On Saturday’s Senior Day celebration for the Massachusetts football team, the program recognized 24 players who played their senior or graduate seasons with the Minutemen (2-10) in 2024. Those players made the most of the last games of their collegiate careers, producing on both sides of the ball in the team’s 47-42 loss to Connecticut.
“There’s not many guys that stay four and five years,” interim head coach Shane Montgomery said. “So those guys that did that, I feel bad for them, because they really worked hard to try to get this program to the next level, you know, and it just didn’t work out, wins and loss wise.”
The defensive side sparked things early in the second quarter, with Gerrell Johnson coming through clean off a blitz on the Huskies’ (8-4) first play of their second drive of the quarter. His presence made things difficult on quarterback Joe Fagnano, who floated an errant pass near the right sideline.
Arsheen Jiles was on that side of the field at his corner spot, and after being physical at the line with UConn wide receiver Jasaiah Gaithings, turned his eyes to the backfield and noticed the ball coming straight toward him. Keeping his feet in bounds, Jiles wrapped his hands around the pass for his first interception with UMass.
Two plays later, tight end Dominick Mazotti came across the backfield on a play-action fake and caught a short pass that went for 13 yards, down to the two-yard line. After a rush up the middle, the Minutemen went right back to Mazotti on the exact same play call, where the graduate student found himself wide open in the end zone for a touchdown.
Mazotti tied his career high in receptions with seven on Saturday, along with season highs in receiving yards (50) and touchdowns (one). He wasn’t the only player having a career day in their final collegiate contest, as Tyler Rudolph tallied a career-high 12 total tackles, and Macklin Ayers finished with his FBS career-high in tackles with 10 of his own.
“We talked [Friday] night, about being their last game to go out and not only play for themselves, but play for some people that sacrificed for them to be here [Saturday],” Montgomery said. “Some of the guys really stepped up [Saturday], and I’m proud of the way they competed.”
Nearing the end of the first quarter, UMass had an eight-play drive that seemed to be stalling out at the opponents 29-yard line. The Minutemen decided to go for it on a fourth and three, with quarterback AJ Hairston pump-faking and then throwing to Jakobie Keeney-James over the middle. The graduate student had nothing but open space in front of him at the 18-yard line, scampering in for his sixth touchdown of the season.
Senior defenders stepped up big for UMass on third down all game long on Saturday. Lake Ellis kicked things off with a well-defended play out wide on the Huskies’ second drive of the game. On third and 10, Fagnano targeted the graduate student, who was physical at the catch point and prevented the catch.
UConn ran a stretch out to the left on a third and three from the Minutemen’s 10-yard line in the second quarter. Ayers shed a block and came up for a tackle that prevented any forward progress from running back Durell Robinson, forcing a field goal.
The next drive for the Huskies came near the end of the first half, with Isaiah Rutherford getting targeted on a deep in-route on a third and four from the UMass 35-yard line. The redshirt senior made a play on the pass at the receiver’s hands, swatting the ball away to force another field goal.
In the second half, the Minutemen started with three defensive stops in a row. Jalen Stewart created one of the stops, bluffing a blitz before chasing down Robinson out of the backfield for no gain on a third and six from the UMass 41-yard line that forced a punt.
It wasn’t just the backend and linebackers that produced on Saturday, as Louce Julien came up with a big play of his own on the ensuing drive. The graduate defensive end came through the middle on a stunt, using his patience to track down Fagnano on a scramble attempt for no gain on third down.
For a team going through more turnover than most other programs do in one season, the veterans for the Minutemen have been huge in keeping games competitive. With 54 players running out of eligibility, UMass will likely rely on the foundation that was set by its group of experienced members.
Changing coaches and conferences in 2025 will be another big change for the players who stay with the Minutemen in the upcoming season. Hopefully, they’ve learned from the teammates who came before them.
“I feel for the guys playing their last game,” Montgomery said. “Maybe a few of them will get a chance [to continue playing], and for most of these guys, it’ll be the last game they ever played. So that’s a tough day, but I appreciate, you know, what they did and the effort that they gave us, not only the last two weeks as I took over, but for the entire year.”
Mike Maynard can be reached at [email protected] and followed on Twitter/X @mikecmaynard.
