The Massachusetts football team has accomplished quite a bit this season – it has won on the road, defeated a pair of top five teams and performed amiably against an undefeated team from the ACC. But a conference title is still within grasp, and while four games remain in the regular season, this weekend’s contest stands out in bright, bold letters.
Delaware.
The state that may be most well known for having been made fun of by Mike Myers and Dana Carvey in Wayne’s World also plays host to one of the perennial powerhouses in Division I-AA football – a powerhouse that holds a 21-3 all-time record against the Maroon and White.
“The only times they beat us when our guys were around was when they had a really good team,” Head Coach Mark Whipple said. “And they’re a really good team now, but I thought they were good enough talent-wise to win the National Championship [in 2000]. Last year we didn’t play well at all.”
The Blue Hens (5-4, 3-3 Atlantic 10) have had moderate success this season, and according to Whipple “should be 7-2,” with field goal woes leading to conference losses to Richmond and Rhode Island. A familiar face is missing from Newark this season, as longtime coach Tubby Raymond departed during the offseason. Replacing him is UDel alum K.C. Keeler, who started at linebacker for the Hens from 1978-80.
“They still have the same uniforms, same helmets,” Whipple said. “Delaware is Delaware. They have good players, a good coach.”
Also gone is the deception of the wing-T offense, which caused many a stress headache to opposing defensive coordinators. This year’s offense uses a spread formation, which opens up the field for Georgia Tech transfer Andy Hall – an athletic quarterback who has thrown for 1,544 yards and run for nearly half that much so far this season.
“They’re not running the wing-T, they’re running more of a run and shoot, but they have good players, a good quarterback,” Whipple said.
“[Hall] can do everything – he can run it, he can throw it. He breaks everybody down running-wise. He’s really talented. He just makes plays in the running game and he throws the ball really well. He’s their marquee player.”
Keith Burnell has led the backfield charge, running for 763 yards and eight touchdowns, and has caught 14 balls out of the backfield this season. Hall’s primary targets have been Justin Long and Brian Ingram this season. Long has caught 41 balls for four touchdowns, and Ingram, who will likely return this weekend after missing three games due to injury, has 27 catches of his own. The biggest offensive problem has certainly been Scott Collins, who has connected on just eight of 15 field goals and has missed his last five.
On defense, the Blue Hens are led by senior linebacker and Buck Buchanan Award candidate Dan Mulhern, who garnered his second A-10 Defensive Player of the Week Award following Saturday’s win over New Hampshire. Whipple considers Mulhern “one of the best linebackers in the league.”
The Minutemen are coming off a slim 14-7 victory over James Madison, who ended both halves of last week’s game within a yard of the end zone but failed to come away with any points. Contributing to that was the fact that 11 players were late for breakfast on Friday morning, prompting Whipple to hold them out of the first quarter of the contest.
“To me, if we’re going to have a great year and win a championship, we have to have discipline in that way,” he said. “Some guys wouldn’t have done anything. I think it’s a harsh penalty probably, but I want to make sure that they know.
“With everything you just have to understand that this is not going to be easy for us to win this week against Delaware,” Whipple continued. “We have to do everything right just to have a chance to win, and not take things for granted. It didn’t take a loss, hopefully, to get the guys to understand how important this game is.”
The offense particularly lacked cohesion against the Dukes, with only 310 yards in the contest and a pair of turnovers plaguing it. Jeff Krohn managed just 128 yards on 13-of-22 passes, an obvious side effect of only having two days of practice after recovering from a concussion suffered against Villanova.
The defense had its shakiest contest of the last four games, but it was bend-but-don’t-break for the D, which held JMU to just one-of-five in red zone conversions.
“We hoped they would be [this good],” Whipple said. “I think this week is a bigger test for them because [Delaware] has high quality athletes everywhere. Overall, we hoped that they would turn the ball over, we’ve been better in the red zone and I think we’ve been a little more physical.”
Coming home will be a welcome thing for the Minutemen, who have won 15 of 19 against A-10 foes at home under Whipple’s direction.
“I just think it’s home and home is always good,” Whipple said. “The crowd is good. The Friday atmosphere is good. Having the band there is a good thing. I don’t think it’s one thing you put your thumb on. It’s been a good atmosphere and a good place to play – I think one of the better ones in I-AA.”
But the opponent, as well as the stadium, will be a key factor in psyching up the Minutemen for Saturday’s contest.
“I think we’re glad that we’re home,” the fifth-year coach said. “The way we played last week we’ve got something to prove and I think our guys will be ready to play and I think that has to do with it being Delaware.”
