| Friday, Oct. 31 |
BOO! Happy Halloween from UMass Athletics. Be sure to get into the spirit of the holiday by reading Dan Meyers' Movie Blog where he looks Halloween Horror Flicks. Meyers and the hockey Minutemen finally make their Mullins Center debut on Friday night against Providence at 7 p.m. Wear your best costume and win prizes. The weekend also features three UMass teams in the state of Rhode Island on Saturday: football team at Rhode Island at Noon, the field hockey team playing at Providence at 1 p.m. and the ice hockey team finishing up the night also at PC against the Friars.
Liam Coen is the subject of a major feature in the Providence Journal. Mike Szostak writes about the Ocean State product and his final game in his home state as UMass plays at Rhode Island on Saturday.
In he Daily Hampshire Gazette, Matt Vautour has his preview of the football team's game at Rhode Island on Saturday.
The Palm Beach Post has a Miami Dolphins notebook with a nice segment on Brandon London After his first catch with the Phins last week, London said: "It shows how hard work pays off. Looking back at the road it took for me even to get that one catch, you can sit there and sigh relief a little bit. Now it's time to get No. 2."
UMass basketball guard Anthony Gurley has been named the No. 3 Impact Transfer by Rivals.com Here's what Andrew Skwara wrote: This athletic wing was the only Wake Forest player to transfer following the death of former Wake coach Skip Prosser in July 2007. Gurley chose to move close to his home in Boston. The former four-star recruit had scholarship offers from a number of ACC schools coming out of high school. He'll add some scoring punch - he averaged 6.4 ppg in 14.5 mpg in his lone year at Wake - and new Minutemen coach Derek Kellogg already has said he expects him to be one of the top defenders in the nation.
Matt Vautour also has this men's basketball notebook led by a piece on impressive freshman David Gibbs.
UMass will face two teams in the Preseason USA Today/ESPN Coaches Poll: Memphis, which hosts the Minutemen at midnight Nov. 17 is No. 12, while defending champion Kansas, which faces UMass in Kansas City on Dec. 13, is No. 23. Xavier and Vanderbilt are also among others receiving votes.
The Sporting News has posted its preseason men's basketball conference capsules with several tidbits on UMass.
Take a trip down memory lane as Real Clear Sports lists John Chaney's infamous confrontation with John Calipari on Feb. 13, 1994 as its No. 2 all-time sports coaches' tirade.
USCHO.com has its Hockey East notebook where the Minutemen are feature as being "Under The Radar." The story quotes Toot Cahoon: "I'm thinking that we've got a pretty good team in a very good league. We just take it day by day and stay in the present."
Over the weekend check out the Springfield Republican as the paper is expected to run a pair of major features on UMass. The men's basketball offense featuring the dribble-drive motion will be the subject of a huge story by Ron Chimelis. In men's soccer news, Jeff Thomas' extensive and intense feature on goalkeeper Chris Piekos is expected to run as well. Piekos spend four years in Iraq with the Marine Special Forces (Reconnaissance).
UMassAthletics.com Feature To Check Out: The UMass men's basketball profiles for 2008-09 have been updated for the new season by visiting the roster page. Each player as a feature called "A Few Minutes With" with some personal and fun information.
Don't miss this: Its a big weekend for UMass athletics. Friday night the hockey team finally makes its home debut on the new Mullins Center ice. Also be sure to listen to the football game on Saturday at Rhode Island. In fact three UMass teams will be in the Ocean State on Saturday with the football team at noon, the field hockey team playing at Providence at 1 p.m. and the ice hockey team finishing up the night also at PC against the Friars. The women's soccer team wraps up its home schedule with games against Saint Louis and Charlotte at Rudd Field on Friday and Sunday, respectively. Finally look for the announcement of the 100 Seasons of UMass Basketball All-Time Teams for th 1990s on Friday and 2000s on Saturday.
| Thursday, Oct. 30 |
Thursday's Just Take A Minute brings you stories on men's basketball, football and hockey. Be sure to stop by the Hangar Pub & Grill for the Bud Light UMass Football Show at 7 p.m. tonight. The expected players guests are senior cornerback Courtney Robinson and junior receiver Joe Sanford. You can also send a question for Coach Don Brown as part of "Ask The Coach." JTAM has a few time changes on the UMass men's basketball schedule for a trio of road games. the game at Toledo on Dec. 3 is now a 7 p.m. start. The game at The Palestra against Saint Joseph's on Feb. 22 will be a 2 p.m. start and the March 1 game at La Salle will be a 5 p.m. tip-off in a game that will be televised nationally on CBS College Sports.
Here are few time changes on the UMass men's basketball schedule for a trio of road games. the game at Toledo on Dec. 3 is now a 7 p.m. start. The game at The Palestra against Saint Joseph's on Feb. 22 will be a 2 p.m. start and the March 1 game at La Salle will be a 5 p.m. tip-off in a game that will be televised nationally on CBS College Sports.
