(Steve Baylark flexes after UMass defeated Montana during the 2006 FCS playoffs/Mass Live)
“[T]he University of Massachusetts is a very fine football team. They have some very, very fine players.“
- Kansas State head coach Bill Snyder (9/5/09)
College football has a way of making once-great programs humble and once-proud fan bases sparse. The cyclical nature of the thing adds rust to the glory days, much like aluminium benches left uncovered during a particularly harsh New England winter.
The football team at the University of Massachusetts has hit bottom, and its descent has alienated fans and brought out the “I told you so” crowd. Its rise to FBS football has been more of a head-first slide through rocks and glass, toward a home base that is lost somewhere in the churned up dust. The knee-jerk jerks are questioning coach Charley Molnar, the fuddy-duddies want their baby back in Western Mass where it can play against the neighborhood have-nots again, and filling in the white spaces are the Internet comedians, who use 120 characters to show they have none.
A cacophony of negativity is surrounding the UMass football program, which makes me wonder: What happened to this fan base?
It seems that students and alumni have completely forgotten what UMass football was and could be again. They forget that during a span of 10 years, the Minutemen were legitimately the best I-AA team in New England and quite possibly the Northeast as a whole. All-Americans, NFL Draft picks, National Championship runs and raucous night games at McGuirk have been replaced with rock-kicking and “woe-is-me”ing. It makes you question whether the “UMass attitude” rubbed off on anyone: That get-it-together, us-against-them ideology that starts to sink in the very first time you take a walk down North Pleasant Street.
It’s as if people forget what this team and fan base were up against when it laid out all the cards and said, “All in.”
****
The UMass football program’s performance is the product of a number of circumstances.
Former head coach Kevin Morris recruited mid-level CAA athletes, and his predictably unpredictable playcalling was saved by players cast off from Northeastern and Hofstra programs that threw up the white flag and closed up shop. Morris’ forgettable reign began after Don Brown – the hero of the 2000s – left for Maryland when it became clear that UMass was I-AA or worse for the long haul.
Riding high off of years of winning, UMass fans wondered whether the “nationwide search” that brought in Morris (the football team’s somewhat-maligned offensive coordinator) was a sign of the times. Were the higher ups ready to let the program sink to Rhode Island levels? Was UMass still going to recruit the best athletes not going to Boston College, Syracuse, Rutgers and UConn? Was Morris the undertaker, slowly tailgating the Northeastern processional?
Then, in late 2010, about a month after the Minutemen lost a close one to Michigan, there were rumblings about an invitation from the Mid-American Conference. It was nothing more than a whisper, but that was enough for a fan base that was terrified of a future without football.
The MAC was a second chance.
On April 20, 2011, the whispers ended, and UMass pulled the trigger. It waved goodbye to century-long rivalries, moved to a temporary home and promised its loyal alumni that the decision was for the good of team and the university.
“We seek greatness in all we do at UMass,” said then-Chancellor Robert C. Holub. “We promise national excellence and prominence to the citizens of the Commonwealth, and we deliver on that promise. Moving to the FBS is consistent with our upward trajectory, as Minuteman football becomes part of our overall move toward national prominence.”
The sigh of joyous relief was followed by the harsh reality that UMass’ three-year fall from grace was going to manifest itself against bigger and better opponents. Morris’ recruiting had left a team that was barely ready for CAA football, let alone the rigors of a schedule filled with Michigans, UConns and MAC teams far superior to the Old Dominions of the world.
Everything had to get done fast, but as UMass fans soon learned, FBS football is not kind to those to transition.
****
“Who the hell is Charley Molnar?”
UMass fans had to use and re-use Google to figure out who this seemingly random coach was.
- “Offensive coordinator at Notre Dame.”
- “Brian Kelly’s right-hand man.”
- “Quarterback guru.”
- “Twenty-eight years as an assistant.”
“Great, a career assistant. What about Neal Brown? What about Mike Leach? What about Don Brown?” UMass fans wondered as they questioned the hire. Who was this guy that John McCutcheon was handing the keys to? Who was this mystery coach that was going to lead the UMass program through the biggest transition in school history?
