Zander Manning's Charlotte-UMass preview

By Zander Manning 

@ZMSportsReport 

When UMass steps onto the turf at Warren M. McGuirk Alumni Stadium Saturday to face Charlotte, it will be searching for not only its second win of the season, but its best record through the first five games since it joined the Football Bowl Subdivision. 

No UMass team has played Charlotte since the softball team faced off against the 49ers in a tournament there that opened the 2016 spring season. Before that, you look back to 1998 when the Minutemen basketball team took on Charlotte in Providence, R.I., and won in overtime, 68-62. 

Going into Saturday’s matchup with Charlotte (2-1, 1-0 Conference-USA), UMass (1-3) is looking for one of its most manageable games of the season since its season-opening matchup vs. Duquesne that saw the Minutemen come out on top, 63-15. 

The Catch — Offense 

While this is one of the most manageable matchups of the season for UMass, the Minutemen are banged up on offense. The quarterback position is one of uncertainty for the Minutemen as both their starter Andrew Ford and backup Ross Comis both were injured in Miami last week in a 63-24 loss to FIU.  

According to UMass head coach Mark Whipple, both quarterbacks were throwing the ball at practice, but were reported to be day-to-day and would be reevaluated later in the week.  

With that said, the next quarterback in line would be redshirt junior Michael Curtis: a junior college transfer from Richardson, Texas and all indications are pointing to him to start. 

Curtis appeared in one game in 2017 coming in as a reserve quarterback vs. Maine in the Fenway Gridiron Series. In three appearances in 2018, however, he has completed 11-of-18 passes for 184 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions. He also rushed eight times for 27 yards and two touchdowns.  

While Curtis may not necessarily start, he does have the best shot if both quarterbacks are not cleared to play.  

The Catch — Defense 

The defense this year has not performed at the level it could. The Minutemen have allowed a combined 167 points in four games, an average of 41.8 points per game. Usually when you allow that many, you don’t win a lot of games, if any. 

They have also allowed a combined 1,875 yards through four games, 116 points in the first half alone, and a combined 51 in the second half.  

A big key that Mark Whipple is looking to correct in Saturday’s matchup is the defense’s inability to play all four quarters, seeing as they have played more like a second half team throughout the first quarter of the season.

  

Graduate student Bryton Barr is once again leading the team in tackles with an even 50 through the first four games, well on his way to breaking his total of 105 in the 2017 season.  

While Barr is a lock on defense, the Minutemen will be counting on him to perform at his highest-level Saturday if they expect to win. 

UMass wins if . . . 

The two offensive trios perform  

Sounds simple enough, right? Not so much when UMass’ third string quarterback Curtis has been taking first team reps for the first time since junior college in Texas, and Ford and Comis are both day-to-day, and according to the last report out of UMass is that they were just “throwing the ball around."

With the uncertainty of who will be starting at quarterback it makes this game kind of hard to gauge offensively, but with Curtis being the healthiest, he is most likely to start. If either of the other two are healthy enough to start, they likely won’t last the entire game.  

With that said there are two approaches to the offense that Whipple utilize. 

Approach No. 1: Andrew Ford/Ross Comis Under Center 

If either Ford or Comis start, they will likely rely on the running game of senior Marquis Young, junior Bilal Ally and redshirt junior Jordan Fredricks. The trio has rushed a combined 84 times for 509 yards and four touchdowns.  

This is the likely approach if one of the two regular quarterbacks start because of their health. 

Of course, the consistent receiving core of senior Andy Isabella, redshirt sophomore Brennon Dingle and sophomore Jessie Britt will play some part in the outcome, but It’s all dependent on who starts at quarterback and what kind of attack Whipple comes out with. The trio has caught a combined 33 passes for 595 yards and four touchdown passes.  

Approach No. 2: Michael Curtis Under Center 

If Curtis were to start on Saturday, the entire complexion of the game changes. Curtis is a quarterback who can both move around in the pocket, run the ball himself, but also pass effectively.  

With him under center, one can safely assume both aforementioned trios will play an impact in both games, as opposed to a one-dimensional attack that would happen if one of Ford/Comis were under center. 

The Minutemen have averaged 30.3 points per game and look for its offensive numbers to be a big factor in Saturday’s matchup. 

Charlotte wins if . . . 

Road woes and the hurricane doesn't get to them 

All three games Charlotte has played so far this season have been at home and on top of that, a hurricane ripped through the Carolinas. Home-field advantage definitely plays a big part of college football. One of those games, however, was a 45-9 loss to Appalachian State, a team that UMass defeated in overtime in October 2017.  

In the three games, the 49ers have scored a combined 71 points and allowed a combined 80. They have also allowed a combined 253 yards on the ground and 806 yards through the air. While those numbers aren’t staggering, what you have to keep in mind is those are their numbers at home. 

In their first game on the road, those numbers can increase especially going from a metropolitan environment in Charlotte to a small town environment in Amherst, not to mention temperature changes. The average temperature has been in the high 70s, low 80s and at kickoff on Saturday it is expected 67 degrees by kickoff.  

Their attack remains two-dimensional 

To this point in the season, Charlotte has not scored a ton of points, averaging 23.7 points per game, and that’s coming against opponents such as FCS Fordham, Appalachian State and Old Dominion. In those games, like the Minutemen, their offense has been two-dimensional.  

Redshirt freshman quarterback Chris Reynolds has passed the ball well, completing 48-of-78 passes for 577 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.  

He too has a trio of players that he relies on game in and game out: redshirt freshman Victory Tucker, redshirt senior Workpeh Kofa and junior running back Benny Lemay. The trio has combined for 39 receptions for 510 yards and two touchdowns.  

On the other end, UMass faces an imposing duo of running backs in Lemay and redshirt sophomore Aaron McCalister. The two have tallied 85 carries for 394 yards and three touchdowns combined.  

If Charlotte balances their attack between the ground game and the passing game, they should be in good shape. 

Prediction: UMass 34, Charlotte 27