The Massachusetts football team locked in its second win of the season against Wagner College, 35-7. Quarterback Taisun Phommachanh not only took the offense into his own hands to score but created rushing opportunities, advancing the ground game on windy Saturday afternoon.
Giving UMass (2-6) a 21-point cushion heading into halftime, Phommachanh used his legs to add two more touchdowns in the second quarter.
Closing the first half, the redshirt senior drove his way through the final 10 yards in Wagner’s (4-5, 2-1 Northeast Conference) offensive zone. Using his feet, Phommachanh rushed up the middle, spinning his way through for a four-yard gain. After a low snap on second down, Phommachanh scooped up the ball and headed right to survey his options looking for an open receiver in the end zone.
With no luck and a scramble of two yards, he took third-and-four into his own hands. Seeing a clear pathway, Phommachanh rushed left and landed in the end zone. After Jacob Lurie secured the extra point, the Minutemen headed into the locker room up 21-0.
“We moved the ball in the run area. I thought [Phommachanh] … got his legs going a little bit [on Saturday] too,” head coach Don Brown said. “Obviously he functioned really well.”
Opening up the second quarter, UMass started at Wagner’s 29-yard line. After a 26-yard completion up the middle to tight end Dominick Mazotti, the Minutemen danced in the redzone for two plays, getting pushed back and forth, leaving them on the three-yard line on third down. Weighing his options, the Seahawks left an opening for Phommachanh to squeeze by up the middle. Rushing into the end zone, UMass doubled its lead with 12:54 left of the half. He ended the first half with seven rushing attempts.
“[Phommachanh], he’s just a great dual threat quarterback,” wide receiver T.Y. Harding said. “You see what he can do with his arm, he throws it a lot … [and] him being able to run on his legs has opened our offense up a lot.”
With winds ranging from roughly 11 mph to 17.2 mph, the running game became a crucial component of UMass’ game plan.
On the third scoring drive and Phommachanh’s second touchdown of the afternoon, he recovered UMass on second-and-20. Keeping the ball, he ran up the middle, spinning around to pick up six yards. With 14 more to go, Phommachanh saw a path to his left and charged 17 yards forward, meeting two Wagner defensemen, Christian Davis and Jorel Liverpool. Getting caught up, they flung Phommachanh and the quarterback secured a first down on his own.
He ended the afternoon with 30 yards rushing alongside his two touchdowns.
“They were meaningful, though,” Brown said of his quarterback’s rushing performance. “It’s all good, good solid win.”
After an opening play interception of the game and eventually eight incomplete passes, Phommachanh’s focus set on the running backs. In the first 30 minutes of play, the Minutemen took an upper hand and gained some life.
As the offense only managed to possess the ball three times in the second half, the attention turned back to the ground after the passing game fell short again. With Phommachanh’s own rushing successes, the running backs had more to give on the field and closed the afternoon with a Brandon Campell rushing touchdown.
“All of a sudden, we’ve got multiple heads making a contribution offensively all in the run game,” Brown said. “That’s pretty good stuff.”
UMass takes the road for Saturday, Nov. 2’s match against Mississippi State. Kickoff in Starkville, MS is set for 4:15 p.m. and can be watched on SEC Network.
Sydney Ciano can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter/X @SydneyCiano.