When Molnar took the podium at Gillette Stadium on December 8, 2011, it was the first time many UMass fans heard him speak. Out of the gates – and ever since – he has said all the right things.
“This is an opportunity I worked for my whole career, and there is no limit to my excitement on this day,” said Molnar. “When John McCutcheon called to offer me the position, I knew this dream was becoming a reality, and I said ‘When can I start?’ I have a vision for this program into the future, and we are going to do nothing but great things at the University of Massachusetts.”
Part of the future was being brutally honest. Molnar insinuated that Morris didn’t have the team work hard enough. When the first recruiting class was announced, he made it abundantly clear that some guys that had verbally committed didn’t get to sign because they weren’t FBS quality. Some players couldn’t deal with Molnar and left the team, and others simply weren’t good enough for the FBS version of UMass.
In the wake of Molnar’s honest assessment was a skeleton of a team and a strong freshman class. His next step was teaching a squad of FCS players, who were recruited for a pro-style offense, an advanced no-huddle spread attack.
The learning curve was Mount Greylock steep, and this became abundantly clear during the Spring Game.
Awkward runs out of the shotgun formation were the theme of the day. Fans looked on with “uh-oh” glances, as the new-look Minutemen struggled against out-of-shape alumni. There was no hiding the elephant in the room, and there was no use trying.
This team was not ready.
****
37-0, and it wasn’t even that close.
Molnar walked into the press room of Rentschler Field, and as the door swung open the cheers of 35,270 UConn fans were still thick in the air. Molnar was angry, frustrated and bit his lip so hard during his self-censorship that a stream of blood ran lazily across his teeth. It was clear that he wanted things to progress faster, but with freshmen and sophomores all over the field, that was a tall order.
Losses followed, and bits and pieces of progress flip-flopped to complete ineptitude. Aside from two games, UMass never posed a challenge.
It became the whipping boy of FBS football. ESPN had it on its Bottom 10 list. Columnists from Western Mass papers accused the team of forgetting its roots in the Pioneer Valley. Internet message boards that had once lit up with the idea of “the upgrade” slowly migrated back to basketball and hockey talk.
Social network users hummed along with their insults.
“Molnar should be fired.”
“The team is no good.”
“UMass is a joke school, with a joke football team.”
While the punches rolled in, Molnar and staff attacked the recruiting circuit and received early verbals from more athletes than at any other time in recent memory. Top-tier Northeast recruits liked the story they heard and wanted to be part of whatever the UMass program had to offer. The sales pitches were working.
Despite the losses, Molnar sold an idea that something better was coming, and soon.
****
The UMass football team has struggled mightily this season, and many uneducated outsiders have chalked it up to UMass being the wrong school making the wrong move at the wrong time. This idea has caught on in the wrong places, and slowly the students and alumni are starting to believe it.
Alumni have yet to flock to Gillette, and each passing MBTA bus serves as a reminder that the Great Advertising Blitz failed. The UMass football ads have permeated Boston, but UMass alumni have collectively shrugged it off. Maybe everything is too new, or maybe results are the ultimate salesman.
Maybe UMass alumni are simply not loyal to their alma mater.
The greatest failure of this first season is not on the field. That was to be expected. The apathy of the UMass fan is what this season will be remembered by. At a time when the school needed its graduates the most, the UMass fan turned its back and said, “I’ll wait until you’re good. I’ll wait until I have more time.”
“I’ll wait.”
As they wait, they point to the field and make excuses. Why support a team that gets crushed every weekend? Why root for a team that seems to regress every week?
College football has a way of answering those questions, and it tends to treat programs with rich histories kindly. Teams with support force their way through the dark days, which makes the good times even better.
That’s something UMass fans need to remember as they inexplicably forget how they got here.
The alumni response to this season is disappointing, but not wholly surprising based on what I remember from my days in Amherst. I distinctly remember the sorry excuse for “fans” the student body presented. Yes, few 19 year olds in a non-college football atmosphere like New England really get fired up over the likes of Hofstra or AIC, but the “who-cares” attitude bothered me even then.
