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No. 10 UMass Hosts William & Mary On Band Day This Saturday
Oct. 2, 2006
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#10 UMASS (3-1, 1-0) vs. WILLIAM & MARY (1-3, 0-2) No. 10 UMass Hosts W&M On Band Day This Saturday • Saturday's game will feature live streaming video for FREE on UMassAthletics.com. The game will also be broadcast live on the UMass Sports Network with Bob Behler in his eight year as "Voice of the Minutemen." Former kicker Matt Goldstein will handle the color commentary. The pregame show begins at 12:30 p.m. on WRNX (100.9 FM), the flagship of the network. The game can also be heard live online at UMassAthletics.com. • UMass has been home for three weeks after back-to-back weeks on the road. The Minutemen lost a narrow 21-20 decision at Navy on Sept. 9 but followed up with a strong 31-21 win at Villanova on Sept. 16. Two weeks ago, the Minutemen rolled over Stony Brook, 48-7 as they piled up 456 yards of total offense. Senior tailback Steve Baylark scored three touchdowns for the fourth time in his career and gained 96 rushing yards. Quarterback Liam Coen completed 6-of-8 passes for 177 yards including an 89-bomb to Rasheed Rancher, the second-longest pass play in UMass history. Junior kicker Chris Koepplin booted 41 and 48-yard field goals. The latter was the third-longest in UMass history and longest since 1978. The overall team effort saw 15 players on defense have at least three tackles. Four tailback gained more than 40 yards.
McGuirk Magic • Since 1992, UMass has had a losing record at home only once, while posting a home mark of 57-23 (.713) during that span. In 2003, UMass went 7-0 at home to set a new record for most home victories in the 40-year history of McGuirk Stadium. The 2003 squad also became the first UMass team to go undefeated at home since 1993, when it posted a 5-0 mark at McGuirk Stadium. • UMass has won seven of its last eight games at home after dropping the 2005 home regular-season finale to New Hampshire on Oct. 29. They have won 15 of the last 18 dating to 2003.
UMass-William & Mary Series History • The road team has won each of the last two games. UMass won 24-14 at Zable Stadium on Oct. 11, 2003. The Tribe captured a 31-10 decision on Sept. 1, 2001 at McGuirk Stadium. • The 2000 game on Aug. 31, at McGuirk was the first-ever night football game at UMass as lights were imported for the game, a 36-16 UMass victory. UMass has since hosted three more night games. • William & Mary won the first two contests in 1990 and 1993, in addition to claiming victories in 1996 and 2001. UMass posted back-to-back victories in the series in 1994 and 1995, then once again won two straight in 1999 and 2000. • The schools first played in the opening round of the 1990 NCAA Division I-AA Playoffs, with the Tribe winning 38-0 in Williamsburg.
UMass-William & Mary Connections • William & Mary has just one Bay State native in junior LB T.J. O'Neill from Duxbury, Mass. He went to Tabor Academy. • Both teams have a member of their staff named Bob Shoop. UMass' defensive backs coach has the name as does William & Mary assistant strength & conditioning coach.
