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Black Bears football prepared to face unbeaten Minutemen

By Adam Clark

Posted on Thursday, September 20th, 2007, 12:00 am

Dating back to the final two weeks of last season, the University of Maine Black Bear football team’s efforts on the field have been overcome by gut-wrenching loss after gut-wrenching loss.

On Nov. 11, 2006, the Atlantic 10 North Division was up for grabs when UMaine visited Amherst to take on the University of Massachusetts Minutemen. After UMass grabbed a 10-0 lead, the Black Bears came back to score nine-straight points, only to miss an extra point late, dropping the game 10-9.

A week later they faced rival New Hampshire at home in the last game of the regular season. The result was a 19-13 loss in overtime where the Black Bears fought back late to tie the game only to come up short once again.

The 2007 season has started the same way last season ended. After taking out Monmouth in a close season-opening win, the Black Bears have lost in consecutive weeks, a 38-0 decision at UConn and a 24-17 overtime decision at Villanova where a game-winning field goal at the end of regulation hit off the right upright.

“Difficult games [are what] you see a lot of in this conference,” said head coach Jack Cosgrove during Monday’s CAA teleconference. “Historically, for us, we have been in this type of game year in and year out.”

On Saturday, UMaine (1-2, 0-1 Colonial Athletic Association) looks to put the past few games behind them as they battle the team that the downward spiral began with as UMass (3-0, 1-0) rolls into town for a 2:30 p.m. CAA battle on a day when UMaine coaching legend Harold Westerman will be inducted into the Maine Football Ring of Honor.

Things have changed since these two teams last met. There is no Atlantic 10 Conferenc, but instead, the Colonial Athletic Association and the Black Bears that trotted out on the field last year in Amherst will be a lot different from the one that hits the gridiron on Saturday afternoon. Missing will be quarterback Ron Whitcomb, running back Arel Gordon and defensive players Matt King, Mike Devito, Manauris Arias and Daren Stone, all veteran all-conference players. Instead, the Black Bears will be led by redshirt freshman quarterback Adam Farkes who will be making his first collegiate start against the third-ranked Minuteme. The Minutemen made it all the way to the national championship game last season.

“UMass is a strong formidable opponent,” said junior defensive lineman Jovan Belcher, who recorded a career-high three sacks in last week’s loss at Villanova. “We will have to play nearly flawless football.”

Through three games this season, UMaine has thrown for under 100 yards in every game and has averaged only 12.7 points. Last in the CAA in points, total yards and passing yards, the Black Bears have yet to throw for a touchdown this season.

While sophomore Michael Brusko won the starting quarterback job after an intense battle through spring practice and preseason, and was the only quarterback with on-field experience, he has been inconsistent and unproductive.

After seeing limited action during the lopsided defeat at UConn the week before, Farkes was put in the game late in the second quarter on Saturday to try to revive a stagnant offense. He responded by leading the Black Bears on two second-half scoring drives and put them in position in the waning moments of regulation to win the game.

While Brusko was the only quarterback on the depth chart with in-game experience heading into this season, Cosgrove made it clear on Monday that the team will endure growing pains with Farkes behind center.

“There’s a learning curve here, and Adam is learning as we go,” said Cosgrove, who in 2003 named then-freshman Ron Whitcomb the starting quarterback, and he went on to be a four-year starter. “He’s an athletic kid, a smart kid, [and] a very coachable young man,” Cosgrove said of Farkes, “and we’re excited to give him the opportunity.”

“There’s going to be mistakes made, but I think when you measure it, the biggest thing is: Did we move the chains? Did we drive the football? Were we successful in operating the offense?” he said. “Those things, in the second half of the game this past weekend, were much more positive than what we went through in the first half.”

Although inexperienced, the strong-armed kid out of Boston appears ready for the challenge that awaits in a conference where six teams are ranked nationally, including three in the top 10.

“It is an exciting opportunity and something that has been a goal of mine,” Farkes said of being named the starter, “but at the same time my focus is the same as it has always been, which is on our upcoming opponent. The whole team is completely focused on UMass and that is our only concern right now, not any individual stories.”

While UMaine is going with an inexperienced quarterback and is coming off yet another hard-fought loss, they are optimistic heading into this weekend’s showdown.

“We felt we did a heck of a job defensively [against Villanova],” said Cosgrove of a defense that sacked the quarterback five times and forced two turnovers last weekend. “We set up a score early and gave the offense another opportunity with the fumble recovery. We left some points on the field, [but] we gave our team a chance to win late in the game.”

In addition to the defense, the Black Bear running game has been very productive, led by junior running back Jhamal Fluellen. In last week’s game at Villanova, Fluellen ran for 170 yards on 24 carries and added two scores, one a 50-yard run that gave UMaine the lead with 7:19 left in the fourth quarter. He also ran for 125 yards and a touchdown in the season opener against Monmouth.

“Our offense moved the ball much better than we had done previously,” Belcher said. “Once our offense and defense come together as a cohesive unit, we will be able to finish.”

One thing that the Black Bears will see on Saturday afternoon, however, is that Villanova is not of UMass’ caliber. UMass, coming off a 36-13 win over No. 23 Towson in its CAA opener, boasts an offense led by junior quarterback and three-year starter Liam Cohen that has averaged 37 points per game, and an equally impressive defense that has allowed only 53 rushing yards per game.

“They’ve lost some players, but they just seem to reload,” Cosgrove said of the Minutemen, who lost 11 starters off last year’s national runner-up squad. “They are the best team in the CAA and we are going to have our hands full.”