When the Massachusetts football team takes the field at Warren P. McGuirk Alumni Stadium on Saturday to face Hofstra, it will be exactly 11 months to the day since it happened.

With 13 seconds remaining in a game which UMass was trailing 31-28 in a driving snowstorm, true freshman quarterback Tim Day, playing in place of an injured Jeff Krohn, had no timeouts and was faced with a second-and-five from the five yard line, and he did the unthinkable.

He got sacked.

It is a play that will forever live in infamy here in the Pioneer Valley. The Maroon and White, who needed to win the game and then defeat conference doormat URI on the following Saturday to win a share of the A-10 and qualify for the I-AA playoffs, were eliminated that very instant, and have had 11 long, painful months to think about it.

So when Hofstra visits Amherst as part of homecoming weekend, in what will be a league contest for the Pride but not for UMass, there’s no question what will be on the minds of coach Mark Whipple’s squad.

Revenge.

“We remember what Hofstra did to us last year,” Whipple said. “They kept us from going where we wanted to go, so that’s a game that gets circled on the schedule.”

“They’re a team that we’ve struggled with over the last few years. They’ve just been the better team, and just played better football against us.”

Indeed the Pride (1-5 1-3 A-10) has been quite successful against UMass (5-1 4-0 A-10) over the years, posting a 5-1 record in the two squads six all-time meetings. In five of the six games, it was the visiting team that was victorious, with Hoftra’s 2001 victory in Hempstead being the lone exception. Hofstra has also gone undefeated in four games at McGuirk Stadium, and have not lost to UMass since the Maroon and White’s National Championship season of 1998.

“They’re never easy to play, because you know they’ll show up,” Whipple said. “They’re well coached and always play well against us.”

For the Minutemen, their 5-1 start is their best since 1992 – a season which saw them go 7-1 before finishing at 7-3. A big reason for UMass’ success throughout the first half of their schedule has been the play of tailback Steve Baylark and fullback Rich Demers, both in their first years in Amherst.

Demers, the A-10 Offensive Player of the Week and Dinn Brothers/UMass co-Athlete of the Week, carried the ball 26 times for 171 yards and two touchdowns in a win over William ‘ Mary last Saturday, and has chipped in with 263 yards on 38 carries for the season, along with two touchdowns.

“Demers is a player who’s really shown us a lot in practice,” Whipple said. “It just seems like when he touches the ball, good things happen.

Baylark has been equally as impressive in rushing for 100 yards in four of UMass’ six games this season, including gaining 146 and 125 yards in games with James Madison and New Hampshire, respectively. Both efforts earned the Apopka, Fla. Native A-10 Offensive Player of the Week honors.

“[Baylark’s] a tough north-south runner who has done a real nice job for us up until this point,” Whipple. “We’ve asked a lot from him and he’s come through for us to help us win ballgames.”

The Pride is led offensively by a very talented pair of receivers in 6-foot-4 Marques Colston and Ohio State transfer Ricky Bryant. The former victimized the Minutemen for the game-winning touchdown catch in last season’s aforementioned heartbreaker, and has come on strong in 2003 after being plagued by injuries for much of last season with 17 catches for 265 yards and a pair of scores. Bryant has also had a strong season, posting 20 catches for 385 yards and a touchdown while senior Isaac Irby has caught a team-high 24 balls for 293 yards and a touchdown.

Another weapon on offense for Hofstra will be tailback Trevor Dimmie. The senior has carried the ball 76 times for 332 yards and five touchdowns, despite taking handoffs from three different quarterbacks including junior Alex English, who will be under center for the Pride on Saturday.

Since taking over for an injured Bobby Seck, the Marshall-transfer has been good on 53 of his 100 passes for 652 yards while throwing three touchdowns and three interceptions.

On the other side of the ball, Hofstra is led by senior linebacker and Buck Buchanan Award candidate Renauld Williams, who has recorded 54 tackles, including five for a loss, and two sacks on the season.

Chipping in behind Williams will be sophomore cornerback Prentice James, who has intercepted three passes to go along with 33 tackles on the year.

Kickoff is slated for 12:30 pm at McGuirk Alumni Stadium.