UMass Team Capsule • The Minutemen are ranked No. 10 this week in the Sports Network Poll and No. 9 in the Don Hansen Poll. UMass had been ranked No. 9 in the Sports Network poll each week since the preseason poll, but lost a spot during its bye week. The Minutemen have been steady (four weeks in a row) at No. 9 in Don Hansen's poll after starting the year at No. 13. UMass is No. 10 in the most recent CSN Coaches Poll run by I-AA.org. UMass was No. 10 in preseason poll of the Sports Network. In the annual magazines, UMass was ranked the following: No. 6 by Athlon, No. 12 by I-AA.org Consolidated, No. 14 by AnyGivenSaturday.com, No. 16 by Lindy's and No. 23 by Street & Smith's. • UMass is ranked in the top 10 in the nation in three statistics: kickoff returns (second, 30.4), net punting (fifth, 38.6) and passing efficiency (seventh, 163.0). The kickoff return number is the most stunning turnaround as the Minutemen ranked 95th in the nation out of 116 teams in 2005 (17.3). UMass leads the A-10 in kickoff returns and net punting. They are also second in the league in pass efficiency. • In the individual rankings, Liam Coen is sixth in the nation and second in the A-10 in passing efficiency (168.93). Sophomore Courtney Robinson is eighth overall and second in the league in kickoff returns (29.0). Steve Baylark is third in the A-10 in rushing at 92.0 per game. He is also third in the league in scoring with 9.0 points per game. • The Minutemen finished the 2005 season with a 7-4 overall record, 6-2 in the Atlantic 10 good for second in the North Division. UMass was ranked as high as No. 5 last season after beating handing Delaware its worst home loss in two decades on Nov. 5. But UMass lost its final two games to fall to No. 19 in the final poll and miss out on the NCAA playoffs for the second year in a row. UMass defeated two ranked teams last season, beating No. 25 Rhode Island on Sept. 24 and No. 4 James Madison on Oct. 15. • UMass was picked second to defending champ New Hampshire in the Atlantic 10 North Division. • Don Brown leads UMass into his third season at the helm of the Minutemen. The defensive coordinator of the 1998 National Championship team is 15-10 at UMass and 68-36 overall as a head coach, now in his 10th season as a head man. He coached his 100th career game in the 2005 finale at Hofstra. • This is the 124th season of UMass football. UMass now has an all-time record of 513-500-51 in 1,054 all-time games. UMass lost its 500th all-time game against Navy. The Minutemen won the 1998 NCAA Division I-AA Championship with a 55-43 win over Georgia Southern. The Minutemen have won 20 conference championships, most recently taking the Atlantic 10 title in 2003. UMass has played in six NCAA Tournaments, with the last coming in 2003.
UMass' Stevie Wonder • At his current pace of 92.0 yards per game, Baylark would pick up 1,012 games in 11 regular-season games. • In UMass history, he ranks fourth in career rushing with 3,740 yards and third in career carries with 843 (he broke a tie with All-American Garry Pearson at Villanova). He is also fourth in career rushing touchdowns with 31 after two rushing scoring vs. Stony Brook (9/23) and single TD scores against Colgate (9/2) and at Villanova (9/16). Next on yards and touchdowns lists is also Pearson, who played from 1979-82. On the yards list Pearson has 3,859 (Baylark needs 119 yards) and on the touchdowns list Pearson has 35, four more than Baylark. • On UMass' all-time touchdown and scoring lists, Baylark ranks fifth in total TDs with 35, scoring six this season (three vs. Stony Brook, two in the opener vs. Colgate and one more at Villanova). With his three-TD game vs. the Seawolves, he passed Adrian Zullo (1998-2002), who had 33 scores. Baylark also moved to fifth on the all-time scoring list (210) . • Baylark had his fourth-career three-TD game vs. Stony Brook. UMass is 4-0 in those games. • Baylark has 17 career 100-yard games with the first this year coming at Villanova (9/16). Last year he had five century-running games, with the last coming at Delaware (11/5/05). UMass is 14-3 in those games and 11-10 when he doesn't gain 100. He also has nine two-touchdown games after he opened the 2006 season with one against Colgate and had three against Stony Brook. • Baylark has touchdowns in nine of UMass' last 10 games. Prior to the Navy game, when he was blanked, Baylark had scored at least one rushing touchdown in seven games in a row dating back to last season when he had at least one in the final six games of the year. In the last 10 games, he has 11 rushing scores along with four receiving TDs for 15 total. • On the active career rushing list in Division I-AA, Baylark is fourth behind Harvard's Clifton Dawson (4,073), Hampton's Alonzo Coleman (4,010), and Western Kentucky's Lerron Moore (3,883). • Baylark is fifth all-time at UMass in all-purpose yards as well with 4,328. Next on the list is Zullo at 4,371. Baylark's number is second among all active players to Harvard's Dawson (5,086). • Baylark is first among all active players in career plays with 909. • Off the field, Baylark is an Art major and is an avid artist both with charcoal, pastels as well as with PhotoShop. This summer he did an internship with the UMass Video Services and helped produce and design a commemorate video for the Minuteman lacrosse team which made the 2006 NCAA championship.