The Republican's Jeff Thomas has a feature story on basketball's Anthony Gurley and how the Wake Forest transfer is looking forward to finally playing games again after sitting out last year.
In the Berkshire Eagle, Howard Herman has a story on UMass being picked to finish sixth in the A-10 in the preseason poll.
On opening night in the NBA, former UMass star Marcus Camby was inactive for the Clippers, his new team after a trade from the Nuggets. Camby, out because of a bruised right heel. He spoke about his frustration in missing his first opening night in 13 years.
From earlier this week, Boston University has announced their are retiring the jersey No. 10 of the late Jack Leaman, who starred for BU in the 1950s.
In Memphis, the Commercial Appeal has a story looking at the Tigers' future basketball scheduling which includes playing UMass in Boston next season.
With the Jets signing James Ihedigbo to the active roster, check out these stories on the former Minuteman All-American: Daily Hampshire Gazette, Jets Confidential (with a photo of James at UMass), JetsBlog.com, The New York Daily News, Newark Star-Ledger.
The Collegian has a football preview and also compares UMass and Rhode Island on the gridiron as the teams prepare for Saturday's 86th all-time meeting.
In the Boston Herald, John Connolly has a season preview on the hockey team looking at five questions for the Minutemen.
Joe Meloni has his new Hockey East power rankings on Masslive.com and he places UMass at No. 6 in the HEA. Providence, which has two games with UMass this weekend is listed ninth.
In the Collegian, Meloni also a has a hockey column looking at ties in the sport. The paper also looks at UMass' success on face-offs this season.
The Daily Collegian has a preview of men's soccer action this weekend in Philadelphia.
UMassAthletics.com Feature To Check Out: Looking to join a UMass Sports Club or Intramural team, check out their webpage.
Don't miss this: The 1980s All-Time Team as part of the 100 Seasons Of UMass Basketball will be announced. Listen to the Bud Light UMass Football Show tonight at 7 p.m. on 100.9 FM WRNX or here on UMassAthletics.com. You can also send a question for Coach Don Brown as part of "Ask The Coach."
| Wednesday, Oct. 29 |
It feels like winter is here, doesn't it? ... Well that means hockey season should be in full swing and tonight is your chance to meet the members of the Minuteman hockey squad at a Meet & Greet at Union Billiards in the student union. Fans wishing to hear the latest on the hockey team from the head man Toot Cahoon should come to the weekly Sports Luncheon at 12 noon in the Mullins Center's Massachusetts Room on the third floor. Don Brown will also speak as he does weekly. The Minutemen football received some bad news as All-American cornerback Sean Smalls is expected to miss the remainder of the season with an injury.
The Republican's Jeff Thomas has a story on Sean Smalls and his injury. Matt Vautour from the Daily Hampshire Gazette chimes in with his story including some quotes from Smalls' replacements Corey Davis and Reshaude Goodwin. The Collegian also files this report.
The Albany Times-Union has a football notebook focusing on it local graduates in college with a segment on Jeremy Horne after his big day last Saturday.
As Atlantic 10 Basketball Media Day was held, the Springfield Republican has this story by Fran Sypek. In New York, Dick "Hoops" Weiss has a blog on the Atlantic 10 Media Day. The Daily Collegian has this story on UMass being picked sixth in the A-10. The Providence Journal also has a piece on the preseason selections.
ABC40 has a video feature on the men's basketball team.
In Andy Katz' blog on ESPN.com, he has some love for the Minutemen and Derek Kellogg: "If there is one team in the top seven that could surprise and win the A-10 it is likely UMass."
The Republican also has a brief story on the All-Time Teams of the Classic Era, the 1950s and 1960s as part of the 100 Seasons of UMass Basketball.
New England Hockey Journal Andrew Merritt has a column on Hockey East where he looks at the Minutemen hockey team. Dan Meyers was named the NEHJ Player of the Week.
The Collegian has a story on hockey and how the Minutemen are looking to be more consistent.
The Western Mass Sports Journal has a feature on former Minuteman All-American Valdamar Brower and new job as the head coach at Springfield Central High School.
The Hawk newspaper from Saint Joseph's has a story on UMass' field hockey win over the Hawks last weekend. The story looks at the chance of the rematch in the A-10 finals.
The Daily Collegian has a women's soccer notebook from the Atlantic 10.
UMassAthletics.com Feature To Check Out:Check out the Desktop Communicator to get the latest UMass news right on your desktop with this widget.
