University of Massachusets Athletics
Football Embarks Upon 2018 Season Against Duquesne On Saturday
August 20, 2018 | Football
Minutemen host Dukes at McGuirk Alumni Stadium with 5:30 p.m. kickoff
| UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS FOOTBALL WEEKLY RELEASE | |
| Game One | Massachusetts (0-0 overall) vs. Duquesne (0-0) |
| Date | Time | Sat., Aug. 25 | 5:30 p.m. |
| Location | McGuirk Alumni Stadium; Amherst, Mass. |
| Series History | First meeting |
| Game Notes | Massachusetts | Duquesne |
| Live Statistics | Sidearm Sports |
| Listen (Online) Listen (Radio) |
560 AM WHYN | TuneIn Radio App | UMass All-Access (Josh Maurer and Peter Brock) 560 AM WHYN (Western Mass./Springfield), 95.9 FM WATD (South Shore) & 830 AM WCRN (Worcester) |
| Tickets | 866-UMASS-TIX | UMass Ticket Central | Mullins Center Box Office |
| Watch | NESNplus | Eleven Sports Network | UMass All-Access (Subscription Required) |
| Team Information | Massachusetts | Duquesne |
| @UMassFootball | @UMassAthletics | @CoachWhipUMass | |
| UMass Football | UMass Athletics | |
| Fan Event | Youth Day |
Isabella Catches Fire (Also, Footballs)
Now-senior wide receiver Andy Isabella averaged 104.2 receiving yards and 6.3 receptions per game over the final six contests of 2017 and became the team's leading target during the second half of the season in the process.
In the span of four wins and two losses, the 5-foot-10, 195-pound speedster owned 38 catches, 625 receiving yards and seven touchdowns, including a career best three versus Maine. A "big gain" threat, Isabella totaled three receptions of 60 or more yards during that six-game span.
Current Location: An Endzone Near You
Two Minutemen rank in the top-10 in program history for touchdowns, including seniors Andy Isabella (WR) and Marquis Young (RB).
Isabella enters the game at against Duquesne with 17 career touchdown receptions, the third-most all-time at UMass.
Young enters the weekend with 20 career rushing scores, tied with Frank Alessio (1993-96), Jerome Bledsoe (1988-91) and Paul Metallo (1971-72) in 10th place.
Young's 22 total touchdowns, including two receiving scores, rank him tied for 10th all-time in the category alongside all-time greats Frank Alessio (1993-96), Greg Landy (1965-67) and Kevin Smellie (1985-88).
Ford Does Record Book Numbers
Quarterback Andrew Ford enters his senior season among the career record-holders in eight categories: pass completion percentage (2nd; 62.0), passer efficiency rating (2nd; 144.4), passing yards per game (2nd; 254.0), passing touchdowns (3rd; 48), pass completions (4th; 445), average yards per pass (4th; 7.9), passing yards (4thl 5,589) and passing attempts (5th; 718).
Ford ranks in the top-five in all categories despite not standing among the top 10 in interceptions thrown as his 18 tossed over his two completed seasons is still five away from being tied with four Minutemen for ninth.
Defense Gets It (Three And) Done
The Massachusetts football defense ranked as one of the most successful FBS units in forcing opposing offenses into three-and-out drives, with an average of 4.81 per game during the 2017 season.
The 4.81 three-and-out drives per game makes the Massachusetts defense the 15th-most productive in the category across the nation and one of only 29 teams with 4.0 or more on average in each contest. UMass is also fourth among "Group of 5" level programs, behind only Northern Illinois (3rd; 6.00), San Diego State (11th; 4.77) and Appalachian State (11th; 4.77).
It breaks down to 34.4 percent of the team's total defensive drives against this season (55-of-160).
Setting The Barr High
In his first season as a Minuteman, starting middle linebacker Bryton Barr led the team with 105 tackles, including 9.0 TFLs and 5.0 sacks. It was 26 more than the next player (Steve Casali, 79).
Barr posted four games of 10 or more tackles, including against Hawai'i (13) at Coastal Carolina (11), at Tennessee (12) and versus Appalachian State (15).
Barr's 105 total tackles and 8.8 tackles per game ranked among the nation's leaders. He capped the year tied for 40th in tackles per game across FBS.
Prior to his arrival at UMass, Barr was a five-year member of the Towson football program, where he totaled 142 tackles, including 13.0 TFLs from 2012-16. He missed the majority of the 2013 season and all of 2014 and 2015 due to a series of consecutive injuries.