Koegel, The Model Of Consistency • ESPN's NFL Draft Expert Mel Kiper Jr., has Koegel ranked among his top 10 punting prospects heading into the 2007 NFL Draft. That list includes all of Division I-A. • Koegel was named the Atlantic 10's Special Teams Player of the Week on Sunday, Sept. 3. The All-American punted four balls for a 46.8 average in UMass' 28-7 win over Colgate. In the win over Colgate, he had a long of 55 yards which was his one punt inside the 20-yard line -- that punt landed at the Colgate 3-yard line. • Over his last 23 games, he has at least one punt of 50 or more yards in 16 of those games. • Led by Koegel and great kick coverage, UMass led the nation in net punting average last season with a mark of 38.35. Again this season, the Minutemen have showed their great prowess on punt coverage with a 38.6 net punting mark to rank fifth in the nation. • The all-time A-10 record holder for punt yardage in the game (set vs. Boston College in 2004), Koegel has 55 career punts inside the 20-yard line. He opened the season with a punt that landed at the Colgate 3-yard line for his first such kick this season. He has three this year. • UMass has had a long line of great punters who have been four-performers. Koegel is just the third punter for the Minutemen since 1995, starting with Andrew Maclay from 1995-98, then David Sanger from 1998-2002. • Among active punters in Division I-AA, Koegel has the fifth-highest career average behind David Simonhoff of Southeast Missouri (44.0),Mike Dragosavich of North Dakota State (43.9), Rhian Madrid of Northern Arizona (42.8), Neal Bainbridge of South Dakota State (41.8) and Tyson Johnson of Montana (41.3). • Off the field, Koegel has a tremendous personality and is an aspiring model. He has an electric wardrobe featuring a white and teal suit with tails which he wore to the team's end-of-year banquet this past spring.
What A Defense! • They started off on the right foot against Colgate and Navy, giving up just seven points to the Raiders and 21 to the Mids. That 21-point defensive showing vs. Navy was equal to the fewest Navy had scored in more than a year. Last season Notre Dame held them to 21 points in October, but the last time they had less than 21 points was when they had 20 against Maryland on Sept. 3, 2005. UMass led the Atlantic 10 and finished in the top five in the nation in several defensive stats last season. • This year, UMass is again in the top part of the nation in the season in several defensive stats. The Minutemen are 15th in scoring defense (14.0), 23rd in pass efficiency defense (104.3), 15th in passing defense (129.5) yards per game) and 17th in total defense (253.3). • Junior linebacker Jason Hatchell has picked up where he left off this season with a team-best 30 tackles. He has led UMass in tackles in 11 of the last 15 games. He also has seven-career 10-tackle games after he posted 10 stops at Villanova (9/16). Hatchell led UMass in tackles with 107 (9.7 per game) in his first season as a starter. Behind Hatchell is junior Charles Walker who has 27 tackles in his return to action. • Senior captain James Ihedigbo is a leader on defense. Last season he broke out with a career-year. He was among the national leaders in tackles for a loss (12.5) and sacks (7.5), playing from a safety position. With great blitzing Ihedigbo was constantly in opponents' backfield. He continued to dominate in the 2006 with 20 tackles, two sacks, two TFLs, three forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. His forced fumbles mark is first in the A-10. • The defensive line has received great play from seniors John Hatchell and Jason Leonard along with junior David Burris. Burris and Hatchell top the team in TFLs with 3.5 and 3.0, respectively. Each has a sack as well. • Last year, UMass finished third in the nation in total defense giving up just 261.18 yards per game. The Minutemen gave up just 145.09 passing yards per game in 2005, fifth-best in the country. They were 17th in the country in rushing defense, giving up 116.09 per game. Prior to week 10 of 2005, the Minutemen were in the top 10 all season. • In 2005, through the first six games, UMass had allowed just 36 points with only 15 coming at the hands of the defense as opponents returned both a fumble (Colgate) and two interceptions (Colgate and JMU) for touchdowns. Looking at just the defense, UMass allowed 2.5 points per game for the first six weeks. Through the first six games of the season, UMass allowed just ONE offensive touchdown, a one-yard rush by Richmond QB Stacy Tutt in the first game of the season in the third quarter. Prior to the Maine game, the Minutemen did allowed an offensive touchdown for a span of 21 quarters dating from Sept. 1 through Oct. 22. UMass did not allow an offensive touchdown for 322:31. • UMass held two opponents to fewer than 100 yards of offense last season. The Minutemen set the school record for fewest yards allowed in a game holding Albany to just 31. Against Northeastern, UMass held the Huskies to just 72 yards matching the best performance by the Minutemen against an A-10 team in 1982, when they held New Hampshire to just 67 yards -- the former school record for fewest yards allowed.
