were very different in style from the Black Bears themselves.
In week one, Massachusetts faced off against Central Connecticut State University, and crushed the Blue Devils 51-7. In week two, the Minutemen traveled to Division 1-A powerhouse Kansas State and were demolished 38-7. While both tapes are in the Black Bears’ hands, neither does much good in showcasing how the Minutemen will fare against another top Division 1-AA school.
And Maine hasn’t been the easiest team to figure out this season, either. After a tight loss to No. 10 Montana in week one, Maine dominated Hofstra in week two, winning 44-21. Last week, in the team’s third game, the Black Bears stumbled to a penalty-filled win over Florida International.
In the three games, the Bears have fumbled eight times and lost sixe of those fumbles to its opponent. Redshirt freshman Ron Whitcomb has thrown well in his first year at the helm, launching seven touchdowns on 41-of-77 passing. He has, however, also thrown four interceptions which opponents have returned for 54 yards.
Marcus Williams continues to rack up yards for Maine, having gained 159 yards last week against FIU. The yardage moved Williams over 2,000 for his career and into ninth place all time at Maine. If he gains more than 20 yards on Saturday, Williams will vault ahead of Ben Sirmans into eighth. Williams has 426 yards in three games this season, good for a 142-yard average. He leads the A-10 in rushing and is third in the nation in Division 1-AA.
Kickoff on Saturday is at 6 p.m.
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