By MATT VAUTOUR
AMHERST — Fabian Hoeller always thought of himself more as a center than a guard.
The position fit his intellectual approach as well as his relatively undersized build (6-foot-3, 295 pounds), but with Matt Sparks starting over the ball each of the past three years, Hoeller spent most of his time at guard.
“I’m very glad to be back there,” said the senior from Germany who will start at center this year. “I think I can take a little more responsibility over the entire offense. I think it’s a little better for my size.”
Hoeller has stepped comfortably into the leadership role that accompanies it.
“He does a great job. He’s smart. He can make all our calls. He knows our protections real well. He does a good job getting guys to go in the right direction,” offensive line coach Mike Foley said. “He has a high IQ and does a great job knowing what the whole line is supposed to do. Having played guard and center he has a good feel for what’s going on in there.”
Leadership figures to be critical as several linemen who’ve never seen collegiate game action before are slated to get snaps.
Among them is true freshman Raquan Thomas, who is the biggest player on the roster. At 6-foot-5, 392 pounds, he’s 60 pounds heavier than all of his teammates.
“Raquan is doing a really good job,” Hoeller said. “He’s probably the biggest guy I’ve played with. You can’t teach size, but he’s doing a really good job. For the D-line, it’s really hard to get around him.”
Thomas was slowed getting started. A paperwork mix-up forced him to arrive later in the summer than many of his classmates. Then he suffered a hand injury that got infected. But once he got healthy he’s played well.
“He did a good job studying and knowing what he’s doing,” UMass coach Mark Whipple said. “He’s in the mix. He’ll play against Florida. He’s all of 6-foot-5, 392. He moves his feet and his done a good job.”
Foley said despite his size, Thomas doesn’t appear to have conditioning issues.
“He’s catching up and he’s a guy we’re looking to who could help us this year. He’s got a high football IQ and is picking things up pretty fast,” Foley said. “He’s obviously a big body and he’s physical. I expect big things from him. Since he’s come back he’s never had a problem. He’s a big guy but he hasn’t shown any signs that he can’t go for a long time.”
WHIPPLE REAFFIRMS COMIS — Whipple said redshirt sophomore Ross Comis was UMass’ starting quarterback on the first day of preseason and hasn’t wavered on that. But he’s always said junior college transfer Andrew Ford could battle his way into the starting role.
On Tuesday Whipple left no wiggle room.
“Ross is going to start the (opening) game and finish it,” said Whipple, who then joked, “Unless we don’t block for him. He’s been good. I feel good about the situation.”
BRENEMAN STANDING OUT — Whipple said Adam Breneman, the junior tight end who transferred from Penn State, has lived up to his expectations. He even compared him to graduated former quarterback Blake Frohnapfel, which is high praise coming from Whipple.
“He’s brought a piece of leadership. He’s been like Fro. The guys look up to him. He works hard. Never begs out of anything,” Whipple said. “He’s in good shape. He’s a good blocker. He’s as good a tight end as I’ve been around since the guys (Jimmy Graham, Dedrick Epps) we had at Miami who were drafted.”
WIDE RECEIVERS — Whipple is still expecting wide receiver Jalen Williams to play at Florida. The senior, who has missed all of camp with an injury, will likely be limited by the conditioning hit that comes with missing so much time.
Whipple said Bernard Davis and Shakur Nesmith would likely start, while Andy Isabella, Sadiq Palmer, Dan Jonah and Connor Lemieux would all see action.
Matt Vautour can be reached at mvautour@gazettenet.com. Get UMass coverage delivered in your Facebook news feed at www.facebook.com/GazetteUMassCoverage