Ihedigbo Claims A-10, UMass Honors • Ihedigbo led the UMass defensive effort that held the Midshipmen to just 87 yards of total offense in the second half and 289 yards of offense for the game. • He shared the A-10 honor with senior cornerback Corey Graham of New Hampshire who had eight tackles, forced a fumble and had an interception in the Wildcats' win over Northwestern. Coen's Big Week Of Honors • UMass has had a weekly A-10 honoree each week of the first three weeks of the season, punter Christian Koegel, who was the Special Teams Player of the Week in week one, senior safety James Ihedigbo, who was the Co-Defensive Player of the Week in week two and Coen in week three.
Coen Managing Just Fine • This year, Coen is 55-of-84 for 831 yards with seven touchdowns in three games. He has a 168.93 pass efficiency rating, which ranks sixth in the nation in second in the Atlantic 10. • In just his second season, Coen is ranked among some all-time leaders in UMass history. He is first in completion percentage (64.2) while he is seventh in both passing yards (3,006) and completions (230). • In first-half action vs. Stony Brook (9/23), Coen was 6-of-8 for 177 yards. The highlight came as he hit Rasheed Rancher from 89 yards out, the second-longest play in UMass history. Coen also hooked up with Rancher for the third-longest play, 84 yards at Delaware (11/5/05). • Coen had perhaps his finest game at Villanova (9/16) in the third week of this season. He completed 21-of-28 for 350 yards and two touchdowns. His great day earned him numerous honors: the New England Football Writers Golden Helmet, Atlantic 10 Offensive Player of the Week and UMass Athlete of the Week all for the week ending September 18. • In the opener vs. Colgate, he was 11-of-19 for 117 yards and two touchdowns. He started the game off hot, throwing for 7-of-8 in the first quarter. • Last season, he completed 63.9 of his passes to rank second among all freshmen in the nation. The three-time A-10 Rookie of the Week in 2005 threw for 2,175 yards -- sixth-most in UMass history. His pass efficiency rating of 139.60 ranked third in the league and 19th nationally. • He was named the Atlantic 10's Rookie of the Week each week from Oct. 22-Nov. 5, 2005. • Coen captured the Golden Helmet as the top player in all of New England College football on Nov. 8, 2005 after his performance against Delaware. He threw for 318 yards on 21-of-26 passing and one touchdown in leading UMass to a 35-7 win at Delaware, the Blue Hens worst loss at home since 1986. Coen completed an 84-yard touchdown strike to Rasheed Rancher, which is the third-longest passing play in UMass history. • Coen had one of the most prolific passing days in UMass history in the loss to No. 4 New Hampshire, as he threw for 401 yards on 31-of-50 passing with two touchdowns. The yardage mark is tied for the second-best day (with Jeff Krohn in 2003 vs. Northeastern) in UMass history as Guice threw for 403, also against UNH in 2001. Coen's 31 completion are third all-time for a game and his attempts are now fifth-most in a game.
