The Maine Black Bears outscored the Massachusetts Minutemen 35-0 over the final three quarters on Saturday afternoon, earning their first win over an FBS opponent since 2018 with a 35-10 non-conference football victory at McGuirk Alumni Stadium in Amherst, Massachusetts.
Joe Fagnano was back at quarterback for Maine for the first time since an injury in a Week 2 loss at James Madison. UMass (1-9) struck early scoring on the games first possession marching 75 yards in six plays with Brady Olson connecting with Josiah Johnson for an eight yard touchdown to make it 7-0. Cameron Carson nailed a 42 yard field goal later in the opening period for a 10-0 Minutemen advantage. After a very slow start, the Black Bears got the offense going in the second quarter when Freddie Brock scored on an 18 yard run and Fagnano tossed the eventual game winner with an eight yard pass to Devin Young for a 14-10 halftime lead. The guests took the second half kickoff and got a 46 yard return from Young, culminating in a 14 yard TD pass from Fagnano to Shawn Bowman. Elijah Barnwell would add scoring runs of two yards and 23 yards to put it away in the fourth quarter. It is the fourth win in school history for Maine over an FBS, the first since a 31-28 victory over Western Kentucky in 2018.
Fagnano was 16-27 passing for 209 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions. Barnwell rushed 16 times for 84 yards and two touchdowns, while Brock had 13 attempts for 74 yards and one score. Young was the leading receiver with eight catches for 78 yards and a touchdown, while Montigo Moss had a pair of catches for 62 yards. Ray Miller had 16 total tackles (six solo) and one for loss to lead the defense. Olson was 14-30 passing in the loss for UMass for 113 yards and one touchdown. Ellis Merriweather was the offensive star of the game rushing for 177 yards on 27 carries. Maine (5-5) finishes up the regular season when they battle for the Brice Cowell Musket next Saturday at 1 p.m. against UNH in Durham.