Fast forward 12 years and my dream — the chance for the Minutemen to play big schools with competitive programs regularly, schools more like UMass, to see UMass play UConn again — was realized. Due to personal circumstances (first child born this September), I’ve been trying to watch from home and I’m dying to see them in Foxboro. While I can’t be there, I still try to figure out why so many alums my age claim to be proud of their time at UMass but refuse to go to the games. Does it need to be broken down in a way that appeals to them? “You can get loaded at our games?” Frustrating to see happen from my living room, but not surprising.
NIU grad here….the wins will come and soon (by your 3rd year). We were pathetic back in the mid 90′s….23 game losing streak…3-30 record in Joe Novak’s first three years.
But neither Joe nor the AD panicked and they laid the groundwork for a great program that today doesn’t rebuild but reloads.
Temple joined the MAC and became competitive in three years. You can too.
Tickets need to be $5 each until they are good. The $5 ticket needs to be hyped up as the main selling point for attendence until they are respectable. I’m a huge fan but I refuse to pay $30 per ticket, and except for the opener I haven’t been able to generate interest in the 15 person plan. This will cost the program money in the short-run (ticket sales are the primary driver of revenue) but benefit them in the longer-run because it will lead to more interest in the program, get the team better faster, and then allow them to charge higher prices later. Tough to imagine the team drawing much more than 5,000 per game for the next decade unless they can somehow become good quickly; in the meantime advertise it as a fun diversion for people.
The only problem I see with that is: If you sell tickets for $5, what is the incentive to buy season tickets?
No incentive to buy season tickets honestly…. the tickets need to be lower. I went for the Indiana game paid $10 and I honestly may go next year but not this year, the football is bad and they are not a good team, and being in Boston its a haul and a way to spend the entire day. In a few years it could take off I think, but as you said results will be ultimate salesmen
Bob,
Great column. I flew up from DC game and unfortunately I am only to make it up to one game a year with my schedule. I do watch every game that is streamed online though and I am having fun watching the young guys play. I see glimmers of hope for the future and I really believe in Molnar. I knew nothing about him beforehand, but the more I listen to him speak, the more I really like the guy. He is passionate and driven. I like that demands a lot out of the players both on and off the field. He is brutally honest, yet he is still positive. Sure he is going to make some mistakes that are going to come with being a first time head coach, but you can tell he is bright and he will learn from his mistakes. Unfortunately, our sad alumni base needs to see wins to want to follow a team. Hopefully they can be around a .500 team next year and that will help the optimism grow. Until then, the best thing the few passionate alumni can do is to grow the tailgating scene. Make tailgating an event that people don’t want to miss out on. At first, they might only come to tailgate and not even enter the gates, but if we start getting a few wins and play competitively, people will start walking in to see what is going on. Then you hope this only increases as the team gets better with more recruiting classes. I am not sold that this area can only be a pro sports town.
One last point that I think is the biggest problem. People in MA are often ashamed to say they went to UMass as opposed to being proud alumni. That attitude kills us. Having great sports teams will help change that attitude I believe. When I talk to people who went to school in the early to mid-ninetys, they are excited to say that they went to the basketball games. They have fond memories of being on campus then. I graduated in 2002 and the sports memories were overall not that fond. I saw the 1998 Championship football team which was exciting to me, but very few others. I like the direction of the football and basketball teams. I love our lacrosse team. I like the new hockey coach and I like how we are being more competitive in our other sports. We have to hope that the kids on campus start to generate great memories about attending UMass and become proud alumni. The identity of our alumni base needs to change badly and the success of our sports teams will be the biggest reason for that change.
Couldn’t have said it better.
UMass alumni have dropped the ball. For once the admin took a chance and made a bold move to FBS, unfortunately the process takes time (3 to 4 years) and our alumni don’t get this. We as alumni collectively have to go out and support these young men who are working so hard, and are up against much deeper FBS teams. Personally I have been to 2 out of 3 home games and have thoroughly enjoyed the experience, especially the Ohio game. I plan on being at the last 2 home games to support the Minutemen and the best marching band in America. Lastly think about how great it would be to pack Gillette in a couple of years against a top level FBS team!