Many Making Catches • This season, Moore leads the team in catches with 10 while London is right behind with nine receptions. Rancher leads in yardage at 189 in four games. London ranks second in yardage (131) and Moore is third (129). • Rancher's total is aided by his 89-yard reception from Liam Coen against Stony Brook (9/23), the second-longest play in UMass history. • Junior college transfer Michael Omar has blended in nicely and has five catches after a big game at Villanova. • UMass' passing game took off in the game at Villanova (9/16) as seven different players made catches including four pass-plays of more than 30 yards to four different receivers. • London became the seventh UMass player with 100 career catches this season. He has 107 to date to stand fifth all-time at UMass. Next on the list is Bob Simeone (108 from 1981-84). He had his fourth career 100-yard game at Villanova (9/16) with 104 yards on five catches. In the opener vs. Colgate (9/2), he had three catches for 26 yards. • He is also eighth on the all-time yards list with 1,372. Next up on that list is 2006 UMass Hall of Fame inductee Steve Schubert who had 1,435 from 1970-72. • London took over as the top receiver once Moore went down last season and racked up 60 catches and earned All-A-10 Third Team honors. He led the team in catches as well as yards (774) and TD receptions (3). London tied Moore's single-game reception record of 13 in the 2005 finale vs. Hofstra. He had his second 100-yard game in that game with a career-high 122 yards. • Moore returned to action this season after fracturing his left ankle vs. Northeastern on Oct. 8, 2005. He missed the remainder of the season. He was ranked among the top five in the nation in catches and catches per game in the first few weeks. • Despite playing in just five games a season ago, he was still second on UMass with 27 catches and third in 337 receiving yards. • Moore set a UMass record when he caught 13 passes in the loss at Colgate in 2005. Moore broke the record of 11 set by Tim Berra (Yogi's son) in 1973 and later tied by Jimmy Moore in 1998 and twice by Adrian Zullo in 1999. • Rancher was the biggest surprise of last season. After barely playing in his first season in 2004, he had 27 catches for 425 yards becoming a vital receiver for Liam Coen. • Rancher had a career-high 126 receiving yards including an 84-yard scoring pass from Liam Coen at Delaware. That play was the third-longest in UMass history. • Rancher had a career-high six catches for his first 100-yard game, with 108 against New Hampshire. He broke out for his first real action in the game at Colgate, when he made four catches for 39 yards.
The Right Tight End • Listorti had his first-career touchdown with a 1-yard grab at Villanova (9/16). In that game, he had a career-high four catcches for 49 yards as well.
5 Strong, The Line Of Protection • This season has seen UMass continue a trend of the last two seasons, as the Minuteman line has allowed just one sack quarterback Liam Coen in four games (1.0 per game). Last season, UMass has eighth in the nation in fewest sacks allowed with just 11 in 11 games (1.0). Dating back to the start of the 2004 season, UMass has allowed just 25 sacks in 26 games (0.96 per game). • UMass has allowed just one sack every 32 pass attempt over the last three seasons (24 in 764 pass attempts). In 2004, UMass led the nation in fewest sacks per pass attempt with just one every 38 attempts in giving up just nine sacks all year. • Miller and Thompson are joined by junior Matt Austin, who is starting at left tackle this year after playing left guard last year. Sophomore Sean Calicchio was stable at right tackle since being inserted into the line-up last season, but was injured in the season-opener vs. Colgate. He has been replaced by a group including junior college transfer Nick Diana, junior Chris Hopkins and sophomore Biff Gottehrer. The three of them have split time at left guard and right tackle so far this year. • The line has been solid in leading the way for Steve Baylark who picked up more than 100 yards in nine of the last 18 games including three games in a row from Oct. 22-Nov. 5, 2005.
Return To Big Kick Returns • UMass has two returns of more than 55 yards this season in three games after the season long for all of 2005 was just 28 yards. • Robinson had a 57-yard return at Villanova (9/16) while Matt Lawrence had a 65-yard run back against Colgate in week one. That 65-yarder was the longest by any UMass player since Jerome Bledsoe had a 66-yarder on Sept. 23, 1989.
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