Behind a strong defensive effort that produced nine points, a grinding run game from Branden Oliver and three field goals, Buffalo defeated UMass 32-3 on Saturday afternoon at UB Stadium. The Minutemen will next turn their focus to Western Michigan in this Saturday's homecoming game at Gillette Stadium.
Adam Kurjian of the Boston Herald has a feature on UMass running back Stacey Bedell who is off to a great start this year after missing the bulk of last season due to an injury.
Dan Malone gives his analysis of which Minutemen performed best at Kansas State over the weekend. Joe Colton, Stacey Bedell and Tajae Sharpe each are singled out for their performances against the Wildcats.
Julian Benbow of the Boston Globe has a preview of Saturday's game vs. Maine at Gillette Stadium (2 PM, ESPN3) with a focus on running back Stacey Bedell and his return from last season's season-ending injury against Indiana.
It had been practically two years since Bedell had seen real action. A broken collarbone put an end to his freshman season in 2012 after just two games and three carries, forcing him to redshirt.
But Bedell was bursting at the seams to get back on the field, looking for ways to leapfrog returning starter Jordan Broadnax on the depth chart.
"He definitely showed that he was ready," Molnar said. "He was competing like crazy to be the starting running back. He wasn't going to be happy to be the first man off the bench."
Nick Canelas of the Daily Collegian has a story on Stacey Bedell's performance at Wisconsin and how his season-ending injury last year ended up being a valuable learning opportunity.
Bedell overcame the challenge of having to sit and watch his team play by turning the situation into a valuable learning tool. In that time, not only was he in the weight room physically preparing himself to play again, but he was also learning what it takes to be a college football player.
"When you make the transition from high school to college there's a lot of things. Really every aspect is different," UMass running backs coach Roderick Plummer said. "With him being someone that's really smart, he picks up on things quickly. But really there's steps to take every day at this level, especially when you're a freshman at this level for the first time."
Dan Malone of the Springfield Republican has a story on Jordan Broadnax being listed as out and Rob Blanchflower being a game-time decision for the game against Maine on Saturday at Gillette Stadium (2 PM).
He also writes that Stacey Bedell and Derek Beck, who replaced Broadnax and Blanchflower respectively at Wisconsin, performed well in place of the two veterans.
Mark Chiarelli of the Daily Hampshire Gazette has a story highlighting the positive aspects from Saturday's loss at Wisconsin as noted by Coach Charley Molnar today following practice.
One of the notable positives to come from the loss was the emergence of some of the younger players of the roster. Among the standouts were sophomore center Matt Sparks and redshirt freshman running back Stacey Bedell, who made his first career start.
"Matt Sparks was up against, in my opinion, maybe the best nose guard in the country and he fought through the whole game," Molnar said. "It wasn't a bloodbath; he didn't take over the game. We were prepared to help our center out any way possible and never had to use those strategies."
Bedell amassed 70 yards on 19 carries in his first collegiate game.
Paul Bowker of the Springfield Republican has a story on how running back Stacey Bedell was a bright spot for the UMass offense on Saturday at Wisconsin.
For Bedell, Saturday marked his return after being sidelined for the all of last year after being injured in the second game against Indiana.
Matt Vautour of the Daily Hampshire Gazette takes a look at the increased worked load and opportunity Stacey Bedell had at the end of last week's practices with Jordan Broadnax being held out due to injury. Bedell himself is coming back after an injury cut short his 2012 freshman campaign.
Dan Malone of the Springfield Republican has a story on Stacey Bedell who has gotten more reps in training camp after Jordan Broadnax was sidelined with an injury earlier this week. Bedell missed the bulk of 2012 with an injury and having him back in the offensive line-up will be key in 2013.