Get a group of friends together and buy 15 tix for $10 each for one of the remaining home games if not both. If they won’t pony up that little cash then you need new friends.
I’ve tried to get a group of friends from UMass to go and tailgate for a game, but no one is interested. My boyfriend who is also UMass alum have been thinking about going to a game in November without a group.
I wish the best for UMass, but the time to jump up to FBS was back in 2007ish when the team was really good and almost beating Michigan. They were mediocre at best last year, and Coach Molnar really didn’t have much talent to work with. Getting demolished in nearly everygame must be frustrating for the team, but I expected them to struggle with the step up. A couple years of better recruiting will help alot.
People forget that in 2007:
- There was a 4 year moratorium period enacted for FCS teams looking to jump up to FBS.
Prior to that:
- There were no offers from FBS conferences.
- There was no deal with Bob Kraft to be able to play home games at Gillette Stadium.
UMass took the opportunity to move up this season. This was their first opportunity since 2007 and also probably their best. It’s a shame Morris left this program with nothing in its first year of FBS. The time for UMass Alumni support is now.
I’ve been to 2 games this season. Your post makes me feel guilty that I haven’t been to more. I’m hoping to get to the Thanksgiving weekend game too. I love going, no matter what the score. Go UMass.
Haha, that was definitely not my intention.
Great assesment. I have been to every home game this season and had a great time at all of them. One of the most prominent things I have seen from this team is that they feed off the fans. Now that they have gotten some experience that little boost from the fans has helped. Its a young team so they get hyped and feed off of the fans a bit more than a veteran team. This was most evident in the Ohio game. The crowd was into it when Umass scored early and got louder as the game went on with the players urging them to yell louder. It seemed to work. We all need to show up and support these kids. They notice, the coaching staff notices. I plan on being to every home game this year and for the forseeable future. You should think about it to. Get out there and tailgate with your buddies or family and just have a good time. Success will come in time. Its YOUR job as Umass fans to hold out hope and to instill hope in others. Do your part in building this program for the future. They have the right guy in there to lead the team. Lets lead the fan base.
I think Andy hit the nail square on the head. There really never has been a large fanbase for football at UMass. The team is basically starting from scratch in terms of building a base, and losing by 30 or more points almost every week will not help. I understand the reasons why they are losing and I think Molnar is going to build a solid program. That said, if your base is a little more than zero, going 0-12 or 1-11 isn’t going to add any casual fans. I went to the home opener and enjoyed myself, but the game itself was brutal. I will go to one or two of the last home games, but I doubt many, if any casual fans will. Honestly, if you are a casual fan, many of the games have been unwatchable. I have a huge fear that the post Friday Thanksgiving game will be a ghost town in terms of the crowd.
Some fans were quite content with being a FCS contender most years. Sometimes it is better to know your place in the scheme of things. I wish them well in FBS, but the odds are long that they will ever be successful. Football in New England is the Patriots, fan wise and dollar wise.
I must say I called the marketing plan a failure in the spring and summer.Starting the campaign a month before the season open was a huge mistake. They should be offering ticket specials for next year before Christmas this year!! As well as fathers day in June for a start. Make people plan for these games in advance, instead of waiting for the day of the game to see if it will be 75 and sunny. I also agree with many who call Umass fans listless and apathetic. Winning will get many involved, unfortunately we can’t wait for that to happen. I am attending the games with family and friends and all are having a great time and do understand it will take some time. Coach Molnar is a great leader, who believe it or not is not perfect for you internet bomb throwers. Ihave convinced two different couples to get season tix next year. This is how it can be done,along with asking people to donate a couple hundred bucks towards tix and allow someone to use the tickets. Finally the football alumni in general have done very little in getting involved with the program, there must have been over 1500 players play here over the last several decades and I could count on one or two hands how many have season tix. Sad. It’s time for Umass to call out different goups like this is say “come on”!! Not “it’s on”.