Don't miss this: The biggest event on Wednesday is the Meet & Greet with the UMass hockey team at Union Billiards from 6-8 p.m. Also, on Wednesday the UMass Sports Luncheon takes place in the Massachusetts Room on the third floor of the Mullins Center. Football coach Don Brown and hockey coach Toot Cahoon will be the guest speakers. The 1970s All-Time Team will be announced in the afternoon.
| Tuesday, Oct. 28 |
Tuesday brings us cold nasty weather in New England, but basketball season is just around the corner and Atlantic 10 Media Day takes place via video conference. You can watch both men's coach Derek Kellogg and women's coach Marnie Dacko at 11:45 a.m. and 12:05 p.m., respectively today. The preseason A-10 polls and all-conference teams will be announced as well. Additionally, Just Take A Minute has stories on UMass football, hockey and other sports.
The FCS polls have been released and the UMass Minutemen are No. 15 in both polls. They have finally evened out in the polls after having very different rankings according to the media and the coaches for the last few weeks. In the Sports Network media poll five CAA teams are ranked and in the FCS Coaches Poll the same five schools are ranked.
The Daily Collegian has a feature on Chris Roswess relishing his new starting role.
Joe Meloni of the Daily Collegian has a Hockey East notebook.
UNH's student newspaper The New Hampshire has an interesting read on the use of shootouts to break ties such as the UNH-UMass one last Friday.
In his first game on the other side of the New York hockey rivalry, Thomas Pock and the Islanders lost to the Rangers, 4-2. Pock played 19 minutes on defense in 23 shifts.
On the fanhouse blog about college basketball, the Atlantic 10 is profiled including a segment about Derek Kellogg.
UMass Associate Women's Lacrosse Coach Acacia Walker was named to the U.S Women's Lacrosse National Training Team. Walker is one of three former Maryland Terrapins on the squad.
Nils Fischer led the way for the men's cross country team once again this past weekend and is profiled in the .
UMassAthletics.com Feature To Check Out: The first of the All-Time Teams of the 100 Seasons Of UMass Basketball, the Classic Era, including the 1950s was released on Monday. The 1960s team will be announced on Tuesday.
Don't miss this: On Tuesday, watch the Atlantic 10 Basketball Media Day live on UMassAthletics.com. Men's coach Derek Kellogg will be on at 11:45 a.m. and women's coach will be on just after 12 Noon.
| Monday, Oct. 27 |
Happy Monday! UMass Athletics had another impressive weekend highlighted by football, field hockey, and men's soccer, who combined for a perfect 5-0 record! Not to be forgotten, the Mass Attack hockey team played No. 4 New Hampshire to a 1-1 deadlock Friday night. Also of note, both men's and women's swimming and diving teams defeated Army in a home meet on Saturday. It was a weekend to remember, so be sure to check out Monday's Just Take A Minute for a jam-packed edition with a ton of articles on everything from football to hockey to swimming, and even some baseball!
A number of media outlets had stories about UMass' convincing 42-7 win over Bryant on Saturday: Boston Globe , Springfield Republican , Providence Journal, Worcester Telegram & Gazette , and
ESPN.com, which ran the Associated Press Story.
Michael McAuliffe of the Springfield Republican wrote a great article on the more than 3,500 band members at McGuirk Alumni Stadium who traveled to Amherst for the annual
Band Day .
The unbelievable story of a halftime field goal contest winner turned varsity kicker keeps getting media attention, as it is mentioned in the Lawrence Journal-World & News and Chicago Sun-Times . Matt Williams kicked a 30-yard field goal to win a contest at halftime of UMass' game in Lubbock on Sept. 20.
In news from the NFL, former UMass wideout Brandon London caught his first-career pass with it going for six yards in the Dolphins' 25-16 win over the Buffalo Bills on Sunday.
UNH's
student newspaper had a recap of Friday's 1-1 tie against the Mass Attack as did the Nashua Telegraph, Foster's Daily Democrat (N.H.), USCHO.com, Union Leader, and Springfield Republican.
Hockey goaltender Dan Meyers' strong start to the season (along with his movie blog on UMassAthletics.com!) is mentioned in a piece from The Berkshire Eagle's titled
The region between the pipes.
In good news from the American Hockey League, former UMass All-American goaltender Jon Quick picked up his first win of the season with the Manchester Monarchs on Friday, stopping 31 of 33 shots in a 3-2 win over Wilkes-Barre Scranton.
The Daily Colonial had a recap of UMass' 2-0 shutout over George Washington on Sunday.
Swimming World Magazine ran the recap of UMass swimming's win over Army on Saturday. The win was also mentioned in the Springfield Republican's daily wrapup.
From Friday's paper, the Republican had a story about former UMass baseball player Rob Holiday who is now an assistant director of scouting for the National League Champion Philadelphia Phillies.
Star field hockey senior Katelyn Orlando was featured in her hometown newspaper called Wicked Local Rockport.
UMassAthletics.com Feature To Check Out: The field hockey senior day photo gallery is now available! Check it out by clicking here.
Don't miss this: Check back to UMassAthletics.com on Monday for an announcement of the 100 Seasons of Basketball All-Time teams.