Bob
First congrats on passing the bar exam n good luck in the future.
I have been a season ticket holder for more than a few year’s. Now I sit with my wife n one of children (usually my youngest daughter) in section 109 right at midfield with people who I believe are season ticket holders as well. Some get into the game others seem to be trying to n others are there but are still learning the game n how to be a fan.
We are having a great time at each game n after the UConn game it was obvious we were going to have a tough year n the schedule did not allow for any cheap easy wins n would be tough all season long.
This week we play another good tough likely bowl team. After this week we have a couple we have a chance to win.
At the same time we have played pretty much every game with some or a lot of what would usually be thought of as jv players. No disrespect intended but it is highly unlikely any D1 team has played as many first year players as we have.
We will get better. We have a lot of good young players in the program. Keep the faith.
Everyone going to games now is a part of the first ten thousand who are the faithful.
Will be hopefully watching this weeks game n next weeks game n then we will be cheering again from sec. 109 row 22 n look forward to seeing everyone soon.
keep pounding the rock.
Larry
Give UMass time. It is a great school and will take time to mature into its athletic football rise.
UMass has a respected academic status, a beautiful New England campus, diversification of its student body and nice basketball and hockey facilities. Once the football stadium is upgraded and recruiting is established, UMass will be be causing havoc in the MAC.
Also, the MAC is not as weak as people suggest. Just ask UConn, Rutgers, Virginia, Illinois, Iowa, Central Florida, Cincinnati, Alabama and others who have fallen victim to MAC teams over the years.
Amen Bob.
I can’t wait to tune in this weekend and listen to OUR team fight. Just hope they know how appreciated they are by many of us- its been a great escape to watch them go toe to toe with D1 talent every week.
It’s an honest and well-written assessment. I think many of us do indeed understand the talent gap and the reason things have gone the way they have. As for alumni failing the program, I only disagree in that the alumni never really supported the program before. There was never a rabid UMass football fandom. They had their little core of 8 or 9k W. Mass fans that would half-fill McGuirk, with some local walkups adding to the numbers on nice weather days. The rebranding to FBS and Gillette wasn’t enough to get the non UMass football fan to file into Gillette to watch blowout losses. There’s a big difference between someone who graduated from UMass and someone who graduated from UMass who actually caries about the football program. Another post mentions the “passionate few” fans who will go to the games and be willing to watch the losses pile up while holding out some hope for the future. (and with all these freshman the future may actually have some hope!) All we can do is wait it out and hope that Molnar and company prove the naysayers wrong, turning this team into something that people won’t have to be convinced to see, but will simply be unable to resist seeing.
whne umass was there at mcguirk i had no problem going up as a fan then going to all mcguirk games as a student.. then they couldnt even beat FCS teams so yeah lets move them up to FBS which was stupid.. take it out of a playoff system and play at gilette where theres no MBTA trains just waste your saturday to watch your team get killed and pay 40 bucks for it.. uh no this team shouldve never went to fbs
I’m not 100% positive if it runs Saturdays, but there is a train from south station to foxboro. I don’t understand how hanging out with your friends and family on a Saturday afternoon with a game mixed in between is a waste of your day, if anything it’s something to do. Season tickets were 25 bucks a ticket, walk up I believe is 30, parking is free and at the end of the day you support your university. I understand if you went to UMass for school and didnt follow athletics, who cares about this move, but if you pay enough attention to read a blog you must care and be happy we went FBS.
Amen. I work with at least a dozen alumni and not one other one has gone to a football game this year. It’s a disgrace. The alumni in the Boston area should be ashamed of themselves.
Students are not willing to support their football team by traveling 2 hours to the game only to watch the team get destroyed. If the games were still in Amherst, there would be more support at least attendance wise.
It’s not as much about the students. It’s the alumni failing this team.
Joe – You are wrong. Students did not support it prior to this move, which was evidenced each homegame with thousands of students showing up to tailgate and only hundreds actually going into the game.
Honestly I wish they played in Amherst, I would much rather go there than Foxboro, but thats just me.